USCA4 Appeal: 22-6226 Doc: 12 Filed: 08/23/2022 Pg: 1 of 2
UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 22-6226
BLAKE SANDLAIN,
Petitioner - Appellant,
v.
WARDEN C. MARUKA, FCI McDowell,
Respondent - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, at
Bluefield. David A. Faber, Senior District Judge. (1:20-cv-00358)
Submitted: August 18, 2022 Decided: August 23, 2022
Before WYNN, THACKER, and HEYTENS, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Blake Sandlain, Appellant Pro Se.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
USCA4 Appeal: 22-6226 Doc: 12 Filed: 08/23/2022 Pg: 2 of 2
PER CURIAM:
Blake Sandlain, a federal prisoner, appeals the district court’s order accepting the
magistrate judge’s recommendation and denying relief on Sandlain’s 28 U.S.C. § 2241
petition in which he sought to challenge his convictions and sentence by way of the savings
clause in 28 U.S.C. § 2255. He also appeals from the district court’s denial of his motion
for reconsideration. Pursuant to § 2255(e), a prisoner may challenge his convictions and
sentence in a traditional writ of habeas corpus under § 2241 if a § 2255 motion would be
inadequate or ineffective to test the legality of his detention. Here, the district court
correctly determined that Sandlain may not challenge the validity of his convictions and
sentence through a § 2241 petition, as the conduct for which he was convicted remains
criminal, In re Jones, 226 F.3d 328, 333-34 (4th Cir. 2000), and he failed to identify a
retroactive change in the substantive law affecting his sentence, United States v. Wheeler,
886 F.3d 415, 429 (4th Cir. 2018). Accordingly, we affirm for the reasons stated by the
district court. Sandlain v. Maruka, No. 1:20-cv-00358 (S.D.W. Va. Jan. 25, 2022 &
Feb. 14, 2022). 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
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