UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. No. 99-6619 MELVIN M. STANFORD, a/k/a Slim, Defendant-Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, at Baltimore.

Benson E. Legg, District Judge. (CR-82-351, CA-97-923-L) Submitted: July 6, 1999 Decided: August 26, 1999 Before WILKINS, HAMILTON, and KING, Circuit Judges. _________________________________________________________________ Vacated and remanded by unpublished per curiam opinion. _________________________________________________________________ COUNSEL Melvin M. Stanford, Appellant Pro Se. Philip S. Jackson, Assistant United States Attorney, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee. _________________________________________________________________ Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). _________________________________________________________________ OPINION PER CURIAM: Melvin Stanford appeals the district court's order denying as untimely filed his motion under 28 U.S.C.A. § 2255 (West Supp. 1999). He claims that his motion was filed within the statutory limita- tions period, and we agree. Where the prisoner's conviction became final prior to the enactment date of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA), the one-year limitations period provided by 28 U.S.C.A. § 2244(d) (West Supp. 1999), will run from April 24, 1996, the effective date of the statute. See Brown v. Angelone, 150 F.3d 370, 375-76 (4th Cir. 1998). Because Stanford's motion was executed on March 28, 1997, it was timely filed. Accord- ingly, we grant a certificate of appealability, vacate the order of the district court, and remand the matter for further proceedings.* We express no opinion on the merits of Stanford's motion. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are ade- quately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

VACATED AND REMANDED _________________________________________________________________ *Indeed, the district court has recognized the error and has reopened the case. We vacate the district court's dismissal order simply to ensure that the district court possesses jurisdiction to proceed.