United States v. Morris Bridgers ( 2016 )


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  •                             UNPUBLISHED
    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
    FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
    No. 16-6146
    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
    Plaintiff - Appellee,
    v.
    MORRIS EDWARD BRIDGERS, a/k/a Muzak,
    Defendant - Appellant.
    Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
    District of North Carolina, at Raleigh.      Terrence W. Boyle,
    District Judge. (5:13-cr-00183-BO-3; 5:15-cv-00353-BO)
    Submitted:   May 26, 2016                  Decided:   June 1, 2016
    Before TRAXLER, Chief Judge, and NIEMEYER and FLOYD, Circuit
    Judges.
    Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
    Morris Edward Bridgers, Appellant Pro Se.      Jennifer P. May-
    Parker, Assistant United States Attorney, Yvonne Victoria
    Watford-McKinney, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Raleigh,
    North Carolina, for Appellee.
    Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
    PER CURIAM:
    Morris Edward Bridgers seeks to appeal the district court’s
    order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (2012) motion.                              The
    order is not appealable unless a circuit justice or judge issues
    a   certificate        of    appealability.             28   U.S.C.      § 2253(c)(1)(B)
    (2012).     A certificate of appealability will not issue absent “a
    substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.”
    28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2) (2012).                   When the district court denies
    relief    on    the    merits,    a   prisoner         satisfies     this   standard      by
    demonstrating         that     reasonable        jurists     would       find    that     the
    district       court’s      assessment   of       the    constitutional         claims    is
    debatable      or     wrong.     Slack     v.     McDaniel,        
    529 U.S. 473
    ,    484
    (2000); see Miller-El v. Cockrell, 
    537 U.S. 322
    , 336-38 (2003).
    When the district court denies relief on procedural grounds, the
    prisoner must demonstrate both that the dispositive procedural
    ruling    is    debatable,      and   that       the    motion     states   a    debatable
    claim of the denial of a constitutional right.                           
    Slack, 529 U.S. at 484-85
    .
    We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that
    Bridgers has not made the requisite showing.                             Accordingly, we
    deny a certificate of appealability and dismiss the appeal.                               We
    dispense       with    oral     argument      because        the    facts       and     legal
    2
    contentions   are   adequately   presented   in   the   materials   before
    this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
    DISMISSED
    3
    

Document Info

Docket Number: 16-6146

Judges: Traxler, Niemeyer, Floyd

Filed Date: 6/1/2016

Precedential Status: Non-Precedential

Modified Date: 11/6/2024