Dismissed and Opinion filed April 10, 2003.

In The

Fourteenth Court of Appeals

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NO. 14-03-00134-CR

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ANANIAS DIXON, Appellant

V.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee

On Appeal from the 230th District Court

Harris County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No. 904,606

M E M O R A N D U M   O P I N I O N

After a guilty plea, appellant was convicted of the offense of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced on September 3, 2002 to 17 years= imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division.  No motion for new trial was filed.  Appellant=s notice of appeal was not filed until November 8, 2002.

A defendant=s notice of appeal must be filed within thirty days after sentence is imposed when the defendant has not filed a motion for new trial.  See Tex. R. App. P. 26.2(a)(1).  A notice of appeal which complies with the requirements of Rule 26 is essential to vest the court of appeals with jurisdiction.  Slaton v. State, 981 S.W.2d 208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998).  If an appeal is not timely perfected, a court of appeals does not obtain jurisdiction to address the merits of the appeal.  Under those circumstances it can take no action other than to dismiss the appeal.  Id.

Accordingly, the appeal is ordered dismissed.

PER CURIAM

Judgment rendered and Opinion filed April 10, 2003.

Panel consists of Justices Anderson, Seymore, and Guzman.

Do Not Publish C Tex. R. App. P. 47.2(b).