46 F.3d 1124
NOTICE: Fourth Circuit I.O.P. 36.6 states that citation of unpublished dispositions is disfavored except for establishing res judicata, estoppel, or the law of the case and requires service of copies of cited unpublished dispositions of the Fourth Circuit.Lawrence HARPER, Plaintiff--Appellant,v.Captain BAREFOOT;  Superintendent Barnett;  Officer Bruce,Defendants--Appellees.
No. 94-7307.
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
Submitted Dec. 13, 1994.Decided Jan. 19, 1995.

Lawrence Harper, Appellant Pro Se.
Before WIDENER and NIEMEYER, Circuit Judges, and PHILLIPS, Senior Circuit Judge.
PER CURIAM:


1
Appellant filed an untimely notice of appeal from the district court judgment dismissing his civil action as frivolous.  We dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.


2
The time periods for filing notices of appeal are governed by Fed.  R.App. P. 4. These periods are "mandatory and jurisdiction al."  Browder v. Director, Dep't of Corrections, 434 U.S. 257, 264 (1978) (quoting United States v. Robinson, 361 U.S. 220, 229 (1960)).  Parties to civil actions have thirty days within which to file in the district court notices of appeal from judgments or final orders.  Fed. R.App. P. 4(a)(1).  Appellant failed to note a timely appeal, obtain an extension to the appeal period under Fed.  R.App. P. 4(a)(5), or obtain relief under Fed.  R.App. P. 4(a)(6).


3
Appellant's failure to file a timely notice of appeal* or to obtain either an extension or a reopening of the appeal period leaves this Court without jurisdiction to consider the merits of Appellant's appeal.  We therefore dismiss the appeal.  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.


4
DISMISSED.



*
 For the purposes of this appeal we assume that the date Appellant wrote on the notice of appeal is the earliest date it would have been submitted to prison authorities.  See Houston v. Lack, 487 U.S. 266 (1988)


