Johnnie Parker v. State of Texas

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: May 30, 2001
• Docket: 04-00-00810-CR
• Status: Published

Opinion

No. 04-00-00810-CR

Johnnie PARKER,

Appellant

v.

STATE of Texas,

Appellee

From the 75th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas

Trial Court No. 2000-CR-3369

Honorable Robert Barton, Judge Presiding

PER CURIAM

Sitting: Paul W. Green, Justice

Sarah B. Duncan, Justice

Karen Angelini, Justice

Delivered and Filed: May 30, 2001

APPEAL DISMISSED FOR WANT OF JURISDICTION

On April 16, 2001, we ordered appellant, Johnnie Parker, to show cause, no later than April 30, 2001, why this appeal should not be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Appellant was warned that if he failed to respond, the appeal would be dismissed. No response has been filed. We dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction for the following reasons.

Appellant pled nolo contendere to unauthorized use of a vehicle, a state jail felony. Pursuant to a plea bargain agreement, the trial court sentenced him to two years confinement and a $1,000 fine. The sentence is within the terms of the plea bargain. Appellant filed a premature general notice of appeal.

The notice of appeal was not timely filed. A premature notice of appeal is not effective if it is filed before the trial court makes a finding of guilt. Tex. R. Civ. P. 27.1(b). The clerk's record indicates appellant signed his plea agreement and waiver and stipulation documents on February 5, 2001, and sentence was imposed that same day. The notice of appeal was filed November 27, 2000, before the trial court made a finding of guilt.

Further, when a judgment is rendered on the defendant's plea of guilty or nolo contendere pursuant to a plea bargain in a felony case, and the punishment assessed does not exceed the punishment recommended by the prosecutor and agreed to by the defendant, the defendant's notice of appeal must (a) specify that the appeal is for a jurisdictional defect; (b) specify that the substance of the appeal was raised by written motion and ruled on before trial; or (c) state that the trial court granted permission to appeal. Tex. R. App. P. 25.2(b)(3); Young v. State, 8 S.W.3d 656, 666-67 (Tex. Crim. App. 2000). A timely notice of appeal complying with Rule 25.2(b)(3) is necessary to confer jurisdiction on this court. State v. Riewe, 13 S.W.3d 408 (Tex. Crim. App. 2000). Once the time for perfecting the appeal has passed, appellant may not retroactively confer jurisdiction on this court by filing an amended notice of appeal. Id. at 413-14.

Moreover, this court's jurisdiction is limited to consideration of the matters set forth in Rule 25.2(b)(3). Cooper v. State, No. 1100-99, 2001 WL 321579 (Tex. Crim. App. April 4, 2001). Under a general notice of appeal, we may review only issues concerning the trial court's jurisdiction. Martinez v. State, 5 S.W.3d 722, 724-25 (Tex. App.-San Antonio 1999, no pet.). Rule 25.2(b)(3) applies to this appeal. We have found no jurisdictional matters raised by the record in this appeal.

The notice of appeal was not timely filed. The general notice of appeal confers no jurisdiction on this court except to examine the jurisdiction of the trial court. The record raises no jurisdictional issues. Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Tex. R. App. P. 42.3(a).

DO NOT PUBLISH