COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIRST DISTRICT OF TEXAS AT HOUSTON ORDER Appellate case name: Kristopher Ryan O'Neal v. The State of Texas Appellate case number: 01-13-00626-CR Trial court case number: 11-DCR-058934A Trial court: 268th District Court of Fort Bend County On April 4, 2013, appellant’s counsel, Vivian King, filed a notice of appeal on appellant’s behalf. On June 24, 2013, appellant, Kristopher Ryan O’Neal, filed a pro se document in the trial court indicating that he no longer wishes to pursue this appeal. The document, however, was neither filed in this Court nor signed by appellant’s counsel. See TEX. R. APP. P. 42.2(a) (requiring motion to dismiss be signed by both appellant and counsel and filed in duplicate with appellate court clerk).

We therefore abate the appeal and remand for the trial court to immediately conduct a hearing at which a representative of the Fort Bend County District Attorney’s Office and appellant’s counsel, Vivian King, shall be present. Cf. TEX. R. APP. 38.8(b)(2). Appellant shall also be present for the hearing in person or, if appellant is incarcerated, at the trial court’s discretion, appellant may participate in the hearing by closed-circuit video teleconferencing.1 The trial court is directed to: (1) determine whether appellant, after conferring with counsel, wishes to prosecute the appeal; (2) make any other findings and recommendations the trial court deems appropriate; and (3) enter written findings of fact, conclusions of law, and recommendations as to these issues.

Cf. TEX. R. APP. P. 38.8(b).

1 Any such teleconference must use a closed-circuit video teleconferencing system that provides for a simultaneous compressed full motion video and interactive communication of image and sound between the trial court, appellant, and any attorneys representing the State or appellant. On request of appellant, appellant and his counsel shall be able to communicate privately without being recorded or heard by the trial court or the attorney representing the State.

The trial court shall have a court reporter record the hearing and file the reporter’s record with this Court within 25 days of the date of this order. The trial court clerk is directed to file a supplemental clerk’s record containing the trial court’s findings and recommendations with this Court within 25 days of the date of this order. If the hearing is conducted by video teleconference, a certified video recording of the hearing shall also be filed in this Court within days of the date of this order.

The appeal is abated, treated as a closed case, and removed from this Court’s active docket. The appeal will be reinstated on this Court’s active docket when the supplemental clerk’s record and the reporter’s record of the hearing are filed in this Court. The court coordinator of the trial court shall set a hearing date and notify the parties and the Clerk of this Court of such date.

It is so ORDERED.

Judge’s signature: /s/ Michael Massengale  Acting individually  Acting for the Court

Date: August 15, 2013