Ex Parte Florencio Sanchez Ruan
Date Filed2022-12-28
Docket10-22-00248-CR
Cited0 times
StatusPublished
Full Opinion (html_with_citations)
IN THE
TENTH COURT OF APPEALS
No. 10-22-00247-CR
No. 10-22-00248-CR
No. 10-22-00249-CR
EX PARTE FLORENCIO SANCHEZ RUAN
From the 443rd District Court
Ellis County, Texas
Trial Court Nos. 44774CR, 44775CR, & 44776CR
MEMORANDUM OPINION
Appellant, Florencio Sanchez Ruan, appeals the trial courtās order setting bail that
had the effect of denying his pretrial application for writ of habeas corpus. We dismiss
the appeals as moot.
Background
Ruan was charged in three indictments with four counts of sexual assault of a child
and one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.1 See TEX. PENAL CODE ANN.
1 Appellate cause number 10-22-00247-CR corresponds with the one count of aggravated assault
with a deadly weapon. Appellate cause number 10-22-00248-CR corresponds with two counts of sexual
assault of a child. Appellate cause number 10-22-00249-CR corresponds with the remaining two counts of
§§ 22.011(a)(2), 22.02. Bail was set at $75,000 in the sexual-assault-of-a-child cases and
$40,000 in the aggravated-assault-with-a-deadly-weapon case. After three years in
custody, Ruan filed an application for writ of habeas corpus seeking release on bond.
After a hearing, the trial court reduced bail to $10,000 in the sexual-assault-of-a-child
cases and $5,000 in the aggravated-assault-with-a-deadly-weapon case and ordered
additional bond conditions, including the use of a GPS ankle monitor. Ruan filed his
notice of appeal, and the trial court certified Ruanās right to appeal, in each appellate
cause number.
While these appeals were pending, the State notified this Court that Ruan has
pleaded guilty in all three cases and was sentenced to twelve yearsā confinement in each
case.
Discussion
A defendant may file a pretrial writ of habeas corpus seeking bail reduction or
release on personal recognizance bond. TEX. CODE CRIM. PROC. ANN. arts. 11.24, 17.151.
However, āāwhere the premise of a habeas corpus application is destroyed by subsequent
developments the legal issues raised thereunder are rendered moot.āā Bennet v. State, 818
S.W.2d 199, 200(Tex. App.āHouston [14th Dist.] 1991, no pet.) (quoting Saucedo v. State,795 S.W.2d 8, 9
(Tex. App.āHouston [14th Dist.] 1990, no pet.)). An appeal from the sexual assault of a child. Furthermore, the trial court granted the Stateās motion to consolidate and try these cases in one trial. Ex parte Ruan Page 2 denial of a pretrial writ of habeas corpus seeking bail reduction is rendered moot if the defendant is tried and convicted. Ex parte Tucker,3 S.W.3d 576, 576
(Tex. Crim. App. 1999) (āThe appellant having been tried during the pendency of this appeal, the question of his pre-trial bond is moot.ā); Martinez v. State,826 S.W.2d 620, 620
(Tex. Crim. App.
1992) (āApplicant has been convicted of the underlying offense and is no longer subject
to pre-trial confinement. Therefore, applicantās petition is moot[,] and we will not
address the merits of his petition.ā (internal citation omitted)).
Since Ruan filed his pretrial application for writ of habeas corpus seeking a
reduction in bail, Ruan has pleaded guilty to the charged offenses, the trial court has
rendered judgment convicting Ruan of the charged offenses, and Ruan was sentenced to
twelve yearsā confinement in each case. Because Ruan has been convicted of the
underlying offenses and is no longer subject to pretrial confinement, his appeals from the
denial of his application for a pretrial writ of habeas corpus in appellate cause numbers
10-22-00247-CR, 10-22-00248-CR, and 10-22-00249-CR are moot. See Ex parte Tucker, 3
S.W.3d at 576; see also Martinez,826 S.W.2d at 620
.
For the foregoing reasons, we dismiss Ruanās appeals in appellate cause numbers
10-22-00247-CR, 10-22-00248-CR, and 10-22-00249-CR as moot.
STEVE SMITH
Justice
Ex parte Ruan Page 3
Before Chief Justice Gray,
Justice Johnson,
and Justice Smith
Appeals dismissed
Opinion delivered and filed December 28, 2022
Do not publish
[CR25]
Ex parte Ruan Page 4