Johnny Gonzales v. the State of Texas

Fourth Court of Appeals San Antonio, Texas August 2, 2022 No. 04-22-00418-CR Johnny GONZALES, Appellant v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee From the 437th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas Trial Court No. 2019-CR-0573 Honorable Melisa C. Skinner, Judge Presiding ORDER The trial court imposed sentence in the underlying cause on May 31, 2022. Because appellant did not file a motion for new trial, the notice of appeal was due to be filed June 30, 2022. TEX. R. APP. P. 26.2(a)(1). A motion for extension of time to file the notice of appeal was due on July 15, 2022. TEX. R. APP. P. 26.3. Appellant filed a notice of appeal on July 1, 2022, but he did not file a motion for extension of time. A timely notice of appeal is necessary to invoke a court of appeals’ jurisdiction. See Olivo v. State, 918 S.W.2d 519, 522 (Tex. Crim. App. 1996). A late notice of appeal may be considered timely so as to invoke a court of appeals’ jurisdiction if (1) it is filed within fifteen days of the last day allowed for filing, (2) a motion for extension of time is filed in the court of appeals within fifteen days of the last day allowed for filing the notice of appeal, and (3) the court of appeals grants the motion for extension of time. See id. Having reviewed the record, it appeared the notice of appeal was untimely filed, and no motion for extension of time was filed. We therefore ordered appellant to show cause in writing why this appeal should not be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. See id.; see also Ater v. Eighth Court of Appeals, 802 S.W.2d 241 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991)(out-of-time appeal from final felony conviction may be sought by filing a writ of habeas corpus pursuant to article 11.07 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure). On July 25, 202, appellant responded that, although sentence was imposed on May 31, 2022, the trial court signed an “amended judgment” on July 6, 2022. Thus, making his notice of appeal timely. We ORDER this appeal REINSTATED. Ms. Mary Beth Sasala is the court reporter responsible for preparing, certifying, and filing the reporter’s record in this appeal. Ms. Sasala is ORDERED to file her record no later than September 1, 2022. _________________________________ Lori I. Valenzuela, Justice IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the said court on this 2nd day of August, 2022. ___________________________________ MICHAEL A. CRUZ, Clerk of Court