ACCEPTED
03-13-00092-CR
7805922
THIRD COURT OF APPEALS
AUSTIN, TEXAS
11/12/2015 3:46:41 PM
JEFFREY D. KYLE
CLERK
CAUSE No. 03-13-00092-CR
FILED IN
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS 3rd COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE THIRD COURT OF APPEALS DISTRICT AUSTIN, TEXAS
AUSTIN, TEXAS 11/12/2015 3:46:41 PM
JEFFREY D. KYLE
Clerk
HOWARD THOMAS DOUGLAS,
Appellant,
VS.
THE STATE OF TEXAS,
Appellee.
On appeal from Cause No. D-1-DC-10-900204
in the 331 st Judicial District Comi,
Travis County, Texas
EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW AS COUNSEL FOR
APPELLANT
TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF SAID COURT:
COMES NOW, Craig M. Price, counsel for Appellant Howard Thomas
Douglas, and files this his Emergency Motion to Withdraw As Counsel For
AppeHant, and respectfully shows this Court the following:
I.
STATUS OF APPELLATE SCHEDULE
l. Movant is atton1ey of record for Appellant Howard Thomas Douglas, and
was retained to represent Appellant at trial and on appeal.
2. Movant perfected the appeal, filed Appellant's Brief, filed Appellant's
Reply Brief in response to the Appellee's Brief filed by the State, and
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE 1
filed Appellant's Motion for Rehearing and Motion for Rehearing En
Banc, which was recently denied.
3. All briefs and post-judgment motions for rehearing have been timely
filed, and this matter is concluded, subject to any further proceedings
before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.
II.
MOVANT SEEKS TO WITHDRAW TO
AVOID UNREASONABLE FINANCIAL BURDEN
4. Movant seeks to withdraw from his representation of Appellant in order
to avoid a financial hardship.
5. Movant has recently accepted a position to work with the Grayson
County District Attorney's Office and is scheduled to commence work
at the District Attorney's Office on November 19, 2015. Movant is a
single father with primary custody of four minor children, and Movant is
the sole source of income for Movant and his four minor children. If
Movant is not allowed to withdraw from representation of Appellant in
this matter, Movant most likely will have to forfeit his new position with
the Grayson County District Attorney's Office, which will impose an
extreme and unreasonable financial burden on Movant and his
dependents. See Tex. R. Prof. Conduct, R. 1.15(b)(6).
6. Conversely, withdrawal can be accomplished without material adverse
effect on the interests of the client. The only obligation remaining for
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE 2
Appellant's counsel, should a judgment be rendered that is adverse to
Appellant, is to comply with Tex. R. App. P. 48.4, by sending notice of
the judgment and opinion to Appellant and apprising him of his right to
file a pro se petition for discretionary review under Tex. R. App. P. 68
with the Texas Comi of Criminal Appeals.
7. Movant and Appellant entered into a written fee agreement regarding the
trial and the appeal of this matter, but Appellant has not paid the entirety
of the fee agreement. If Appellant is not able to retain an atton1ey to
represent him during the sh01i remainder of this matter, it is reasonable to
assume that this Comi could remand the matter of whether Appellant is
indigent to the trial comi for a detennination of whether Appellant is
entitled to a court-appointed atton1ey, and any expense to Travis County,
Texas - given the status of the case at this time - would be minimal.
8. This withdrawal is not sought for the purposes of delay, but so that
justice can be done.
9. The last kn.own address for Howard Thomas Dougllas is 5729
Lebanon Road, suite 144-155, Frisco, Texas 75034.
10. There only pending deadline in this matter is the deadline to file the
petition for discretionary review with the Texas Court of Criminal
Appeals, which is due no later than November 30, 2015.
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE3
11. A copy of this motion has been delivered to Appellant Howard Thomas
Douglas at his last lmown address, and Appellant was thereby notified in
writing of his right to object to this motion.
III.
