Opinion
NO. 7:08-CV-20 (HL).
November 17, 2010
ORDER
Before the Court is petitioner THEODORE SMITH'S notice of appeal and request for a Certificate of Appealability ("COA") from the Court's order that petitioner's 28 U.S.C. § 2254 motion be dismissed. Under section 2253(c)(2), a COA may issue only if the applicant makes" a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right." This requires a petitioner to demonstrate that "reasonable jurists would find the district court's assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong." See Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 478 (2000).
For the reasons stated in Magistrate Judge G. Mallon Faircloth's February 4, 2010 recommendation and this Court's September 21, 2010 order accepting the same, the Court concludes reasonable jurists could not find that a dismissal of petitioner's claims was debatable or wrong. Accordingly, it is hereby ORDERED that petitioner's application for a COA be DENIED.
It is further ORDERED that petitioner's motion for leave to proceed IFP on appeal be DENIED AS MOOT. SO ORDERED, this 17th day of November, 2010.