UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
No. 99-6387
CRAIG O. COPLEY,
Petitioner - Appellant,
versus
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Respondent - Appellee.
No. 99-6388
CRAIG O. COPLEY,
Petitioner - Appellant,
versus
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Respondent - Appellee.
Appeals from the United States District Court for the Eastern Dis-
trict of North Carolina, at Raleigh. W. Earl Britt, Senior Dis-
trict Judge. (CA-90-47-HC)
Submitted: August 5, 1999 Decided: August 11, 1999
Before MURNAGHAN and MOTZ, Circuit Judges, and BUTZNER, Senior
Circuit Judge.
Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.
Craig O. Copley, Appellant Pro Se. Eileen Coffey Moore, OFFICE OF
THE UNITED STATES ATTORNEY, Raleigh, North Carolina, for Appellee.
Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
2
PER CURIAM:
Craig O. Copley appeals the district court’s order denying his
motion for a discharge hearing (No. 99-6388) and his motion to
represent himself (No. 99-6387). We have reviewed the record and
find no reversible error.
Because only counsel or a legal guardian may file a motion for
a discharge hearing on behalf of a committed person, the district
court properly denied this motion without prejudice. See 18 U.S.C.
§ 4247(h) (1994). Further, Copley’s motion to represent himself
was properly denied, as the statute does not permit him to repre-
sent himself in the filing of a motion for discharge. In addition,
because Copley may renew his motion at any future discharge
hearing, the instant motion was premature.
Therefore, we affirm. We dispense with oral argument because
the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the ma-
terials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional
process.
AFFIRMED
3