Martin Tovar Zapata v. the State of Texas

• Court: Texas Court of Appeals, 3rd District (Austin)
• Decided: June 12, 2026
• Docket: 03-25-00909-CR
• Status: Published

Opinion

TEXAS COURT OF APPEALS, THIRD DISTRICT, AT AUSTIN

NO. 03-25-00909-CR

Martin Tovar Zapata, Appellant

v.

The State of Texas, Appellee

FROM THE 427TH DISTRICT COURT OF TRAVIS COUNTY NO. D-1-DC-22-204696, THE HONORABLE TAMARA NEEDLES, JUDGE PRESIDING

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Appellant Martin Tovar Zapata has filed a motion to dismiss his appeal. As an

initial matter, we note that the judgment adjudicating guilt erroneously recites appellant’s surname

as “Tavarzapata.” In response to questioning by the trial court, appellant stated that his surname

is in fact Tovar Zapata.

Appellate courts have the authority to correct or reform a judgment when the

necessary information is available to do so. See Tex. R. App. P. 43.2(b); Bigley v. State,

865 S.W.2d 26, 27–28 (Tex. Crim. App. 1993). Accordingly, we modify the judgment

adjudicating guilt in trial court cause number D-1-DC-22-204696 to reflect that appellant’s name

is “Martin Tovar Zapata.” See Tiscareno v. State, 608 S.W.3d 434, 443 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st

Dist.] 2020, pet. ref’d) (concluding that “the spelling of appellant’s name in the judgment does not

accurately comport with the record in this case” and modifying judgment). Appellant’s motion to dismiss is signed by both appellant and his attorney. See

Tex. R. App. P. 42.2(a). We grant the motion and dismiss the appeal. See id.

__________________________________________ Rosa Lopez Theofanis, Justice

Before Chief Justice Byrne, Justices Theofanis and Crump

Dismissed on Appellant’s Motion

Filed: June 12, 2026

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