Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_19-cv-00791/USCOURTS-caed-1_19-cv-00791-0/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

---

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28 1

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ALIM S. URMANCHEEV,

Plaintiff,

v.

HUNTER ANGLEA, et al.,

Defendants.

1:19-cv-00791-DAD-JLT (PC) 

ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO 

PROCEED IN FORMA PAUPERIS AND 

DENYING MOTION FOR

APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL

(Docs. 2-3)

Pending before the Court are plaintiff’s motion for leave to proceed in forma pauperis and 

motion for appointment of counsel. At the time that plaintiff commenced this action, he was 

housed as a detainee in the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, California. Plaintiff is not, 

therefore, a “prisoner” within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. §§ 1915(a)(2), 1915A, or 42 U.S.C. 

§ 1997e, and he is not subject to the incremental fee payment requirement of § 1915(a)(2). 

Plaintiff otherwise qualifies to proceed in forma pauperis. Accordingly, plaintiff’s Application to 

Proceed In Forma Pauperis will be granted. 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a).

As for plaintiff’s motion seeking the appointment of counsel, plaintiff does not have a 

constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 

(9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require an attorney to represent plaintiff pursuant to 28 

U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Mallard v. United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, 

Case 1:19-cv-00791-DAD-CDB Document 8 Filed 01/10/20 Page 1 of 2
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28 2

490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). However, in certain exceptional circumstances the court may request 

the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to section 1915(e)(1). Rand, 113 F.3d at 1525. 

Without a reasonable method of securing and compensating counsel, the court will seek 

volunteer counsel only in the most serious and exceptional cases. In determining whether 

Aexceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success of 

the merits [and] the ability of the [plaintiff] to articulate his claims pro se in light of the 

complexity of the legal issues involved.@ Id. (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). In 

the present case, the court does not find the required exceptional circumstances. Even if it is 

assumed that plaintiff is not well versed in the law and that he has made serious allegations 

which, if proved, would entitle him to relief, his case is not exceptional. This court is faced with 

similar cases almost daily. Further, at this early stage in the proceedings, the court cannot make a 

determination that plaintiff is likely to succeed on the merits, and based on a review of the record 

in this case, the court does not find that plaintiff cannot adequately articulate his claims. Id. 

For the foregoing reasons, the Court GRANTS plaintiff’s motion to proceed in forma 

pauperis (Doc. 3) and DENIES his motion for the appointment of counsel (Doc. 2).

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: January 9, 2020 /s/ Jennifer L. Thurston 

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:19-cv-00791-DAD-CDB Document 8 Filed 01/10/20 Page 2 of 2