Is a state prisoner entitled to appeal the order denying her writ of habeas corpus?

A state prisoner seeking a writ of habeas corpus has no absolute entitlement to appeal a district court's denial of her petition, and an appeal is only allowed in certain circumstances. Miller-El v. Cockrell, 537 U.S. 322, 335-36 (2003). The federal rules governing habeas cases brought by state prisoners require a district court to either grant or deny a certificate of appealability in the order denying the habeas petition. See Rules

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Governing 2254 Case, Rule 11(a). A judge shall grant a certificate of appealability "only if the applicant has made a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right," 28 U.S.C. 2253(c)(2), and the certificate must indicate which issues satisfy this standard, 28 U.S.C. 2253(c)(3). "Where a district court has rejected the constitutional claims on the merits, the showing required to satisfy 2253(c) is straightforward: [t]he petitioner must demonstrate that reasonable jurists would find the district court's assessment of the constitutional claims debatable or wrong." Slack v. McDaniel, 529 U.S. 473, 484 (2000). Here, petitioner has not made such a showing. Accordingly, a certificate of appealability will not be issued.