Markus Anthony Rodriguez v. the State of Texas

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: October 16, 2023
• Docket: 07-23-00288-CR
• Status: Published

Opinion

In The Court of Appeals Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo

No. 07-23-00288-CR

MARKUS ANTHONY RODRIGUEZ, APPELLANT

V.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, APPELLEE

On Appeal from the 242nd District Court Hale County, Texas Trial Court No. B20667-1803, Honorable Kregg Hukill, Presiding

October 16, 2023 ORDER OF ABATEMENT AND REMAND Before QUINN, C.J., and PARKER and DOSS, JJ.

Appellant, Markus Anthony Rodriguez, appeals from the trial court’s judgment

adjudicating him guilty of intoxicated assault with a motor vehicle1 and sentencing him to

eight years’ confinement. The appellate record was originally due September 8, 2023.

The clerk’s record was filed by this deadline, but the reporter’s record was not. By letter

of September 15, 2023, we notified the reporter that the record was overdue and directed

1 See TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 49.07. her to advise this Court of the status of the record by September 25. The court reporter

has notified the Court by telephone that she is unable to complete the record or file a

motion for extension due to medical issues.

Accordingly, we abate the appeal and remand the cause to the trial court for further

proceedings. See TEX. R. APP. P. 35.3(c) (“The trial and appellate courts are jointly

responsible for ensuring that the appellate record is timely filed.”); 37.3(a)(2) (requiring

appellate courts to “make whatever order is appropriate to avoid further delay and to

preserve the parties’ rights” when the appellate record is not timely filed). On remand,

the trial court shall determine the following:

(1) what tasks remain to complete the filing of the reporter’s record;

(2) why the reporter has not completed the necessary tasks;

(3) what amount of time is reasonably necessary for the completion of those

tasks; and

(4) whether the reporter can complete the tasks within the time the trial court

finds reasonable.

Should the trial court determine that the reporter will require more than thirty days

to complete, certify, and file the reporter’s record, it shall arrange for a substitute reporter

to do so. The trial court is directed to enter such orders necessary to address the

aforementioned questions. So too shall it include its findings on those matters in a

supplemental clerk’s record and cause that record to be filed with this Court by November

15, 2023.

2 Should the reporter file the record on or before October 30, 2023, she is directed

to immediately notify the trial court of the filing, in writing, whereupon the trial court shall

not be required to take any further action.

It is so ordered.

Per Curiam

Do not publish.