Case Name: Mark Gregory HANDY, Sr., Petitioner-Appellant, v. Frank B. BISHOP, Jr.; The Attorney General of the State of Maryland, Respondents-Appellees
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2016-06-28
Citations: 653 F. App'x 211
Docket Number: No. 15-8029
Parties: Mark Gregory HANDY, Sr., Petitioner-Appellant, v. Frank B. BISHOP, Jr.; The Attorney General of the State of Maryland, Respondents-Appellees.
Judges: Before WILKINSON and HARRIS, Circuit Judges, and DAVIS, Senior Circuit Judge.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 653
Pages: 211–212

Head Matter:
Mark Gregory HANDY, Sr., Petitioner-Appellant, v. Frank B. BISHOP, Jr.; The Attorney General of the State of Maryland, Respondents-Appellees.
No. 15-8029
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Submitted: June 1, 2016
Decided: June 28, 2016
Mark Gregory Handy, Sr., Appellant Pro Se. Edward John Kelley, Office of the Attorney General of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellees.
Before WILKINSON and HARRIS, Circuit Judges, and DAVIS, Senior Circuit Judge.

Opinion:
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Mark Gregory Handy, Sr., seeks to appeal the district court's order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2012) petition. The order is not appealable unless a circuit justice or judge issues a certifícate of ap-pealability. 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1)(A) (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, 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 petition states a debatable claim of the denial of a constitutional right. Slack, 529 UiS. at 484-85, 120 S.Ct. 1595.
We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Handy has not made the requisite showing. Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability, deny leave to proceed in forma pauperis, deny as moot Handy's motion for appointment of counsel, 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