Rodriguez v. State

975 S.W.2d 667, 1998 Tex. App. LEXIS 4112, 1998 WL 380530
Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided July 10, 1998·No. 06-96-00074-CR·Published·Cited by 61 cases

Opinion

OPINION

GRANT, Justice.

Kenned Rodriguez appeals from a ruling certifying him as an adult and from a conviction for aggravated robbery. A jury found Rodriguez guilty and assessed punishment at forty years’ imprisonment and a fine of $5,000.

Rodriguez contends that the trial court did not have jurisdiction because the transfer order from the juvenile court was invalid. Rodriguez also contends that he received ineffective assistance of counsel in both the guilt/innocence and punishment phases of trial because trial counsel failed to object to inadmissible evidence and improper jury argument.

Albino Vargas was the State’s key witness at trial. Vargas testified that on June 15, 1994, at around 4:00 a.m., he was returning to his apartment from work. At that time, he saw a bluish-gray four-door car pass by him. He noticed that there were three people in the car.

As Vargas walked through the apartment complex parking lot, someone in the car said, “Stop.” Vargas noticed that the car had stopped and saw the back seat passenger get out of the car and walk toward him. Vargas later identified to a police officer the person walking toward him as Rodriguez. He stated that Rodriguez was walking fast and sort of sideways as if to conceal a firearm.

When Rodriguez was about five-to-six feet away, he pulled a sawed-off shotgun from his left side, raised it toward Vargas, and asked for Vargas’ wallet. Vargas testified that the remaining passenger in the ear was also pointing a gun at him. Vargas gave Rodriguez seven dollars from his front pocket, and when Rodriguez asked Vargas if he had any jewelry or gold chains, Vargas told him, “No.” Rodriguez ran back to the car, jumped into the back seat, and the car drove off.

Vargas went to a nearby Stop ‘N Go and called the police. He described the robbers’ vehicle to the dispatcher and gave the license plate number.

About fifteen minutes after a police broadcast describing the vehicle, police officers saw the car and began to follow it. The vehicle was stopped, and Rodriguez and the other occupants were detained. Officers searched the vehicle and discovered a sawed-off shotgun and a blue steel .25 caliber pistol.

The officers then brought Rodriguez and his companions to Vargas’ apartment, and Vargas identified Rodriguez as the one who had pointed the shotgun at him and who had robbed him. Vargas also identified the passenger who had pointed a pistol at him and indicated that the third suspect appeared to be wearing clothes similar to the driver’s clothing.

Without being interrogated by police, Rodriguez told the police that he owned the shotgun found in the vehicle, and he later admitted to police that he was the one who *672 pointed the shotgun and robbed Vargas. Rodriguez was sixteen at the time of the robbery.

I. Jurisdiction

In his first point of error, Rodriguez complains that the trial court did not have jurisdiction because the transfer order from the juvenile court was invalid. Rodriguez argues that the order was invalid because the trial court failed to obtain a diagnostic study as required by the Family Code. 1

Under Section 54.02 of the Family Code, the juvenile court may under certain circumstances waive its exclusive original jurisdiction and transfer a child to the appropriate district court or criminal district court for criminal proceedings. 2 However, prior to the transfer hearing, the juvenile court must order and obtain a complete diagnostic study, social evaluation, and full investigation of the child, his circumstances, and the circumstances of the alleged offense. 3

The provisions of Section 54.02 may be waived pursuant to Section 51.09 of the Family Code 4 if

(1) the waiver is made by the child and the attorney for the child;
(2) the child and the attorney waiving the right are informed of and understand the right and the possible consequences of waiving it;
(3) the waiver is voluntary; and
(4) the waiver is made in writing or in court proceedings that are recorded.

The State filed a petition and motion for the court to waive jurisdiction on January 30, 1996. On February 13, the juvenile court entered an order for a diagnostic study, social evaluation, and full investigation of Rodriguez. The court also ordered that Rodriguez be examined by the Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority of Harris County, Children’s Outpatient Services. On the same day, Rodriguez’ trial counsel informed the court that any testing would be waived.

Compliance with Section 54.02(d) is mandatory. 5 In R.E.M., the San Antonio court stated that, in the absence of an effective waiver by the child, the child can be subjected to treatment as an adult only if there has been compliance with the mandatory provisions of Section 54.02. 6

Rodriguez argues that there is no evidence in the record that he waived his right to strict compliance with Section 54.02. He also argues that there is no evidence that he was informed of the possible consequences of waiving such right. Therefore, Rodriguez contends, the order transferring him to criminal district court was invalid and the criminal court was without jurisdiction to hear the ease. The State argues that Rodriguez waived any error because he failed to appeal the transfer order to the court of appeals.

To complain of an error in the certification process, a person must appeal the transfer order itself to the court of appeals. 7 An appellant may raise only a jurisdictional error in the transfer process for the first time on appeal from a conviction after the transfer. 8 Defects in the transfer process that are nonjurisdietional in nature must have been raised in an appeal of the transfer order, and are waived if raised for the first time on appeal from a conviction. 9

The question, then, is whether Rodriguez’ complaint that there was no effective waiver of the requirements of Section *673 54.02(d) is a jurisdictional or nonjurisdictional complaint. Rodriguez complains that the juvenile court’s order was invalid because the court failed to obtain a diagnostic study. The present case is similar to Adams v. State 10 in that Rodriguez does not contend that the juvenile court did not have 1) jurisdiction over his person, 2) jurisdiction over the subject matter, 3) jurisdiction to enter the particular judgment, or 4) capacity to act as a court. 11 In Adams,

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Rodriguez v. State, 975 S.W.2d 667, 1998 Tex. App. LEXIS 4112, 1998 WL 380530 (Tex. Ct. App. 1998).

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