Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-01072/USCOURTS-caed-1_14-cv-01072-4/pdf.json

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

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

CHRISTOPHER CONDEE,

 Plaintiff,

 vs.

CASTILLO, et al.

 Defendant.

Case No. 1:14-cv-01072-DAD-EPG-PC

ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF’S 

MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF 

COUNSEL

(ECF No. 20)

Plaintiff Christopher Condee is proceeding pro se and in forma pauperis in this action 

alleging violations of 42 U.S.C. § 1983. On September 27, 2016, the Court issued Findings and 

Recommendations recommending that Plaintiff’s Second Amended Complaint be dismissed 

with prejudice for failure to state a claim. (ECF No. 19.) On October 13, 2016, Plaintiff filed a 

motion for the appointment of counsel. (ECF No. 20.)

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, 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. 

Case 1:14-cv-01072-DAD-EPG Document 23 Filed 10/18/16 Page 1 of 2
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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).

Plaintiff argues that exceptional circumstances exist because he has only a sixth grade 

education and is opposed by “teams of highly skilled and seasoned state’s attorneys, whose 

only job is to thwart prisoner law suits.” (ECF No. 20.) Plaintiff contends that, without counsel, 

his claim will fail because he will not be able to obtain adequate evidence to prove his case.

Plaintiff’s case does not demonstrate the exceptional circumstances required for the 

appointment of counsel. The Court cannot find that there is a likelihood that Plaintiff’s claim 

will succeed on its merits because it has already found that the complaint fails to state a claim. 

Nor is this finding a result of any inability on Plaintiff’s part to articulate his claims. The Court 

was able to adequately evaluate the facts Plaintiff alleged in his complaints; the 

recommendation that the complaint be dismissed was made because, even assuming those facts 

to be true, the complaint does not state a legal cause of action.

Plaintiff=s motion for the appointment of counsel (ECF No. 20) is DENIED.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: October 18, 2016 /s/

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:14-cv-01072-DAD-EPG Document 23 Filed 10/18/16 Page 2 of 2