1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 ALBERT BENJAMIN LUCERO, JR., No. 2:24-cv-2890 TLN CKD P 12 Plaintiff, 13 v. ORDER 14 ERIC ULDALL, 15 Defendant. 16 17 Plaintiff is a state prisoner proceeding pro se in an action brought under

. 18 Plaintiff requests that the court appoint counsel. District courts lack authority to require counsel 19 to represent indigent prisoners in section 1983 cases. Mallard v. United States Dist. Court, 490

, 298 (1989). In exceptional circumstances, the court may request an attorney to 21 voluntarily represent such a plaintiff. See

(e)(1); Terrell v. Brewer,

(9th Cir. 1991); Wood v. Housewright,

(9th Cir. 1990). 23 When determining whether “exceptional circumstances” exist, the court must consider plaintiff’s 24 likelihood of success on the merits as well as the ability of the plaintiff to articulate his claims pro 25 se in light of the complexity of the legal issues involved. Palmer v. Valdez,

, 970 26 (9th Cir. 2009) (district court did not abuse discretion in declining to appoint counsel). The 27 burden of demonstrating exceptional circumstances is on the plaintiff.

Circumstances 28 common to most prisoners, such as lack of legal education and limited law library access, do not 1 | establish exceptional circumstances that warrant a request for voluntary assistance of counsel. 2 The undersigned has recommended plaintiff's complaint be dismissed without leave to 3 || amend because plaintiff seeks relief from a defendant who is immune from suit. (See ECF No. 4 | 12.) Considering the factors under Palmer, the court finds that plaintiff has failed to meet the 5 || burden of demonstrating exceptional circumstances warranting the appointment of counsel at this 6 || time. 7 Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff's motion for the appointment of 8 || counsel (ECF No. 15) is denied without prejudice. 9 | Dated: May 27, 2025 / hice ANKE) flo "0 CAROLYNK.DELANEY/ 11 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 12 13 || 8, luce2890.31.new(2) 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28