Bradrick Jermaine Collins v. State
05-18-00498-CR
Tex. App.Jun 27, 2019Background
- Appellant Bradrick Collins was convicted of DWI in County Criminal Court No. 5, Dallas County, sentenced to 171 days in jail with sentence suspended and 15 months’ community supervision.
- Appellant proceeded pro se on appeal and failed to procure/pay for a reporter’s record; the court proceeded without it and applied the presumption that the missing record would support the trial court’s rulings.
- Appellant raised five issues: defects in the charging instruments and jurisdiction, defects in the arrest-warrant affidavit, denial of his motion to set aside the arrest warrant in his absence, legal insufficiency of the evidence, and erroneous denial of motions to suppress (especially blood evidence).
- The clerk’s record contained the information, complaint/affidavit, warrants, pretrial motions, and docket entries, but no reporter’s record of hearings or trial testimony.
- The appellate court found the information and supporting complaint on their face satisfied statutory requirements, found probable cause in the arrest affidavit, and held that absence of the reporter’s record prevented meaningful review of many claims.
Issues
| Issue | Appellant's Argument | State's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Jurisdiction / sufficiency of information | Information & complaint defective (Art. 21.21/21.22 requirements, missing signatures/dates, jurat, confrontation) so no jurisdiction | Presentment of a proper information vested jurisdiction; information and complaint satisfy statutory form | Court: information and complaint satisfy requirements; presentment vested jurisdiction; issue overruled |
| 2. Defects in arrest-warrant affidavit / probable cause | Affidavit not based on personal knowledge; fails to allege offense; no probable cause; missing exhibits | Affidavit relayed officer observations and sources, contained detailed facts supporting probable cause; exhibits are in clerk’s record | Court: affidavit and complaint sufficient, probable cause supported; missing reporter’s record waived further fact-review; issue overruled |
| 3. Denial of motion to set aside arrest warrant in appellant’s absence | Court ruled on motion ex parte or denied hearing/reconsideration while appellant was absent, violating rights | Docket and filings show hearings occurred and appellant was present at some proceedings; no reporter’s record to corroborate appellant’s claim | Court: without reporter’s record, appellant’s self-serving assertion fails; issue overruled |
| 4. Sufficiency of evidence (blood, identity, chain of custody, forgery) | Evidence insufficient: untimely blood draw, wrong defendant, broken chain of custody, forged documents | Appellant failed to produce reporter’s record; State says issue waived because appellate record lacks trial evidence | Court: No reporter’s record of trial; appellant waived sufficiency challenge; issue overruled |
| 5. Motions to suppress (blood test, destruction, Franks) | Trial court abused discretion by denying suppression motions; blood test should be excluded | No reporter’s record of suppression hearings; appellant bears burden to provide record to show error | Court: No reporter’s record of hearings; appellate review impossible; issue overruled |
Key Cases Cited
- Rittenhouse v. Sabine Valley Ctr. Found., 161 S.W.3d 157 (Tex. App.—Texarkana 2005) (presumption that missing reporter’s record supports trial court’s judgment)
- Kent v. State, 982 S.W.2d 639 (Tex. App.—Amarillo 1998) (issues relying on omitted record due to appellant’s fault are waived)
- Davis v. State, 329 S.W.3d 798 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (multifarious issues may be rejected)
- Aguilar v. State, 846 S.W.2d 318 (Tex. Crim. App. 1993) (presentment of an information vests trial court jurisdiction despite defects in complaint)
- Talley v. State, 399 S.W.2d 559 (Tex. Crim. App. 1966) (contemporaneous filing of complaint with information satisfies filing requirement)
- State v. Drummond, 501 S.W.3d 78 (Tex. Crim. App. 2016) (a single document can serve as information and supporting complaint)
- Woodward v. State, 668 S.W.2d 337 (Tex. Crim. App. 1982) (probable cause may be based on aggregate information from cooperating officers)
- Amador v. State, 221 S.W.3d 666 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (appellant must provide record sufficient to show trial court erred on suppression ruling)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (standard for appellate review of sufficiency of evidence)