Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
Rasheed Akeem Burley entered a plea bargain resolving seven criminal cases. Under the agreement, the State dismissed five cases, and Burley pleaded guilty to reduced charges in the other two. As part of the bargain, he signed waivers of all rights of appeal.
Burley nevertheless sought to appeal all seven cases and filed several related motions. After the trial courts certified that he had no right to appeal the two convictions, the court of appeals warned that all seven appeals could be dismissed. Burley responded that the federal collateral-order doctrine permitted review, that his plea was involuntary and the certifications were faulty, and that he retained limited appellate rights.
The Court’s Holding
The Texas Second Court of Appeals dismissed all seven appeals. It held that it lacked jurisdiction over the five dismissed cases because a dismissal order is neither a judgment of guilt nor another order that a criminal defendant may appeal.
As to the two convictions, the court held that Burley had waived all appellate rights as part of his plea bargain and that the trial courts had certified he had no right of appeal. His involuntariness allegations did not expand his appellate rights, and the collateral-order doctrine did not apply because the appeals were not interlocutory. The court also denied all pending motions.
Key Takeaways
- A criminal defendant generally cannot appeal an order dismissing a criminal charge.
- A valid waiver of all appellate rights made as part of a plea bargain forecloses an appeal from the resulting convictions.
- Allegations that a plea was involuntary do not, by themselves, expand the defendant’s right to direct appeal or invalidate a trial court’s certification.
Why It Matters
The opinion underscores that Texas criminal appellate jurisdiction depends on both an appealable ruling and a valid certification of the defendant’s right to appeal. A plea-bargaining defendant cannot obtain direct appellate review merely by characterizing the plea as involuntary when the record contains broad appeal waivers and certifications stating that no appellate right exists.