Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-00706/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-00706-6/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 560
Nature of Suit: Prisoner Petitions - Civil Detainee - Conditions of Confinement
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

Plaintiff Gregory Ell Shehee is a civil detainee proceeding pro se in a civil rights action 

pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Individuals detained pursuant to California Welfare and Institutions 

Code § 6600 et seq. are civil detainees and are not prisoners within the meaning of the Prison 

Litigation Reform Act. Page v. Torrey, 201 F.3d 1136, 1140 (9th Cir. 2000). 

On August 1, 2014, the Court screened and dismissed Plaintiff’s complaint with leave to 

amend within thirty days. (ECF No. 9.) After more than thirty days passed and Plaintiff failed to file 

an amended complaint, an order to show cause as to why the action should not be dismissed was 

issued on December 11, 2014. (ECF No. 17.) 

Instead of filing a response to the order to show cause, Plaintiff filed a motion for the 

appointment of counsel on January 26, 2015. (ECF No. 18.) 

Plaintiff seeks appointment of counsel because he is now “totally, completely, and irrevocably 

blind. Plaintiff does not have a constitutional right to appointed counsel in this action, Rand v. 

GREGORY ELL SHEHEE,

 Plaintiff,

v.

K. TRUMBLY, et al.,

Defendants.

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Case No.: 1:14-cv-00706-SAB (PC)

ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION 

FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL WITHOUT 

PREJUDICE

[ECF No. 18]

Case 1:14-cv-00706-DAD-SAB Document 19 Filed 02/09/15 Page 1 of 3
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Rowland, 113 F.3d 1520, 1525 (9th Cir. 1997), and the court cannot require any 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, 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 

“exceptional circumstances exist, the district court must evaluate both the likelihood of success on 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. Although 

Plaintiff contends he is now totally blind, this fact alone does not demonstrate exceptional 

circumstances. At this stage of the proceedings, the Court cannot make a determination if Plaintiff is 

likely to succeed on the merits. Plaintiff’s initial complaint was dismissed with leave to amend for 

failure to state a cognizable claim for relief. Plaintiff failed to amend the complaint and an order to 

show cause was issued and is still pending. Thus, there is no operative complaint on file that states a 

cognizable claim. Moreover, there is no basis to find that Plaintiff cannot adequate articulate his claim 

and respond to court orders. 

For the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel is HEREBY 

DENIED, without prejudice. Within thirty (30) days from the date of service of this order, Plaintiff 

shall file a response to the Court’s order to show cause, and the failure to comply with this order will 

result in dismissal of the action. 

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: February 6, 2015 

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:14-cv-00706-DAD-SAB Document 19 Filed 02/09/15 Page 2 of 3
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Case 1:14-cv-00706-DAD-SAB Document 19 Filed 02/09/15 Page 3 of 3