Court Opinion

ID: 9717834
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 07:11:13.357302+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:23:55.741549
License: Public Domain

JOSH R. MORRISS, III, Chief Justice,
dissenting.
I believe that the mere notation in the record that a notice of appeal was given, on a prior conviction used for enhancement purposes, does not affirmatively reflect that such conviction has not become final. Therefore, I would affirm the judgment of the trial court in all respects.
Despite the general rule that a plea of true to an enhancement paragraph relieves the State of its burden to prove a prior conviction alleged for enhancement and forfeits the defendant’s right to appeal the insufficiency of evidence to prove the prior conviction, there is an exception when “the record affirmatively *135reflects” that the enhancement is itself improper.
Ex parte Rich, 194 S.W.3d 508, 513 (Tex.Crim.App.2006). Here, the record reflected only that a notice of appeal had been given and did not provide any other information with regard to the subsequent development of that appeal after the notice of appeal had been given.
In each of the cited cases in which enhancements were held improper in spite of a plea of “true” to the enhancement allegations, the record affirmatively demonstrated, in one way or another, that the conviction used for enhancement purposes did not qualify for such use, that is, it was either not a felony, was not properly sequenced, or was not final. See id. (prior “felony” conviction affirmatively shown to have been reduced to misdemeanor); Mikel v. State, 167 S.W.3d 556, 558-59 (Tex.App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 2005, no pet.) (“later” sequenced prior offense shown on face of record to have occurred before “earlier” prior offense); Sanders v. State, 785 S.W.2d 445, 448 (Tex.App.-San Antonio 1990, no pet.) (record affirmatively showed that prior “final” felony was, at time of enhancement, suspended).
Here, all the record shows is that a notice of appeal was given; it says nothing about what happened after that notice of appeal was given. Thus, I believe, the record does not “affirmatively reflect” that the plea of “true” was untrue, and the sentence should stand as enhanced.
I respectfully dissent.