Opinion
02-23-00308-CR
08-29-2024
Luther David King, Appellant v. The State of Texas
Do Not Publish Tex.R.App.P. 47.2(b)
On Appeal from the 355th District Court Hood County, Texas Trial Court No. CR14912
Before Birdwell, Kerr, and Walker, JJ.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Brian Walker Justice
After Luther David King pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated sexual assault of a child and had a jury assess punishment, that jury assessed a sentence of seventy-five years' confinement. See Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 22.021(a)(1)(B), 2(B). The trial court sentenced King accordingly, and he timely filed an appeal.
King's court-appointed appellate attorney has filed a motion to withdraw as counsel and a brief in support of that motion. See Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 744-45, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 1400 (1967). Counsel's brief and motion meet the requirements of Anders, which requires presenting a professional evaluation of the record and demonstrating why there are no arguable grounds for appellate relief. Id., 87 S.Ct. at 1400. King's counsel provided him with a copy of the Anders brief and her motion to withdraw, notified him of his right to file a pro se response and to file a petition for discretionary review in the Court of Criminal Appeals, and provided him with a form motion to access the appellate record. King obtained a copy of the record and filed a response. The State declined to file a response.
We have fulfilled our duty to independently examine the record. See Stafford v. State, 813 S.W.2d 503, 511 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991); see also Penson v. Ohio, 488 U.S. 75, 82-83, 109 S.Ct. 346, 351 (1988). After reviewing the appellate record, the Anders brief, and King's pro se response, we have determined that the appeal is wholly frivolous and without merit. Our independent review reveals nothing that might arguably support the appeal. See Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824, 827-28 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005); see also Meza v. State, 206 S.W.3d 684, 685 n.6 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006). Therefore, we grant counsel's motion to withdraw and affirm the trial court's judgment.