Daniel Camarillo Garcia v. State
03-16-00515-CR
| Tex. App. | Jul 27, 2017Background
- Daniel Camarillo Garcia pled guilty to felony DWI (Sept. 12, 2015); the trial court assessed punishment at 30 years under habitual-offender enhancement (Tex. Penal Code § 12.42(d)).
- Indictment alleged two prior felony DWI convictions (1993 and 1997) to elevate the instant offense; two additional prior DWI convictions (2005 and 2010) were alleged for habitual-offender sentencing.
- The State introduced two penitentiary packets (pen packets) and certified copies/waivers/judgments (State’s Exhibits 2–6) to prove the prior convictions; Garcia pleaded not true to the enhancement paragraphs, so the State bore the burden.
- Garcia objected at trial to the pen packets based on the 14-day filing/notice rule (Rule 902(10)); on appeal he argued improper authentication under Rule 902(4) and insufficient linkage between him and the prior convictions.
- The trial court admitted the exhibits; the appellate court reviewed authentication for abuse of discretion and sufficiency of the evidence for the enhancement beyond a reasonable doubt.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (State) | Defendant's Argument (Garcia) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admissibility/authentication of TDCJ pen packets (Exs. 2–3) | Pen packets are self-authenticated by TDCJ certification and admissible under Rule 901/902 and art. 42.09 § 8(b) | Pen packets not properly authenticated; 14-day rule failure and on appeal argued improper Rule 902(4) certification | Trial objection preserved only as to 902(10); in any event pen packets were properly authenticated by TDCJ affidavits and statute — admission not an abuse of discretion |
| Admissibility/authentication of district clerk records (Exs. 4–6) | Certified district-clerk copies are self-authenticating under Rule 902(4) | Challenges not meaningfully raised at trial; Garcia conceded some exhibits appeared authenticated | Exhibits 4–6 were self-authenticating by deputy clerk certifications; admission not an abuse of discretion |
| Sufficiency to link Garcia to prior convictions for enhancement | Totality of documentary evidence (pen packets, judgments, waivers, fingerprints, DOB, names, SID/DPS numbers, stipulations) fit together to prove convictions and identity beyond a reasonable doubt | Documents fail to sufficiently link Garcia to the prior convictions (authentication and identity issues) | Evidence, when viewed as a whole, sufficiently linked appellant to the prior convictions; enhancement proved beyond a reasonable doubt |
| Preservation of appellate complaints regarding authentication timing and staleness | State: procedural changes and statutory certification cured any timing concerns; authentication proper | Garcia: affidavits dated years earlier are stale; 14-day filing/notice not met at trial for certain arguments | Staleness objection not preserved; Rule 902(10) filing rule had been amended so filing with court was not required and Garcia did not preserve alternate authentication objections |
Key Cases Cited
- Tienda v. State, 358 S.W.3d 633 (Tex. Crim. App. 2012) (authentication is a threshold showing; appellate review for abuse of discretion)
- Reed v. State, 811 S.W.2d 582 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991) (TDCJ record-clerk certification of pen packets satisfies Rule 901/902 authentication)
- Flowers v. State, 220 S.W.3d 919 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (use of documentary puzzle pieces to prove prior convictions and identity)
- Henry v. State, 509 S.W.3d 915 (Tex. Crim. App. 2016) (State must prove existence of prior conviction and link to defendant beyond reasonable doubt; totality-of-evidence approach)
- Wood v. State, 486 S.W.3d 583 (Tex. Crim. App. 2016) (reiterating totality-of-evidence/jigsaw-puzzle approach to enhancements)
- Druery v. State, 225 S.W.3d 491 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (authentication is prerequisite to admissibility and reviewed for abuse of discretion)