UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 97-6840
SCOTT SOWELL,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
versus
CORRECTIONAL OFFICER II WHEELER, Prison Guard,
Defendant - Appellee.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of
Maryland, at Baltimore. J. Frederick Motz, Chief District Judge.
(CA-97-1604-JFM)
Submitted: December 11, 1997 Decided: January 13, 1998
Before HALL and WILLIAMS, Circuit Judges, and PHILLIPS, Senior
Circuit Judge.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Scott Sowell, Appellant Pro Se.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:
Scott Sowell appeals the district court's order dismissing his
42 U.S.C. § 1983 (1994) complaint without prejudice for failure to
exhaust administrative remedies. The district court properly re-
quired exhaustion of administrative remedies under 42 U.S.C.A.
§ 1997e(a) (West Supp. 1997). Because Sowell did not demonstrate to
the district court that he had exhausted administrative remedies or
that such remedies were not available, the court's dismissal of the
action, without prejudice, was not an abuse of discretion. We
therefore affirm the district court's order. 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.
AFFIRMED
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