Ex Parte Mario Castillo v. Texas (Original)
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Appellant Mario Castillo filed his notice of appeal one day late. His notice of appeal and motion for extension of time were picked up by Federal Express after business hours on the last day of filing and delivered to the trial court the next day. The court of appeals dismissed his appeal for lack of jurisdiction. On appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeals, Appellant argued that the "timely mailed, timely filed" mailbox rule of Texas Rule of Appellate Procedure (TRAP) 9.2(b) is antiquated and should be read to include private couriers, such as Federal Express. Upon review, the Court concluded that the plain, unambiguous language of the rule requires timely mailing with the U.S. Postal Service, not a private courier. "Until and unless the Supreme Court of Texas and this Court change the language of Rule 9.2(b), the 'timely mailed, timely filed' mailbox rule applies only to documents delivered to the U.S. Postal Service."
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