Jorge Luis Murillo v. State ( 2008 )


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  •                                    NUMBER 13-08-00217-CR
    COURT OF APPEALS
    THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
    CORPUS CHRISTI - EDINBURG
    JORGE LUIS MURILLO,                                                                           Appellant,
    v.
    THE STATE OF TEXAS,                                                                          Appellee.
    On appeal from the 138th District Court
    of Cameron County, Texas.
    MEMORANDUM OPINION
    Before Justices Yañez, Garza, and Vela
    Memorandum Opinion by Justice Garza
    On October 24, 2007, appellant, Jorge Luis Murillo, was indicted by a Cameron
    County grand jury for possession of less than 2,000 pounds, but more than fifty pounds,
    of marihuana, a second-degree felony.1                 See TEX . HEALTH & SAFETY CODE ANN . §
    1
    The punishm ent range for a second-degree felony is “not m ore than 20 years or less than 2 years.”
    T EX . P EN AL C OD E A N N . § 12.33(a) (Vernon 2003).
    481.121(a), (b)(5) (Vernon 2003). On February 19, 2008, Murillo entered into a “cold plea”
    with the State whereby Murillo agreed to plead guilty to the offense without a sentencing
    recommendation from the State.          The trial court accepted Murillo’s guilty plea and
    sentenced him to two years’ imprisonment in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-
    Institutional Division with no fine. On March 28, 2008, the trial court noted that this was not
    a plea bargain case and certified Murillo’s right to appeal. This appeal ensued.
    I. COMPLIANCE WITH ANDERS V . CALIFORNIA
    Pursuant to Anders v. California, 
    386 U.S. 738
    , 744 (1967), Murillo’s appellate
    counsel has filed a brief stating that, based on his review of the record, “[t]his is a frivolous
    appeal and no issues are presented for the Court’s review.” Counsel’s brief meets the
    requirements of Anders, as it presents a professional evaluation of the record
    demonstrating why there are no arguable grounds to be advanced on appeal. See Stafford
    v. State, 
    813 S.W.2d 503
    , 510 n.3 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991) (en banc).
    In compliance with High v. State, 
    573 S.W.2d 807
    , 813 (Tex. Crim. App. 1978),
    counsel has carefully discussed why, under controlling authority, there are no errors in the
    trial court's judgment. Counsel has informed this Court that he has: (1) examined the
    record and found no arguable grounds to advance on appeal, (2) served a copy of the brief
    on appellant, and (3) informed appellant of his right to review the record and to file a pro
    se brief. See 
    Anders, 386 U.S. at 744
    ; 
    Stafford, 813 S.W.2d at 510
    n.3. More than thirty
    days have passed, and appellant has not filed a pro se brief.
    II. INDEPENDENT REVIEW
    Upon receiving an Anders brief, we must conduct a full examination of all the
    proceedings to determine whether the case is wholly frivolous. Penson v. Ohio, 
    488 U.S. 2
    75, 80 (1988). We have reviewed the entire record and counsel's brief and have found
    nothing that would arguably support an appeal. See Bledsoe v. State, 
    178 S.W.3d 824
    ,
    826-28 (Tex. Crim. App. 2005) (“Due to the nature of Anders briefs, by indicating in the
    opinion that it considered the issues raised in the briefs and reviewed the record for
    reversible error but found none, the court of appeals met the requirement of Texas Rule
    of Appellate Procedure 47.1.”); 
    Stafford, 813 S.W.2d at 509
    . Accordingly, we affirm the
    judgment of the trial court.
    III. MOTION TO WITHDRAW
    In accordance with Anders, Murillo’s attorney has asked this Court for permission
    to withdraw as counsel for appellant. See 
    Anders, 386 U.S. at 744
    . We grant his motion
    to withdraw. We further order counsel to notify appellant of the disposition of this appeal
    and the availability of discretionary review. See Ex parte Wilson, 
    956 S.W.2d 25
    , 27 (Tex.
    Crim. App. 1997) (per curiam).
    DORI CONTRERAS GARZA,
    Justice
    Do not publish.
    TEX . R. APP. P. 47.2(b).
    Memorandum Opinion delivered and
    filed this the 6th day of November, 2008.
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