Daniel, Brandon

Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided April 27, 2015·No. AP-77,034·Published

Opinion

AP-77,034

FILED IN COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS AUSTIN, TEXAS Transmitted 4/16/2015 9:40:11 AM April16, 2015 Accepted 4/16/2015 9:41:50 AM ABEL ACOSTA

No. AP-77,034 CLERK ABELACOSTA,CLERK

IN THE COURT OF CRlMINAL APPEALS AT AUSTIN, TEXAS

BRANDON DANIEL,

APPELLANT

vs.

THE STATE OF TEXAS,

APPELLEE

THE STATE'S MOTION TO ABATE APPEAL

TO THE HONORABLE JUDGES OF THE COURT OF CRlMINAL . APPEALS:

The State of Texas, by and through the District Attorney for Travis

County, respectfully moves this Court for its order abating the instant appeal

and remanding this cause to the trial court for a hearing on appellant's desire

to dismiss his counsel, proceed pro se, and waive all appeals

In support of the instant motion, the State asserts as follows:

1. Procedural Background and Relevant Facts

The State charged appellant by indictment with the capital murder of· .

Austin Police Officer Jaime Padron committed on April6, 2012. (CR 100,

118-119). A jury found appellant guilty of capital murder (CR 184), and

pursuant to the jury's answers to the special issues at punishment, the trial

~ourt sentenced appellant to death on February 28, 2014. (CR 189-190; RR

26: 221 ). Appellant timely filed a motion for new trial, which was overruled

by operation oflaw, and notice of appeal. (CR 196, 197). · The trial court

appointed attorney Ariel Payan to represent appellant on direct appeal

pursuant to appellant's desire to be represented by counsel. (CR 205; RR

26: 219).

On the same day of sentencing, the trial judge found the appellant to be

indigent and that the appellant desired to have counsel appointed for the

purpose of a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to Art. 11.071, y.A.C.C.P .. (CR

192; RR 26: 220). The trial judge therefore entered an order appointing the

Office of Capital Writs and Director Brad Levenson as counsel to investigate

the case, file the appropriate writ, and fully represent appellant. (CR 192).

On January 16, 2015, Payan timely filed a brief on direct appeal on

appellant's behalf. The State's brief on direct appeal is currently due on

April 20, 2015, but the State anticipates requesting additional time in which

to complete its responsive brief.

2. This Appeal Should Be Abated

On March 4, 2015, appellant filed a letter with the District Clerk's Office

of Travis County. See Exhibit A, certified copy of appellant's Jetter,

attached to this motion. In the letter directed to the judge of the convicting

court, appellant expresses his desire to dismiss his direct appeal attorney, ·

Ariel Payan, dismiss the briefPayan filed on his behalf, proceed prose, and

waive all appeals. Appellant also indicates his desire to dismiss the Office

of Capital Writs and Brad Levenson on habeas review, proceed prose, and

waive habeas review. 1

Appellate review of a death sentence is automatic and cannot be waived.

Art. 37.071(h), V.A.C.C.P. Thus, an appellant must either be represented by

counsel on direct appeal or he must proceed prose. The State submits that

this Court should abate this appeal and remand this case to the trial court for

a hearing to determine whether ( 1) the appellant understands that he cannot

waive his right to direct appeal, (2) the appellant really desires to dismiss

Payan and proceed prose, (3) the appellant has been advised of the dangers

and disadvantages of self-representation if he chooses to represent himself

on direct appeal, see e.g., Burgess v. State, 816 S.W.2d 424 (Tex.Crim.App.

1991 ), and (4) the appellant is competent to make these decisions, see Rees

v. Peyton, 384 U.S. 312 (1966).

On the other hand, the law does not require the filing of an application

for writ of habeas corpus, and an applicant may waive his right to habeas

1 Additionally, in a letter dated March 26, 2015, and addressed to Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, appellant expressed his desire to waive his appeals and sought the District Attorney's help "to expedite the situation."

review. Ex parte Reynoso, 257 S.W.3.d 715 (Tex.Crim.App. 2008). Since

the trial court appointed counsel to present appellant on habeas review and

the appellant now expresses his desire to dismiss counsel and waive habeas

review, the State submits that abatement and remand are necessary for the

trial court to additionally determine whether the appellant wishes to file an

application for writ of habeas corpus and, if he does not, whether he has

made this decision knowingly and voluntarily. See Reynoso, AP-74,952,

I

Order dated September 15, 2004. If the appellant does wish to pursue

habeas review, the t~ial court should determine whether appellant wishes to

dismiss his appointed counsel and proceed pro se and, if he does, whether he

has made this decision knowingly and voluntarily.

PRAYER

Wherefore, the State requests that this Court abate the instant appeal

and remand this cause to the trial court for a hearing on appellant's desire to

proceed pro se and waive all appeals.

Respectfully submitted,

ROSEMARY LEHMBERG District Attorney Travis County, Texas

Is/ Lisa Stewart Lisa Stewart Assistant District Attorney Director, Appellate Division State Bar No. 06022700 P.O. Box 1748 Austin, Texas 78767 Phone No. (512) 854-3626 Fax. No. (512) 854-4810 Lisa.Stewart@traviscountytx.gov AppellateTCDA@traviscountytx.gov

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE

Pursuant to Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.4(i), I hereby certify,

based on the computer program used to generate this document, that this

document contains 758 words, excluding words contained in those parts of

the document that Rule 9.4(i) exempts from inclusion in the word count.

Is/ Lisa Stewart Lisa Stewart Assistant District Attorney

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that, on this 15th day of April, 2015, a copy ofthe

foregoing motion was sent, via U.S. mail, email, facsimile, or electronically

through the electronic filing manager, to the following attorneys for the

appellant:

Ariel Payan 1012 Rio Grande Austin, Texas 78701 Fax: 512-472-4102 ArielPayan@hotmai l.com

Brad Levenson Office of Capital Writs Stephen F. Austin Building 1700 N. Congress Avenue, Suite 460 Austin, Texas 78701 Fax: 512-463-8590 Brad .Levenson@OCW. Texas.gov

Lisa C. McMinn State Prosecuting Attorney P.O. Box 13046 Austin, Texas 78711-3046 Lisa.McMinn@spa.texas.gov

Is/ Lisa Stewart . Lisa Stewart Assistant District Attorney

EXHIBIT A

. .

February 25, 2015

Judge Brenda Kennedy 403rd District Court P.O. Box 1748 Austin, TX 78767

Re: Brandon Daniel v. State of Texas; 12-201718

Dear Judge Kennedy:

I was sentenced to death in your court last February for the murder of an Austin police officer in 2012. After long and careful consideration of all of my options I have decided to respect~~lly request to waive any and all of my appeals immediately . The reasons for my decision include, but are not limited to: the fact that I want justice to be served and I feel that the punishment is appropriate for my crime; we are both interested ' in saving the taxpayer's money, the time of all involved and in sparing my family and the victim's family any more angst than necessary; and, finally, r··would like to limit my time in prison to the least amount possible.

I understand that this means that I forfeit any possibility of rece1v1ng a sentence that is lesser in the eyes of the law. I am competent and will submit to any exams that the court requires. I am also completely informed of the situation and the effects of my decision due to my lawyer, Brad D. Levenson of the Office of Capital Writs (OCW), who has consistently tried to dissuade me. Although the entire OCW has been very helpful throughout the process, I would also like to dismiss the OCW and represent myself pro se for the remainder of the case in order to avoid any conflicts of interest.

My direct appellate counsel, Ariel Payan, filed an appeal against my wishes despite confirming that he received my letter

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