Shaquille Cofer v. State ( 2017 )

In The
Court of Appeals
Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo
________________________
No. 07-17-00416-CR
________________________
SHAQUILLE COFER, APPELLANT
V.
THE STATE OF TEXAS, APPELLEE
On Appeal from the 364th District Court
Lubbock County, Texas
Trial Court No. 2014-402,333; Honorable William R. Eichman II, Presiding
December 6, 2017
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before QUINN, C.J., and CAMPBELL and PIRTLE, JJ.
Pursuant to a plea-bargain agreement, Appellant, Shaquille Cofer, was convicted
of murder,1 with an affirmative finding on use of a deadly weapon, and sentenced to
twenty years imprisonment. Appellant has filed a pro se notice of appeal challenging his
1 TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 19.02(b)(1) (West 2011).
conviction. We dismiss the purported appeal for want of jurisdiction and because
Appellant has no right of appeal.
The timely filing of a written notice of appeal is a jurisdictional prerequisite to
hearing an appeal. Castillo v. State, 369 S.W.3d 196, 198 (Tex. Crim. App. 2012). If a
notice of appeal is not timely filed, a court of appeals has no option but to dismiss the
appeal for want of jurisdiction. Id. In a criminal case, the notice of appeal must be filed
within thirty days after sentence is imposed or within ninety days after sentence is
imposed if a motion for new trial is timely filed. See TEX. R. APP. P. 26.2(a). This court
has no authority to invoke Rule 2 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure to enlarge
the time in which to file a notice of appeal. TEX. R. APP. P. 2; Slaton v. State, 981 S.W.2d
208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998).
Appellant was sentenced on February 12, 2016. Because no motion for new trial
was filed, his notice of appeal was due by March 14, 2016.2 See TEX. R. APP. P. 26.2(a);
26.3. Appellant did not file his notice of appeal until November 1, 2017.3 Accordingly, his
untimely filed notice of appeal prevents this court from acquiring jurisdiction over the
appeal.
Furthermore, the trial court’s certification of Appellant’s right of appeal indicates
this is a plea-bargain case from which Appellant has no right of appeal. We must dismiss
an appeal if a certification showing the defendant has the right to appeal has not been
made a part of the appellate record. See TEX. R. APP. P. 25.2(d).
2 The thirtieth day after February 12, 2016, fell on Sunday, March 13. The notice of appeal deadline
was, therefore, extended to Monday, March 14. See TEX. R. APP. P. 4.1(a).
3 See Campbell v. State, 320 S.W.3d 338, 342 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (prisoner mailbox rule).
2
By letter dated November 9, 2017, this court notified Appellant of the
consequences of the late notice of appeal and the trial court certification and invited him
to demonstrate other grounds for continuing the appeal on or before November 27.
Appellant has filed a response; however, that response does not establish good cause
for continuing this appeal. Consequently, we have no alternative but to dismiss the appeal
for want of jurisdiction and based on the trial court’s certification. See TEX. R. APP. P.
42.3(a), 25.2(d).
Per Curiam
Do not publish.
3