Court Opinion

ID: 4520018
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2020-03-27 07:14:16.351631+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:50:04.115511
License: Public Domain

Opinion issued March 26, 2020

                                      In The

                              Court of Appeals
                                     For The

                          First District of Texas
                            ————————————
                              NO. 01-18-01079-CR
                           ———————————
                       CHARLES R. JONES, Appellant
                                        V.
                      THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee

                   On Appeal from the 179th District Court
                           Harris County, Texas
                       Trial Court Case No. 1510058

                         MEMORANDUM OPINION

      Appellant, Charles R. Jones, was found guilty after a jury trial of the first-

degree felony offense of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. See TEX. PENAL

CODE §29.03(a)(2). The jury assessed appellant’s punishment at 30 years’

imprisonment, which is within the applicable sentencing range. See TEX. PENAL
CODE §§ 12.32 (first-degree felony punishable by imprisonment from 5 to 99 years

or life); 29.03(b) (offense of aggravated robbery is first-degree felony). The trial

court certified that this is not a plea-bargain case, and that appellant has the right of

appeal. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.2(a)(2). Appellant timely filed a notice of appeal.

      Appellant’s appointed counsel on appeal has filed a motion to withdraw, along

with an Anders brief stating that the record presents no reversible error and that,

therefore, the appeal is without merit and is frivolous. See Anders v. California, 386
U.S. 738 (1967). Counsel’s brief meets the Anders requirements by presenting a

professional evaluation of the record and supplying this Court with references to the

record and legal authority. See id. at 744; see also High v. State, 573 S.W.2d 807,

812 (Tex. Crim. App. 1978). Counsel indicates that she has thoroughly reviewed the

record and that she is unable to advance any grounds of error that warrant reversal.

See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744; Mitchell v. State, 193 S.W.3d 153, 155 (Tex. App.—

Houston [1st Dist.] 2006, no pet.).

      Appellant’s counsel has certified that she mailed a copy of the motion to

withdraw and the Anders brief to appellant and informed appellant of his right to file

a response and to access the record. See In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 403, 408 (Tex.

Crim. App. 2008). Furthermore, counsel certified that she sent appellant the form

motion for pro se access to the records for his response. See Kelly v. State, 436

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S.W.3d 313, 322 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014). Appellant was provided a copy of the

record and filed a pro se response.

      We have independently reviewed the entire record in this appeal, and we

conclude that no reversible error exists in the record, that there are no arguable

grounds for review, and that therefore the appeal is frivolous. See Anders, 386 U.S.

at 744 (emphasizing that reviewing court—and not counsel—determines, after full

examination of proceedings, whether appeal is wholly frivolous); Garner v. State,

300 S.W.3d 763, 767 (Tex. Crim. App. 2009) (reviewing court must determine

whether arguable grounds for review exist); Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824, 826–

28 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) (reviewing court is not to address merits of each claim

raised in Anders brief or pro se response after determining there are no arguable

grounds for review); Mitchell, 193 S.W.3d at 155. An appellant may challenge a

holding that there are no arguable grounds for appeal by filing a petition for

discretionary review in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. See Bledsoe, 178
S.W.3d at 827 n.6.

      Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court and grant counsel’s

motion to withdraw.1 See TEX. R. APP. P. 43.2(a). Attorney Maite Sample must

1
      Appointed counsel still has a duty to inform appellant of the result of this
      appeal and that he may, on his own, pursue discretionary review in the Texas
      Court of Criminal Appeals. See Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824, 826–27
      (Tex. Crim. App. 2005).
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immediately send the required notice and file a copy of that notice with the Clerk of

this Court. See TEX. R. APP. P. 6.5(c). We dismiss any other pending motions as

moot.

                                  PER CURIAM
Panel consists of Justices Keyes, Landau, and Countiss.

Do not publish. TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).

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