Monreal v. State

99 S.W.3d 615, 2003 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 57, 2003 WL 1061123
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas
DecidedMarch 12, 2003
Docket2289-01
StatusPublished
Cited by733 cases

This text of 99 S.W.3d 615 (Monreal v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Monreal v. State, 99 S.W.3d 615, 2003 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 57, 2003 WL 1061123 (Tex. 2003).

Opinions

OPINION

HOLCOMB, J.,

delivered the opinion of the Court,

in which KELLER, P.J., and MEYERS, PRICE, WOMACK, KEASLER, HERVEY, and COCHRAN, JJ., joined.

This case presents the question of whether a valid, non-negotiated waiver of appeal prevents a defendant from appealing any issue without the consent of the trial court. We hold that it does.

Alfredo Monreal Jr. pled guilty, without a plea bargain, to the charge of aggravated robbery. A jury assessed his punishment at eighteen years confinement. On January 5, 2001, the trial court rendered judgment in accordance with the jury’s verdict. On January 12, 2001, in open court, Mon-real, for reasons not apparent from the record, signed a waiver of his right to appeal and requested that he be allowed to begin serving his sentence immediately. His attorney also signed the waiver. On January 23, 2001, however, Monreal’s attorney filed a notice of appeal, and on January 29, 2001, Monreal himself filed a pro se notice of appeal. Neither notice acknowledged the existence of the waiver of appeal. On August 20, 2001, Monreal filed his original appellate brief, and on September 4, 2001, he filed an amended brief. On September 11, 2001 the State filed a motion in the court of appeals to dismiss Monreal’s appeal.

The court of appeals dismissed Monreal’s appeal on the basis of the waiver; Monreal v. State, No. 02-01-057-CR (Tex.App.-Fort Worth, October 25, 2001), order dismissing appeal. The court of appeals relied on the general rule that a valid waiver of appeal is binding on the defendant and prevents him from appealing any issue without the consent of the trial court. Id. The court of appeals noted that Monreal neither disavowed his waiver as invalid nor obtained permission from the trial court to appeal. Id. The court of appeals considered irrelevant the fact that Monreal’s waiver was not entered into as part of an agreement with the State. Id.

We granted review to determine whether the court of appeals erred in dismissing Monreal’s appeal based on his waiver.

Before this Court, Monreal contends, as he did below, that the rule that a valid waiver of appeal prevents a defendant from appealing without the consent of the trial court does not or should not apply to non-negotiated waivers of appeal. He argues that precedent suggesting otherwise [617]*617is distinguishable either because it involved negotiated waivers or because it failed to address the arguments he now advances.

Monreal presents three arguments. He argues, first, that the rule is not applicable to non-negotiated waivers because the purpose of the rule which, he alleges, is to hold defendants to their bargains — is inapplicable where the defendant did not waive appeal pursuant to an agreement. He argues, second, that no good reason exists to support applying the rule in situations where the defendant did not waive appeal pursuant to an agreement. He argues, third, that applying the rule to non-negotiated waivers of appeal would create bad policy.

In the alternative, Monreal argues that, even if non-negotiated waivers of appeal prevent a defendant from appealing without the consent of the trial court, the court of appeals erred in denying his request to stay his appeal to allow him to seek consent from the trial court to appeal.

I. The Rule

Article 44.02 of the Code of Criminal Procedure provides a defendant the right to appeal. However, Article 1.14 of that same Code provides that a defendant in a non-capital felony case may waive any right secured to him by law.

In Ex parte Tabor, the defendant pled guilty before the court, filed a written waiver of appeal, and then filed a timely notice of appeal. Ex parte Tabor, 565 S.W.2d 945, 946 (Tex.Crim.App.1978). After he was arrested because he was erroneously out on an appeal bond, he challenged the denial of his right to appeal in an application for writ of habeas corpus. Id. In that case, we found the waiver was valid, and we applied the rule that a valid waiver of appeal, one made voluntarily, knowingly, and intelligently, will prevent a defendant from appealing without the consent of the trial court. Id. This rule had been implied in Reed v. State, 516 S.W.2d 680, 682 (Tex.Crim.App.1974), where the defendant claimed his second trial was a nullity because the trial court did not have authority to grant a new trial after he waived appeal, and we held that a trial court can permit a defendant to perfect appeal despite a valid waiver of appeal. The rule was then adopted in Ex parte Dickey, 543 S.W.2d 99, 100 (Tex.Crim.App.1976), where the defendant waived appeal pre-trial but confirmed the waiver after sentencing, and we found the waiver was made knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently and therefore prevented the defendant from appealing any issue unless the trial court consented to the appeal. In adopting this rule, we rejected an alternative rule proposed as dicta in Abron v. State, 531 S.W.2d 643, 645 (Tex.Crim.App.1976), that a valid waiver of appeal is “effective unless and until a timely notice of appeal is filed.”

Although we have long held that a valid waiver of appeal prevents a defendant from appealing without the trial court’s consent, we have never addressed explicitly whether the rule applies to negotiated and non-negotiated waivers alike. In our cases involving waiver of appeal, where the opinion does not state explicitly whether an agreement existed, it is not clear whether the waiver was made pursuant to an agreement. See Ex parte Tabor, 565 S.W.2d 945; Ex parte Hogan, 556 S.W.2d 352 (Tex.Crim.App.1977); Johnson v. State, 556 S.W.2d 816 (Tex.Crim.App.1977).

II. The Purpose Behind the Rule

We address, first, Monreal’s contention that the purpose of the rule is to prevent defendants from appealing despite receiving the benefit of a bargain and that there[618]*618fore the rule does not apply to non-negotiated waivers of appeal. Monreal argues that this purpose is demonstrated by our reasoning in Blanco v. State, 18 S.W.3d 218 (Tex.Crim.App.2000), and embraced by Rule of Appellate Procedure 25.2(b), which, he argues, is persuasive in determining whether negotiated and non-negotiated waivers should be treated alike.

A. Blanco

In Blanco, after being convicted by a jury, the defendant waived his right to appeal pursuant to an agreement that the prosecution would recommend a sixteen-year sentence. Blanco, 18 S.W.3d at 219. The prosecution did so recommend, and the trial court followed the recommendation. Id. Blanco appealed, and the court of appeals dismissed the appeal, holding Blanco to his promise. Id. We affirmed the court of appeals’ judgment. Id.

Monreal distinguishes his case from Blanco on the ground that Blanco’s waiver was made pursuant to an agreement and his was not. Monreal argues that our decision in Blanco

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Bluebook (online)
99 S.W.3d 615, 2003 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 57, 2003 WL 1061123, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/monreal-v-state-texcrimapp-2003.