COURT OF APPEALS
EIGHTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
EL PASO, TEXAS
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STEVEN CURTIS ALLEN, No. 08-16-00264-CR
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Appellant, Appeal from
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v. 426th District Court
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THE STATE OF TEXAS, of Bell County, Texas
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Appellee. (TC # 75,547)
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MEMORANDUM OPINION
Steven Curtis Allen attempts to appeal his conviction of forgery by passing, enhanced by
two prior felony convictions. Finding that Appellant did not timely file his notice of appeal, we
dismiss the appeal for want of jurisdiction.
A timely notice of appeal is necessary to invoke this Court’s jurisdiction. Olivo v. State,
918 S.W.2d 519, 522 (Tex.Crim.App. 1996). In a criminal case, a defendant’s notice of appeal is
due within thirty days after the sentence is imposed in open court or the trial court enters an
appealable order. See TEX.R.APP.P. 26.2(a)(1). The deadline is extended to ninety days after the
date the sentence is imposed in open court if the defendant timely files a motion for new trial.
See TEX.R.APP.P. 26.2(a)(2). The judgment of conviction reflects that sentence was imposed in
open court on April 7, 2016. Appellant did not file a motion for new trial. Therefore, his notice
of appeal was due to be filed no later than May 7, 2016, thirty days after the date sentence was
imposed in open court. See TEX.R.APP.P. 26.2(a)(1). Appellant did not file his notice of appeal
until September 14, 2016, more than four months after the deadline.
Appellant has filed a document explaining that he informed trial counsel he desired to
appeal, but counsel did not file a notice of appeal on his behalf. Additionally, Appellant states
that he mistakenly sent his pro se notice of appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeals. This Court
does not have authority to grant Appellant an out-of-time appeal. Because Appellant did not
timely file his notice of appeal, we are required to dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
October 27, 2016
ANN CRAWFORD McCLURE, Chief Justice
Before McClure, C.J., Rodriguez, and Hughes, JJ.
(Do Not Publish)
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