## I N T H E C O U R T O F C R I M I N A L A P P E A L S O F T E X A S NO. WR-92,640-01

EX P ARTE EDUARDO MA RG ARITO SOT O, Appl icant

ON AP P LICATION FOR A WRIT OF HABEAS CORP US CAUSE NO. C-297-W11884- 1439642-A IN THE 297TH DIS TRICT COURT

F ROM TARRA NT COUNTY

Per curiam . O R D E R Applicant pleade d g uilty to ag g rava ted sexual assault of a child under fourtee n y ear s of ag e and was orig inally place d o n ten y ear s’ deferr ed adjudication. He was subsequently convicted on his open plea of “true ” to the alleg ations in the State’s Petition to Procee d to Adjudication and was sentenc ed to thirty y ear s’ imprisonment. Applicant appea led his c onviction, but the Second Court of Appea ls dismiss ed i t for want of jurisdiction. Soto v. State , No. 02-19-00171- CR (Tex. App.—For

t Worth, Aug

. 22, 2019) (not desig nated for publication). Applicant filed this application for a wr i t of habea s corpus in the county of conviction, and the district cler k forwa rded it to this Court. See T E X . C O D E C R I M . P R O C . art. 11.07. Applicant contends, among other things, that trial counsel J ohn Stickels was ineffe ctive for2

failing to adequa

tely investiga te the case . He alleg es that Stickels did not interview witnesses, such

as the victim and the outcry witness; prepa re a defe nse; or reque st discovery

. Applicant has alleg ed fac ts that, if true, might entitle him to relief

. Hill v. Lockhart , 474 U.S. 52 (1985); Ex parte Argent , 393 S.W .3d 781 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013). Ac cording ly , the re cord should be develope d. The trial court is the appropr iate forum for finding s of fac t. T E X . C O D E C R I M . P R O C . art. 11.07, § 3(d). The trial court shall order J ohn Stickels to submit a supplemental response to Ap p l i ca n t ’s claim. I n developing the rec ord, the trial court may use any means set out in Article 11.07, § 3(d). I f the trial court elec ts to hold a hear in g, i t s h al l d eter mine whether Applicant is indige nt. I f Applicant is indige nt and wants to be repr esente d by counsel, the trial court shall appoint counsel to repr esent him at the hear ing. See T E X . C O D E C R I M . P R O C . art. 26.04. I f counsel is appointed or reta ined, the trial court shall immediately

notify this Court of counsel’s name

. The trial court shall make finding s of fac t and conclusions of law as to whether trial counsel’s perf ormanc e was defic ient and whether Applicant would have insist ed on a trial but for counsel’s alleg ed defic ient perf

ormanc e. The trial court shall also make specific fi n d i n gs as to what investiga tion counsel persona lly conducte d, including whether he investiga ted the possibili ty that Applicant was in prison on the offe nse date alleg ed by the outcry witness. The trial court may make any other finding s and conc lusions that it deems a ppropriate in response to Applica nt’s claim. The trial court shall make findings o f fac t and conclusions of l aw within ninety day s from the date of this order

. The district cler k shall then immediately forwa rd to this Court the trial court’s finding s and conclusions and the rec ord develope d on rema nd, including, among other things, aff idavits, motions, objections, proposed finding s and conclusions, order s, and transcr ip t s from hear ings and depositions. See T E X . R. A P P . P. 73.4(b)( 4). Any extensions of time must be reque sted3

by the trial cour

t and obtained f

rom this Court.

Filed: Aug ust 25, 2021 Do not publish