Case Name: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. David HOWARD, Defendant-Appellant
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2016-10-17
Citations: 669 F. App'x 641
Docket Number: No. 16-6412
Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. David HOWARD, Defendant-Appellant.
Judges: Before NIEMEYER, DUNCAN, and WYNN, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 669
Pages: 641–642

Head Matter:
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. David HOWARD, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 16-6412
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Submitted: October 13, 2016
Decided: October 17, 2016
David Howard, Appellant Pro Se. Paul E. Budlow, Office of the United States Attorney, Rod J. Rosenstein, United States Attorney, Baltimore, Maryland; Mark Walter Crooks, Office of the Governor, Annapolis, Maryland, for Appellee.
Before NIEMEYER, DUNCAN, and WYNN, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
David Howard 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. § 2263(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, 120 S.Ct. 1595, 146 L.Ed.2d 542 (2000); see Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322, 336-38, 123 S.Ct. 1029, 154 L.Ed.2d 931 (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, 120 S.Ct. 1595.
We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Howard has not made the requisite showing. Accordingly, we deny Howard's motion for 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 this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
DISMISSED