in Re: John Cloud, 05-15-00223-CV

John Cloud is serving life sentences for aggravated sexual assault of a child; his convictions were affirmed on direct appeal.
On December 23, 2014, Cloud filed a motion in the convicting court seeking forensic DNA testing under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure chapter 64.
Cloud requested the trial court to (1) determine whether reasonable grounds exist to file the motion, (2) determine indigence, and (3) appoint counsel if appropriate.
The trial court had previously denied Cloud’s prior requests for forensic DNA testing of the same material on multiple occasions.
Cloud sought a writ of mandamus from the Dallas Court of Appeals to compel the trial court to act on his current motion.
The appellate record showed repeated adjudication of the same DNA-testing claims and provided no exceptional circumstances warranting a new ruling.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court must rule on Cloud’s new chapter 64 DNA motion	Cloud: trial court must determine reasonable grounds, indigence, and appoint counsel	Respondent: court already adjudicated same claims; no new ruling required absent exceptional circumstances	Denied mandamus; no requirement to repeatedly rule on same motion

In re Birdwell, 393 S.W.3d 886 (Tex. App.—Waco 2012) (denying mandamus to compel repeated forensic DNA testing requests)