Opinion
05-21-00621-CR 05-21-00623-CR05-21-00627-CR 05-21-00629-CR 05-21-00634-CR05-21-00636-CR 05-21-00622-CR 05-21-00624-CR05-21-00628-CR 05-21-00630-CR 05-21-00635-CR05-21-00637-CR
06-24-2022
BRANDIE OLIVAREZ, Appellant v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee
On Appeal from the Criminal District Court, 4 Dallas County, Texas Trial Court Cause Nos. F18-22537-K, F18-41244-K, F18-45948-K, F19-14122-K, F19-14136-K, F20-22413-K, F20-22447-K, F20-41532-K, F19-40342-K, F20-22421-K, F20-45665-K & F20-45679-K
ORDER
BILL PEDERSEN, III JUSTICE
On May 9, 2022, appellate counsel Valencia Bush tendered appellant's brief, along with a motion to extend time. The brief addressed a single purported error in appellate cause 05-21-00628-CR (trial court cause number F20-22413-K) but did not assert error in the remaining eleven appeals. Noting that the failure to file a brief raising any issue in the eleven remaining cases constituted no brief, we ordered Ms. Bush to file, by June 16, 2022, (1) appellate briefs (either merits briefs or Anders briefs) on the remaining eleven appeals, or (2) a motion to dismiss the remaining eleven appeals because appellant no longer desires to prosecute the appeals. Tex.R.App.P. 38.8(b)(4); 42.2(a). We cautioned Ms. Bush that the failure to do one or the other would result in the appeals being abated for a hearing in the trial court. Id. 38.8(b)(1), (4). To date, no additional briefs have been filed, no motion to dismiss these appeals has been filed, and we have had no communication from Ms. Bush.
Therefore, we ORDER the trial court to hold a hearing to determine why appellate counsel has not complied with this Court's May 17, 2022 either by filing a brief in appellate cause numbers 05-21-00621-CR, 05-21-00622-CR, 05-21-00623-CR, 05-21-00624-CR, 05-21-00627-CR, 05-21-00629-CR, 05-21-00630-CR, 05-21-00634-CR, 05-21-00635-CR, 05-21-00636-CR & 05-21-00637-CR, or by filing motions to dismiss the appeals. The trial court shall make appropriate findings and recommendations and determine whether appellant desires to prosecute the appeals, whether appellant is indigent, or if not indigent, whether appointed counsel has abandoned the appeals. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.8(b). If the trial court cannot obtain appellant's presence at the hearing, the trial court shall conduct the hearing in appellant's absence. See Meza v. State, 742 S.W.2d 708 (Tex. App.-Corpus Christi 1987, no pet.) (per curiam). As appellant is indigent, the trial court is ORDERED to take such measures as may be necessary to assure effective representation, which may include appointment of new counsel.
We ORDER the trial court to transmit a record of the proceedings, which shall include written findings and recommendations, to this Court within THIRTY DAYS of the date of this order.
We DIRECT the Clerk to send copies of this order to the Honorable Dominique Collins, Presiding Judge, Criminal District Court No. 4; to Sherri Williams, court coordinator, Criminal District Court No. 4; to Christina O'Neil, Chief Judicial Staff Counsel; to Valencia Bush; and to the Dallas County District Attorney's Office, Appellate Division.
Theses appeals are ABATED to allow the trial court to comply with the above order. The appeals shall be reinstated when the findings are received or when the Court deems it appropriate to do so.