4th Cir.

United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

Every decision we've summarized from United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Apr 28 2026
25-6999 Per Curiam

Weldon Eugene Holtzclaw, Jr. v. Warden of the Greenville County Detention Center

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit dismissed an appeal filed by a state prisoner seeking to amend his habeas corpus petition. The court found the prisoner failed to demonstrate a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right required to obtain a certificate of appealability.

Apr 28 2026
25-1303 Panel Decision

Goddard v. Burnett

The Fourth Circuit affirmed the rejection of a debtor's Chapter 13 plan, ruling that technical compliance with the disposable income test does not immunize a proposal from the independent good faith requirement. The court held that a debtor's attempt to retain three luxury vehicles while paying unsecured creditors less than eight cents on the dollar demonstrated a lack of honest effort to repay debts.

Apr 28 2026
25-7060 Per Curiam

LAWRENCE L. INGRAM v. DOYET A. EARLY, III; J. CHRISTOPHER WILSON; WARDEN WILLIE DAVIS; COURTNEY BENNETT; OFFICER ADKINSON; DEPARTMENT OF PROBATION; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

The Fourth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of Lawrence Ingram's civil action because his objections to the magistrate judge's recommendation were untimely and lacked specific factual or legal grounds. This procedural failure waived his right to appellate review of the district court's underlying order.

Apr 28 2026
24-4604 Panel Decision

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. MILTON CHRISTOPHER ALLEN

The Fourth Circuit reversed a district court's suppression order, ruling that evidence seized from an arrestee's bags would have been inevitably discovered through lawful inventory searches. The court held that established departmental policies mandated searching all personal property of arrestees, rendering the warrantless search incident to arrest unnecessary to justify admission.