Gary Ward v. Eric Cooke

Filing

UNPUBLISHED PER CURIAM OPINION filed. Originating case number: 2:15-cv-00050-RBS-DEM Copies to all parties and the district court/agency. [999704439]. Mailed to: appellant. [15-6990]

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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 15-6990

GARY D. WARD,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v.
ERIC COOKE, Attorney; CIRCUIT COURT OF SOUTHAMPTON COUNTY,
VIRGINIA,
Defendants - Appellees.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern
District of Virginia, at Norfolk.
Rebecca Beach Smith, Chief
District Judge. (2:15-cv-00050-RBS-DEM)

Submitted:

November 13, 2015

Before WILKINSON and
Senior Circuit Judge.

THACKER,

Decided:

Circuit

November 23, 2015

Judges,

and

HAMILTON,

Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Gary Dwayne Ward, Appellant Pro Se.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
Gary
judgment

D.

Ward

appeals

dismissing

his

the

42

district

U.S.C.

§

court’s

1983

(2012)

order

and

complaint

without prejudice for failing to state a claim under 28 U.S.C.
§ 1915(e)(2)(B)(ii) (2012).
find no reversible error.

We have reviewed the record and
Accordingly, we affirm substantially

for the reasons stated by the district court.

Ward v. Cooke,

No. 2:15-cv-00050-RBS-DEM (E.D. Va. May 27, 2015).
We

observe

that

Ward’s

claim

that

he

complied

with

the

requirements of Va. Code Ann. § 19.2.-327.1 (Supp. 2015), and
yet

was

denied

relief

by

the

Virginia

unreviewable by the district court.
U.S. 521, 532 (2011).

circuit

court

is

See Skinner v. Switzer, 562

We also conclude that Ward failed to

allege facts showing that Virginia’s statutory procedures for
establishing

innocence

based

“fundamentally inadequate.”

on

biological

testing

are

Dist. Att’y’s Office for the Third

Jud. Dist. v. Osborne, 557 U.S. 52, 69 (2009) (“Federal courts
may upset a State’s postconviction relief procedures only if
they are fundamentally inadequate to vindicate the substantive
rights provided.”).
§

1983

dispense

regarding
with

an

oral

Finally, Ward failed to state a claim under
alleged
argument

defective
because

jury

instruction.

the

facts

and

contentions are adequately presented in the materials before

2

We
legal

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this court and argument would not aid the decisional process.

AFFIRMED

3