Background
Brandon Earl Crocker, a Texas prisoner, appealed the district court’s dismissal of his twenty-eight United States Code section two thousand two hundred fifty-four application as untimely. He also sought relief from the judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure sixty point B and moved for the appointment of counsel.
The court’s reasoning
The court held it lacked jurisdiction to review the dismissal of the habeas application because the petitioner failed to file a timely notice of appeal from the underlying judgment. Although the petitioner timely appealed the denial of his motion for relief from judgment, the certificate of appealability issued was defective. The court further declined to issue a valid certificate of appealability because the petitioner could not satisfy the statutory requirements for its issuance.
What it means going forward
The dismissal prevents further appellate review of the underlying habeas claims and the denial of the motion for appointment of counsel.