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April30, 2015 Mr. Abel Acosta, Clerk Court of Criminal Appeals , P.O. Box 12308 Austin, Texas 78711-2308 Re: Ex parte Johnson Walter Burris, Cause Number: CR08-00113 (In the 294 1h Judicial District Court of VanZandt County, Texas). )o- Motion for Leave of Court to File Original Petition for Writ of Mandamus Dear Clerk: Enclosed please find the original copy of Applicant Burris' Motion for Leave of the Court to file Original Petition for Writ of Mandamus, to be filed among the papers in the above-styled and numbered cause pursuant to Article 11.07, V.A.C.C.P. Thank you for your kind attention to this matter. Sincerely, " Applicant, Pro se TDCJ-CID#01745516 Estelle Unit 264 FM 3478 Huntsville, Texas 77320 Enclosure Cc: Abel Acosta, Clerk Court of Criminal Appeals File RECEIVED IN COURT OF CR!Mif\l~L APPEALS MAV 08 2Ci5 Absl Acosta, Clerk . ~· WRIT NUMBER: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ (Trial Case Number: CROS-00113) JOHNSON WALTER BURRIS, § IN TDCJ-CID#01745516, Relator, Prose, § § THE v. § § COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS THE HONRABLE TERESA DRUM, § ACTING IN HER OFFICIAL § AUSTIN, TEXAS CAPACITY AS JUDGE OF THE § 263RD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT § OF VAN-ZANDT COUNTY TEXAS, § Respondent. § APPLICANT BURRIS' MOTION FOR LEAVE TO FILE ORIGINAL APPLICATION FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS WITH BRIEF IN SUPPORT TO THE HONORABLE JUDGES OF THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS: COMES NOW, Johnson W. Burris, TDCJ-CID#01745516, Relator, prose, in the above-styled and numbered cause and files this, his Motion for Leave to file Original Writ of Mandamus with Brief in Support, pursuant to Article 11.07, Section 3(C) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure and in support thereof would respectfully show the Court as follows: I. Relator 1. Johnson w·. Burris, TDCJ-CID#Ol745516, is an offender incarcerated in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Institutions Division ("TDCJ-CID"), and is appearingpra se, and can be located at: Johnson W. Burris, TDCJ-CID#01745516, Estelle Unit, 264 FM 3478, Huntsville, Texas, 77320. Burris Writ of Mandamus 2. Relator has exhausted all his remedies and has no other adequate remedy at law. 3. Relator filed his original Application for Writ of Habeas Corpus on or about May 31, 2014, with the clerk of the convicting court. Texas law requires the clerk of the district court to serve a copy of the Relator's writ of habeas corpus be served by the district clerk upon the district attorney within 15 days of Applicant filing his writ of habeas corpus application. After the expiration of the time allowed for the State to respond has passed the trial court is allowed 20 days to determine whether the application contains allegations of controverted, previously unresolved facts material to the legality of the applicant's confinement exist. Art. 11.07, §3(c). If the trial court determines that the application for writ of habeas ·corpus presents such issues it "shall enter an order within 20 days of the expiration of the time allowed for the state to reply, designating issues of fact to be resolved."
