United States v. $1,810 US Currency ( 2003 )

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 03-6259
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff - Appellee,
versus
NATHANIEL F. DOWNING,
Claimant - Appellant,
and
$1,810.00 U.S. CURRENCY,
Defendant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
Maryland, at Baltimore. Andre M. Davis, District Judge. (CA-01-
1901-AMD)
Submitted: June 10, 2003 Decided: June 23, 2003
Before TRAXLER and KING, Circuit Judges, and HAMILTON, Senior
Circuit Judge.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Nathaniel F. Downing, Appellant Pro Se. Thomas Michael DiBiagio,
United States Attorney, Andrew George Warrens Norman, Assistant
United States Attorney, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:
Nathaniel F. Downing appeals from the district court’s order
entering a default judgment against him in this civil forfeiture
proceeding. Although given several opportunities to respond to the
government’s requests for discovery, Downing failed to comply. The
district court may dismiss an action if a party fails to timely
answer or object to discovery requests. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 37(d).
The dismissal of an action as a sanction for discovery violations
is reviewed for abuse of discretion. See Nat’l Hockey League v.
Metro. Hockey Club, 427 U.S. 639, 642 (1976). Applying the four-
part test provided in Mutual Fed. Sav. & Loan Ass’n v. Richards &
Assoc., 872 F.2d 88, 92 (4th Cir. 1989), we find no abuse of
discretion. Accordingly, we deny Downing’s motion for judgment and
affirm for the reasons stated by the district court. See United
States v. Downing, No. CA-01-1901-AMD (D. Md. Nov. 20, 2002). We
dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions
are adequately presented in the materials before the court and
argument would not aid the decisional process.
AFFIRMED
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