Opinion
12-21-00023-CR
11-10-2021
ALEJANDRO SILVA, Appellant v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee
DO NOT PUBLISH
APPEAL FROM THE 114TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT SMITH COUNTY, TEXAS
Panel consisted of Worthen, C.J., Hoyle, J., and Neeley, J.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
PER CURIAM
Appellant, Alejandro Silva, attempts to appeal the trial court's order denying his post-conviction motion for discovery materials. We dismiss his appeal for want of jurisdiction.
In 2011, pursuant to a plea agreement, Appellant pleaded guilty to murder, a first-degree felony. However, the trial court did not accept the negotiated seventeen-year sentence and sentenced Appellant to twenty-five years imprisonment. Appellant did not appeal his conviction. In January 2021, Appellant filed a "Motion to Compel State to Produce a Working Copy of the Cases's Discovery Packet" pursuant to Article 39.14 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, seeking all documents and items in the State's possession concerning his criminal case. The trial court denied the motion. This appeal followed.
See Tex. Penal Code Ann. § 19.02(d) (West 2019).
Generally, we have jurisdiction to consider an appeal by a criminal defendant only from a final judgment of conviction. See Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 44.02 (West 2018); Abbott v. State, 271 S.W.3d 694, 697 n.8 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008). "[I]n Texas, appeals by either the State or the defendant in a criminal case are permitted only when they are specifically authorized by statute." State ex rel. Lykos v. Fine, 330 S.W.3d 904, 915 (Tex. Crim. App. 2011); see also Ragston v. State, 424 S.W.3d 49, 52 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014); Tex.R.App.P. 25.2(a)(2) (providing that a criminal defendant has the right to appeal a judgment of guilt or other appealable order). There exists no statutory authority permitting an appeal from an order denying a postconviction motion for discovery. See Delgado-Gordon v. State, No. 07-19-00189-CR, 2019 WL 2480047, at *1 (Tex. App.-Amarillo June 13, 2019, no pet.) (mem. op., not designated for publication); Palmer v. State, No. 12-19-00177-CR, 2019 WL 2710250, at *1 (Tex. App.-Tyler June 28, 2019, no pet.) (mem. op., not designated for publication); see also Bibbs v. State, No. 02-18-00391-CR, 2018 WL 5832161, at *1 n.2 (Tex. App.-Fort Worth Nov. 8, 2018, no pet.) (mem. op., not designated for publication). Accordingly, we dismiss Appellant's appeal for want of jurisdiction. See Tex. R. App. P. 43.2(f).
JUDGMENT
THIS CAUSE came to be heard on the appellate record; and the same being considered, it is the opinion of this Court that this appeal should be dismissed.
It is therefore ORDERED, ADJUDGED and DECREED by this Court that this appeal be, and the same is, hereby dismissed for want of jurisdiction; and that this decision be certified to the court below for observance.