Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed April 6, 2006.

In The

Fourteenth Court of Appeals

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NO. 14-06-00255-CR

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LEO PUENTE ESPINOZA, Appellant

V.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee

On Appeal from the 182nd District Court

Harris County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No. 729,043

M E M O R A N D U M   O P I N I O N

Pursuant to a plea bargain, appellant entered a guilty plea to the offense of aggravated assault in exchange for deferred adjudication of guilt.  Subsequently, the State moved to adjudicate guilt.

After a plea of true, appellant was convicted of the offense of aggravated assauualt  and sentenced to confinement for eight years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice on October 21, 2005. No timely motion for new trial was filed.  Appellant=s notice of appeal was not filed until March 17, 2006.

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 Memorandum Opinion filed April 6, 2006.

Panel consists of Justices Hudson, Fowler, and Seymore.

Do Not Publish C Tex.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