Timothy Michael Strube v. State
06-15-00185-CR
| Tex. App. | Aug 12, 2016Background
- On Nov. 15, 2014, Longview police responded to the Strube home; Timothy Strube was arrested and later convicted at bench trial of family-violence assault with a prior family-violence assault conviction and sentenced to five years.
- Appellant challenges only the sufficiency of the evidence that he had a prior conviction for family-violence assault (County Court of Franklin County, cause No. 08879, ~Oct. 5, 2001/Aug. 6, 2002).
- The State introduced the prior-case records: complaint, information, written guilty plea, judgment, and docket sheet; the complaint/information alleged assault on a family member, Sherry Beth Seabourn.
- Strube testified he believed he pled only to generic assault, denied Seabourn was a household or dating partner, and denied living with her; he admitted occasional sexual relations.
- The prior judgment recited that Strube pleaded guilty and that the court found him guilty "as charged in the information." There was no explicit Article 42.013 affirmative family-violence finding in that judgment.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether evidence sufficiently proved Strube’s prior conviction was for family-violence assault | State: prior-case documents, including complaint/information alleging assault on a family member and Strube’s written judicial confession, establish the prior offense involved family violence | Strube: his trial testimony denies household or dating relationship with Seabourn and claims he thought he pled only to non-family assault; prior judgment lacks explicit Article 42.013 family-violence finding | The court held the records and Strube’s written judicial confession, plus the judgment finding guilt "as charged in the information," were sufficient; Strube’s testimony did not overcome presumption of regularity, so prior conviction qualifies as family-violence assault |
Key Cases Cited
- Brooks v. State, 323 S.W.3d 893 (Tex. Crim. App. 2010) (standard for reviewing legal sufficiency of evidence)
- Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307 (U.S. 1979) (due-process sufficiency standard applied to criminal convictions)
- Hooper v. State, 214 S.W.3d 9 (Tex. Crim. App. 2007) (deference to factfinder on reasonable inferences)
- Malik v. State, 953 S.W.2d 234 (Tex. Crim. App. 1997) (hypothetically correct jury charge framework)
- Light v. State, 15 S.W.3d 104 (Tex. Crim. App. 2000) (presumption of regularity in court records)
- Martinez v. State, 504 S.W.2d 897 (Tex. Crim. App. 1974) (recitations in judgments are binding absent direct proof to the contrary)
- Edison v. State, 253 S.W.3d 303 (Tex. App.—Beaumont 2008) (defendant’s judicial confession may be used to show prior offense involved family violence)