Case Summaries

Each week, TDCAA staff members summarize the most important cases from Texas and federal criminal courts and provide insightful commentary on how those cases could impact the criminal justice system as well as a link to the opinions. Find a library of previous Weekly Case Summaries here.

Summaries

July 23, 2021

Courts of Appeals

Coleman v. State

No. 14-19-01016-CR                  7/15/21

Issue:

Can a defendant’s two prior felony convictions for family violence assault be used to enhance his punishment for a new felony family violence assault under the habitual offender statute in §22.01(b)(2)(A)?

Holding:

Yes. Distinguishing the language of the family-violence assault statute from the DWI and theft statutes, the Court held §22.01(b)(2)(A) is not a special statute for enhancement purposes that supersedes enhancement under the habitual felony offender statute (§12.42(d)). Read opinion.

Commentary:

This case is a useful example of how to prosecute family violence cases without cooperative victims in the post-Crawford age. In this instance, the State proved the case with the officer who witnessed the assault as well as jail calls between the defendant and the victim.

Texas Attorney General Opinion Request

RQ-0416-KP                   7/8/21

Issue:

Is a peace officer prohibited from forcing entry into a residence or dwelling to enforce a parole-revocation warrant for the arrest of a releasee (commonly called a “blue warrant”)?

Requested by:

Joan Huffman, Chair, Senate Committee on Jurisprudence

TDCAA is pleased to offer these unique case summaries from the U.S. Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Courts of Appeals and the Texas Attorney General. In addition to the basic summaries, each case will have a link to the full text opinion and will offer exclusive prosecutor commentary explaining how the case may impact you as a prosecutor. The case summaries are for the benefit of prosecutors, their staff members, and members of the law enforcement community. These summaries are NOT a source of legal advice for citizens. The commentaries expressed in these case summaries are not official statements by TDCAA and do not represent the opinions of TDCAA, its staff, or any member of the association. Please email comments, problems, or questions to Joe Hooker.