USCA4 Appeal: 24-6043 Doc: 22 Filed: 07/22/2024 Pg: 1 of 2

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 24-6043

JUSTIN LEON WALKER, Petitioner - Appellant, v. DIRECTOR CHADWICK DOTSON, Respondent - Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Richmond. David J. Novak, District Judge. (3:23-cv-00388-DJN-MRC)

Submitted: July 18, 2024 Decided: July 22, 2024

Before NIEMEYER, KING, and HEYTENS, Circuit Judges.

Remanded by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Justin Leon Walker, Appellant Pro Se.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

USCA4 Appeal: 24-6043 Doc: 22 Filed: 07/22/2024 Pg: 2 of 2

PER CURIAM: Justin Leon Walker seeks to appeal the district court’s order denying relief on his 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition. The district court received the notice of appeal shortly after the appeal period expired on January 3, 2024. See Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(A). Because Walker is incarcerated, the notice is considered filed as of the date it was delivered to prison officials for mailing to the court. Fed. R. App. P. 4(c)(1); Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266, 276 (1988). The record does not conclusively establish when Walker gave the notice of appeal to prison officials for mailing. Accordingly, we remand this case for the limited purpose of allowing the district court to obtain this information from the parties and to determine whether the filing was timely under Rule 4(c)(1) and Houston. The record, as supplemented, will then be returned to this court for further consideration.

REMANDED