Cameron v. Texas (original by judge hervey)
Annotate this CaseAppellant was found guilty of murder for killing her former boyfriend. She appealed, arguing that her right to a public trial was violated. The Fourth Court of Appeals agreed and reversed her conviction, holding that Appellant’s right to a public trial was violated during voir dire because the public was asked to leave the courtroom to accommodate a large venire panel. On discretionary review, the Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the court of appeals. The State subsequently filed a timely motion for rehearing, in which it argued that the Court of Criminal Appeals' decision would be nearly impossible for trial judges to implement and that the Court erroneously dismissed its burden-of-proof ground for review despite the fact that it granted Appellant relief. Deferring to the trial court’s findings of fact that were supported by the record, the Court of Criminal Appeals held that a necessary prerequisite before an appellate court can resolve whether a defendant met his burden to show his trial was closed to the public based on the totality of the evidence was to make a finding. Only then can an appellate court resolve the ultimate legal question of whether a defendant’s public-trial right was violated. No such finding that appellant met her burden was made in the record, so the Court reversed the appellate court and remanded this case for additional findings of fact.
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