Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-1_21-cv-00617/USCOURTS-caed-1_21-cv-00617-1/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
D. Castillo
Defendant
Edward D. Gilmore
Plaintiff

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

EDWARD D. GILMORE,

 Plaintiff,

 vs.

D. CASTILLO,

 Defendant.

1:21-cv-00617-GSA-PC

ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR 

APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL

(ECF No. 9.)

Edward D. Gilmore (“Plaintiff”) is a state prisoner proceeding pro se and in forma 

pauperis with this civil rights action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983. Plaintiff filed the Complaint 

commencing this action on April 14, 2021. (ECF No. 1.) The Complaint awaits the Court’s 

requisite screening under 28 U.S.C. § 1915.

On December 22, 2022, Plaintiff filed a 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, 490 U.S. 296, 298, 109 S.Ct. 1814, 1816 (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 1:21-cv-00617-JLT-GSA Document 10 Filed 01/05/23 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 

“exceptional 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. 

Plaintiff seeks appointment of counsel because he is unable to afford counsel, the issues involved 

in this case are complex, Plaintiff lacks adequate access to the law library, he has been unable to 

find an attorney to represent him, he has a limited knowledge of law, and he is being harassed by 

correctional officers. These are not exceptional circumstances under the law. Plaintiff’s claims 

for excessive force, retaliation, failure to protect, and confiscation of property are not complex, 

and based on a review of the record in this case, Plaintiff can adequately articulate his claims and 

respond to court orders. Thus, the Court does not find the required exceptional circumstances, 

and Plaintiff’s motion shall be denied without prejudice to renewal of the motion at a later stage 

of the proceedings.

Accordingly, for the foregoing reasons, Plaintiff’s motion for the appointment of counsel 

is HEREBY DENIED, without prejudice. 

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: January 4, 2023 /s/ Gary S. Austin 

 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Case 1:21-cv-00617-JLT-GSA Document 10 Filed 01/05/23 Page 2 of 2