Ruben Echavarria v. State

Opinion

NUMBER 13-20-00576-CR

COURT OF APPEALS

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS

CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG

RUBEN ECHAVARRIA, Appellant,

v.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.

On appeal from the 156th District Court of Bee County, Texas.

ORDER Before Chief Justice Contreras and Justices Hinojosa and Silva Order Per Curiam

Appellant, Ruben Echavarria, has filed a notice of appeal with this Court from his

conviction in trial court cause number B-18-2009-0-CR-B. The trial court’s certification of

the defendant’s right to appeal shows that the defendant does not have the right to

appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.2(a)(2). The Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure

provide that an appeal must be dismissed if a certification showing that a defendant has

a right of appeal is not made a part of the record. Id. R. 25.2(d); see id. R. 37.1, 44.3, 44.4. The purpose of the certification requirement is to efficiently sort appealable cases

from non-appealable cases so that appealable cases can “move through the system

unhindered while eliminating, at an early stage, the time and expense associated with

non-appealable cases.” Greenwell v. Ct. of Apps. for the Thirteenth Jud. Dist., 159

S.W.3d 645, 649 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005); see Hargesheimer v. State, 182 S.W.3d 906,

912 (Tex. Crim. App. 2006).

Within thirty days of date of this notice, appellant’s lead appellate counsel, Hon.

Joseph Stephens, is hereby ORDERED to: 1) review the record; 2) determine whether

appellant has a right to appeal; and 3) forward to this Court, by letter, counsel’s findings

as to whether appellant has a right to appeal and/or advise this Court as to the

existence of any amended certification. If appellant’s counsel determines that appellant

has a right to appeal, counsel is further ORDERED to file a motion with this Court within

thirty days of this notice, identifying and explaining substantive reasons why appellant

has a right to appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 44.3, 44.4; Dears v. State, 154 S.W.3d 610,

614–15 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005); see also, e.g., Carroll v. State, 119 S.W.3d 838, 841

(Tex. App.—San Antonio 2003, no pet.) (certification form provided in appendix to

appellate rules may be modified to reflect that defendant has right of appeal under

circumstances not addressed by the form). The motion must include an analysis of the

applicable case law, and any factual allegations therein must be true and supported by

the record. See Dears, 154 S.W.3d at 614–15; cf. Woods v. State, 108 S.W.3d 314,

316 (Tex. Crim. App. 2003) (construing former appellate rule 25.2(b)(3) and holding that

recitations in the notice of appeal must be true and supported by the record). Copies of

record documents necessary to evaluate the alleged error in the certification affecting

2 appellant’s right to appeal shall be attached to the motion. See TEX. R. APP. P. 10.1,

10.2.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

PER CURIAM

Do not publish. TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).

Delivered and filed the 4th day of January, 2021.