Regina Marie Dollarhide v. State ( 2010 )

IN THE

TENTH COURT OF APPEALS

 

No. 10-10-00051-CR

Regina Marie Dollarhide,

                                                                                    Appellant

 v.

The State of Texas,

                                                                                    Appellee

From the 413th District Court

Johnson County, Texas

Trial Court No. F41503

MEMORANDUM  Opinion

Appellant has filed a motion to dismiss her appeal.  See Tex. R. App. P. 42.2(a).  We have not issued a decision in this appeal.  Appellant personally signed the motion.  Accordingly, the motion is granted, and the appeal is dismissed.

REX D. DAVIS

Justice

Before Chief Justice Gray,

Justice Reyna, and

Justice Davis

Motion granted; appeal dismissed

Opinion delivered and filed June 16, 2010

Do not publish

[CR25]

e Davis substantially complied, we have all the information, verified as required or authorized, to request a response or to deny the petition.  I would request a response to confirm what I believe is the reason the petition for expunction has not been acted upon by the trial court.

Merits Review

            Davis filed a petition for the expunction of records in the 361st District Court, the Honorable Judge Steve Smith presiding.  Now that we have a copy of the expunction petition, it is clear that the records Davis seeks to have expunged are from a proceeding before Judge Smith when Judge Smith was judge of County Court at Law No. 1, not the 361st District Court.  The petition for expunction has to be filed in the court where the proceeding to be expunged was originally filed and not the court wherein the judge now sits.  Thus, Davis has filed the expunction petition in the wrong court.  

            Because Judge Smith has no duty to rule on an expunction motion filed in the wrong court, and at best all he could do is dismiss the improperly-filed proceeding, I concur in the Court’s denial of Davis’s petition for writ of mandamus, but not the reasoning thereof. Accordingly, while it may be the best practice for the trial court judge to promptly dismiss a petition for expunction when it is filed with the wrong court, I can concur in the denial of the petition.

                                                                        TOM GRAY

                                                                        Chief Justice

Concurring opinion delivered and filed August 25, 2010