Background
Robert Brandon Holloway submitted a pro se notice of appeal from two judgments revoking his community supervision. The appeals reached the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Appellate District of Texas from the 19th District Court of McLennan County, Texas, where Judge Thomas C. West presided. The appellate cause numbers are 10-26-00426-CR and 10-26-00427-CR, corresponding to trial-court cause numbers 2019-1392-C1 and 2021-312-C1. The revocation hearing for both cases was heard together.
The memorandum opinion focuses on the certifications of Holloway’s right to appeal rather than on the underlying revocation allegations or the merits of the sentences. In each cause number, the certification of the defendant’s right of appeal was signed by Holloway, his trial counsel, and the trial court. Each certification indicated that “the defendant has waived the right to appeal.” The opinion also identifies an on-the-record statement supporting those certifications: Holloway affirmatively stated that he had signed a waiver of the right to appeal and wanted to waive his right to appeal after the trial court had imposed his sentences.
Justice Andrea Westerfeld delivered the opinion of the Court. The opinion was delivered and filed on November 5, 2026, before Chief Justice Johnson, Justice Harris, and Justice Westerfeld. It is marked “Do not publish.”
The Court’s Holding
The court dismissed both appeals. Its stated reason was that the trial court’s certifications of right of appeal, signed by Holloway, indicated that he had waived the defendant’s right to appeal. The court further stated that the record supported the certifications. On that basis, the opinion concludes that “these appeals must be dismissed.”
The court cited Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 25.2(d) and quoted the rule’s dismissal requirement: “The appeal must be dismissed if a certification that shows the defendant has the right of appeal has not been made a part of the record under these rules.” The opinion also cited Monreal v. State, 99 S.W.3d 615, 622 (Tex. Crim. App. 2003). The court did not separately analyze the validity of the revocations, the sentences imposed, or any substantive challenge to the trial court’s judgments. Its disposition rests on the waiver shown by the certifications and the supporting record.
The ruling applies to both consolidated appellate causes arising from the jointly heard revocation proceeding. The opinion does not announce a general rule that every pro se notice of appeal must be dismissed or that every revocation appeal is barred. Instead, it ties dismissal to the particular certifications in these causes, Holloway’s signatures on them, and his affirmative statement that he had signed a waiver and intended to waive appeal after sentencing.
Key Takeaways
- Both of Holloway’s appeals from judgments revoking community supervision were dismissed.
- The certification in each cause was signed by Holloway, trial counsel, and the trial court and indicated that the right to appeal had been waived.
- Holloway’s on-the-record statement that he signed and intended a post-sentencing appellate waiver supported the certifications.
- The court relied on Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure 25.2(d) and Monreal v. State, 99 S.W.3d 615, 622 (Tex. Crim. App. 2003).
Why It Matters
The decision illustrates the dispositive role that appeal-right certifications can play in a Texas criminal appeal. Where the signed certifications show a waiver and the record supports them, the appellate court may dismiss without reaching the merits of the underlying revocation judgments. Here, the defendant’s own recorded acknowledgment supplied additional support for the certifications in both causes.
For practitioners, the opinion underscores the importance of checking the certification and the record surrounding any waiver before pursuing an appeal from a community-supervision revocation. The court’s analysis was specific to these records and these two appeals; it did not decide broader questions about the revocations or sentences.