                             UNPUBLISHED

                   UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
                       FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT



                             No. 96-6726



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

                                              Plaintiff - Appellee,

          versus

ERIC HELLAMS, JR.,

                                             Defendant - Appellant.



Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern Dis-
trict of Virginia, at Alexandria. Albert V. Bryan, Jr., Senior
District Judge. (CR-95-226-A, CA-96-376-AM)


Submitted:   July 23, 1996                 Decided:   August 6, 1996


Before WIDENER, NIEMEYER, and MICHAEL, Circuit Judges.

Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion.


Eric Hellams, Jr., Appellant Pro Se. Helen F. Fahey, United States
Attorney, Alexandria, Virginia, for Appellee.


Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.
See Local Rule 36(c).
PER CURIAM:

     Appellant appeals from the district court's order denying his

motion filed under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 (1988), as amended by Antiter-
rorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, Pub. L. No. 104-

132, 110 Stat. 1217. We have reviewed the record and the district

court's opinion and find no reversible error. Accordingly, we deny

a certificate of appealability and dismiss on the reasoning of the

district court. United States v. Hellams, No. CR-95-226-A; CA-96-
376-AM (E.D. Va. Mar. 25, 1996). We note that the amendment to the

sentencing guidelines which Appellant seeks to have applied (amend-

ment 515) was effective only after his sentencing and has no retro-
active effect. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and

legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before

the court and argument would not aid the decisional process.




                                                         DISMISSED




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