Opinion
01-22-00445-CR 01-22-00446-CR
11-01-2022
IN RE CHRISTOPHER MICHAEL PELLETIER, Relator
Do not publish. Tex.R.App.P. 47.2(b).
Original Proceeding on Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus
Panel consists of Justices Goodman, Countiss, and Farris.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
PER CURIAM
Relator, Christopher Michael Pelletier, incarcerated and acting pro se, has filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus, asking that "the lawful nature and cause of the restraint of liberty, if any there be, of said [relator]," be disclosed.
The underlying cases are The State of Texas v. Christopher M. Pelletier, Cause Nos. 20CR1225 and 21CR1166, pending in the 10th District Court of Galveston County, Texas, the Honorable Kerry L. Neves presiding.
We dismiss the petition for writ of habeas corpus for lack of jurisdiction.
An intermediate court of appeals lacks original habeas jurisdiction in criminal law matters. See Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 22.221(d) (original habeas jurisdiction of courts of appeals is limited to cases in which person's liberty is restrained because person violated order, judgment, or decree entered in civil case); Chavez v. State, 132 S.W.3d 509, 510 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 2004, no pet.); see also Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 11.05. In criminal matters, our habeas corpus jurisdiction is appellate only. See Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 22.221(d); Ex parte Denby, 627 S.W.2d 435, 435 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1981, orig. proceeding); see, e.g., In re Abram, No. 01-19-00858-CR, 2020 WL 201955, at *1 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] Jan. 14, 2020, orig. proceeding) (mem. op., not designated for publication) ("If the trial court had denied habeas relief to [r]elator after a hearing, this Court would have jurisdiction over the appeal from that denial.").
Texas Government Code section 22.221 states, in pertinent part:
Concurrently with the supreme court, the court of appeals of a court of appeals district in which a person is restrained in his liberty, or a justice of the court of appeals, may issue a writ of habeas corpus when it appears that the restraint of liberty is by virtue of an order, process, or commitment issued by a court or judge because of the violation of an order, judgment, or decree previously made, rendered, or entered by the court or judge in a civil case. Pending the hearing of an application for a writ of habeas corpus, the court of appeals or a justice of the court of appeals may admit to bail a person to whom the writ of habeas corpus may be granted.
Tex. Gov't Code Ann. § 22.221(d) (emphasis added); see also In re Letizia, No. 01-18-01052-CR, 2019 WL 610772, at *1 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] Feb. 14, 2019, orig. proceeding) (mem. op., not designated for publication); In re Ayers, 515 S.W.3d 356, 356 (Tex. App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 2006, orig. proceeding) ("The courts of appeals have no original habeas-corpus jurisdiction in criminal matters. Original jurisdiction to grant a writ of habeas corpus in a criminal case is vested in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the district courts, the county courts, or a judge in those courts." (internal citations omitted)); Ex parte Hawkins, 885 S.W.2d 586, 588 (Tex. App.-El Paso 1994, orig. proceeding) ("[T]his Court's original jurisdiction to issue a writ of habeas corpus is limited to those cases in which a person's liberty is restrained because the person has violated an order, judgment, or decree entered in a civil case."). Original jurisdiction in a criminal proceeding is limited to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the district courts, and the county courts. See Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 11.05; In re Ayers, 515 S.W.3d at 356. We lack jurisdiction to consider relator's petition for writ of habeas corpus. See, e.g., In re Brown, Nos. 01-22-00136-CR to 01-22-00140-CR, 2022 WL 1008803, at *1 (Tex. App.-Houston [1st Dist.] Apr. 5, 2022, orig. proceeding) (mem. op., not designated for publication) ("We . . . lack jurisdiction over this attempt to seek habeas relief directly from this Court.").
We dismiss relator's petition for writ of habeas corpus for lack of jurisdiction. All pending motions are dismissed as moot.