Steels v. State

170 S.W.3d 765, 2005 Tex. App. LEXIS 5703, 2005 WL 1704064
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 20, 2005
Docket10-04-00107-CR
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 170 S.W.3d 765 (Steels 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
Steels v. State, 170 S.W.3d 765, 2005 Tex. App. LEXIS 5703, 2005 WL 1704064 (Tex. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinions

OPINION

BILL VANCE, Justice.

Danial Ray Steels was convicted by a jury on three counts of reckless driving, all charged in a single charging instrument. The court sentenced him to 30 days in jail on each count and no fíne.1 Steels appeals the factual sufficiency of the evidence of counts one and two. We will vacate and set aside the judgments on counts one and two.

BACKGROUND

In 2002, Steels was driving his car to the mall during his lunch break. On the way to the mall, Steels allegedly drove recklessly and became confrontational with three men in another car. The three men contacted the police, reported the incident, and met with the police across the street from the mall. As the three men were speaking with the officer, they saw Steels driving in the parking lot of the mall across the street. The three men pointed Steels out to the officer, and another officer drove over to the mall parking lot.

Steels sped away from the officer, around a corner and close to a large group of people, including infants and children. The group had just exited the mall and was stepping off the curb when Steels sped around the corner, and the adults had to pull the children back. Steels swerved down one of the parking lot lanes to avoid the group. The group flagged down the officer and said that Steels had almost hit them. Another police officer stopped Steels down the road, and he was cited for a traffic violation (no insurance), warned that a warrant would be sought for the reckless driving charges, and was allowed to go back to his workplace. Later, an arrest warrant was issued and served on Steels for reckless driving.

Steels was charged by information on counts one and two for driving a motor vehicle upon a public roadway in willful and wanton disregard for the safety of Vickie Frucci and Kim Becan, respectively. Steels was also charged with a third count as to Ettie Orts. Frucci, Becan, and Orts were the adults in the group of people exiting the mall.

DOUBLE JEOPARDY

Our examination of the entire record convinces us that we must vacate the convictions on counts one and two because of fundamental double-jeopardy error. We acknowledge that Steels did not object as to double jeopardy, has not raised the [768]*768issue on appeal,2 and we are mindful of the admonishment in Hailey v. State, cautioning against reversal based on unpreserved complaints of error at trial that violate “ordinary notions of procedural default.” Hailey v. State, 87 S.W.3d 118, 121-22 (Tex.Crim.App.2002). For reasons we will state, review of this fundamental double-jeopardy error does not violate the rules about procedural default.

Authority to Review

It has long been settled that no assignment of error on appeal is required in a criminal case. Rezac v. State, 782 S.W.2d 869, 870 (Tex.Crim.App.1990); Carter v. State, 656 S.W.2d 468, 468 (Tex.Crim.App.1983). “There is a fundamental proposition pertaining to appellate functions of the Judicial Department: A constitutional grant of appellate jurisdiction treats a right of appeal in criminal cases ‘as a remedy to revise the whole case upon the law and facts, as exhibited in the record,. ...’ ” Carter, 656 S.W.2d at 468 (citing The Republic v. Smith, 1841 WL 3098, 1841 Tex. LEXIS 16, Dallam, 407 (Tex.)). Thus, once jurisdiction of an appellate court is invoked, exercise of its reviewing functions is limited only by its own discretion or a valid restrictive statute. Id. at 469; see also Perry v. State, 703 S.W.2d 668, 670 (Tex.Crim.App.1986). The Texas Constitution and the statutes provide “a broad scope of review and revision ... that is still recognized, acknowledged and confirmed by the Legislature.” See Carter, 656 S.W.2d at 469; Tex.Code CRiM. PROC. Ann. art. 44.25 (Vernon Supp.2004).

Further, the right to be free from cumulative punishments for the same crime, as guaranteed by the U.S. and State Constitutions, is such a basic and fundamental part of the American scheme of justice that we may “ex mero motu or ex proprio or sua sponte” address an issue involving this right in the interest of justice. See Carter, 656 S.W.2d at 468; Martin v. State, 630 S.W.2d 952, 957-58 (Tex.Crim.App.1982) (Teague, J., dissenting); see also Hensarling v. State, 829 S.W.2d 168, 173 (Tex.Crim.App.1992); Howeth v. State, 645 S.W.2d 787, 788 (Tex.Crim.App.1983).

We may review an unpreserved double-jeopardy issue when (1) the undisputed facts show the double jeopardy violation is clearly apparent on the face of the record and (2) when enforcement of usual rules of procedural default serves no legitimate state interests. Gonzalez v. State, 8 S.W.3d 640, 643 (Tex.Crim.App.2000); Ramirez v. State, 36 S.W.3d 660, 666 (Tex.App.-Waco 2001, pet. ref'd); Murray v. State, 24 S.W.3d 881, 888 (Tex.App.-Waco 2000, pet. ref'd). Both elements must be satisfied as a precondition to our review of this issue that was not complained of in the trial court. See Murray, 24 S.W.3d at 888-89.

First, the record is fully developed. Steels stood trial on all three counts and has presented a complete record of that trial for our consideration. This error can be resolved on the basis of the existing record, and it is not necessary to conduct further proceedings to expand the record with new evidence. See Gonzalez, 8 S.W.3d at 643; Murray, 24 S.W.3d at 889. Thus, if there is a double jeopardy violation, it can be determined from undisputed facts clearly apparent on the face of the record. See Gonzalez, 8 S.W.3d at 643; Murray, 24 S.W.3d at 889.

Second, enforcement of the usual procedural default rules serves no legitimate state purpose in this situation. The appro[769]*769priate remedy for a double-jeopardy violation here is to vacate two of the convictions.3 Ball v. United States, 470 U.S. 856, 864-65, 105 S.Ct. 1668, 1673-74, 84 L.Ed.2d 740 (1985); Landers v. State, 957 S.W.2d 558, 559 (Tex.Crim.App.1997). As a matter of state law, if there is a double jeopardy violation, we would be required to retain the conviction with the “most serious punishment,” and vacate any remaining convictions that are the “same” for double jeopardy purposes. Landers, 957 S.W.2d at 560. Because Steels’ convictions each had the same punishment, a finding of a double jeopardy violation would result in a judgment vacating two of the convictions. See id. at 559 (Tex.Crim.App.1997); Nickerson v. State, 69 S.W.3d 661, 668 (Tex.App.-Waco 2002, pet. ref'd). These changes would not require retrial or even a remand to the trial court. Thus, there are no adverse consequences resulting from a review of an unpreserved double jeopardy issue, and no legitimate state interests are negatively impacted by doing so. See Shaffer v.

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