James Williams v. State

NUMBER 13-20-00345-CR
COURT OF APPEALS
THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG
____________________________________________________________
JAMES WILLIAMS, Appellant,
v.
THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee.
____________________________________________________________
On appeal from the 178th District Court
of Harris County, Texas.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before Justices Benavides, Longoria, and Tijerina
Memorandum Opinion by Justice Tijerina
Appellant, James Williams, attempts to appeal his conviction for aggravated
assault entered in the 178th District Court of Harris County 1. On June 10, 2020, the trial
court sentenced appellant. On July 16, 2020, appellant filed a notice of appeal. On August
1 This case is before the Court on transfer from the Fourteenth Court of Appeals in Houston, pursuant to
docket equalization order Misc. Docket No. 20-9090 issued by the Supreme Court of Texas.
20, 2020, the Clerk of this Court notified appellant that it appeared the appeal was not
timely perfected. Appellant was further informed the appeal would be dismissed if the
defect was not corrected within ten days from the date of receipt of the Court’s directive.
Furthermore, on August 25, 2020, this Court notified appellant’s counsel that the
trial court’s certification indicated the appellant waived his right to appeal and ordered
counsel to: (1) review the record; (2) determine whether appellant has a right to appeal;
and (3) forward to this Court, by letter, counsel’s findings as to whether appellant has a
right to appeal, or, alternatively, advise this Court as to the existence of any amended
certification.
On September 25, 2020, counsel filed a brief with this Court. The brief does not
establish: (1) that the certification currently on file with this Court is incorrect, or (2) that
appellant otherwise has a right to appeal. The Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure
provides that an appeal must be dismissed if the trial court’s certification does not show
that the defendant has the right of appeal. Tex. R. App. P. 25.2(d); see Tex. R. App. P.
37.1, 44.3, 44.4.
Furthermore, this Court's appellate jurisdiction in a criminal case is invoked by a
timely filed notice of appeal. Olivo v. State, 918 S.W.2d 519, 522 (Tex. Crim. App. 1996).
Absent a timely filed notice of appeal, a court of appeals does not have jurisdiction to
address the merits of the appeal and can take no action other than to dismiss the appeal
for want of jurisdiction. Slaton v. State, 981 S.W.2d 208, 210 (Tex. Crim. App. 1998).
Accordingly, this appeal is DISMISSED FOR LACK OF JURISDICTION and the
motion to withdraw is DISMISSED as moot.
2
JAIME TIJERINA
Justice
Do not publish.
TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).
Delivered and filed on the
21st day of January, 2021.
3