NUMBER 13-09-00611-CV
COURT OF APPEALS
THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG
TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY, Appellant,
v.
NORMA ZUNIGA, Appellee.
On appeal from 92nd District Court
of Hidalgo County, Texas.
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Before Justices Yañez, Rodriguez, and Garza
Memorandum Opinion by Justice Rodriguez
This is an appeal of an order of expunction. Appellee Norma Zuniga petitioned the
trial court to expunge records of her arrest for theft. The trial court granted the expunction.
Appellant Texas Department of Public Safety (Department) appeals from that order. By
two issues, the Department contends the trial court erred in ordering expunction because
(1) there is no evidence that the indictment presented against Zuniga was dismissed in
accordance with the statutory requirements of article 55.01(a)(2)(A) of the Texas Code of
Criminal Procedure, and (2) the Department did not receive notice of the hearing as
required by article 55.02, section 2(c) of the code. See TEX . CODE CRIM . PROC . ANN . arts.
55.01(a)(2)(A), 55.02, § 2(c) (Vernon Supp. 2009). We reverse and render.
I. BACKGROUND 1
Zuniga was arrested for theft and charged by indictment. After the indictment was
dismissed, Zuniga filed an original petition for expunction and an amended petition. The
Department received notice of the hearing set for August 26, 2009, and filed an answer.
See id. at art. 55.02. Zuniga then filed a second amended petition, and the Department
received notice of the hearing set for September 30, 2009. The trial court then ordered the
hearing reset for October 8, 2009, but the Department did not receive notice and therefore
did not appear. The trial court ordered an expunction, and this appeal ensued.
II. NO EVIDENCE
In its first issue, the Department contends that Zuniga failed to meet condition (A)
of article 55.01(a)(2) of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure because she produced no
evidence showing that the charges against her were dismissed for a reason indicating the
absence of probable cause to believe she had committed the offense. See id. art.
55.01(a)(2)(A). We agree.
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The statem ent of facts set out in appellant's brief, if supported by record references, will be accepted
as true unless another party contradicts them . T EX . R. A PP . P. 38.1(g). Because Zuniga filed no brief, we will
take as true the Departm ent's fact statem ent that is supported by record references. Furtherm ore, because
this is a m em orandum opinion and the parties are fam iliar with the facts, we will not recite them here except
as necessary to advise the parties of the Court's decision and the basic reasons for it. See id. at rule 47.4.
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A. Standard of Review
A trial court's order in an expunction proceeding is reviewed under an abuse of
discretion standard. Heine v. Tex. Dep't of Pub. Safety, 92 S.W.3d 642, 646 (Tex.
App.–Austin 2002, pet. denied). The trial court must strictly comply with the statutory
procedures for expunction, and it commits reversible error when it fails to do so. Ex parte
Stiles, 958 S.W.2d 414, 418 (Tex. App.–Waco 1997, pet. denied); see also Tex. Dep't of
Pub. Safety v. Olivares, No. 13-06-035-CV, 2007 Tex. App. LEXIS 5904, *3-*4 (Tex.
App.–Corpus Christi July 26, 2007, no pet.) (mem. op.).
B. Applicable Law
Expunction is only available when all statutory conditions have been met. Williams,
76 S.W.3d at 650 (citing Tex. Dep't of Pub. Safety v. Butler, 941 S.W.2d 318, 321 (Tex.
App.–Corpus Christi 1997, no writ)). The petitioner has the burden of proving that all
statutory requirements have been satisfied in order to be entitled to expunction. Id. (citing
Butler, 941 S.W.2d at 321; Ex parte Scott, 818 S.W.2d 226, 227 (Tex. App.–Corpus Christi
1991, no writ)). To be entitled to expunction, a petitioner, such as Zuniga, who has neither
been acquitted of the offense in the petition, nor convicted and subsequently pardoned,
must show that the indictment presented against her has been dismissed or quashed
"because the presentment had been made because of mistake, false information, or other
similar reason indicating absence of probable cause at the time of the dismissal to believe
the person committed the offense . . . ." TEX . CODE CRIM . PROC . ANN . art. 55.01(a)(2)(A)(ii).
C. Analysis
Zuniga had not been acquitted of the offense identified in the petition, and she had
not been convicted and subsequently pardoned for that offense. Therefore, under the
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facts of this case, Zuniga was required to prove that she satisfied the conditions set out in
article 55.01(a)(2)(A)(ii) of code of criminal procedure.2 See TEX . CODE CRIM . PROC . ANN .
at art. 55.01(a)(2)(A)(ii). However, the record does not reflect that Zuniga presented any
evidence to satisfy these requirements. See id. Because there is no evidence to support
Zuniga's expunction, the trial court abused its discretion in ordering Zuniga's records
expunged. See Heine, 92 S.W.3d at 646. We sustain the Department's first issue.
Having sustained the Department's first issue, we need not address its second issue
regarding proper notice of the hearing. See TEX . R. APP. P. 47.1.
III. CONCLUSION
We reverse the trial court's order and render judgment denying the expunction.
Pursuant to the Department's prayer for relief, we order any documents surrendered to the
trial court or to Zuniga returned to the submitting agencies. See Ex parte Elliot, 815
S.W.2d 251, 252 (Tex. 1991) (per curiam) (providing that reversal of the order of
expunction applies to all respondents, even if they did not participate in the appeal).
NELDA V. RODRIGUEZ
Justice
Delivered and filed the
24th day of June, 2010.
2
As the statute of lim itations for theft is five years and Zuniga filed her various petitions for expunction
less than two years after the date of the alleged com m ission of the offense, she was not eligible for relief
under article 55.01(a)(2)(A)(i) which provides for expunction when an indictm ent presented against the person
has been dism issed or quashed because the lim itations period expired before the date on which a petition for
expunction was filed. See T EX . C O D E C R IM . P R O C . A N N . arts. 12.01(4)(A), 55.01(a)(2)(A)(i) (Vernon Supp.
2009).
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