Guzman, James ( 2021 )

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS
OF TEXAS
NOS. WR-31,922-35 & 31,922-36
EX PARTE JAMES GUZMAN, Applicant
ON APPLICATIONS FOR WRITS OF HABEAS CORPUS
CAUSE NOS. 849859-K & 849860-L IN THE 182ND DISTRICT COURT
FROM HARRIS COUNTY
Per curiam.
ORDER
Applicant was convicted of assault on a public servant and possession with intent to deliver
or manufacture a controlled substance. He was sentenced to twenty years’ imprisonment on the
assault conviction and twenty-five years’ imprisonment on the possession conviction. The
Fourteenth Court of Appeals dismissed Applicant’s direct appeals for want of jurisdiction in 2001
and then issued its mandate for the assault conviction in 2005. Guzman v. State, Nos. 14-01-00224-
CR & 14-01-00226-CR (Tex. App.—Houston [14th], Mar. 15, 2001) (not designated for publication);
Guzman v. State, No. 14-01-00778-CR (Tex. App.—Houston [14th], Mar. 3, 2005) (not designated
for publication). Applicant filed these applications for writs of habeas corpus in the county of
conviction, and the district clerk forwarded them to this Court. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art.
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11.07.
Applicant contends, among other things, that the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
(“TDCJ”) has erroneously calculated his maximum discharge date as March 14, 2031. Applicant
has alleged facts that, if true, might entitle him to relief. Ex parte Canada, 754 S.W.2d 660 (Tex.
Crim. App. 1988). Accordingly, the record should be developed. The trial court is the appropriate
forum for findings of fact. TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art. 11.07, § 3(d). The trial court shall order the
TDCJ’s Office of the General Counsel to obtain a response from a person with knowledge of
relevant facts. That response shall state and explain Applicant’s maximum discharge date. In
developing the record, the trial court may use any means set out in Article 11.07, § 3(d). If the trial
court elects to hold a hearing, it shall determine whether Applicant is indigent. If Applicant is
indigent and wants to be represented by counsel, the trial court shall appoint counsel to represent him
at the hearing. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art. 26.04. If counsel is appointed or retained, the trial
court shall immediately notify this Court of counsel’s name.
The trial court shall make findings of fact and conclusions of law as to whether, before filing
this application, Applicant properly exhausted his administrative remedies as required by §
501.0081(b) of the Government Code. The trial court may make any other findings and conclusions
that it deems appropriate in response to Applicant’s claim.
The trial court shall make findings of fact and conclusions of law within ninety days from
the date of this order. The district clerk shall then immediately forward to this Court the trial court’s
findings and conclusions and the record developed on remand, including, among other things,
affidavits, motions, objections, proposed findings and conclusions, orders, and transcripts from
hearings and depositions. See TEX. R. APP. P. 73.4(b)(4). Any extensions of time must be requested
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by the trial court and obtained from this Court.
Filed: December 8, 2021
Do not publish