Marissa Monica Cano v. the State of Texas

CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 26, 2025
Docket13-24-00016-CR
StatusPublished

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Bluebook
Marissa Monica Cano v. the State of Texas, (Tex. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

NUMBER 13-24-00016-CR

COURT OF APPEALS

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS

CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG

MARISSA MONICA CANO, Appellant,

v.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.

ON APPEAL FROM THE 290TH DISTRICT COURT OF BEXAR COUNTY, TEXAS

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Before Chief Justice Tijerina and Justices West and Fonseca Memorandum Opinion by Chief Justice Tijerina

A jury convicted appellant Marissa Monica Cano of two counts of aggravated

assault with a deadly weapon (Counts I and III), second-degree felonies; one count of

assault on a family member by choking (Count IV), a third-degree felony, one count of

injury to a child with intent to cause bodily injury (Count V), a third-degree felony; one

count of endangering a child (Count VI), a state jail felony, and one count of tampering with evidence (Count VII), a third-degree felony.1 See TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. §§ 22.01(a),

22.02(a)(2), 22.04(a)(3), 22.041(c), 37.09. The jury assessed punishment at twenty years’

imprisonment on the aggravated assault counts, ten years on the assault on a family

member count, two years on the endangering a child count, and five years on the

tampering with evidence count. By five issues, Cano argues the trial court erred by:

(1) ordering the sentences to run consecutively; (2) assessing court costs in all six

judgments; (3) failing to dismiss the superseding indictment; (4) failing to inquire into

Cano’s ability to pay court costs; and (5) failing to dismiss the case for speedy trial

violations. We affirm as modified.2

I. CONSECUTIVE SENTENCES

By her first issue, Cano argues that the trial court erred by ordering the sentences

to be cumulated. The State agrees this is error and requests that we modify the judgment

to delete the cumulation orders.

If a defendant “is found guilty of more than one offense arising out of the same

criminal episode prosecuted in a single criminal action, a sentence for each offense for

which he has been found guilty shall be pronounced. Except as provided by Subsection

(b), the sentences shall run concurrently.” TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 3.03(a); Baker v.

State, 107 S.W.3d 671, 672–73 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2003, no pet.). It is undisputed

that none of the exceptions listed in § 3.03(b) apply here, and it is also undisputed that

Cano was convicted in a single criminal action for all offenses arising out of the same

1 The jury acquitted Cano of a third count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon (Count II).

2 This case is before this Court on transfer from the Fourth Court of Appeals in San Antonio pursuant to a docket-equalization order issued by the Supreme Court of Texas. See TEX. GOV’T CODE ANN. § 73.001.

2 criminal episode. See TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 3.02. Therefore, “the trial court’s stacking

order was improper.” Baker, 107 S.W.3d at 673. Accordingly, we modify the judgments

to delete the cumulation orders. Id. at 674. We sustain Cano’s first issue.

II. COURT COSTS

By her second issue, Cano argues the trial court erred by assessing costs in each

of the six judgments.

“In a single criminal action in which a defendant is convicted of two or more

offenses . . . the court may assess each court cost or fee only once against the

defendant.” TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 102.073(a); Zarate v. State, 551 S.W.3d

261, 275 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2018, pet. ref’d). “[E]ach court cost or fee the amount

of which is determined according to the category of offense must be assessed using the

highest category of offense that is possible based on the defendant’s convictions.” TEX.

CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 102.073(b). Here, the State concedes that the trial court

improperly assessed court costs of $650 for each count. See Zarate, 551 S.W.3d at 275.

Because it is undisputed that Cano was convicted based on a single criminal action, the

trial court may only assess court costs once. TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 102.073(a);

Zarate, 551 S.W.3d at 275. Therefore, we sustain Cano’s second issue, and we modify

3 the judgments to delete the award of costs in counts three through seven. See Zarate,

551 S.W.3d at 275; see also TEX. R. APP. P. 43.2(b).

III. WAIVER

By her fourth issue, Cano argues the trial court erred in failing to inquire into her

ability to pay court costs. The State argues Cano waived this issue because she did not

object in the trial court.

Article 42.15(a-1) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure provides generally that

“during or immediately after imposing a sentence in a case, . . . a court shall inquire on

the record whether the defendant has sufficient resources or income to immediately pay

all or part of the fine and costs.” TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. art. 42.15(a-1). However,

the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals held that the right to an ability-to-pay inquiry under

this statute is forfeitable by a defendant:

An ability-to-pay inquiry is not fundamental to the adjudicatory system; it is a post-trial procedure that has nothing to do with adjudication; it does not ensure a jury, a fair trial, a correctly informed sentencing judge, or a defendant’s ability to understand the proceedings against him. It does not implicate the integrity of judicial sentencing proceedings or the criminal adjudicatory process . . . . Requiring an objection to enforce it would not undermine the public’s perception of the fairness of our judicial system or engender suspicions about the system’s fairness and accuracy. In short, an ability-to-pay inquiry made during or right after sentencing bears no consequence to the adjudicatory process.

Cruz v. State, 698 S.W.3d 265, 269 (Tex. Crim. App. 2024) (internal quotations omitted).

The record provides that Cano did not object to the lack of an inquiry to the trial court.

Therefore, she “forfeited h[er] right to the inquiry by not objecting” in the trial court. Id. at

4 271; see also Ybarra v. State, 705 S.W.3d 819, 822 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2024, no

pet.). Accordingly, we overrule Cano’s fourth issue.

IV. LIMITATIONS

By her third issue, Cano argues the trial court erred when it denied her motion to

dismiss the superseding indictment because it was filed outside the statute of limitations

period.

A. Pertinent Facts

On October 3, 2019, Cano was originally indicted for the following offenses: (1)

continuously trafficking a child, namely C.R., during the period of May 1, 2017 through

October 14, 2017; (2) aggravated assault causing bodily injury to T. R. by hitting him with

a bat, on or about October 14, 2017; (3) aggravated assault causing bodily injury to T.R.

by impeding his normal breathing or circulation, on or about October 14, 2017; (4)

aggravated assault causing bodily injury to O.R., a child under fourteen years of age, by

striking her with a bat, on or about October 1, 2017; (5) aggravated assault causing bodily

injury to O.R. by striking her with a belt, on or about October 5, 2017; (6) engaging in

conduct that placed O.R. in imminent danger of bodily injury by locking her in a garage

without access to food or water, on or about October 14, 2017; and (7) tampering with

evidence on or about October 14, 2017.

On May 15, 2023, the State filed a motion for continuance. On May 16, 2023, the

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