Id. In thepresent case, the trial court has not designated issues to Relator's knowledge; therefore, the habeas writ application should have been transmitted to this Court on or about July 03, 2014, but has not been transmitted as ofthis date. 4. To date, no designation of issues has been entered by the trial judge and Relator's application seeking habeas corpus relief has laid fallow since the date of its filing almost ( one-year ago. 5. The act sought to be compelled is ministerial, not discretionary in nature. The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Art. 11.07 Section 3(c) require~ Respondent to immediately transmit to the Court of Criminal Appeals a copy of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding was made, if the convicting court decides that there are no issues to be resolved. Burris Writ of Mandamus 2 . •' No copy of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding was made and transmitted to the Court of Criminal Appeals. Had Respondent directed such documents be transmitted to the Court of Criminal Appeals as required statute, Relator would have received notice from this Court. Petitioner avers that while the trial court has not in fact designated issues requiring resolution and Relator's writ of habeas corpus application has been pending in the trial court for approximately eleven (11) months since that time, which is inherently unreasonable. II. RESPONDENT 5. Respondent, the Honorable Teresa Drum, acting in her official capacity as Judge of the 294th Judicial District Court of Van-Zandt County, has a ministerial duty to resolve issues she may designate requiring resolution and resolve said issues by all customary means in a timely manner, as the Great Writ is one of expediency so as to avoid innocent citizens from languishing in pnson needlessly. Judge Teresa Drum, presiding judge ofthe 294th Judicial District Court ofVan-Zandt County, Texas, may be served at her place of business at: Judge Teresa Drum, presiding Judge of the 294th Judicial District Court of Van-Zandt County, Texas, Van-Zandt County Courthouse 121 E. Dallas St., Suite 301, Canton Texas, 75103. Burris Writ of Mandamus 3 III. Violation of Article 11.07 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure 3. The Respondent violated Article 11 07 Section 3(c) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure by failing to provide a copy of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding was made to the Court of Criminal Appeals within the time prescribed by law and within a reasonable time from the date on which the documents were requested to be transmitted. 4. Numerous requests for the transmittal of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding were made have gone unanswered. Relator has made several requests in Ex parte Johnson Walter Burris, No. CR08-00113, to the Honorable Teresa Drum, Presiding Judge of the 294th Judicial District Court of Van-Zandt County, Texas, and to Karen L. Wilson, Van-Zandt County District Clerk, by first-class mail requesting compliance with the statutory provisions, to no avail. 5. To date, Relator has received no response from Respondent regarding Relator's request for transmittal of a copy of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding was made to the Court of Criminal Appeals. 6. As is clear from the record before the Court, Relator has repeatedly put Respondent on notice that Relator seeks the copy of the application for writ Of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and reciting the date upon which that finding was made to the Court of Criminal and that such records are required by the Court of Criminal Appeals to Burris Writ of Mandamus 4 act on Relator's writ of habeas corpus. Relator has gone well beyond any requirement or obligations imposed upon him by the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. In contrast to Relator's efforts, Respondent has wholly failed to comply with the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Article 11.07 Section 3(c), and is acting in bad faith, and has also failed to afford Relator the professional and common courtesy of any written responses to his correspondence and requests. 7. Article 11.07 Section 3(c) clearly was promulgated to ensure the writ be one of expedience, not to be placed on the back burner of the trial court's docket indefinitely. IV. PRAYER FOR RELIEF WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Relator, Johnson W. Burris, TDCJ-CID#01745516, proceeding in pro se, respectfully requests a finding that the Respondent has not resolved the issues designated for resolution or if Respondent has done so, she has wholly failed to direct the clerk of the court to transmit documents to the Court of Criminal Appeals within a reasonable time after the date the issues in question were resolved and that Relator brought this litigation in good faith and has substantially prevailed. Relator prays for an Order directing Respondent to direct the clerk of the court to transmit a copy of the application for writ of habeas corpus, any answers filed, and a certificate reciting the date upon which that finding was made to the Court of Criminal Appeals as directed in Article 11.07, Section 3(c) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. Burris Writ of Mandamus 5 .. ·~ . SIGNED on this the 30th day of April 2015. Respectfully submitted, ohnson W. Burris Relator, Prose DCJ-CID#01745516 stelle Unit 264 FM 3478 Huntsville, Texas 77320 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, Johnson W. Burris, TDCJ-CID#01745516, Relator, prose, herein certify that I have sent a true and correct copy of this instrument to the Respondent, by placing same, in a U.S. mail box, first-class, postage paid, addressed to: Judge Teresa Drum, Presiding Judge 294th Judicial District Court Van-Zandt County, Texas P.O. Box 4651 Houston, Texas 77210 SIGNED on this the 30th day of April2015. Burris Writ of Mandamus 6
Document Info
Docket Number: WR-83,246-01
Filed Date: 5/6/2015
Precedential Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 9/29/2016