Opinion
No. 08-14-00227-CR
07-06-2015
RAMON ALVARADO CHACON, Appellant, v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, State.
Appeal from the 394th District Court of Brewster County, Texas (TC# 4254) ORDER
Pending before the Court is Appellant's motion to abate the appeal and appoint new appellate counsel. Appellant's court-appointed attorney concluded that the appeal is frivolous and filed a brief and motion to withdraw. See Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 18 L.Ed.2d 493 (1967). Appellant has been provided with the appellate record in electronic (CD) format and has been afforded an opportunity to file a pro se brief.
In his motion, Appellant asserts that the brief does not comply with the requirements of Anders because it does not include a request to withdraw. Pursuant to this Court's procedure, appointed counsel filed a separate motion to withdraw which will be considered when the case is reviewed upon submission. Appellant also contends that the Anders brief is inadequate. The Court will review appointed counsel's brief and the record when the case is submitted at a future date, and if it is determined that the brief is inadequate, the Court will order the trial court to appoint new appellate counsel at that time. Finally, Appellant requests that he be provided with a paper copy of the appellate record because he requires assistance to prepare his pro se brief due to difficulty with the English language and the rules of the TDCJ-ID unit where he is incarcerated prohibits other inmates from reviewing the electronic record with him. Under the unique circumstances presented by this case, we will grant Appellant's request to be provided with a paper copy of the appellate record, but it will not include a copy of the exhibits volume. Accordingly, we DENY Appellant's motion to abate the appeal and appoint counsel, but we GRANT his request to be provided with a paper copy of the record. Further, on the Court's own motion we extend the time for Appellant to file his pro se brief. Appellant's brief is now due to be filed no later than August 5, 2015.
IT IS SO ORDERED this 6th day of July, 2015.
PER CURIAM Before McClure, C.J., Rodriguez and Hughes, JJ.