Opinion
No. 18-7347
04-15-2020
ROBERT LINWOOD PRINCE, Petitioner - Appellant, v. HAROLD W. CLARKE, Director, Virginia Department of Corrections, Respondent - Appellee.
Robert Linwood Prince, Appellant Pro Se.
UNPUBLISHED
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Norfolk. Raymond A. Jackson, District Judge. (2:17-cv-00233-RAJ-LRL ) Before NIEMEYER and HARRIS, Circuit Judges, and SHEDD, Senior Circuit Judge. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Robert Linwood Prince, Appellant Pro Se. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM:
Robert L. Prince seeks to appeal the district court's order accepting the recommendation of the magistrate judge and dismissing Prince's 28 U.S.C. § 2254 (2018) petition. We dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because the notice of appeal was not timely filed.
In civil cases, parties have 30 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 entered its final order on September 12, 2018. Prince delivered his notice of appeal with the prison mail system on October 25, 2018, after the expiration of the 30-day appeal period but within the excusable neglect period. See Fed. R. App. P. 4(c); see also Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266, 270 (1988) (stating prison mailbox rule). We remanded for the district court to determine whether Prince demonstrated excusable neglect or good cause warranting an extension of the 30-day appeal period. The district court concluded that he had not, so we dismiss the appeal as untimely. 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