Case Name: Michael Keith LAMBERT, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Harold W. CLARKE, Respondent-Appellee
Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Jurisdiction: United States
Decision Date: 2016-11-08
Citations: 670 F. App'x 164
Docket Number: No. 16-6589
Parties: Michael Keith LAMBERT, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Harold W. CLARKE, Respondent-Appellee.
Judges: Before MOTZ, SHEDD, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges.
Reporter: West's Federal Appendix
Volume: 670
Pages: 164–165

Head Matter:
Michael Keith LAMBERT, Petitioner-Appellant, v. Harold W. CLARKE, Respondent-Appellee.
No. 16-6589
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Submitted: October 11, 2016
Decided: November 8, 2016
Nathan S. Mammen, KIRKLAND & ELLIS, LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellant. Eugene Paul Murphy, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF VIRGINIA, Richmond, Virginia, for Ap-pellee.
Before MOTZ, SHEDD, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges.

Opinion:
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:
Michael Keith Lambert 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 certificate of appealability. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1)(A) (2012). A certifícate 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 U.S. at 484-85, 120 S.Ct. 1595.
We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Lambert 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