MOVANT SEEKS EMERGENCY RELIEF
12. Movant respectfully moves this Court to treat this Motion to Withdraw
as an Emergency Motion to Withdraw, as pen11itted by Tex. R. App. P.
10.3(a)(3), and dispense with the ten (10) day waiting period typically
accorded motions before the Court of Appeals. See Tex. R. App. P.
10.3(a).
13. Movant submits that this matter constitutes an emergency because
Movant is scheduled to begin his new employment with the Grayson
County District Attorney's Office on November 19, 2015, and, unless
this Comi designates this matter as an emergency and rules before the
expiration of ten days after the motion was filed, it is highly likely that no
decision will be reached before November 19, 2015, and Movant very
well may have to forfeit his new position with the District Atton1ey's
Office, thereby causing Movant to suffer extreme financial hardship.
14. Based on the foregoing, Movant respectfully moves this Comi to treat
this matter as an emergency motion to withdraw, to forego the ten-day
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITI-IDRA W PAGE4
waiting period before ruling and to rule as soon as possible but at least
before November 19, 2015.
IV.
PRAYER
WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, Movant Craig M. Price
respectfully moves this Court to grant Movant's emergency motion to withdraw as
counsel for Appellant without waiting ten (10) days for either Appellant or the State
to file a response, and to grant Movant' s motion to withdraw as counsel for
Appellant. Movant further seeks such other relief to which he may be entitled, at
law or in equity.
Respectfully submitted,
/S/ Craig M. Price
Craig M. Price
State Bar No. 16284170
cmp@hammerle.com
Hammerle Finley Law Finn
2871 Lake Vista Dr., Suite 150
Lewisville, Texas 75067
Tel: (972) 436-9300
Fax: (972) 436-9000
Attorney for Appellant
NOTICE TO CLIENT
This is to notify you that this Motion for Withdrawal of Counsel may be set
for hearing at the time and place stated at a later date. You do not have to agree to
this motion and if you contest the withdrawal of Craig M. Price as attorney in this
cause, you should either appear at the hearing or object in writing. If you do not
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE 5
oppose Craig M. Price's withdrawal as attorney of record in this case, you may
appear in comi, in writing, and inform the judge that you agree with this Motion.
IS/ Craig M. Price
Craig M. Price
CERTIFICATE OF CONFERENCE
I certify that Movant confen-ed with counsel for the State of Texas, on
November 9, 2015, via e-mail, regarding the merits of this Motion, and the State
does not oppose this motion to withdraw.
I certify that Movant attempted to confer with Appellant via telephone on
November 11 and November 12, 2015, but was unable to confer with Appellant
regarding the merits of this Motion.
IS/ Craig M. Price
Craig M. Price
VERIFICATION
STATE OF TEXAS §
§
COUNTY OF DENTON §
BEFORE ME, the undersigned Notary Public, on this day personally
appeared CRAIG M. PRlCE, who being by me duly sworn on his oath deposed
and said that he is the Attorney for Howard Thomas Douglas, in the above entitled
and numbered cause; that he has read the above and foregoing motion, and that
every statement contained therein is within his personal knowledge and is true and
c01Tect.
Craig M. Price
SUBSCRlBED AND SWORN TO BEFORE ME on the 12th day of November,
2015, to certify which witness my hand and official seal.
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE6
RAVEN RACHELL MCINTYRE
Notary Public, Stale of Texas
My Commission Expires
August 03, 2016 Jbun •m~~U ·
Notary Public, State ofTexas
011 1
' p
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
This is to ce1iify that on November 12, 2015, a true and c01Tect copy of the
above and foregoing document was served on the District Attorney's Office, Travis
County, PO Box 1748, Austin, Texas 78767, bye-service, and on Appellant, via e-
mail at his personal e-mail address,
/S/ Craig M. Price
Craig M. Price
COUNSEL'S EMERGENCY MOTION TO WITHDRAW PAGE7