Summary
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted habeas corpus relief to Rogelio Ramirez, Jr., concluding that he was improperly convicted of a first-degree felony and received an illegal 46-year sentence when the applicable offense was a second-degree felony. The court reformed the judgment to reflect sexual assault of a child and remanded the case for resentencing.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Applicant's 46-year sentence was illegal because the offense was a second-degree felony subject to a two-to-twenty-year sentencing range.
- Whether habeas relief should be granted and the judgment reformed with a remand for resentencing.
Holdings
- Applicant's 46-year sentence was illegal because he was charged with a second-degree felony carrying a sentencing range of two to twenty years, and the sentence exceeded that range.
- Habeas relief was warranted; the judgment was reformed to reflect sexual assault of a child as the offense of conviction, and the case was remanded for resentencing as a second-degree felony.
Factual background
Applicant was convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child and received a 46-year prison sentence. The record showed that he had been improperly convicted of a first-degree felony even though he was charged with a second-degree felony. The applicable sentencing range was two to twenty years, making the 46-year sentence unlawful.
Procedural history
Applicant was convicted in the 79th District Court of Jim Wells County of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sentenced to 46 years' imprisonment. He filed an article 11.07 habeas application in the county of conviction. The convicting court found that the charged offense was a second-degree felony, that the applicable sentencing range was two to twenty years, and that the 46-year sentence was illegal. The Court of Criminal Appeals granted relief, reformed the judgment, and remanded for resentencing.
Remand instructions
The judgment in cause number 09-09-12758-CR is reformed to reflect sexual assault of a child as the offense of conviction. The trial court must resentence Applicant as a second-degree felony and conduct a new punishment hearing. The trial court must issue any necessary bench warrant within ten days from the date of the Court of Criminal Appeals' mandate. Copies of the opinion are to be sent to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Correctional Institutions Division and the Board of Pardons and Paroles.