in the Interest of S.I., Children

Fourth Court of Appeals San Antonio, Texas July 31, 2018 No. 04-18-00329-CV IN THE INTEREST OF S.I., ET AL., CHILDREN, From the 37th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas Trial Court No. 2017-PA-01391 Honorable Charles E. Montemayor, Judge Presiding ORDER This is an accelerated appeal of the trial court’s order terminating appellant’s parental rights. The appellant’s brief was originally due to be filed on June 27, 2018. By order dated June 28, 2018, this court granted appellant’s first motion for extension of time to his file his brief, extending the deadline to July 17, 2017. This court’s order reminded appellant’s attorney that this appeal is governed by the standards set forth in Rule 6.2 of the Texas Rules of Judicial Administration and must be brought to final disposition within 180 days of the date the notice of appeal is filed. TEX. R. JUD. ADMIN. 6.2. As a result, this court’s order stated, “Given the time constraints governing the disposition of this appeal, further requests for extensions of time will be disfavored.” On July 17, 2018, appellant’s attorney filed a second motion for extension of time. The reasons for requesting the extension, which were identical to the reasons stated in the first motion, were a “recent” hurricane which required appellant’s attorney to travel to Rockport, Texas to protect and repair property and “back to back trials.” Although the motion was the second request for an extension of time, the motion stated it was the “first” request for an extension of time. By order dated July 19, 2018, this court granted the motion in part, extending the deadline to file appellant’s brief to July 27, 2017. This court’s order stated, “NO FURTHER EXTENSIONS OF TIME WILL BE GRANTED ABSENT EXTENUATING CIRCUMSTANCES.” On July 30, 2018, appellant’s attorney filed a third motion for extension of time. The reasons for requesting the extension are identical to the reasons stated in the first two motions including a “recent” hurricane which required appellant’s attorney to travel to Rockport, Texas to protect and repair property and “back to back trials.” Although the motion is the third request for an extension of time, the motion states it is the “first” request for an extension of time. The motion does not acknowledge this court’s prior order or attempt to provide any “extenuating circumstances.” Nevertheless, in the interest of justice for appellant, the motion is GRANTED. Appellant’s brief must be filed in this court no later than August 6, 2018. IF APPELLANT’S BRIEF IS NOT FILED IN THIS COURT ON AUGUST 6, 2018, THIS APPEAL WILL BE ABATED TO THE TRIAL COURT, AND THE TRIAL COURT WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO CONSIDER WHETHER SANCTIONS SHOULD BE ASSESSED AGAINST APPELLANT’S ATTORNEY, MR. JOSEPH BOHAC, FOR DISREGARDING THIS COURT’S ORDERS. _________________________________ Sandee Bryan Marion, Chief Justice IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the said court on this 31st day of July, 2018. ___________________________________ KEITH E. HOTTLE, Clerk of Court