Spires. v. Knowlin

UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 09-7377
TIMOTHY JUDE SPIRES, JR.,
Petitioner - Appellant,
v.
GREGORY KNOWLIN, Warden,
Respondent - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
South Carolina, at Beaufort. Cameron McGowan Currie, District
Judge. (9:09-cv-01531-CMC)
Submitted: November 19, 2009 Decided: December 3, 2009
Before MOTZ, GREGORY, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges.
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Timothy Jude Spires, Jr., Appellant Pro Se.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Timothy Jude Spires, Jr., seeks to appeal the district
court’s order accepting the recommendation of the magistrate
judge and dismissing his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2006) petition
without prejudice. The order is not appealable unless a circuit
justice or judge issues a certificate of appealability. 28
U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1) (2006). 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) (2006). A
prisoner satisfies this standard by demonstrating that
reasonable jurists would find that any assessment of the
constitutional claims by the district court is debatable or
wrong and that any dispositive procedural ruling by the district
court is likewise debatable. Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S.
322, 336-38 (2003); Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000);
Rose v. Lee, 252 F.3d 676, 683-84 (4th Cir. 2001). We have
independently reviewed the record and conclude that Spires 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
contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the
court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
DISMISSED
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