Terrence Shane Sherman v. State

Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided July 1, 2019·No. 07-18-00323-CR·Published

Opinion

In The Court of Appeals Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo

No. 07-18-00322-CR No. 07-18-00323-CR

TERRENCE SHANE SHERMAN, APPELLANT

V.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, APPELLEE

On Appeal from the 108th District Court Potter County, Texas Trial Court Nos. 075344-E-CR and 075345-E-CR, Honorable Douglas R. Woodburn, Presiding

July 1, 2019

MEMORANDUM OPINION Before QUINN, C.J., and CAMPBELL and PARKER, JJ.

Following a plea of not guilty, appellant Terrence Shane Sherman was convicted

of the offense of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, enhanced by a prior

conviction, and sentenced to three years of imprisonment.1 In the same proceeding,

1 TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 22.02(a)(2) (West 2018). This is a felony of the second degree, punishable by imprisonment for any term of not more than twenty years or less than two years and a fine not to exceed $10,000. TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 12.33 (West 2018). before the jury appellant pled guilty to the offense of criminal mischief.2 His punishment

was set at five years of imprisonment, but it was suspended in favor of community

supervision for a period of ten years. In presenting this appeal, counsel has filed an

Anders3 brief in support of a motion to withdraw for each cause. We will grant counsel’s

motions to withdraw and affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Background

The charges against appellant stemmed from an incident at an Amarillo church.

An employee of the church testified she was working in the evening in the children’s area

when she investigated a noise and encountered appellant. She knew him because he

was often around the daycare and the church. Appellant was yelling obscenities and

breaking windows. The employee testified she asked appellant to leave but he quickly

came toward her with a metal pipe in his hand. He swung it at her as though he was

going to hit her. She testified she was “terrified.” Appellant continued to scream

obscenities. The employee ran to the gym door and locked it, fearing for her life and

those of the children who were present. She called 911 and police responded. At trial,

the employee identified appellant as the person who was breaking windows and who

swung the metal pipe at her.

The finance director of the church testified “40 to 50” places in the church building

were damaged. A responding police officer testified that a representative of the church

2 TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. 28.03(b)(5) (West 2018). This is a third-degree felony punishable by imprisonment for any term of not more than ten years or less than two years and a fine not to exceed $10,000. TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 12.34 (West 2018). 3 Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738 (1967). 2 estimated the cost to repair the damage would be approximately $20,000 for the supplies

and another $20,000 for the repair work.

Appellant also testified. He admitted to breaking several outside church windows

and acknowledged his guilty plea to the charge of criminal mischief. But he denied

entering the church, denied breaking any interior windows, and denied threatening the

employee. He testified he left when she requested that he do so.

Analysis

In support of his motions to withdraw, counsel certifies he has conducted a

conscientious examination of the record, and in his opinion, it reflects no potentially

plausible basis for reversal of either of appellant’s convictions. Anders, 386 U.S. at 744-

45; In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 403, 406 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008). Counsel discusses

why, under the controlling authorities, the record supports that conclusion. See High v.

State, 573 S.W.2d 807, 813 (Tex. Crim. App. 1978). Counsel has demonstrated that he

has complied with the requirements of Anders by: (1) providing a copy of the brief and

appellate record to appellant, (2) notifying him of the right to file a pro se response if he

desired to do so, and (3) informing him of the right to file a pro se petition for discretionary

review. Kelly v. State, 436 S.W.3d 313, 319 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014); In re Schulman, 252

S.W.3d at 408. By letter, this court also notified appellant of his opportunity to submit a

response to the Anders briefs and motions to withdraw filed by counsel. Appellant has

not filed a response.

In conformity with the standards set out by the United States Supreme Court, we

do not rule on counsel’s motion to withdraw until we have independently examined the

record. Nichols v. State, 954 S.W.2d 83, 86 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 1997, no pet.). If

3 this court determines the appeal arguably has merit, we remand it to the trial court for

appointment of new counsel. Stafford v. State, 813 S.W.2d 503, 511 (Tex. Crim.

App.1991).

By his Anders briefs, counsel raises several grounds that could possibly support

an appeal but explains why he concludes none show arguably reversible error. He

concludes the appeals are frivolous. We have reviewed each ground raised by counsel

and made an independent review of the entire record to determine whether there are any

arguable grounds which might support an appeal in either cause. See Penson v. Ohio,

488 U.S. 75 (1988); Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005). We have

found no arguable grounds supporting a claim of reversible error and agree with counsel

that the appeals are frivolous.

Reformation of Judgment

In our review of the record, we noted several errors in the Judgment of Conviction

by Jury for Cause No. 075345-E-CR, convicting appellant of the offense of criminal

mischief. First, the written judgment indicates appellant pled “not guilty” to that offense.

However, the reporter’s record shows appellant pled “guilty” to that offense. Second, the

written judgment reflects under the heading “Punishment and Place of Confinement” a

sentence of “Ten (10) Years Institutional Division, TDCJ.” But, the oral pronouncement

of sentence, and the jury’s verdict form, indicate the jury assessed punishment at five

years of imprisonment to be suspended in accordance with applicable law. Third, the

written judgment shows, under “Sentence of Confinement Suspended, Defendant Placed

on Community Supervision for Five (5) years.” However, the oral pronouncement of

sentence indicates appellant’s sentence is to be suspended in favor of community

supervision for a period of ten years. 4 This court has the power to modify the judgment of the court below to make the

record speak the truth when we have the necessary information to do so. TEX. R. APP. P.

43.2(b); Bigley v. State, 865 S.W.2d 26, 27-28 (Tex. Crim. App. 1993). Appellate courts

have the power to reform whatever the trial court could have corrected by a judgment

nunc pro tunc where the evidence necessary to correct the judgment appears in the

record. Asberry v.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Terrence Shane Sherman v. State, (Tex. Ct. App. 2019).

Terrence Shane Sherman v. State (Terrence Shane Sherman v. State) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Anders v. California
386 U.S. 738 (Supreme Court, 1967)
Penson v. Ohio
488 U.S. 75 (Supreme Court, 1988)
In Re Schulman
252 S.W.3d 403 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2008)
Asberry v. State
813 S.W.2d 526 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1991)
Stafford v. State
813 S.W.2d 503 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1991)
Bledsoe v. State
178 S.W.3d 824 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2005)
High v. State
573 S.W.2d 807 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1978)
Nichols v. State
954 S.W.2d 83 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1997)
Bigley v. State
865 S.W.2d 26 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1993)
Kelly, Sylvester
436 S.W.3d 313 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 2014)