Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit

Filed: 2026-07-30

Docket: 4:24-CV-00084-AMA)

The tenth-circuit denied a certificate of appealability (COA) and dismissed the appeal. The court applied the standard under 28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)(2), requiring a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right, and determined that no reasonable jurist would find it debatable whether the district court correctly ruled on procedural grounds. The court held that Wood’s most recent application constituted an unauthorized second or successive habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2244(b), as his prior application had been adjudicated on the merits, thereby stripping the district court of jurisdiction to consider the claims. Additionally, the court rejected Wood’s arguments regarding a standalone actual innocence claim and the miscarriage-of-justice gateway, noting that Congress constrained such applications under § 2244(b)(2). Consequently, the appeal is dismissed without prejudice to seeking proper authorization for successive petitions.

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