In Re EFZR

250 S.W.3d 173, 2008 WL 668018
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 13, 2008
Docket08-07-00078-CV
StatusPublished

This text of 250 S.W.3d 173 (In Re EFZR) 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 EFZR, 250 S.W.3d 173, 2008 WL 668018 (Tex. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

250 S.W.3d 173 (2008)

In the Matter of E.F.Z.R., a Juvenile.

No. 08-07-00078-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas, El Paso.

March 13, 2008.

*174 M. Clara Hernandez, El Paso County Public Defender, for appellant.

Jose R. Rodriguez, County Attorney, for appellee.

Before CHEW, C.J., McCLURE, and CARR, JJ.

OPINION

KENNETH R. CARR, Justice.

This is an appeal from a judgment and order of commitment committing the juvenile, E.F.Z.R., to the Texas Youth Commission (TYC).

I. SUMMARY OF THE EVIDENCE

On February 15, 2007, the State filed its Petition Based on Delinquent Conduct which alleged that the juvenile, E.F.Z.R., engaged in delinquent conduct by committing the offense of possession of cocaine in the amount of 400 grams or more. E.F.Z.R. waived his right to a hearing before the Judge of the designated Juvenile Court and agreed to a hearing before the Juvenile Court Referee. He also waived a jury. E.F.Z.R. and his attorney both signed a form stipulating to the evidence and admitting to the allegations contained in the petition. An Order of Adjudication was signed by the Juvenile Court Referee on February 20, 2007.

Juvenile Probation Officer Linda Acevedo filed a Pre-Disposition Report recommending E.F.Z.R. be committed to the TYC. A disposition hearing was held on March 14, 2007. At the close of the hearing, the Juvenile Court Referee committed E.F.Z.R. to the TYC. A Judgment of Commitment and an Order of Commitment were signed by the Juvenile Court Referee on the same day and by Judge Alfredo Chavez of the 65th District Court of El Paso County, a Juvenile Court, on March 20, 2007.

At the disposition hearing, Acevedo testified that she was a juvenile probation officer for the El Paso County Juvenile Probation Department. She testified that the existent one was the juvenile's sole adjudication. She prepared the Pre-Disposition Report regarding E.F.Z.R., which was admitted into evidence.[1] Acevedo testified *175 that the juvenile was a citizen of Mexico, and he was in the country illegally. He had no problems with alcohol or drugs. She recommended that E.F.Z.R. be committed to the TYC, because, due to his non-citizen status, there was no other placement available for him. E.F.Z.R.'s parents did not agree with the recommendation. The juvenile had been absent from school for two years, and his parents tried to get him back into school, but he refused to go. Acevedo testified that the parents had not contributed to his delinquency. She stated that her recommendation was in the best interests of the juvenile, as well as the community.

During cross-examination, Acevedo stated that it was possible that some juveniles who were in the country illegally were on probation. She stated that E.F.Z.R.'s mother worked at a business called Fun For Kidz in Cd. Juárez, Chih., and that her son had worked for the same employer for four years. Acevedo testified that the parents do not live together. The father had been to all hearings of which he had notice. The witness stated that the juvenile had expressed remorse for his actions. She did not obtain a psychological evaluation of him.

On redirect examination, Acevedo clarified that the juveniles who are in the country illegally and are on probation are living with their parents, who live in the United States. She was not aware of any juveniles who are on probation that live in Cd. Juárez. Acevedo stated that the Juvenile Probation Department cannot supervise juveniles living in Cd. Juárez. She agreed that juveniles are sometimes placed with relatives, but that E.F.Z.R. had no relatives living in the United States. She testified that she had asked both the mother and the father whether E.F.Z.R. had any relatives living in the United States.

The defense called E.F.Z.R.'s mother to the stand. She testified that she and her son live together. Her other children are married and do not live with her. E.F.Z.R.'s mother testified that she had tried to keep her son in school, but there was difficulty with the testing procedures. She was aware that her son did not want to go to school. The mother stated that there was a period when her son was slightly rebellious, but she denied that he was ever aggressive towards her. She testified that her son did not like to do chores around the house and that she disapproved of one of his friends. He was older than her son, and she thought he was using drugs. She stated that her son had been a very good child, although her relationship with him had been strained recently. They had always been close and were best friends.

E.F.Z.R.'s father testified on his son's behalf. He stated that he had an uncle who lived in Socorro, a suburb of El Paso located in El Paso County. He had spoken to his uncle, who was willing to keep E.F.Z.R. The father did not know his uncle's address, but he knew where he lived. He stated that the Juvenile Probation Department had never asked him whether he had any relatives living in El Paso. The father testified that he had left the family when E.F.Z.R. was three years old. He saw his son about every three *176 months. His uncle had met the juvenile three or four months ago at an aunt's house in Cd. Juárez, for about thirty minutes. The uncle had also met the juvenile ten years before. The uncle was not present in the courtroom.

At the close of the evidence, the Juvenile Court Referee stated that she was going to find the juvenile was eligible for the TYC, because he had committed a first-degree felony. She stated that E.F.Z.R. was in need of rehabilitation and that the protection of the juvenile and the public required that he be committed to the care, custody, and control of the TYC.

II. DISCUSSION

In E.F.Z.R.'s sole issue, he maintains that the court abused its discretion by committing him to the TYC, when an alternative was available. Specifically, E.F.Z.R. contends that the court should have continued the disposition hearing until further evidence could be obtained concerning the suitability of a placement with the uncle in lieu of committing him to the TYC. The juvenile also argues that there was no evidence presented that he was a danger to society and that the community needed to be protected from him, as the Juvenile Court found in its Judgment of Commitment.

After a juvenile has been adjudged to have engaged in delinquent conduct, the juvenile court has broad discretion to determine a suitable disposition. In re C.J.H., 79 S.W.3d 698, 702 (Tex.App.-Fort Worth 2002, no pet.). We will not reverse the juvenile court's findings regarding disposition, absent a clear abuse of discretion. Id. In conducting this review, we engage in a two-pronged analysis: (1) Did the trial court have sufficient information upon which to exercise its discretion; and (2) did the trial court err in its application of discretion? In re M.A.C., 999 S.W.2d 442, 446 (Tex.App.-El Paso 1999, no pet.).

The traditional sufficiency of the evidence standards of review come into play when considering the first question. Id. We then proceed to determine whether, based on the elicited evidence, the trial court made a reasonable decision or whether it was arbitrary and unreasonable. Id.

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Bluebook (online)
250 S.W.3d 173, 2008 WL 668018, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-efzr-texapp-2008.