William Earl Johnson v. State ( 2005 )

NO. 07-04-0531-CR
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE SEVENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
AT AMARILLO
PANEL D
FEBRUARY 22, 2005
______________________________
WILLIAM EARL JOHNSON,
Appellant
v.
THE STATE OF TEXAS,
Appellee
_________________________________
FROM THE 320TH DISTRICT COURT OF POTTER COUNTY;
NO. 46825-D; HON. DON EMERSON, PRESIDING
_______________________________
Before QUINN, REAVIS and CAMPBELL, JJ.
Appellant, William Earl Johnson, appeals from an order revoking his community
supervision and sentencing him to seven years imprisonment for the possession of a
controlled substance. He originally pled guilty pursuant to a plea bargain agreement, was
convicted of that offense, and was placed on community supervision for seven years.
Thereafter, the State filed a motion to revoke wherein it alleged that he violated several
terms of his community supervision. After a hearing during which appellant admitted to
violating those terms, the court entered the challenged order.
Appellant’s appointed counsel filed a motion to withdraw, together with an Anders1
brief in which he certified that, after diligently searching the record, he concluded that the
appeal was without merit. Along with his brief, counsel attached a copy of a letter sent to
appellant informing him that there were no grounds of appeal and of appellant’s right to file
a response or pro se brief. By letter dated January 18, 2005, this court also notified
appellant of his right to tender his own brief or response and set February 17, 2005, as the
deadline to do so. To date, appellant has filed neither a response, brief, or request for an
extension of time.
In compliance with the principles enunciated in Anders, appellate counsel discussed
four potential areas for appeal. They involved 1) the effectiveness of his trial counsel, 2)
the failure to request permission to appeal, 3) the abuse of discretion by the trial court in
finding appellant in violation of the terms of his probation, and 4) the abuse of discretion by
the trial court in sentencing appellant. However, counsel explained why each argument
lacked merit. Furthermore, the record illustrates that appellant admitted committing the
acts described in the State’s motion to revoke. Thus, the trial court had evidentiary basis
for its decision to revoke probation. Anthony v. State, 962 S.W.2d 242, 246 (Tex. App.–Fort
Worth 1998, no pet.) (holding that the admission by the defendant to a parole officer that
he violated his probation was sufficient evidence to revoke that probation). Appellant was
also sentenced within the range allowed by law. See TEX . HEALTH & SAFETY CODE ANN .
§481.115(c) (Vernon 2003) (possession of an amount of one gram or more but less than
four grams is a third degree felony); TEX . PEN . CODE ANN . §12.34 (Vernon 2003) (stating
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Anders v. Ca lifornia, 386 U.S . 738, 744-45, 87 S. Ct. 13 96, 18 L.E d.2d 493 (196 7).
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that punishment for a third degree felony is confinement for not more than ten years or less
than two). Finally, appellant did not request permission to appeal and did not appeal from
his original conviction.
We have conducted our own review of the record to assess the accuracy of
appellate counsel’s conclusions and to uncover any error, reversible or otherwise, pursuant
to Stafford v. State, 813 S.W.2d 503 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991). Our review has failed to
reveal error.
Accordingly, the motion to withdraw is granted, and the judgment is affirmed.
Brian Quinn
Justice
Do not publish.
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