Barihenuye Twehangane v. the State of Texas
CourtTexas Court of Appeals, 11th District (Eastland)
Date FiledAugust 31, 2026
Docket11-25-00219-CR
StatusPublished
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Full Opinion
Opinion filed August 31, 2026
In The
Eleventh Court of Appeals
__________
No. 11-25-00219-CR
__________
BARIHENUYE TWEHANGANE, Appellant
V.
THE STATE OF TEXAS, Appellee
On Appeal from the 104th District Court
Taylor County, Texas
Trial Court Cause No. 23227-B
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Appellant, Barihenuye Twehangane, pled “no contest” to the offense of
aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony. See TEX. PENAL
CODE ANN. § 22.02(a)(2), (b) (West 2026). Pursuant to the terms of a negotiated
plea agreement between Appellant and the State, the trial court accepted Appellant’s
plea and placed him on deferred adjudication community supervision for five years.
The record shows that the terms and conditions of Appellant’s community
supervision were modified on five occasions. Despite this, and after previously filed
motions to adjudicate and to revoke were dismissed, the State filed its third amended
motion to adjudicate Appellant’s guilt and to revoke his community supervision,
alleging that Appellant had committed sixteen violations of the terms and conditions
of his community supervision. The trial court held a hearing on the State’s amended
motion, and Appellant initially pled “true” to all allegations. However, a contested
hearing was subsequently held at which time Appellant changed his pleas to the
asserted allegations to “not true.” Upon the conclusion of the contested hearing, and
after considering the evidence presented, the trial court found the allegations in the
State’s amended motion, except for allegations 3, 11, 12, 13, and 14, to be “true.”
The trial court thereafter adjudicated Appellant’s guilt, revoked his community
supervision, and sentenced him to fifteen years’ imprisonment in the Institutional
Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Appellant’s court-appointed counsel has filed a motion to withdraw in this
court, supported by a brief in which counsel professionally and conscientiously
examines the record and applicable law and concludes that there are no meritorious
or arguable issues to present on appeal. See Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 744
(1967); In re Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 403, 406–09 (Tex. Crim. App. 2008). Counsel
has provided Appellant with a copy of the brief, a copy of the motion to withdraw,
an explanatory letter, and copies of the clerk’s and reporter’s records. Counsel also
advised Appellant of his right to (1) object to counsel’s motion, (2) review the
record, (3) file a pro se response to counsel’s Anders brief, and (4) file a petition for
discretionary review. See TEX. R. APP. P. 6.5, 68. As such, court-appointed counsel
has complied with the requirements of Anders, 386 U.S. at 742–44; Kelly v. State,
436 S.W.3d 313 (Tex. Crim. App. 2014); Schulman, 252 S.W.3d 409–12; and
Stafford v. State, 813 S.W.2d 503 (Tex. Crim. App. 1991).
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Appellant did not file a response to counsel’s Anders brief. Following the
procedures outlined in Anders and Schulman, we have independently reviewed the
record and the brief, and we conclude that this appeal is without merit. In an
adjudication/revocation proceeding, the State need only prove a violation of a term
or condition of community supervision by a preponderance of the evidence—the
greater weight of credible evidence that would create a reasonable belief that the
probationer has violated a term or condition of his community supervision.
Cardona v. State, 665 S.W.2d 492, 493 (Tex. Crim. App. 1984); Scamardo v. State,
517 S.W.2d 293, 298 (Tex. Crim. App. 1974); Guillory v. State, 652 S.W.3d 923,
928 (Tex. App.—Eastland 2022, pet. ref’d). In this setting, the trial court, as the
trier of the facts, is the sole judge of the credibility of the witnesses, and the weight
to be afforded their testimony, and may resolve any inconsistencies in their
testimony. Hacker v. State, 389 S.W.3d 860, 865 (Tex. Crim. App. 2013); Naquin v.
State, 607 S.W.2d 583, 586 (Tex. Crim. App. 1980).
Although we review a trial court’s adjudication/revocation decision(s) under
an abuse of discretion standard, see Rickels v. State, 202 S.W.3d 759, 763 (Tex.
Crim. App. 2006); Cardona, 665 S.W.2d at 493, we review the evidence presented
at an adjudication/revocation proceeding in the light most favorable to the trial
court’s rulings. Hacker, 389 S.W.3d at 865; Garrett v. State, 619 S.W.2d 172, 174
(Tex. Crim. App. 1981). Here, the evidence presented at the contested hearing is
sufficient to support each finding of “true” made by the trial court. See Rickels, 202
S.W.3d at 764.
It is well-settled that proof of only a single violation of the terms and
conditions of a probationer’s community supervision is sufficient to support the trial
court’s adjudication/revocation order. Bryant v. State, 391 S.W.3d 86, 93 (Tex.
Crim. App. 2012); Garcia v. State, 387 S.W.3d 20, 26 (Tex. Crim. App. 2012);
Smith v. State, 286 S.W.3d 333, 342 (Tex. Crim. App. 2009); Sanchez v. State, 603
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S.W.2d 869, 871 (Tex. Crim. App. [Panel Op.] 1980); Jones v. State, 472 S.W.3d
322, 324 (Tex. App.—Eastland 2015, pet. ref’d); Hart v. State, 264 S.W.3d 364, 367
(Tex. App.—Eastland 2008, pet. ref’d). Therefore, based on our review of the
record, we agree with counsel that no meritorious or arguable grounds for appeal
exist.1 See Anders, 386 U.S. at 744; Bledsoe v. State, 178 S.W.3d 824, 826–27 (Tex.
Crim. App. 2005).
Accordingly, we grant counsel’s motion to withdraw, and we affirm the
judgment of the trial court.
W. STACY TROTTER
JUSTICE
August 31, 2026
Do not publish. See TEX. R. APP. P. 47.2(b).
Panel consists of: Bailey, C.J.,
Trotter, J., and Williams, J.
We note that Appellant has the right to file a petition for discretionary review with the Court of
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Criminal Appeals pursuant to Rule 68 of the Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure. See TEX. R. APP. P. 68.
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