Opinion
No. 05-20-00017-CR
03-16-2021
CLYDE EARL TAYLOR, Appellant v. THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee
On Appeal from the 203rd Judicial District Court Dallas County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. F18-75930-P
ORDER
On February 2, 2021, the Court issued an order, ordering deputy court reporter LaToya R. Young not to sit until she filed corrected volumes 7 and 8 of the reporter's record in this appeal. On March 1, 2021, Ms. Young filed a letter asking for more time, specifically until March 4, 2021, to file the corrected volumes. To date, the corrected volumes have not been filed.
The reporter's record was initially due on March 25, 2020. The Court and appellant have been waiting for a complete and correct reporter's record since that time. In August 2020, the Court ordered deputy court reporter LaToya Young not to sit until she filed her portion of the reporter's record. In September of 2020, we abated for a hearing on why, despite our orders, Ms. Young's portion of the reporter's record had not been filed. Although the record was filed in October, it contained numerous errors, detailed in appellant's January 29, 2021 motion to abate the appeal.
This appeal cannot proceed until the reporter's record is complete and accurate. We have already ordered that deputy court reporter LaToya Young not sit until the corrected volumes of the reporter's record are complete and filed.
We therefore ORDER the trial court to hold a hearing, no later than April 1, 2021, to determine (1) why the corrected volumes 7 and 8 of the reporter's record have not been filed, (2) the date they will be filed, (3) what steps need to be taken to ensure the corrected volumes of the reporter's record are filed by that date, and (4) whether court reporter LaToya Young should be held in contempt of court for the failure to comply with this Court's orders.
The trial court shall make its findings concerning volumes 7 and 8 of the reporter's record in writing. The findings shall be filed in a supplemental clerk's record no later than April 5, 2021. A supplemental reporter's record of the hearing shall also be filed no later than April 5, 2021.
Our order that Ms. Young not sit as a reporter until the two corrected volumes of the reporter's record are filed in this appeal remains in effect.
We DIRECT the Clerk to send copies of this order to the Honorable Raquel Jones, Presiding Judge, 203rd Judicial District Court; to Crystal Brown, official court reporter, 203rd Judicial District Court; to LaToya R. Young, deputy court reporter; to the Dallas County Auditor's Office; and to counsel for all parties.
We ABATE the appeal to allow the trial court an opportunity to conduct the hearing. The appeal will be reinstated no later than April 6, 2021.
/s/ ROBERT D. BURNS, III
CHIEF JUSTICE