Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_16-cv-00521/USCOURTS-caed-1_16-cv-00521-2/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 28:1331 Federal Question: Bivens Act

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

Plaintiff Muhaymin Shabazz Muhammad is a prisoner in the custody of the Federal Bureau of 

Prisons (“BOP”). 

On June 13, 2016, Plaintiff filed a motion for 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 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 

MUHAYMIN SHABAZZ MUHAMMAD,

 Plaintiff,

v.

COPENHAGEN, et al.,

Defendants.

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Case No.: 1:16-cv-00521-AWI-SAB (PC)

ORDER DENYING, WITHOUT PREJUDICE, 

PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF 

COUNSEL

[ECF No. 9]

Case 1:16-cv-00521-AWI-SAB Document 10 Filed 06/14/16 Page 1 of 2
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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 

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. Circumstances common to most prisoners, such as lack of legal education and limited 

law library access, do not establish exceptional circumstances that would warrant a request for 

voluntary assistance of counsel. In the present case, the Court has yet to screen Plaintiff’s complaint 

and based on a cursory review of the complaint, the Court does not find the required exceptional 

circumstances. Thus, 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, Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel is HEREBY 

DENIED, without prejudice. 

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: June 14, 2016 

UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:16-cv-00521-AWI-SAB Document 10 Filed 06/14/16 Page 2 of 2