Court Opinion

ID: 9730161
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 15:03:09.249405+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:26:04.578047
License: Public Domain

ANNE GARDNER, J.,
concurring.
I join in the majority opinion and the result reached by it except as to that portion expressing doubt as to whether Appellant waived his complaint of constitutional error based upon cruel and unusual punishment.
Appellant’s only complaint with respect to cruel and unusual punishment is that his sentence is “grossly disproportionate” to the offense in violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. U.S. Const. amends. VIII, XIV; Robinson v. California, 370 U.S. 660, 667, 82 S.Ct. 1417, 1420-21, 8 L.Ed.2d 758 (1962) (holding Eighth Amendment as applied to states through Fourteenth Amendment encompasses proportionality principle); see also Solem v. *460Helm, 468 U.S. 277, 290, 103 S.Ct. 3001, 3009-10, 77 L.Ed.2d 637 (1983) (holding state sentence may run afoul of Eighth Amendment proportionality principle even if within range permitted by statute). Appellant complains that the severity of the sentence demonstrates a “lynch mob mentality” of the jury spurred on by overzealous prosecution.
Appellant asserts no challenge on appeal to the jury charge or as to the constitutionality of any statute. Therefore, despite the thoughtful analysis of the majority as to possible complaints relating to cruel and unusual punishment that might be raised on appeal without objection in the trial court, to me the law seems well established that Appellant’s proportionality complaint was waived by failure to object in the trial court to the sentence imposed. See, e.g., Curry v. State, 910 S.W.2d 490, 497 (Tex.Crim.App.1995) (holding complaint that death sentence violated constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment contained in Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments waived by failure to object in trial court); Garcia v. State, 887 S.W.2d 846, 861 (Tex.Crim.App.1994) (holding error as to constitutionality of statute addressing death sentence and jury charge on punishment waived by failure to object in trial court), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1005, 115 S.Ct. 1317, 131 L.Ed.2d 198 (1995); Schneider v. State, 645 S.W.2d 463, 466 (Tex.Crim.App.1983) (holding complaint that sentence was void as inflicting cruel and unusual punishment waived by failure to object in trial court); Jacobs v. State, 80 S.W.3d 631, 633 (Tex.App.-Tyler 2002, no pet.) (holding proportionality complaint of sentence based on Eighth Amendment waived by failure to object in trial court); Steadman v. State, 31 S.W.3d 738, 742 (Tex.App.Houston [1st Dist.] 2000, pet. ref'd) (holding complaints that sentence violated equal protection and constituted cruel and unusual punishment waived by failure to object in trial court); Smith v. State, 10 S.W.3d 48, 49 (Tex.App.-Texarkana 1999, no pet.) (holding complaint that statute under which appellant was sentenced unconstitutionally allowed grossly disproportionate sentence as applied to him waived by failure to object in trial court); Yatalese v. State, 991 S.W.2d 509, 511 (Tex.App.-Houston [1st Dist.] 1999, pet. ref'd) (holding complaint that sentence was grossly disproportionate in violation of state and U.S. constitutions waived by failure to object in trial court).