UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 97-6245

WILBUR BRUCE ALLEN, Petitioner - Appellant, versus JOHN TAYLOR, Warden, Respondent - Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern Dis- trict of Virginia, at Richmond. David G. Lowe, Magistrate Judge. (CA-96-435-3)

Submitted: May 15, 1997 Decided: May 29, 1997

Before RUSSELL, HALL, and HAMILTON, Circuit Judges.

Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Wilbur Bruce Allen, Appellant Pro Se. Marla Graff Decker, Assistant Attorney General, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

See Local Rule 36(c).

PER CURIAM: Appellant seeks to appeal the magistrate judge's order denying relief on his petition filed under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2254 (West 1994 & Supp. 1997).* We have reviewed the record and the magistrate judge's opinion and find no reversible error. Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability and dismiss the appeal on the rea- soning of the magistrate judge. Allen v. Taylor, No. CA-96-435-3 (E.D. Va. Jan. 10, 1997). 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.

DISMISSED

* The parties consented to the jurisdiction of the magistrate judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) (West 1994 & Supp. 1997).