Court Opinion

ID: 9760525
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 00:58:48.79481+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:29:12.425910
License: Public Domain

OPINION
CANNON, Justice.
This is an appeal from a jury conviction for aggravated robbery. Appellant was sixteen years old at the time of commission of the offense and was certified to be tried as an adult by the 314th District Court. The jury assessed punishment at seventy-five years confinement in the Texas Department of Corrections. In six points of error, appellant challenges the constitutionality of Tex.Code Crim.Proc.Ann. art. 37.07, § 4 (Vernon Supp.1987) and the jurisdiction of the criminal district court. We find no error and, accordingly, affirm the judgment of the court below.
The State filed a petition in the 314th District Court alleging that appellant Kenneth Richardson committed four acts of delinquent conduct: (1) attempted capital murder of Gerald Lloyd Hudson (Hudson); (2) aggravated robbery of Hudson; (3) aggravated robbery, of Sherry Norris (Norris); and (4) unauthorized use of a motor vehicle owned by Norris. Appellant was sixteen years old at the time of commission of these alleged offenses. The State also filed a Motion to Waive Jurisdiction as to each of these offenses and requested a transfer of jurisdiction to a criminal district court for trial as an adult. After a hearing on the State’s motion, the trial judge entered an order waiving jurisdiction as to the following offenses: attempted capital murder of Hudson; aggravated robbery of Hudson; and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle owned by Norris. The trial'judge retained jurisdiction over the offense of aggravated robbery of Norris.
Appellant was indicted in district court for the attempted capital murder and aggravated robbery of Hudson. The State abandoned the first paragraph of the indictment, which alleged attempted capital murder of Hudson, and appellant was found guilty of the offense of aggravated robbery. This appeal followed.
In point of error one, appellant argues that the order waiving jurisdiction as to the three offenses was not valid. In support of his argument, appellant relies on our case, Stanley v. State, 687 S.W.2d 413 (Tex.App. *130—Houston [14th Dist.] 1985, no writ) (hereinafter referred to as Stanley v. State), wherein we held:
[0]nce the juvenile court retains jurisdiction as to any count alleged in the certification petition, the child’s status is fixed as to all offenses alleged in the petition and thus the child is not subject to criminal prosecution as an adult for any offense alleged in the petition.
Id. at 414.
Here, because the juvenile court retained jurisdiction over one of the four counts alleged in the certification petition, appellant argues that the order waiving jurisdiction is invalid. Further, in the absence of a valid waiver of jurisdiction by the juvenile court, the district court does not acquire jurisdiction over the child. Ex parte Stanley, 703 S.W.2d 686, 686 (Tex.Grim.App. 1986). Therefore, appellant concludes, his conviction must be vacated and the cause remanded to the juvenile court.
The State, however, urges us to reconsider and vacate our holding in Stanley v. State. It argues that the situation presented by Stanley v. State, and again presented here, is a hybrid situation not covered by Tex.Fam.Code Ann. § 54.02 (Vernon 1986). More specifically, the State maintains that section 54.02 of the Family Code was written in contemplation of one offense being the subject of transfer proceedings. Thus, where a petition to transfer jurisdiction alleges multiple offenses rather than a single offense, some statutory construction of section 54.02(g) of the Family Code is necessary to determine how that section is applied in such a hybrid situation. Further, the State maintains that this court erroneously construed section 54.02(g) of the Family Code in light of Tex. Gov’t Code Ann. § 311.023 (Vernon Pamphlet 1987).
Upon consideration of the State’s arguments concerning our opinion in Stanley v. State, and its application to this cause, we agree that our holding in Stanley v. State requires some clarification. We hold that when a motion or petition to waive jurisdiction alleges multiple offenses, section 54.02(g) of the Family Code requires that the child’s status be fixed as a juvenile as to all offenses alleged in the petition once the juvenile court retains and exercises jurisdiction over any count alleged in the certification petition. Thus the child is not subject to criminal prosecution as an adult for any offense alleged in the petition.1
Our construction of 54.02(g) of the Family Code takes into consideration the provisions of section 311.023 of the Government Code and results in a logical application of the object to be sought by Tex.Fam.Code Ann. § 51.01 (Vernon 1986). Further, our construction does not penalize the trial court for properly exercising its discretion pursuant to section 54.02(g) of the Family Code. The trial court may still exercise its discretion in waiving jurisdiction as to any alleged offenses and in refusing to waive jurisdiction as to any alleged offenses; it is only the trial court’s subsequent exercise of jurisdiction over the retained offense that renders the order waiving jurisdiction invalid. Moreover, the consequences of our construction of section 54.02(g) of the Family Code does not necessarily result in nullification of all certifications and subsequent criminal proceedings wherein jurisdiction was retained as to at least one of the offenses alleged in the certification petition. Where the exercise of the trial court’s retained jurisdiction does not appear of record, we presume that said jurisdiction was not exercised and that the offense over which jurisdiction was retained, was subsequently dismissed by the trial court.
Therefore, in applying our clarification of the holding in Stanley v. State to appellant’s point of error one, we find no reversible error. Nothing appears of record to indicate that the trial court exercised jurisdiction over the retained offense of aggravated robbery of Norris. Thus, the trial court’s order waiving jurisdiction as to the other three offenses is valid, and jurisdiction over appellant was acquired by the criminal district court. Point of error one is overruled.
*131In points of error two through six, appellant challenges the constitutionality of Tex.Crim.Code Crim.Proc. art. 37.07, § 4 (Vernon Supp.1987), the parole instruction statute. Specifically, appellant maintains that article 37.07, section 4 is unconstitutional because it violates the separation of powers clause in that it is a legislative encroachment upon judicial powers and upon the clemency powers of the executive branch. Further, appellant argues, it is confusing and vague, is misleading, and invites the jury to speculate on matters outside its task of deciding proper punishment. Therefore, appellant maintains, because article 37.07, section 4 is unconstitutional, appellant’s conviction should be reversed and the cause remanded.
Appellant asserts that because there was ño objection to the charge at trial, we must view the giving of the charge containing the unconstitutional instruction as fundamental error. We need not reach appellant’s contention of fundamental error because we find article 37.07 section 4 to be constitutional. See Ruiz v. State, 726 S.W.2d 587 (Tex.App. —Houston [14th Dist.] 1987, pet. pending); Hardy v. State, 722 S.W.2d 164 (Tex.App. —Houston [14th Dist.] 1986), remanded on other grounds, 726 S.W.2d 158 (Tex.Crim.App.1987). Points of error two through six are overruled.
The judgment of the court below is affirmed.

. We are not overruling Stanley v. State; we are merely clarifying our holding in that case.