Document Info

DocketNumber: 13-20-00220-CR

Filed Date: 3/10/2022

Status: Precedential

Modified Date: 3/14/2022

  •                           NUMBER 13-20-00220-CR
    COURT OF APPEALS
    THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
    CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG
    PETER ISIAH UVALLE,                                                          Appellant,
    v.
    THE STATE OF TEXAS,                                                          Appellee.
    On appeal from the 139th District Court
    of Hidalgo County, Texas.
    ORDER OF ABATEMENT
    Before Justices Longoria, Hinojosa, and Silva
    Order Per Curiam
    This cause is before the Court on appellant Peter Isiah Uvalle’s unopposed motion
    to abate this appeal and remand to the trial court. Appellant contends the appellate record
    does not contain written findings of fact and conclusions of law regarding the
    voluntariness of appellant’s statement.
    Section 6 of Article 38.22 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure requires written
    findings when the voluntariness of a confession is litigated, and the trial court finds the
    confession to be voluntary and admissible. TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art 38.22, § 6 (“If the
    statement has been found to have been voluntarily made and held admissible as a matter
    of law and fact by the court in a hearing in the absence of the jury, the court must enter
    an order stating its conclusion as to whether or not the statement was voluntarily made,
    along with the specific finding of facts upon which the conclusion was based, which order
    shall be filed among the papers of the cause.”). The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has
    held that the statute requires written findings even when they are not requested because
    “written findings are required in all cases concerning voluntariness” and “[t]he statute has
    no exceptions.” Vasquez v. State, 
    411 S.W.3d 918
    , 920 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013).
    Accordingly, we grant appellant’s motion to abate, and we remand this cause to
    the trial court to make such written findings, in compliance with Article 38.22, on the
    voluntariness of appellant’s statement. See TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. art 38.22, § 6.
    Specifically, the trial court should make an order stating its conclusion as to whether or
    not the challenged statement was voluntarily made, along with specific finding of facts
    upon which the conclusion is based. The trial court shall cause its order, together with its
    findings and recommendations to be included in a supplemental clerk’s record.
    Furthermore, the trial court shall cause a supplemental reporter’s record of any
    proceedings to be prepared. The supplemental clerk’s record and supplemental reporter’s
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    record, if any, shall be filed with the Clerk of this Court on or before the expiration thirty
    days from the date of this order.
    Having reviewed the record before this Court, we note that the State withdrew the
    complained of videotaped statement of appellant prior to trial and before a ruling could be
    obtained on appellant’s motion to suppress. Accordingly, within ten days of this Court’s
    receipt of the supplemental clerk’s record and supplemental reporter’s record, if any, we
    order appellant to file a letter brief regarding the necessity or usage on appeal of such
    findings of fact and conclusions of law as requested in his motion. Any response from the
    State will be due within ten days of receipt of appellant’s letter brief.
    PER CURIAM
    Do not publish.
    TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).
    Delivered and filed on the
    10th day of March, 2022.
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