Dwayne Rodney Woodruff v. State

COURT OF APPEALS
EIGHTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
EL PASO, TEXAS
§
Dwayne Rodney Woodruff § No. 08-19-00141-CR
Appellant, § Appeal from the
v. § 384th District Court
The State of Texas, § of El Paso County, Texas
State. § (TC# 20170D02504)
§
ORDER
In the certification of the defendant’s right to appeal, the trial court certified that Appellant
waived his right to appeal. The Rules of Appellate Procedure require us to dismiss this appeal
unless we find that the certification is defective. See TEX.R.APP.P. 25.2(d); Dears v. State, 154
S.W.3d 610, 613 (Tex.Crim.App. 2005). Consequently, we requested that Appellant’s attorney
and the prosecuting attorney file letter briefs addressing whether Appellant has a right to appeal.
Appellant asserts in his letter brief that he did not waive the right to appeal. The State does not
dispute Appellant’s assertion. We have reviewed the clerk’s record, including the judgment of
conviction, and the reporter’s record of the trial. The judgment recites that Appellant entered a
plea of guilty before the jury, but the record reflects that Appellant entered a plea of not guilty and
the jury found him guilty. We have not found anything in the record supporting the trial court’s
determination that Appellant waived his right to appeal. Accordingly, we find that the judgment
is erroneous because it reflects that Appellant entered a guilty plea. Further, we find that the
certification is defective because it is contrary to the record.
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The trial court is ORDERED to correct the judgment of conviction and to enter a new
certification of the defendant’s right to appeal. Given that Appellant has already been advised of
his rights to appeal and to file a petition for discretionary review, the trial court is not required to
obtain Appellant’s signature on the certification. The trial court shall file the judgment nunc pro
tunc and the new certification with the trial court clerk no later than August 22, 2019. The trial
court clerk shall prepare and file a supplemental clerk’s record containing the judgment nunc pro
tunc and new certification of the defendant’s right to appeal no later than September 1, 2019.
IT IS SO ORDERED this 7th day of August, 2019.
PER CURIAM
Before McClure, C.J., Rodriguez and Palafox, JJ.
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