Dismissed and Memorandum Opinion filed July 27, 2017.

In The 

Fourteenth Court of Appeals 

NO. 14-17-00461-CR

MARQUIS ANDREW BRANCH, Appellant 

V.

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee 

On Appeal from the 248th District Court 

Harris County, Texas 

Trial Court Cause No. 1530996 

M E M O R A N D U M O P I N I O N 

Appellant Marquis Andrew Branch entered a plea of guilty to aggravated 

robbery. Appellant and the State agreed that appellant’s punishment would not 

exceed imprisonment for more than 40 years. In accordance with the terms of this 

agreement with the State, on February 13, 2017, the trial court sentenced appellant 

to confinement for 30 years in the Institutional Division of the Texas Department of 

Criminal Justice. Appellant filed a notice of appeal on June 8, 2017. 

We lack jurisdiction over this appeal for two reasons: the notice of appeal was 
2

not filed timely, and this is a plea bargain case with no appealable matters and 

appellant has not been granted permission to appeal. 

First, a defendant’s notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days after 

sentence is imposed when the defendant has not filed a motion for new trial. See

Tex. R. App. P. 26.2(a)(1). A notice of appeal that complies with the requirements 

of Rule 26.2 is essential to vest the court of appeals with jurisdiction. Slaton v. State, 

981 S.W.2d 208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998). If an appeal is not timely perfected, a 

court of appeals does not obtain jurisdiction to address the merits of the appeal. 

Under those circumstances it can take no action other than to dismiss the appeal. Id.

Appellant’s notice of appeal was filed 115 days after sentence was imposed. 

Therefore, the appeal was not timely perfected, and we lack jurisdiction. 

Second, an agreement that places a cap on punishment is a plea bargain for 

purposes of Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 25.2(a)(2). Shankle v. State, 119 

S.W.3d 808, 813 (Tex. Crim. App. 2003) (sentence bargaining may be for 

recommendations to the court on sentences, including a recommended “cap” on 

sentencing). In a plea bargain case—that is, a case in which a defendant’s plea was 

guilty or nolo contendere and the punishment did not exceed the punishment 

recommended by the prosecutor and agreed to by the defendant—a defendant may 

appeal only matters raised by a written, pretrial motion or with the trial court’s 

permission. Tex. R. App. P. 25.2(a)(2).

Appellant’s punishment of 30 years’ imprisonment does not exceed the agreed 

cap of 40 years. The record does not contain any appealable pretrial rulings, and the 

trial court did not grant appellant permission to appeal.1

 

1 The certification of appellant’s right to appeal incorrectly indicates this case is not a plea 

bargain case and appellant has the right to appeal, but the record establishes the opposite. In such 

a situation, we know of no authority that would require us to obtain an corrected certification 
3

Accordingly, we DISMISS the appeal. 

PER CURIAM 

Panel consists of Justices Boyce, Donovan, and Jewell.

Do Not Publish — Tex. R. App. P. 47.2(b). 

 

before dismissing the appeal. Barcenas v. State, 137 S.W.3d 865, 866 (Tex. App.—Houston [1st 

Dist.] 2004, no pet.).