R.X.F. v. State

921 S.W.2d 888
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMay 1, 1996
DocketNo. 10-94-350-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by56 cases

This text of 921 S.W.2d 888 (R.X.F. v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
R.X.F. v. State, 921 S.W.2d 888 (Tex. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

OPINION

PER CURIAM.

A jury found beyond a reasonable doubt that R.X.F., who was fifteen at the time of the offense and sixteen at the time of trial, committed delinquent conduct by intentionally or knowingly causing his sexual organ to penetrate the mouth of a female child, who was younger than fourteen at the time of the offense. Tex.Penal Code Ann. § 22.021 (Vernon Supp.1996).' Following a disposition hearing, the jury assessed a determinate sentence of twenty years. Tex.FaM.Code Ann. § 54.04 (Vernon 1996). R.X.F. brings thirteen points of error, attacking the trial court’s jurisdiction, the legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence, the court’s Batson rulings, waiver of certain rights, and several of the court’s evidentiary rulings in his first twelve points. He raises an ineffective assistance of counsel claim in his final point. We will affirm.

JURISDICTION

We will first address the question of the trial court’s jurisdiction, which is raised in point three. R.X.F. contends that the Family Code denies jurisdiction in determinate-sentence proceedings to “county courts” [893]*893and that, because the county court and the statutory county court at law in Ellis County have coextensive jurisdiction in juvenile matters, the county court at law in Ellis County lacked jurisdiction to hear this determinate-sentence proceeding. Thus, R.X.F. alleges, the order of disposition and judgment are void.

The State concedes that the original petition was filed in the county court, but contends that the Family Code required the proceeding to be transferred to the county court at law once the grand jury had approved the petition. Moreover, the State points out that the county court at law in Ellis County has concurrent jurisdiction with the district court in family law cases.

A county’s juvenile board may designate one or more courts in the county as the juvenile court, but if the board designates the constitutional county court, then it must designate at least one other court as a juvenile court. Id. § 51.04(b), (c). The juvenile board in Ellis County has designated its constitutional county court and the county court at law as juvenile courts. A constitutional county court, however, does not have jurisdiction of a juvenile proceeding involving a petition approved by a grand jury. Id. § 51.04(c). This accounts for the proceeding being transferred to the county court at law after the grand jury approved the petition in this case.

The county court at law in Ellis County has concurrent jurisdiction with the district court in family cases and proceedings. Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 25.0722(a) (Vernon Supp. 1996). Thus, it has jurisdiction over this matter. We overrule point three.

SERVICE OF SUMMONS

R.X.F. contends in point four that the court erred when it began his adjudication hearing on the same day that he was served with a summons and a copy of the State’s amended petition. Section 53.06 requires the court to direct a summons to the child named in the petition. Tex.Fam.Code Ann. § 53.06(a)(1). Section 53.07 provides that, if the person to be served is in the state, “the summons shall be served upon him personally at least two days before the day of the adjudication hearing.” Id. § 53.07(a).

The State filed its original petition on September 16, 1993, and R.X.F. was served with a summons and a copy of the petition on October 11. On August 22, 1994, the court began voir dire and selected twelve jurors for this proceeding, but did not formally swear and empanel the jurors until August 25, just before it began taking testimony. The State filed an amended petition on August 22, the day voir dire began, and R.X.F. was served with another summons along with a copy of the amended petition on that date. The original and amended petitions are identical, except that in the amended petition the State alleged that R.X.F. committed the aggravated sexual assault in Dallas County rather than Ellis County. R.X.F. and his counsel expressly waived the right to have the amended petition approved by the grand jury. Id. § 53.045.

R.X.F. argues that the court began his adjudication hearing on August 22, the day jury selection started, not on August 25, when the court commenced the evidentiary portion of the proceeding. Thus, he contends, the court erred when it began the adjudication hearing on the same day he was served with the summons and amended petition.

As noted above, the original petition and summons were served on R.X.F. in October 1993, many months prior to the August 1994 adjudication hearing. Essential to R.X.F.’s contention in point four is the assumption that the law required the court to direct a second summons to him when the State amended its original petition. None of the provisions relating to the filing of a petition or the issuance and service of a summons expressly require the court to direct a summons to a juvenile when the original petition is amended. Id. §§ 53.04, 53.06, 53.07. Thus, one cannot reasonably argue that the legislature intended such a requirement from the language in the relevant sections of the Family Code.

Service of the original petition and summons is sufficient to confer jurisdiction over the cause on the juvenile court. B.R.D. v. State, 575 S.W.2d 126,130 (Tex.Civ.App.—[894]*894Corpus Christi 1978, writ refd n.r.e.). The State may amend its petition “at such time, and under such circumstances, as to be basically fair to the minor.” Carrillo v. State, 480 S.W.2d 612, 615 (Tex.1972). After service of the original petition, the juvenile is protected by this requirement, not by the service provisions. Thus, we will not read into the statute a requirement that the State serve the minor with a copy of an amended petition at least two days prior to the beginning of an adjudication hearing as long as the amendment to the petition satisfies Carrillo. Id.; TexFam.Code Ann. § 53.07(a). In our view, whether the juvenile received a copy of an amended petition more than two days before the start of trial is a relevant consideration in evaluating the “basically fair to the minor” requirement but is not, in and of itself, a requirement. See B.R.D., 575 S.W.2d at 130. Point four is overruled.

WAIVER OF TEN DAYS TO PREPARE

Section 51.10(h) provides: “Any attorney representing a child in proceedings under this title is entitled to 10 days to prepare for any adjudication or transfer hearing under this title.” Tex.Fam.Code ANN. § 51.10(h). RX.F.’s fifth point is that the court erred when it commenced the adjudication hearing without first obtaining a waiver of this right to have ten days to prepare for trial on the amended petition from him personally even though his attorney specifically waived any such right and elected to proceed without further delay.1

Considering section 51.10(h)’s plain language, the legislature intended to grant to the attorney, not the child, the entitlement to request ten days for trial preparation. If the legislature had intended to bestow the entitlement on the child (defendant), it could have expressly done so. See Tex.Code.CRIm. ProcAnn. art.

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Bluebook (online)
921 S.W.2d 888, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rxf-v-state-texapp-1996.