Michael OwlFeather-Gorbey v. Warden ( 2020 )

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 20-6761
MICHAEL STEVEN OWLFEATHER-GORBEY,
Petitioner - Appellant,
v.
WARDEN, FCI Cumberland,
Respondent - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, at Baltimore.
Richard D. Bennett, District Judge. (1:19-cv-02394-RDB)
Submitted: September 24, 2020 Decided: September 29, 2020
Before HARRIS and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit
Judge.
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Michael Steven Owlfeather-Gorbey, Appellant Pro Se.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Michael Steven Owlfeather-Gorbey, a District of Columbia offender, seeks to
appeal the district court’s order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2241 petition challenging
the constitutionality of his prison disciplinary proceedings. The order is not appealable
unless a circuit justice or judge issues a certificate of appealability. ∗ 28 U.S.C.
§ 2253(c)(1)(A). 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). When the district court
denies relief on the merits, a prisoner satisfies this standard by demonstrating that
reasonable jurists could find the district court’s assessment of the constitutional claims
debatable or wrong. See Buck v. Davis, 137 S. Ct. 759, 773-74 (2017). When the district
court denies relief on procedural grounds, the prisoner must demonstrate both that the
dispositive procedural ruling is debatable and that the petition states a debatable claim of
the denial of a constitutional right. Gonzalez v. Thaler, 565 U.S. 134, 140-41 (2012) (citing
Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000)).
We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Owlfeather-Gorbey
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
∗
Because Owlfeather-Gorbey was convicted in a District of Columbia court, he is
required to obtain a certificate of appealability in order to appeal the denial of his habeas
petition. See Madley v. United States Parole Comm’n, 278 F.3d 1306, 1310 (D.C. Cir.
2002).
2
contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would
not aid the decisional process.
DISMISSED
3