Every now and then, there is a decision by an appellate court that stands out among the rest. The Corpus Christi Court of Appeals has recently made such a decision in
NUMBER 13-00-252-CR

THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellant,

v.

JEREMY MUNGIA, Appellee.

The Court approved a trial court's order dismissing a case, over the objection of the prosecutor, holding that a trial court has the authority to dismiss a case if the trial court believes the defendant would be placed in danger by being sent to prison. Hello?

Seems the defendant pled guilty for murder after agreeing to testify against some fellow gang members. He did do his job, and very well, apparently. So, when it came time for sentencing, the state recommended the ten years in prison it had promised.

The trial judge ordered the case dismissed, explaining that it would not be fair to send the defendant to prison, where he could be attacked by gang members. And here is the really scary part: an appellate court said that was OK:

http://www.13thcoa.courts.state.tx.us/opinions/htmlopinion.asp?OpinionId=11849

What in the world is going on out there? We are in a world of trouble if judges have the discretion to dismiss cases in which they can make their own predictions on what will happen in prison, apparently with no evidence to support it and against the recommendation of the prosecutor. Apparently, a judge can now predict a constitutional violation and give an anticipatory remedy. That's crazy.

Has anyone ever heard of this happening before? Any bets on how long it takes to get this reversed?

[This message was edited by John Bradley on 03-19-02 at .]

[This message was edited by John Bradley on 03-19-02 at .]

This is not some sort of bizarre April Fool's joke is it?

That's exactly what I thought. I had to look at my calendar to be sure it wasn't April yet.

What really blows me away is that they decided to publish this decision. Correct me if I'm wrong, but in a case like this, doesn't that virtually guarantee review by the CCA? I'd be happy to place a friendly wager on what happens there if there are any takers on the defense side.

Was there a plea agreement between the parties, or did the defendant plea open with merely a recommendation from the prosecutor. If there was a plea agreement, why didn't the prosecutor pull the agreement if it wasn't followed by the judge? Allowing a plea open to a judge for sentencing is really tenuous at best.

The plea agreement was for 10 years in prison. The judge, in effect, busted the plea and ordered a dismissal of the case, over the objection of the prosecutor, for what can, at best, be described as a future threat of violence in prison.

Gee, how many constitutional violations can occur in one judicial act?

Then you are right, we have a winner.

Today, the Court of Criminal Appeals granted a petition for discretionary review on Mungia. Anyone want to guess the outcome? This should be a good case to include in the case law summary at the annual conference.