Cox v. State, 01-89-01078-CR

Decision Date18 October 1990
Docket NumberNo. 01-89-01078-CR,01-89-01078-CR
Citation797 S.W.2d 958
PartiesWayne L. COX, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee. (1st Dist.)
CourtTexas Court of Appeals

Joe Fleming, Michael Charlton, Houston, for appellant.

John B. Holmes, Harris Co. Dist. Atty., for appellee.

Before EVANS, C.J., and HUGHES and O'CONNOR, JJ.

OPINION

PER CURIAM.

On March 15, 1990 this Court entered an order abating this appeal and remanding the case to the trial court. Through oversight, however, we neglected to issue a mandate. This opinion now issues to correct that omission. The history of this case follows.

Appellant was convicted of conspiracy to commit capital murder and, on October 27, 1989, he was sentenced to life imprisonment. Counsel on appeal was not appointed until November 29, 1989, 33 days after sentencing.

TEX.R.APP.P. 31(a) requires that any motion for new trial must be filed within 30 days of judgment and sentencing. Therefore appellant was deprived of counsel at a critical stage of the proceedings against him. Callis v. State, 756 S.W.2d 826 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1988, no pet.); Trevino v. State, 565 S.W.2d 938 (Tex.Crim.App.1978).

Under these circumstances we ordered an abatement to allow appellant time to file a motion for new trial. The Trevino court set out the proper procedure for such an abatement:

Because ... appellant was denied counsel at a stage of the review process prior to sentence and notice of appeal, we set aside the sentence and notice of appeal and return the cause for a hearing on the motion for new trial and an orderly course of subsequent events. In the event appellant's motion for new trial is denied, sentence should then be pronounced and notice of appeal may be given.... Thereafter the provisions of Art. 40.09 [now TEX.R.APP.P. 30, et seq] should be followed.... 565 S.W.2d at 941.

An order under Trevino and Callis has the effect of reinstating jurisdiction of the case in the trial court and returning appellant to that stage of the proceeding following the judgment and assessment of sentence but before the imposition of sentence and the filing of notice of appeal. Since notice of appeal has been set aside, the case is no longer "on appeal" and should not remain in this Court. For this reason, a mandate should issue, disposing of the appeal.

If appellant's motion for new trial is granted, his case will be retried accordingly. If appellant's motion is denied, "an orderly course of subsequent events" should follow. This means that the trial court must then pronounce sentence and appellant must give timely written notice of appeal. 565 S.W.2d at 941.

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14 cases
  • Oldham v. State
    • United States
    • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
    • September 30, 1998
    ...56 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1995); Oldham v. State, 889 S.W.2d 461 (Tex.App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1994); Cox v. State, 797 S.W.2d 958 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1990); Callis v. State, 756 S.W.2d 826 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1988). However, we are not asked today to address......
  • Vera v. State
    • United States
    • Texas Court of Appeals
    • August 25, 1992
    ...of the cause to this court. Accordingly, we abate the appeal. See Price v. State, 826 S.W.2d 947, 948 (Tex.Crim.App.1992); Cox v. State, 797 S.W.2d 958, 959 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1990, no writ). By virtue of a mandate that will issue forthwith, we reinvest in the trial court the ju......
  • Burnett v. State
    • United States
    • Texas Court of Appeals
    • May 22, 1997
    ...be filed, good cause to suspend the rules and reinstate jurisdiction to the trial court has been shown under rule 2(b). See Cox v. State, 797 S.W.2d 958, 959 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1990, no pet.); Callis v. State, 756 S.W.2d 826, 827 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1988, no pet.). Th......
  • Driggers v. State
    • United States
    • Texas Court of Appeals
    • March 17, 1997
    ...First Court of Appeals in the past, and that it concluded that the trial court did have jurisdiction following such an abatement. Cox v. State, 797 S.W.2d 958 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1990, no Justice requires that admissible new evidence be considered to determine if this new evidenc......
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