Manuel Zubia v. State ( 2020 )

In The
Court of Appeals
Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo
No. 07-19-00296-CR
MANUEL ZUBIA, APPELLANT
V.
THE STATE OF TEXAS, APPELLEE
On Appeal from the 137th District Court
Lubbock County, Texas
Trial Court No. 2016-410,823, Honorable John J. “Trey” McClendon III, Presiding
January 3, 2020
ORDER OF ABATEMENT AND REMAND
Before PIRTLE and PARKER and DOSS, JJ.
Appellant Manuel Zubia appeals his conviction for indecency with a child by sexual
contact1 and sentence to forty years’ confinement. The appellate record was originally
due October 1, 2019. The clerk’s record was filed by this deadline, but the reporter’s
record was not. We subsequently granted the reporter, Ms. Breann Hays, three
extensions to file the reporter’s record. By letter of December 9, 2019, we admonished
1 TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 21.11(a)(1), (d) (West 2019) (second degree felony). Appellant’s range
of punishment was enhanced by a prior final felony conviction. TEX. PENAL CODE ANN. § 12.42(b) (West
2019).
Ms. Hays that no further extensions would be granted and that her failure to file the
reporter’s record by December 30 would result in the appeal being abated and the cause
remanded to the trial court for further proceedings without further notice. On December
31, 2019, Ms. Hays requested a fourth extension to January 13, 2020, due to her
caseload.
Understanding that caseloads may delay the completion of records, we deny the
request for extension, abate the appeal, and remand the cause to the trial court for further
proceedings. See TEX. R. APP. P. 35.3(c); 37.3(a)(2). On remand, the trial court shall
determine the following:
1. what tasks remain to complete the filing of the reporter’s record;
2. why Ms. Hays has not completed the necessary tasks;
3. what amount of time is reasonably necessary for the completion of those
tasks; and
4. whether Ms. Hays can complete the tasks within the time the trial court finds
reasonable.
Should the trial court determine that Ms. Hays will require more than thirty days to
complete, certify, and file the reporter’s record, it shall arrange for a substitute reporter to
do so. The trial court is directed to enter such orders necessary to address the
aforementioned questions. So too shall it include its findings on those matters in a
supplemental clerk’s record and cause that record to be filed with this Court by February
3, 2020.
2
Should Ms. Hays file the complete reporter’s record on or before January 13, 2020,
she is directed to immediately notify the trial court of the filing, in writing, whereupon the
trial court shall not be required to take any further action.
It is so ordered.
Per Curiam
Do not publish.
3