Court Opinion

ID: 9375230
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-02-25 21:00:40.390919+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:16:57.057088
License: Public Domain

USCA4 Appeal: 22-7381      Doc: 15          Filed: 02/24/2023   Pg: 1 of 3

                                             UNPUBLISHED

                               UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
                                   FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

                                               No. 22-7381

        JEFFREY DEGREE,

                            Plaintiff - Appellant,

                     v.

        BLACKSBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT; CHEROKEE COUNTY SHERIFF’S
        DEPARTMENT,

                            Defendants - Appellees.

        Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, at
        Spartanburg. Bruce H. Hendricks, District Judge. (7:22-cv-02259-BHH)

        Submitted: February 21, 2023                                 Decided: February 24, 2023

        Before NIEMEYER and DIAZ, Circuit Judges, and MOTZ, Senior Circuit Judge.

        Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

        Jeffrey Degree, Appellant Pro Se.

        Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
USCA4 Appeal: 22-7381         Doc: 15      Filed: 02/24/2023     Pg: 2 of 3

        PER CURIAM:

               Jeffrey Degree seeks to appeal the district court’s order dismissing his 42 U.S.C.

        § 1983 complaint without prejudice for failure to prosecute and failure to comply with the

        court’s orders. We dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the notice of appeal

        was not timely filed.

               In civil cases, parties have 30 days after the entry of the district court’s final

        judgment or order to note an appeal, Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A), unless the district court

        extends the appeal period under Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(5) or reopens the appeal period under

        Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(6). “[T]he timely filing of a notice of appeal in a civil case is a

        jurisdictional requirement.” Bowles v. Russell, 551 U.S. 205, 214 (2007).

               The district court entered its order on August 15, 2022. Degree filed the document

        construed as his notice of appeal 1 on November 21, 2022. 2 Because Degree failed to file

        a timely notice of appeal or to obtain an extension or reopening of the appeal period, we

        dismiss the appeal.

               1
                 To the extent Degree seeks appellate review of the district court’s order pursuant
        to a petition for a writ of mandamus, such review is not available by way of mandamus.
        See In re Lockheed Martin Corp., 503 F.3d 351, 353 (4th Cir. 2007) (explaining that
        mandamus “may not be used as a substitute for appeal”).
               2
                 For the purpose of this appeal, we assume that the postmark date appearing on the
        envelope containing the notice of appeal is the earliest date Degree could have delivered
        the notice to prison officials for mailing to the court. Fed. R. App. P. 4(c)(1); Houston v.
        Lack, 487 U.S. 266, 276 (1988).

                                                     2
USCA4 Appeal: 22-7381         Doc: 15    Filed: 02/24/2023   Pg: 3 of 3

              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

                                                  3