UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 03-6544
FRANK M. GASTER,
Petitioner - Appellant,
versus
SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS;
CHARLES CONDON, Attorney General,
Respondents - Appellees.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
South Carolina, at Charleston. Henry M. Herlong, Jr., District
Judge. (CA-02-2708-2-20AJ)
Submitted: June 19, 2003 Decided: June 25, 2003
Before NIEMEYER, KING, and GREGORY, Circuit Judges.
Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Frank M. Gaster, Appellant Pro Se. Donald John Zelenka, Chief
Deputy Attorney General, Columbia, South Carolina, for Appellees.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:
Frank M. Gaster, who was civilly committed under the South
Carolina Sexually Violent Predator Act, seeks to appeal the
district court’s order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2254
(2000) petition, properly construed as a 28 U.S.C. § 2241 (2000)
petition.* We have independently reviewed the record and conclude
that Gaster has not made a substantial showing of the denial of a
constitutional right. See Miller-El v. Cockrell, 123 S. Ct. 1029
(2003). Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability and
dismiss the appeal. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c) (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
*
Although Gaster originally filed the petition under 28
U.S.C. § 2254, because he challenged the constitutionality of a
state civil commitment, the magistrate judge properly characterized
it as a petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241.
2