In the Matter of B.P.H.

83 S.W.3d 400
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 15, 2002
DocketNo. 2-01-241-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by81 cases

This text of 83 S.W.3d 400 (In the Matter of B.P.H.) 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 the Matter of B.P.H., 83 S.W.3d 400 (Tex. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

OPINION

ANNE GARDNER, Justice.

INTRODUCTION

This is a juvenile appeal from an adjudication of delinquent conduct. The juvenile court found thirteen-year-old B.P.H. (hereafter “Appellant”) engaged in delinquent conduct by committing the offenses of false report and retaliation and granted him [403]*403probation not to exceed twelve months.1 In four points, Appellant complains: (1) the trial court erred by denying his motion to quash; (2) the evidence is legally and factually insufficient to prove intent to commit retaliation; (8) the evidence is legally and factually insufficient to prove A.M. was a witness as required by the retaliation statute; and (4) the trial court erred by signing and entering findings of fact and conclusions of law that do not comport with the judgment. We affirm.

PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

T.U., a fourteen-year-old student at Col-leyville Middle School, testified that, on or about Friday, February 16, 2001, during fourth period English class, she overheard Appellant and a fellow classmate, C.P., talking about making cocktail bombs and other “Columbine-like activity.”2 Shortly afterward, Appellant placed a spiral notebook on T.U.’s desk opened to a page that had a map of the upstairs classrooms of the school drawn on it. The map detailed Appellant and C.P.’s plan to kill several students and teachers. During class, Appellant, C.P., and T.U. exchanged notes discussing the boys’ plans to attack the school. After English class, T.U. confronted Appellant and C.P. about their plans. C.P. threatened T.U., saying that if she told anyone about the map, he would shoot -her.

Tuesday, February 20, 2001, after a holiday weekend, T.U. was walking by C.P. during Advisory period when C.P. said, “Boom, boom, goes Bubbles,” or “Uh-oh, Bubbles is dead.”3 A.M., also a fourteen-year-old student at Colleyville Middle School, testified that, during lunch, he engaged in a conversation with Appellant and C.P. about “a hit list.” Appellant told A.M. that he and C.P. were planning to kill a bunch of people on TAAS testing day in March.

After lunch, A.M. was picking up attendance cards from the classrooms when he saw Appellant and C.P. together again. They were upstairs leaning against a wall and talking about the hit list and the map. A.M. saw C.P. working on the hit list and Appellant working on the map. According to AM.’s testimony, Appellant then took out a knife and told A.M., “if you tell, I’m going to kill you and your mother and your father.”

T.U. testified that, later that same day, she noticed Appellant and C.P. coming from the direction of her locker. T.U: opened her locker and discovered another map and a list of names. The list of names was labeled the “K-Group.” T.U., now more scared than before, took the map and the fist to give to the vice-principal, Mike Fitzwater. After T.U. was in Fitzwater’s office, A.M. entered and told the vice-principal about Appellant and C.P.’s plan and Appellant’s threat to kill him and his family if he told.

Officer Cheryl Ingalsbe, of the Colley-ville Police Department, the school resource officer, was already in Fitzwater’s [404]*404office during both T.U.’s and AM.’s discussions with Fitzwater. After listening to T.U. describe Appellant and C.P.’s plan to kill people in school, Officer Ingalsbe went to locate the two boys. She found Appellant in his math class but, because C.P. was truant from class and could' not be found, Officer Ingalsbe called C.P.’s mother at work.

Officer Ingalsbe then took Appellant to the Colleyville Police Department and placed him in an interview room. Shortly thereafter, C.P.’s mother arrived with C.P. With both Appellant and C.P. together in the interview room, Officer Ingalsbe began her paperwork on the two juveniles. While Appellant and C.P. were together they were laughing and “cutting up.” Officer Ingalsbe had not yet began to ask them questions when Appellant started describing the plan. Appellant said they were going to wait until Officer Ingalsbe was in a DARE class in the sixth grade hallway, then they were going to go into the office and “take out” the office staff so they could not call her. After they were finished with the office staff, they were going to go upstairs and finish killing people and taking hostages from the list. Appellant said they were going to rape the hostages before they released them. As Officer Ingalsbe finished her pre-question-ing paperwork, Appellant and C.P. were still laughing. Appellant asked Officer In-galsbe if he was going to be in the news and stated he “always wanted to be on television.”

On February 21, 2001, the juvenile court held a detention hearing wherein it found probable cause for delinquency and ordered Appellant detained in the Tarrant County Juvenile Detention Center. Five days later, the juvenile court ordered electronic monitoring and home detention for Appellant. On April 12, 2001, the State filed its Second Amended Petition alleging Appellant retaliated against both T.U. and A.M., made a false report, and made a terroristic threat towards both T.U. and A.M.

Prior to the adjudication hearing before the court, Appellant filed a motion to quash the false report allegation; the trial court denied the motion. After a one-day trial, on April 20, 2001, the juvenile court found beyond a reasonable doubt that, having committed the offenses of false report and retaliation, Appellant was delinquent.4 The juvenile court assessed punishment at twelve months’ probation. Appellant filed a motion for new trial alleging the evidence was factually insufficient to support the offenses of false report and retaliation, and that the trial court erred by failing to grant the motion to quash. The trial court denied Appellant’s motion. Appellant timely filed a notice of appeal.

ANALYSIS

Motion to Quash

In Appellant’s first point, he contends the trial court erred by denying his motion to quash the false report allegation in the State’s second amended petition. Appellant argues the trial court should have granted his motion because the State failed to specify to whom the alleged false report was made and the nature of the offense which Appellant was alleged to have communicated. Appellant insists the State’s failure to provide this information does not provide fair notice and is in viola[405]*405tion of the Texas Family Code and due process. We disagree.

A motion to quash should be granted only where the language regarding the accused’s conduct is so vague or indefinite that it fails to give the accused adequate notice of the acts he allegedly committed. Smith v. State, 895 S.W.2d 449, 458 (Tex.App.-Dallas 1995, pet. ref'd). We will uphold the trial court’s denial of a motion to quash as long as it did not abuse its discretion. Id.; Williams v. State, 834 S.W.2d 613, 615 (Tex.App.-San Antonio 1992, no pet.).

In a juvenile proceeding, petitions for an adjudication hearing are governed by the family code. L.G.R. v. State, 724 S.W.2d 775, 776 (Tex.1987). Accordingly, the petition must state “with reasonable particularity the time, place, and manner of the acts alleged and the penal law or standard of conduct allegedly violated by the acts.” Tex. Fam.Code Ann. § 53.04

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Bluebook (online)
83 S.W.3d 400, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-the-matter-of-bph-texapp-2002.