Gabriel Martinez v. Office of the Attorney General

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: March 18, 2004
• Docket: 14-04-00022-CV
• Status: Published

Opinion

Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed March 18, 2004

Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed March 18, 2004.

In The

Fourteenth Court of Appeals

____________

NO. 14-04-00022-CV

GABRIEL MARTINEZ, Appellant

V.

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, Appellee

On Appeal from the 387th District Court

Fort Bend County, Texas

Trial Court Cause No. 98-CV-103753

M E M O R A N D U M   O P I N I O N

This is an attempted appeal from a judgment of contempt and for commitment to jail for nonpayment of child support signed November 5, 2003.  No motion for new trial was filed.  Appellant filed a pro se notice of appeal of his contempt conviction on December 16, 2004.

The notice of appeal must be filed within thirty days after the judgment is signed when appellant has not filed a timely motion for new trial, motion to modify the judgment, motion to reinstate, or request for findings of fact and conclusion of law.  See Tex. R. App. P. 26.1.  Even though appellant=s notice of appeal was not filed timely, a motion for extension of time is necessarily implied when an appellant, acting in good faith, files a notice of appeal beyond the time allowed by rule 26.1, but within the fifteen-day grace period provided by Rule 26.3 for filing a motion for extension of time.  See Verburgt v. Dorner, 959 S.W.2d 615, 617-18 9 (1997) (construing the predecessor to Rule 26).

Contempt orders are not appealable, however.  Galtex Property Investors, Inc. v. City of Galveston, 113 S.W.3d 922, 929 (Tex. App.CHouston [14th Dist.] 2003, no pet.); Metzger v. Sebek, 892 S.W.2d 20, 54 (Tex. App.CHouston [1st Dist.] 1994, writ denied).  Accordingly, we lack jurisdiction over this appeal.

Therefore, the appeal is ordered dismissed.

PER CURIAM

Judgment rendered and Memorandum Opinion filed March 18, 2004.

Panel consists of Chief Justice Hedges and Justices Frost and Guzman.