United States v. Ramsey

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 03-6263 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff - Appellee, versus HUBERT RAMSEY, Defendant - Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at Statesville. Richard L. Voorhees, District Judge. (CR-95-5-V; CA-99-129-5-4-V) Submitted: August 25, 2004 Decided: September 9, 2004 Before WIDENER, LUTTIG, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Hubert Ramsey, Appellant Pro Se. Brian Lee Whisler, Assistant United States Attorney, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellee. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM: Hubert Ramsey seeks to appeal the district court’s order denying relief on his Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b) motion filed in his underlying 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (2000) action. The district court appears to have dismissed the action as successive. The order is not appealable unless a circuit justice or judge issues a certificate of appealability. 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1) (2000); Reid v. Angelone, 369 F.3d 363, 368-69 (4th Cir. 2004) (holding that appeal from the denial of a Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b) motion in a habeas action requires a certificate of appealability). 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) (2000). A prisoner satisfies this standard by demonstrating that reasonable jurists would find that his constitutional claims are debatable and that any dispositive procedural rulings by the district court are also debatable or wrong. See Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322, 336-38 (2003); Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000); Rose v. Lee, 252 F.3d 676, 683 (4th Cir. 2001). We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Ramsey has not made the requisite showing. Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability and dismiss the appeal. To the extent Ramsey’s notice of appeal and informal brief could be construed as a motion for authorization to file a - 2 - successive § 2255 motion, we deny such authorization. United States v. Winestock, 340 F.3d 200, 208 (4th Cir.), cert. denied, 124 S. Ct. 496 (2003). 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 - 3 -