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Kent v. Va. Dep't of Corr.

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
Oct 24, 2018
No. 18-6712 (4th Cir. Oct. 24, 2018)

Opinion

No. 18-6712

10-24-2018

SCOTT KENT, Petitioner - Appellant, v. VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Respondent - Appellee.

Scott Kent, Appellant Pro Se.


UNPUBLISHED

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Claude M. Hilton, Senior District Judge. (1:15-cv-01717-CMH-IDD) Before GREGORY, Chief Judge, THACKER, Circuit Judge, and TRAXLER, Senior Circuit Judge. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Scott Kent, Appellant Pro Se. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM:

Scott Kent seeks to appeal the district court's order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2012) petition. The order is not appealable unless a circuit justice or judge issues a certificate of appealability. See 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(1)(A) (2012). A certificate of appealability will not issue absent "a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right." 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2) (2012). When the district court denies relief on the merits, a prisoner satisfies this standard by demonstrating that reasonable jurists would find that the district court's assessment of the constitutional claims is debatable or wrong. Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000); see Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322, 336-38 (2003). When the district court denies relief on procedural grounds, the prisoner must demonstrate both that the dispositive procedural ruling is debatable, and that the petition states a debatable claim of the denial of a constitutional right. Slack, 529 U.S. at 484-85.

We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Kent has not made the requisite showing. Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability and dismiss the appeal. 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.

DISMISSED


Summaries of

Kent v. Va. Dep't of Corr.

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT
Oct 24, 2018
No. 18-6712 (4th Cir. Oct. 24, 2018)
Case details for

Kent v. Va. Dep't of Corr.

Case Details

Full title:SCOTT KENT, Petitioner - Appellant, v. VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS…

Court:UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

Date published: Oct 24, 2018

Citations

No. 18-6712 (4th Cir. Oct. 24, 2018)