Opinion
No. 13-09-00187-CR
Delivered and filed May 20, 2010. DO NOT PUBLISH. TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b)
On appeal from the 319th District Court of Nueces County, Texas.
Before Justices YAÑEZ, RODRIGUEZ, and GARZA.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Appellant, Juan Villarreal, was convicted of twelve counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child, a first-degree felony, and two counts of indecency with a child, a second-degree felony. See TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. §§ 21.11, 22.021 (Vernon Supp. 2009). Villarreal entered "open" pleas of guilty to each count and was sentenced to life imprisonment for each of the aggravated sexual assault counts and ten years' imprisonment for both indecency with a child counts, with the sentences to run concurrently. By a single issue, Villarreal contends that his guilty pleas were involuntary because the trial court failed to admonish him that he was ineligible for community supervision. We affirm.
I. BACKGROUND
Villarreal was indicted by a Nueces County grand jury on November 28, 2008. On March 6, 2009, Villarreal entered pleas of guilty as to all counts and filed a "Motion for Community Supervision," which stated in part as follows:I request that the Court defer further proceedings in my case and not enter a finding or judgment of guilt. If the Court grants my request, I understand that I will be on community supervision without a finding of guilty [sic]. I also understand that if I violate any condition of my community supervision, I may be arrested and returned to this Court for a hearing, and the Court may revoke my community supervision, find me guilty and sentence me up to the maximum term of punishment for the offense to which I entered by plea. . . .Villarreal also signed a form advising him as to the various consequences of his guilty pleas, which included the following admonishments:
Community Supervision. If you filed a motion for community supervision (formerly known as probation), you must state under oath whether you have ever before been convicted of a felony or placed on felony community supervision or probation in this State, any other State, or by the United States; if you have a prior criminal record, then you must disclose any prior felony conviction or community supervision or probation. The Court will consider your motion for community supervision, but there is no guarantee that the Court will place you on community supervision; the Court will make its own decision whether to place you on community supervision, regardless of any recommendations made by the State or your attorney. . . .
Deferred Adjudication. If you request that the Court defer adjudication in your case and if the Court grants your request, the Court will find that the evidence substantiates your guilt for the offense to which you entered your plea, will defer an adjudication of guilt, and will place you on community supervision. If you successfully complete the period of community supervision, this cause will be dismissed and you will have no conviction. . . .
Period of Community Supervision in Sex Offense Cases. In a case involving the offense of indecency with a child, sexual assault or aggravated sexual assault, at any time during the original period of community supervision, the Court may extend the period of supervision for an additional 10 Years for a maximum total of 20 Years, if it is shown that the defendant has not sufficiently demonstrated a commitment to avoid future criminal behavior and that the release of the defendant from community supervision would endanger the public. . . .
If No Motion for Community Supervision. If you do not file a motion for community supervision, then if you are found guilty, your punishment shall be a definite term of imprisonment or confinement and possibly a fine. . . .Villarreal signed his initials next to the following statement:
I have requested that the Court defer further proceedings on my case without entering an adjudication of guilt and place me on community supervision. I understand that if I violate a condition of my community supervision, I may be arrested, detained in jail and returned to Court for a hearing limited to a determination by the Court of whether to proceed with an adjudication of guilt on the charge [to which] I entered my plea of guilty. . . .He did not, however, sign his initials next to this statement:
I have filed a motion for community supervision (also known as probation). I understand that the Court is not required to place me on community supervision. I also understand that the conditions of community supervision are not negotiable in plea bargaining, and that the Court can impose conditions of community supervision (such as confinement in a county jail or a state jail or placement in a corrections, treatment or other residential facility) that the Court feels may be appropriate regardless of whether I agree. . . .The trial court accepted the guilty pleas, found Villarreal guilty, and certified Villarreal's right to appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.2(a)(2). After hearing testimony as to punishment, the trial court sentenced Villarreal to life imprisonment for each of the twelve aggravated sexual assault counts and ten years' imprisonment for both of the indecency with a child counts. This appeal followed.