UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 00-7073

ERIC WILLIAM OWENS,

Petitioner - Appellant,

versus

T. C. SMILEY, Superintendent,

Respondent - Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, at Charlotte. Graham C. Mullen, Chief District Judge. (CA-99-508-3-MU)

Submitted: November 30, 2000 Decided: December 6, 2000

Before NIEMEYER, LUTTIG, and MICHAEL, Circuit Judges.

Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Eric William Owens, Appellant Pro Se. Clarence Joe DelForge, III, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF NORTH CAROLINA, Raleigh, North Carolina, for Appellee.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM:

Eric William Owens seeks to appeal the district court’s order

denying relief on his petition filed under

(West

1994 & Supp. 2000). We have reviewed the record and the district

court’s opinion and find no reversible error. Accordingly, we deny

his motion for a certificate of appealability and dismiss the ap-

peal on the reasoning of the district court. See Owens v. Smiley,

No. CA-99-508-3-MU (W.D.N.C. June 26, 2000).* We also deny his mo-

tion to proceed in forma pauperis. We dispense with oral argument

because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in

the materials before the court and argument would not aid the

decisional process.

DISMISSED

* Although the district court’s order is marked as “filed” on June 22, 2000, the district court’s records show that it was entered on the docket sheet on June 26,2000. Pursuant to Rules 58 and 79(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, it is the date that the order was entered on the docket sheet that we take as the effective date of the district court’s decision. See Wilson v. Murray,

(4th Cir. 1986).

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