Andrus, Terence Tramaine

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS
OF TEXAS
NO. AP-76,936
TERENCE TRAMAINE ANDRUS, Appellant
v.
THE STATE OF TEXAS
ON DIRECT APPEAL FROM CAUSE NO. 09-DCR-051034
IN THE 240 TH DISTRICT COURT
FORT BEND COUNTY
Per curiam. Y EARY, J., filed a concurring statement, in which H ERVEY and
N EWELL, JJ., joined. K ELLER, P. J., filed a dissenting statement. A LCALA, J., filed a
dissenting statement.
ORDER
The above-styled and numbered cause is pending before this Court as a result of
appellant’s capital murder conviction and resulting sentence of death in the 240 th District
Court of Fort Bend County, Cause No. 09-DCR-051034, styled The State of Texas v.
Terence Tramaine Andrus. Appellant argues on appeal that the trial court erred in
denying his pretrial motion to suppress his oral and written statements.
When a question is raised as to the voluntariness of an accused’s statement, Article
Andrus – 2
38.22, § 6, of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, requires the trial court to “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 trial court conducted a hearing on
appellant’s pretrial motion to suppress his statements and denied the motion without
entering findings of fact and conclusions of law.
Under Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 34.5(c)(2), an appellate court can order
the trial court to “prepare and file findings of fact and conclusions of law as required by
law” (emphasis added) and have the clerk supplement the record with those findings and
conclusions without abating the case. Assuming that the findings and conclusions were
required by law to be made, then the record can simply be supplemented without abating
the case.
Therefore, the trial court is directed to prepare and file findings of fact and
conclusions of law regarding the voluntariness of appellant’s statements. The trial court
clerk must then prepare, certify, and file in this Court a supplemental clerk’s record
containing the findings and conclusions. The findings and conclusions are to be made,
and the supplemental clerk’s record is to be filed, within 30 days of the date of this order.
See T EX. R. A PP. P. 34.5(c)(2).
IT IS SO ORDERED THIS THE 25TH DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2015.
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