Brenda Holley v. Wendy Hobbs

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 11-6871 BRENDA J. HOLLEY, Petitioner - Appellant, v. WENDY S. HOBBS, Respondent - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. T. S. Ellis, III, Senior District Judge. (1:10-cv-01085-TSE-JFA) Submitted: September 13, 2011 Decided: September 14, 2011 Before KING, WYNN, and DIAZ, Circuit Judges. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Brenda J. Holley, Appellant Pro Se. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: Brenda J. Holley seeks to appeal the district court’s order dismissing her 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2006) petition. We dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the notice of appeal was not timely filed. Parties in civil cases such as this one are accorded thirty 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’s order was entered on the docket on January 24, 2011. The notice of appeal was filed, at earliest, on June 16, 2011. * Because Holley failed to file a timely notice of appeal or to obtain an extension or reopening of the appeal period, we dismiss the appeal. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are * For the purpose of this appeal, we assume that the date appearing on the notice of appeal is the earliest date it could have been properly delivered to prison officials for mailing to the court. Fed. R. App. P. 4(c); Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266 (1988). 2 adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. DISMISSED 3