UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 96-6596 FRANCIS CLAYTON HOOD, Plaintiff - Appellant, versus OFFICER MURPHY; OFFICER LEGGETT; OFFICER SENTIRO, Defendants - Appellees. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern Dis- trict of North Carolina, at Raleigh. Terrence W. Boyle, Chief Dis- trict Judge. (CA-94-590-5-BO) Submitted: November 6, 1997 Decided: January 20, 1998 Before WIDENER and LUTTIG, Circuit Judges, and BUTZNER, Senior Circuit Judge. Affirmed by unpublished per curiam opinion. Francis Clayton Hood, Appellant Pro Se. Cheryl A. Marteney, WARD & SMITH, P.A., New Bern, North Carolina, for Appellees. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM: Appellant appeals the district court's order denying relief on his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (1994) complaint. We have reviewed the record and the district court's opinion and find no reversible error. Accordingly, we affirm on the reasoning of the district court. Hood v. Murphy, No. CA-94-590-5-BO (E.D.N.C. Apr. 5, 1996). We deny Ap- pellees' motion to dismiss the appeal based on Appellant's untimely filing and service of his informal brief. 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. AFFIRMED 2