Court Opinion

ID: 9766535
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 04:52:22.159341+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:30:23.641781
License: Public Domain

CLINTION, Judge,
dissenting.
The opinion of the Court excludes 97 days from November 28, 1978, date of arrest, to March 5, 1979, date last federal trial was completed, during which “Nacog-doches County authorities placed a detainer on appellant in November and continued to attempt to gain custody through numerous telephone calls to assorted federal officials.”
In my judgment Article 32A.02, § 4(1), V.A.C.C.P. (Act) does not contemplate “a reasonable period of delay” for “proceedings” in other jurisdictions for the simple reason that such contingency is covered by the “unavailability” and “detention” provisions of § 4(5) and (9), respectively. Each requires exercise of due diligence by the State to obtain “presence” of defendant. Lyles v. State, 653 S.W.2d 775 (Tex.Cr.App. 1983) and Newton v. State, 641 S.W.2d 530 (Tex.Cr.App.1982).
Construing § 4(1) to exclude any period of delay “resulting from [accused’s] awaiting trial” in another jurisdiction, before the State must even begin to exercise diligence to obtain his presence, as was done in, e.g., Slaughter v. State, 683 S.W.2d 746, 748 (Tex.App.—Corpus Christi 1984), is to flout his constitutional right to a speedy trial. Turner v. State, 545 S.W.2d 133, 137-138, 139 (Tex.Cr.App.1976); see also Taylor v. State, 666 S.W.2d 157, 160 (Tex.App.—Houston (14th) 1983) PDR refused.
The majority’s construction of § 4(1) will now be appropriated by the State to justify failure to exercise due diligence, and thereby nullify demands for diligence made by § 4(5) and (9). Since under § 4(1) it excludes the period while appellant was in Federal custody, whether the State exer*844cised diligence to obtain his presence becomes irrelevant; the majority’s finding under § 4(9) is superfluous.
Though redundant, the finding is that the State “exercise[d] due diligence to obtain his presence at trial” within the meaning of § 4(9) of the Act. That the authorities merely “placed a detainer on the applicant” is not exercising due diligence when an accused is in Federal custody — as is demonstrated in this very cause. Without lodging a detainer against him pursuant to Article 51.14, V.A.C.C.P., Interstate Agreement on Detainers, and should that be fruitless, without obtaining from the district court of Nacogdoches County a writ of habeas corpus ad prosequendam and making a good faith effort to arrange for his removal to their jurisdiction for trial, the State authorities failed to carry out their constitutional duty to bring applicant to trial. Smith v. Hooey, 393 U.S. 374, 89 S.Ct. 575, 21 L.Ed.2d 607 (1968).
I respectfully dissent.