Case Name: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Eric Leroy BYRD, Defendant-Appellant
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2018-03-05
Citations: 713 F. App'x 233
Docket Number: No. 17-7120
Parties: UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Eric Leroy BYRD, Defendant-Appellant.
Judges: Before TRAXLER, AGEE, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 713
Pages: 233–234

Head Matter:
UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Eric Leroy BYRD, Defendant-Appellant.
No. 17-7120
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Submitted: January 18, 2018
Decided: March 5, 2018
Amended: March 6, 2018
Eric Leroy Byrd; Appellant Pro Se. Ellen Elisabeth Cobb, Baltimore, Maryland, David Ira Salem, Assistant United States Attorney, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Greenbelt, Maryland, for Appellee.
Before TRAXLER, AGEE, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Eric Leroy Byrd 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. § 2258(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, 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 Byrd 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 this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.
DISMISSED