United States v. Rivera

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 00-6458 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, versus ANDREW RIVERA, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, at Columbia. Joseph F. Anderson, Jr., Chief Dis- trict Judge. (CR-94-723, CA-00-298-17-3) Submitted: March 22, 2001 Decided: March 28, 2001 Before WILKINS, LUTTIG, and MICHAEL, Circuit Judges. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Andrew Rivera, Appellant Pro Se. John Michael Barton, OFFICE OF THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellee. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM: Andrew Rivera seeks to appeal the district court’s order con- struing his motion filed under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 (1994) as one filed under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2255 (West Supp. 2000), and denying the same as successive. We have reviewed the record and the district court’s opinion and find no reversible error.* Accordingly, we deny a cer- tificate of appealability and dismiss the appeal on the reasoning of the district court. United States v. Rivera, Nos. CR-94-723; CA-00-298-17-3 (D.S.C. Feb. 23, 2000). We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. DISMISSED * Rivera, for the first time, asserts in his informal brief that his guilty plea and sentence are invalid under Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466 (2000). As with his claims below, because Rivera has already filed a prior § 2255 motion, he may not file a successive motion regarding this claim without first obtaining leave from this Court via a 28 U.S.C.A. § 2244 (West Supp. 2000) motion. To the extent that Rivera wishes to raise an Apprendi challenge under § 2241, this Court’s opinion in no way impedes his ability to file another such motion in the district court where he is currently confined. 2