In Re DR

177 S.W.3d 574
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 18, 2005
Docket01-00-00582-CV, 01-00-00583-CV
StatusPublished

This text of 177 S.W.3d 574 (In Re DR) 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
In Re DR, 177 S.W.3d 574 (Tex. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

177 S.W.3d 574 (2005)

In the Interest of D.R., A Minor Child.
In the Interest of G.R. and C.R., Minor Children.

Nos. 01-00-00582-CV, 01-00-00583-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas, First District, Houston.

August 18, 2005.

*576 Shawn Casey, Shawn Casey & Associates, Leonard Sparks, III, Houston, TX, for Appellant.

Sandra D. Hachem, Senior Assistant County Attorney, Terry Lea Elizondo, Gene E. Gundersen, Assistant County Attorney, Houston, TX, for Appellee.

Panel consists of Chief Justice RADACK and Justices JENNINGS and HANKS.

OPINION ON REHEARING

TERRY JENNINGS, Justice.

We deny the appellee's motion for rehearing. TEX.R.APP. P. 49.3. We withdraw our July 7, 2005 opinion, substitute this opinion in its place, and vacate our July 7, 2005 judgment.

Appellants, Vernon Rocchi and Cynthia Raddatz, challenge the trial court's judgments, entered in two separate cases tried together, one before a jury and the other before the bench, granting sole managing conservatorship of their minor children G.R. and C.R. to the Texas Department of Protective and Regulatory Services (TDPRS)[1] (the "G.R. and C.R. case")[2] and their minor child D.R. to Tiffany Carnal (the "D.R. case").[3] In their sole issue in the G.R. and C.R. case, which was tried before the bench, appellants contend that the trial court erred in not submitting the case to the jury. In two issues in the D.R. case, which was tried before a jury, Rocchi contends that the trial court's submission of unnecessary evidentiary issues in the jury charge precluded the jury from appointing him as D.R.'s sole managing conservator, and the trial court made an impermissible comment on the weight of the evidence in the wording of its jury charge. We affirm the judgment entered in the G.R. and C.R. case, reverse the judgment entered in the D.R. case, and remand the D.R. case to the trial court for a new trial.

Factual and Procedural Background

TDPRS originally filed suit in the interest of G.R., C.R., and D.R., seeking, among other things, to be appointed as the sole managing conservator for all three children. The trial court subsequently severed the D.R. case from the G.R. and C.R. case. TDPRS filed an amended petition in the G.R. and C.R. case, identifying Raddatz as the mother and Rocchi as the biological father of G.R. and C.R. TDPRS also filed an amended petition in the D.R. case, identifying Brandy Campbell[4] as the mother and Rocchi as the biological father of D.R. In both cases, TDPRS alleged that *577 it would be in the best interest of all three children to appoint TDPRS as the children's sole managing conservator. Intervenor Tiffany Carnal, a former foster mother and possessory conservator of D.R., filed a petition in intervention in the D.R. case, seeking appointment as sole managing conservator of D.R.

By two separate orders dated November 17, 1999, the trial court set the G.R. and C.R. case and the D.R. case for trial on January 24, 2000. On November 29, 1999, appellants filed a jury demand styled with the cause numbers for both the G.R. and C.R. case and the D.R. case. However, only one jury fee was paid.

The trial of both cases commenced on January 24, 2000. In a pretrial conference concerning the appropriate number of jury strikes for each party, the following discussion took place:

[Trial Court]: We're only going to try one jury case. That's the A case and also —
[TDPRS]: But the evidence is going to be in that case.
[Trial Court]: I will consider the other non-A case, [G.R. and C.R.], is that true?
[TDPRS]: That's right.
[Trial Court]: And the A case that the jury will have, the A case, is [D.R.]
...
[Appellants]: As I understand it, Judge, as I understand it here, I represent the two respondents and I'm given three parties.
[Trial Court]: Okay. Who are the respondents in the [D.R.] case?
[TDPRS]: The father and the mother.
[Trial Court]: What are their names?
[Appellants]: Mr. Rocchi and Brandi Campbell.
. . .
[Trial Court]: There's two, right.
[Appellants]: That would be two in that case.
[Trial Court]: That's the only one being tried to the jury.
[Appellants]: Well, you said you were hearing evidence on that, right, and Ms. Raddatz is part of the other case.
[Trial Court]: Right, but that's not a jury case. I'm going to make the decision in that case.
[Appellants]: Yes, ma'am, but I would reurge the fact that I've got everybody trying to get us terminated.

The trial court, after deciding on the number of strikes to allocate to each side, stated, in its opening remarks to the venire panel: "We've brought you here this morning because we're going to select a jury to hear the case of In the Interest of [D.R.], a Minor Child." Appellants did not object to the trial court's statements that only the D.R. case would be submitted to the jury. Additionally, following voir dire, appellants submitted a jury strike list for the D.R. case, but did not submit a jury strike list for the G.R. and C.R. case. The jury was selected, and the two cases were tried simultaneously, one before the jury and the other before the bench. However, the cases were never consolidated.

During the charge conference, appellants argued, for the first time, that the G.R. and C.R. case should also be submitted to the jury. While appellants agreed with the trial court that only one jury fee had been paid, appellants argued that the jury demand was made "in the name of both cases." The trial court reviewed the file, and confirmed that only one fee had been paid. However, the trial court discovered that, despite its previous statements that the D.R. case would be tried to the jury, the jury fee had apparently been credited to the G.R. and C.R. case.

*578 In response to appellants' request for a jury trial of the G.R. and C.R. case, TDPRS argued that appellants had waived their right to a jury trial of the G.R. and C.R. case by not objecting to the court's statements at the beginning of the trial. The children's attorney ad litem also argued against submitting the G.R. and C.R. case to the jury, contending that he had conducted his voir dire questions, opening statements, and cross-examination based on his understanding that the jury was only considering the D.R. case. The trial court indicated that, in light of the fact that the fee had actually been credited to the G.R. and C.R. case, it would consider a request by appellants to submit the G.R. and C.R. case to the jury, but that it would not permit both cases to be submitted to the jury.

During the court's extended discussion of this issue, appellants never offered to pay a second jury fee. Instead, after arguing that both cases should be tried to the jury based on the payment of the single jury fee, appellants expressly elected to have the D.R. case submitted to the jury. Appellants' counsel stated on the record: "my clients are in the process of giving me written instruction to elect this to be a jury trial for [D.R.] if the court will permit it." The trial court agreed to permit appellants' election, and noted:

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Bluebook (online)
177 S.W.3d 574, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-dr-texapp-2005.