West

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 WILLIAM JEROME MARQUISE COOK, No. 2:20-cv-0588 AC P Plaintiff, v. ORDER WEST, Defendant. 16 Plaintiff, a state prisoner proceeding pro se with a civil rights action, has requested appointment of counsel. ECF No. 3. In support of the motion, plaintiff states in part that he does not know the law, that he has a high school education, and that it is difficult for him to understand written documents. See id. Plaintiff also asserts that he does not have full access to the law library. See id. The United States Supreme Court has ruled that district courts lack authority to require counsel to represent indigent prisoners in § 1983 cases. Mallard v. United States Dist. Court, 490 U.S. 296, 298 (1989). In certain exceptional circumstances, the district court may request the voluntary assistance of counsel pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1915(e)(1). Terrell v. Brewer, 935 F.2d 1015, 1017 (9th Cir. 1991); Wood v. Housewright, 900 F.2d…