Sarah Flanders v. Commonwealth of Virginia, No. 22-6941 (4th Cir. 2023)

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UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 22-6941 SARAH ELIZABETH FLANDERS, Petitioner - Appellant, v. COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, Respondent - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, at Alexandria. Anthony John Trenga, Senior District Judge. (1:22-cv-00439-AJT-JFA) Submitted: March 16, 2023 Before WILKINSON, AGEE, and HARRIS, Circuit Judges. Dismissed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Sarah Elizabeth Flanders, Appellant Pro Se. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. Decided: March 21, 2023 PER CURIAM: Sarah Elizabeth Flanders, a Virginia prisoner, appeals the district court’s order dismissing without prejudice her 28 U.S.C. § 2254 petition for failure to comply with the court’s prior order directing Flanders to either pay the $5 filing fee or apply to proceed in forma pauperis. Shortly after entry of the district court’s dismissal order, Flanders paid the filing fee. The district court subsequently reinstated Flanders’ § 2254 petition and directed the Commonwealth to respond. See Flanders v. Virginia, No. 1:22-cv-00439-AJT-JFA (E.D. Va., PACER No. 13). By virtue of this order, the district court effectively granted Flanders the only relief she could have obtained by way of this appeal. Accordingly, we dismiss this appeal as moot. See CVLR Performance Horses, Inc. v. Wynne, 792 F.3d 469, 474 (4th Cir. 2015) (“Litigation may become moot during the pendency of an appeal when an intervening event makes it impossible for the court to grant effective relief to the prevailing party.”). We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process. DISMISSED 2

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