Opinion
03-22-00092-CR
06-02-2022
David Rodriguez, Jr., Appellant v. The State of Texas, Appellee
Do Not Publish
FROM THE 20TH DISTRICT COURT OF MILAM COUNTY NO. CR26, 673, THE HONORABLE JOHN YOUNGBLOOD, JUDGE PRESIDING
Before Chief Justice Byrne, Justices Kelly and Smith
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Darlene Byrne, Chief Justice
After the State indicted David Rodriguez, Jr. for the first-degree felony offense of murder, he entered an open plea of guilty to the lesser-included offense of second-degree manslaughter. See Tex. Penal Code § 19.04. On November 18, 2021, the trial court sentenced Rodriguez to eighteen years' imprisonment and certified that Rodriguez had the right to appeal as to "sentencing." See Tex. R. App. P. 25.2(d).
A defendant's notice of appeal must be filed within thirty days after sentence is imposed, or within ninety days after sentence is imposed if the defendant has timely filed a motion for new trial. See id. R. 26.2(a). The time for filing a notice of appeal may be extended if, within fifteen days of the deadline for filing the notice of appeal, a defendant files a notice of appeal and a motion for extension of time to file the notice of appeal. See id. R. 26.3. A notice of appeal complying with the requirements of Rule 26 is required to vest a court of appeals with jurisdiction. See Slaton v. State, 981 S.W.2d 208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998). We lack jurisdiction to address the merits of an appeal when an appeal is not timely perfected, and in such circumstances, we must dismiss the appeal. See id.
Here, Rodriguez was sentenced on November 18, 2021, but he did not file a motion for new trial and did not mail his pro se notice of appeal for filing in this Court until February 16, 2022. Thus, his appeal is untimely. See id. R. 26.2(a)(1). We dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction. See id. R. 43.2(f).
Dismissed for Want of Jurisdiction