Opinion
No. 04-16-00779-CR
09-18-2017
Anthony Newton HARRIS, Appellant v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee
From the 227th Judicial District Court, Bexar County, Texas
Trial Court No. 2013CR9455
Honorable Kevin M. O'Connell, Judge Presiding
ORDER
On August 30, 2017, appellant's appointed counsel, Karen Dalglish Seal, filed in this court a purported appellant's brief. In this "brief," however, Ms. Seal did not raise any issues challenging the conviction. Rather, in the document filed on August 30, 2017, Ms. Seal advised she cannot adequately represent appellant on appeal due to possible conflicts with regard to a potential ineffective assistance of counsel claim — Ms. Seal also acted as appellant's appointed trial counsel. Upon review, we determined the document filed by Ms. Seal is not an appellate brief; rather, the document is a motion to withdraw as appellate counsel.
In addition to the motion to withdraw filed by Ms. Seal, the State filed a motion asking this court to abate the appeal and remand the matter to the trial court for appointment of new appellate counsel. After reviewing the documents filed by Ms. Seal and the State, we granted the motion to withdraw filed by Ms. Seal and granted the State's motion to abate and remand. We ordered the matter abated and remanded to the trial court, ordering the trial court to appoint new appellate counsel for appellant. See Duncan v. State, 653 S.W.2d 38, 40 (Tex. Crim. App. 1983) (holding that appellate courts may abate appeals so that trial court can assure appellant has effective assistance of counsel). We also ordered the district clerk to file a supplemental clerk's record containing the trial court's order appointing new appellate counsel.
In accordance with our order, the trial court appointed new appellate counsel — the Bexar County Appellate Public Defender's Office — and the district clerk filed a supplemental clerk's record containing the order. In addition, Michael D. Robbins of the Bexar County Public Defender's Office filed a document in which he advised that he would appear as lead counsel for appellant.
Based on the foregoing, we ORDER the abatement lifted and this matter reinstated on the court's active docket. We ORDER appellant's newly appointed counsel to file appellant's brief in this court on or before October 18, 2017. The State's brief will be due thirty days after appellant's brief is filed.
We order the clerk of this court to serve a copy of this order on all counsel.
/s/_________
Marialyn Barnard, Justice
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the said court on this 18th day of September, 2017.
/s/_________
KEITH E. HOTTLE,
Clerk of Court