Opinion
13-18-000392-CR
05-20-2024
GUSTAVO TIJERINA SANDOVAL, Appellant, v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.
Do not publish. See Tex.R.App.P. 47.2(b).
ON APPEAL FROM THE 197TH DISTRICT COURT OF CAMERON COUNTY, TEXAS
Before Justices Benavides, Tijerina, and Peña
ORDER
Per Curiam
A jury convicted appellant of capital murder and attempted capital murder and assessed his punishment at death and life imprisonment, respectively. Appellant appealed both convictions, and because he was sentenced to death on the capital murder count, that appeal went directly to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, and his appeal from the attempted capital murder conviction came to this Court. See Tex. Code. Crim. Proc. art. 37.071(h).
On October 26, 2020, appellant filed his opening brief in this Court raising twenty-two issues, some of which were multifarious. The State then filed an unopposed motion to abate this appeal, explaining that appellant had also filed his opening brief in the other appeal "and many of the points of error in each case overlap." The State noted that "the Court of Criminal Appeals decision may prove dispositive on some of the issues raised in this Court." We granted the motion, abated this appeal, and directed the parties to inform us when the other appeal became final.
The parties have now filed a joint motion to reinstate this appeal, informing the Court that the Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction and the Supreme Court of the United States denied certiorari. Accordingly, we grant the motion and reinstate the appeal. Additionally, given the Court of Criminal Appeals opinion addressing potentially overlapping issues, the Court directs appellant to file an amended brief within thirty (30) days from the date of this order. The purpose of the amended brief is to clarify which issues remain unresolved. Appellant is not permitted to raise new issues in his amended filing, but he may elect to omit issues previously raised. See Tex. R. App. P. 38.7 ("A brief may be amended or supplemented whenever justice requires, on whatever reasonable terms the court may prescribe."). The parties will then follow the briefing schedule as provided by the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See id. R. 38.6.