Ex Parte: Quincy Blakely

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 25, 2019
Docket05-18-00909-CR
StatusPublished

This text of Ex Parte: Quincy Blakely (Ex Parte: Quincy Blakely) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ex Parte: Quincy Blakely, (Tex. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinion

AFFIRMED and Opinion Filed February 25, 2019

S In The Court of Appeals Fifth District of Texas at Dallas No. 05-18-00909-CR

EX PARTE QUINCY BLAKELY

On Appeal from the 194th Judicial District Court Dallas County, Texas Trial Court Cause No. WX18-90017-M

MEMORANDUM OPINION Before Chief Justice Burns and Justices Myers and Carlyle Opinion by Chief Justice Burns Quincy Blakely appeals the trial’s order denying relief on his pro se pretrial application for

writ of habeas corpus. In twenty points of error, appellant contends various aspects of his arrest

and subsequent legal proceedings were flawed and violated his constitutional rights; the indictment

against him is defective; the State failed to contest his writ application; and the prosecution is

barred by collateral estoppel. The State contends the Court lacks jurisdiction to consider

appellant’s appeal because the trial court did not consider and resolve the merits of appellant’s

claims. Alternatively, the State contends some of appellant’s claims are not cognizable on appeal,

others are moot, and appellant did not present a sufficient record to show he is entitled to relief.

We affirm the trial court’s order.

BACKGROUND

The State indicted appellant for assault on a public servant. Appellant filed a pretrial

application for writ of habeas corpus alleging he was arrested without a warrant or probable cause, the state statutes allowing a police officer to arrest a suspect without a warrant under certain

circumstances are unconstitutional, errors occurred in his arraignment and examining trial,

collateral estoppel bars the charge, he denied the existence of a grand jury proceeding to indict

him, and the indictment contains various defects and does not provide him with proper notice of

the charges.

On May 14, 2018, during a pretrial hearing in the assault case, appellant brought up the

writ application in the following exchange:

[Appellant]: I requested that you rule on the writ of habeas corpus.

[Trial Court]: And that is based on?

[Appellant]: The writ of habeas corpus?

[Trial Court]: Yes. I am asking what is your position.

[Appellant]: I don’t have an oral. I placed all my response in the writ.

[Trial Court]: Response from the State.

[Prosecutor]: Your Honor, there have been quite a few filings that have been similar. If the defendant is referring to this officer not having proper authority to make an arrest and such exhibits that he had filed, and the State’s position is that the arrest was proper. The indictment was done proper. And the charge is proper.

[Trial Court]: The motion is denied.

Subsequently, the trial court entered a written order stating: “On May 14, 2018, the Court

considered the Defendant’s Application for Pre-trial Writ of Habeas Corpus filed on February 27,

2018. After reviewing the Application on file and the arguments of parties on May 14, 2018, it is

ORDERED that the Defendant’s Application for Pre-trial Writ of Habeas Corpus is hereby: . . .

DENIED.” Appellant appeals the trial court’s ruling.

–2– MOTION TO DISMISS AND CROSS-POINT

The State has filed a motion to dismiss and has briefed a cross-point urging the appeal be

dismissed. The State contends the Court lacks jurisdiction because the record shows the trial court

refused to issue the writ and never actually considered the merits of appellant’s claims. The State

contends appellant’s writ application requested the writ be issued, but it did not request any further

relief on his many claims. The State interprets the brief hearing on the writ as showing the trial

court was unaware of appellant’s claims, and appellant offered no evidence or argument to support

them. Because the trial court did not consider and resolve appellant’s substantive claims, the State

concludes this Court should dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction.

After receiving a writ application from an applicant confined on a felony charge, the trial

court must appoint a time when the trial court will “examine the cause of the applicant, and issue

the writ returnable at that time.” See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 11.08, 11.10. “The writ of

habeas corpus shall be granted without delay by the judge or court receiving the petition, unless it

be manifest from the petition itself, or some documents annexed to it, that the party is entitled to

no relief whatever.” See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 11.15.

In the case of a pretrial habeas application, an applicant may not appeal when the trial court

refuses to issue the writ and does not consider and resolve the merits of the writ application. See

Purchase v. State, 176 S.W.3d 406, 407 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st Dist.] 2004, pet. ref’d); Ex

parte Okere, 56 S.W.3d 846, 850 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2001, pet. ref’d); Ex parte Gonzalez,

12 S.W.3d 913, 914 (Tex. App.—Austin 2000, pet. ref’d), superseded in part by statute as

discussed in Villanueva v. State, 252 S.W.3d 391, 397 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008). Conversely, a trial

court order ruling on the merits of the habeas application is appealable even if the trial court refused

to issue the writ or refused to conduct a hearing. See Ex parte Hargett, 819 S.W.2d 866, 869 (Tex.

Crim. App. 1991), superseded in part by statute as discussed in Villanueva v. State, 252 S.W.3d

–3– 391, 397 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008); Purchase, 176 S.W.3d at 407. We consider the entire record in

determining whether the trial court decided the merits thus rendering the order appealable. See Ex

parte Bowers, 36 S.W.3d 926, 927 (Tex. App.—Dallas 2001, pet. ref’d).

In Bowers, the Court dismissed the appeal because nothing in the order reflected that the

trial court considered the merits of the writ application. See id. In Purchase, the appellate court

dismissed the appeal because its examination of the record showed the trial court denied the writ

“without hearing evidence or argument regarding appellant’s claims, and without expressing an

opinion on the merits of those claims.” Purchase, 176 S.W.3d at 407.

In this case, the trial court did not simply deny the writ or indicate that it would not issue

the writ. Instead, it asked appellant for his “position” and then gave the State the opportunity to

respond. The State did not urge the trial court to refuse to issue the writ, but instead addressed the

merits of appellant’s application. The trial court’s order does not indicate the trial court refused to

issue the writ, but rather indicates the trial court was denying the writ application. We agree with

the State that appellant, appearing pro se, did not request full relief; however, we must be mindful

of our obligation in reviewing a writ application to do substantial justice to the parties. See TEX.

R. APP. P. 31.2. It appears from the record before us that the trial court reviewed the writ

application on the merits, however briefly, and therefore the Court has jurisdiction to entertain

appellant’s appeal. See Purchase, 176 S.W.3d at 407; see also Ex parte Lewis, No. 14-16-00629-

CR, 2017 WL 6559647, at *2 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] Dec. 21, 2017, pet. ref’d) (mem.

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Related

Ashe v. Swenson
397 U.S. 436 (Supreme Court, 1970)
Ex Parte Villanueva
252 S.W.3d 391 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2008)
Kniatt v. State
206 S.W.3d 657 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2006)
Ex Parte Okere
56 S.W.3d 846 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2001)
Harrison v. Vance
34 S.W.3d 660 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2000)
Purchase v. State
176 S.W.3d 406 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2004)
Rasberry v. State
535 S.W.2d 871 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1976)
Ex Parte Gonzales
12 S.W.3d 913 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 2000)
Ex Parte Doster
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Ex Parte Smith
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Rhoades v. State
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Ex Parte Hargett
819 S.W.2d 866 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1991)
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Ex Parte Watkins
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Ex Parte Weise
55 S.W.3d 617 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2001)
Ex Parte Becker
459 S.W.2d 442 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1970)
Roberts v. State
545 S.W.2d 157 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1977)

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