Court of Civil Appeals of Texas, 2010

Arnold Adame, Jr. v. State

Arnold Adame, Jr. v. State
Court of Civil Appeals of Texas · Decided February 18, 2010

Arnold Adame, Jr. v. State

Opinion









NUMBER 13-09-00117-CR



COURT OF APPEALS



THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS



CORPUS CHRISTI
- EDINBURG

ARNOLD ADAME, JR., Appellant,



v.



THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.



On appeal from the 214th District Court of

Nueces County, Texas.

MEMORANDUM OPINION



Before Chief Justice Valdez and Justices Yañez and Vela

Memorandum Opinion by Chief Justice Valdez
Appellant, Arnold Adame Jr., pleaded guilty to four counts of forgery, a state-jail felony. See Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 32.21 (Vernon Supp. 2009). The trial court deferred adjudication, placed Adame on community supervision for four years, and ordered him to pay restitution of $4,756.01 (for which he shared joint and several liability with a co-defendant) and court costs. On December 9, 2008, (1) the State filed a motion to revoke, alleging various violations of the terms of his community supervision. (2) Adame pleaded "true" to the violations, and, following a hearing, the trial court adjudicated him guilty and sentenced him to eighteen months' imprisonment in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Adame appeals the revocation of his community supervision. We affirm. I. Anders Brief

Pursuant to Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 744 (1967), Adame's court-appointed appellate counsel has filed a brief with this Court, stating that his review of the record yielded no grounds or error upon which an appeal can be predicated. Although counsel's brief does not advance any arguable grounds of error, it does present a professional evaluation of the record demonstrating why there are no arguable grounds to be advanced on appeal. See In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 403, 407 n.9 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008) ("In Texas, an Anders brief need not specifically advance 'arguable' points of error if counsel finds none, but it must provide record references to the facts and procedural history and set out pertinent legal authorities.") (citing Hawkins v. State, 112 S.W.3d 340, 343-44 (Tex. App.-Corpus Christi 2003, no pet.)); Stafford v. State, 813 S.W.2d 503, 510 n.3 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991).

In compliance with High v. State, 573 S.W.2d 807, 813 (Tex. Crim. App. [Panel Op.] 1978), Adame's counsel has carefully discussed why, under controlling authority, there are no errors in the trial court's judgment. Counsel has informed this Court that he has: (1) examined the record and found no arguable grounds to advance on appeal, (2) served a copy of the brief and counsel's motion to withdraw on Adame, and (3) informed Adame of his right to review the record and to file a pro se response. (3) See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744; Stafford, 813 S.W.2d at 510 n.3; see also In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d at 409 n.23. More than an adequate period of time has passed, and Adame has not filed a pro se response. See In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d at 409.

II. Independent Review

Upon receiving an Anders brief, we must conduct a full examination of all the proceedings to determine whether the case is wholly frivolous. Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 80 (1988). We have reviewed the entire record and counsel's brief and have found nothing that would arguably support an appeal. See Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824, 826-28 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) ("Due to the nature of Anders briefs, by indicating in the opinion that it considered the issues raised in the briefs and reviewed the record for reversible error but found none, the court of appeals met the requirement of Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 47.1."); Stafford, 813 S.W.2d at 509. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

III. Motion to Withdraw

In accordance with Anders, Adame's attorney has asked this Court for permission to withdraw as counsel for appellant. See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744; see also In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d at 408 n.17 (citing Jeffery v. State, 903 S.W.2d 776, 779-80 (Tex. App.-Dallas 1995, no pet.) (noting that "[i]f an attorney believes the appeal is frivolous, he must withdraw from representing the appellant. To withdraw from representation, the appointed attorney must file a motion to withdraw accompanied by a brief showing the appellate court that the appeal is frivolous.") (citations omitted)). We grant counsel's motion to withdraw. Within five days of the date of this Court's opinion, counsel is ordered to send a copy of the opinion and judgment to Adame and to advise him of his right to file a petition for discretionary review. (4) See Tex. R. App. P. 48.4; see also In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d at 412 n.35; Ex parte Owens, 206 S.W.3d 670, 673 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006).



________________________

ROGELIO VALDEZ

Chief Justice

Do Not Publish.

Tex. R. App. P. 47.2(b)

Delivered and filed the

18th day of February, 2010.

1. On March 24, 2005, and April 10, 2007, the trial court entered orders imposing sanctions on Adame; pursuant to these orders, Adame's probation was extended and set to expire on March 14, 2009.

2. The State alleged Adame violated several conditions of his community supervision by using narcotics, failing to report to his supervisor, failing to pay the required fees, visiting local bars, and failing to complete community service.

3. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has held that "the pro se response need not comply with the rules of appellate procedure in order to be considered. Rather, the response should identify for the court those issues which the indigent appellant believes the court should consider in deciding whether the case presents any meritorious issues." In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 403, 409 n.23 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008) (quoting Wilson v. State, 955 S.W.2d 693, 696-97 (Tex. App.-Waco 1997, no pet.)).

4. No substitute counsel will be appointed. Should Adame wish to seek further review of this case by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, he must either retain an attorney to file a petition for discretionary review or file a pro se petition for discretionary review. Any petition for discretionary review must be filed within thirty days from the date of either this opinion or the last timely motion for rehearing that was overruled by this Court. See Tex. R. App. P. 68.2. Any petition for discretionary review must be filed with this Court, after which it will be forwarded to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. See Tex. R. App. P. 68.3; 68.7. Any petition for discretionary review should comply with the requirements of Rule 68.4 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See Tex. R. App. P. 68.4.

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