Ricky D. Howell v. State of Texas

Opinion filed April 28, 2011

 

                                                                       In The

                                                                             

  Eleventh Court of Appeals

                                                                   __________

 

                                                         No. 11-11-00087-CR

                                                    __________

 

                                   RICKY D. HOWELL, Appellant

 

                                                             V.

 

                                      STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee

 

                                   On Appeal from the 244th District Court

 

                                                             Ector County, Texas

 

                                                   Trial Court Cause No. C-26,251

 

 

                                            M E M O R A N D U M   O P I N I O N

 

            Ricky D. Howell was convicted as a repeat offender of the offenses of burglary of a habitation and aggravated sexual assault.  He was sentenced to a term of confinement for fifty years in 1999.  On March 18, 2011, Howell filed a notice of appeal from the trial court’s denial of a motion to set aside and vacate the judgment and sentence as void.  We notified Howell by letter that it did not appear that this court had jurisdiction in this matter, and we requested that Howell file a response showing grounds to continue the appeal.

            Howell has filed a response urging that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to convict and sentence him.  Howell explained in his response that he is intentionally pursuing relief under Tex. R. Civ. P. 329b(f), (g) rather than seeking relief through a post-conviction writ of habeas corpus under Tex. Code Crim. Proc. Ann. art. 11.07 (Vernon Supp. 2010).  Howell’s reliance on the Rules of Civil Procedure is misplaced.  The trial court’s denial of Howell’s untimely motion to set aside the judgment is not an appealable order, and this court has no jurisdiction to entertain an appeal from that order.  

            The appeal is dismissed for want of jurisdiction.  

 

                                                                                                PER CURIAM

 

April 28, 2011

Do not publish.  See Tex. R. App. P. 47.2(b).

Panel[1] consists of:  Wright, C.J.,

McCall, J., and Hill, J.[2]

 



[1]Rick Strange, Justice, resigned effective April 17, 2011.  The justice position is vacant pending appointment of a successor by the governor.

 

[2]John G. Hill, Former Justice, Court of Appeals, 2nd District of Texas at Fort Worth, sitting by assignment.