United States v. Nattaner Phillips

UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 13-6732

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

NATTANER PHILLIPS, a/k/a Nathaniel Phillips, a/k/a Nate,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia, at Norfolk. Arenda Wright Allen, District
Judge. (2:09-cr-00031-AWA-FBS-5)

Submitted: August 22, 2013 Decided: August 27, 2013

Before MOTZ, DIAZ, and FLOYD, Circuit Judges.

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Nattaner Phillips, Appellant Pro Se. Laura Marie Everhart,
Assistant United States Attorney, Norfolk, Virginia, for
Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
PER CURIAM:

Nattaner Phillips appeals the district court’s order

dismissing his motion to appoint counsel to aid in the

preparation of a 28 U.S.C.A. § 2255 (West Supp. 2013) motion to

set aside, vacate, or correct his federal sentence. We have

reviewed the record and conclude the district court did not

abuse its discretion in denying the requested relief.

Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s order. * See United

States v. Phillips, No. 2:09-cr-00031-AWA-FBS-5 (E.D. Va. filed

Apr. 8, 2013 & entered Apr. 9, 2013). 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.

AFFIRMED

*
We note that the district court did not explicitly
construe Phillips’ motion to appoint counsel as a 28 U.S.C.A.
§ 2255 motion or provide notice of its intent to so construe the
motion. See Castro v. United States, 540 U.S. 375, 377 (2003).
Accordingly, Phillips remains free to file a § 2255 motion in
the district court.

2