United States v. Dequantey Williams

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

United States v. Dequantey Williams

Opinion

USCA4 Appeal: 25-6065 Doc: 14 Filed: 12/02/2025 Pg: 1 of 2

UNPUBLISHED

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 25-6065

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

Plaintiff - Appellee,

v.

DEQUANTEY MAURICE WILLIAMS,

Defendant - Appellant.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, at Greensboro. Catherine C. Eagles, Chief District Judge. (1:18-cr-00393-CCE-2; 1:22-cv- 01124-CCE-LPA)

Submitted: November 25, 2025 Decided: December 2, 2025

Before WYNN and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges, and KEENAN, Senior Circuit Judge.

Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Dequantey Maurice Williams, Appellant Pro Se.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. USCA4 Appeal: 25-6065 Doc: 14 Filed: 12/02/2025 Pg: 2 of 2

PER CURIAM:

Dequantey Maurice Williams seeks to appeal the district court’s orders (1) accepting

the recommendation of the magistrate judge and denying relief on his

28 U.S.C. § 2255

motion, and (2) denying his motion for reconsideration. In this court, Williams has filed a

motion to amend his application for a certificate of appealability; we grant this motion.

The district court’s orders are not appealable unless a circuit justice or judge issues

a certificate of appealability. See

28 U.S.C. § 2253

(c)(1)(B). A certificate of appealability

will not issue absent “a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right.”

28 U.S.C. § 2253

(c)(2). When the district court denies relief on the merits, a prisoner satisfies

this standard by demonstrating that reasonable jurists could find the district court’s

assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong. See Buck v. Davis,

580 U.S. 100, 115-17

(2017). When the district court denies relief on procedural grounds, the

prisoner must demonstrate both that the dispositive procedural ruling is debatable and that

the motion states a debatable claim of the denial of a constitutional right. Gonzalez v.

Thaler,

565 U.S. 134, 140-41

(2012) (citing Slack v. McDaniel,

529 U.S. 473, 484

(2000)).

We have independently reviewed the record and conclude that Williams has not

made the requisite showing. Accordingly, we deny a certificate of appealability and

dismiss the appeal. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions

are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the

decisional process.

DISMISSED

2

Reference

Status
Unpublished