Carlos v. State

Carlos v. State, 07-25-00243-CR, February 26, 2026.

On appeal from the 181st District Court Potter County, Texas.

Synopsis

The Seventh Court of Appeals held that the Double Jeopardy Clause does not bar a trial court from revoking community supervision based on violations that previously resulted in an administrative modification of supervision conditions. Because community supervision modifications are not "punishment" and administrative adjustments do not constitute a formal adjudication, the State is not precluded from subsequently seeking revocation or adjudication based on the same underlying conduct.

Relevance to Family Law

For family law practitioners, particularly those handling high-conflict custody or divorce matters involving domestic violence or child abuse, Carlos provides a strategic roadmap for monitoring "crossover" criminal proceedings. When an opposing party is on community supervision for family violence or injury to a child, a mere administrative modification—such as being sent to an Intermediate Sanction Facility (ISF)—does not legally "resolve" the underlying misconduct in a way that prevents further criminal consequences. This ruling ensures that a party’s prior bad acts remain "live" for revocation purposes even if the probation department initially attempted an informal or administrative fix. Consequently, family litigators can continue to leverage the threat of imminent incarceration in parallel civil proceedings, as the "double jeopardy" shield does not apply to these administrative maneuvers.

Case Summary

Fact Summary

Jayden Louis Carlos was placed on community supervision for three distinct offenses: reckless bodily injury to a child and two counts of assault by impeding breath (domestic violence). In December 2024, the trial court found that Carlos had violated his supervision terms. Without a formal motion to revoke being filed by the State and without a formal evidentiary hearing, the trial court administratively modified Carlos’s conditions to require his successful completion of an Intermediate Sanction Facility (ISF) program. Several months later, however, the State filed formal motions to proceed to adjudication and to revoke his supervision, citing the exact same December violations that had prompted the ISF modification. Carlos objected, arguing that revoking his liberty based on conduct already "punished" via the ISF placement violated the Double Jeopardy Clause and his Due Process rights. The trial court overruled the objections, revoked his supervision, and sentenced him to a combination of state jail and institutional division time.

Issues Decided

1. Does the Double Jeopardy Clause apply to community supervision revocation proceedings when the underlying violations were previously used to administratively modify conditions?
2. Does the Due Process Clause or Due Course of Law prevent a court from revoking supervision based on violations that were previously addressed through an administrative modification?
3. Does the premature assessment of a "time payment fee" in a bill of costs require modification of the judgment on appeal?

Rules Applied

• Double Jeopardy Clause: This constitutional protection does not apply to probation revocation proceedings because such proceedings are not designed to punish a criminal for the violation of a criminal law, but rather to determine if the conditions of the contract with the court (supervision) have been breached.
• Administrative vs. Adjudicative Modification: Under In re J.L.D. and State v. Waters, a court is only barred from re-litigating a violation if a prior formal hearing on a motion to revoke resulted in a specific disposition (like a "continue on probation" order). Administrative modifications occurring without a filed motion or evidentiary hearing do not trigger this bar.
• Due Process Preservation: Complaints regarding Due Process and Due Course of Law must be specifically raised at the trial level; a general Double Jeopardy objection is insufficient to preserve these distinct constitutional claims for appellate review.
• Dulin v. State: A "time payment fee" assessed while an appeal is pending is premature and must be struck from the judgment.

Application

The court’s analysis turned on the distinction between "punishment" for a crime and "supervision" of an offender. The Amarillo Court first clarified that modifying conditions—even those involving restrictive placements like an ISF—does not constitute "punishment" in the constitutional sense. Therefore, the Double Jeopardy Clause was never triggered. The legal story then moved to the procedural history of the modification. Carlos relied on the principle that once a court disposes of a motion to revoke, it cannot later change its mind based on the same facts. However, the court found this rule inapplicable here because the State had never actually filed a motion to revoke prior to the ISF modification. The modification was administrative. Because there was no "contested" hearing and Carlos never entered a formal plea of "true" to the allegations during the first go-around, the trial court retained the authority to later entertain a formal motion to revoke based on that same conduct. Finally, the court noted that Carlos’s Due Process arguments were waived for failure to raise them specifically at trial, but even if they hadn't been, the lack of a prior formal adjudication meant no "disposition" had been disturbed.

Holding

The Court of Appeals affirmed the revocations and sentences, with a minor modification to the bill of costs. Regarding Double Jeopardy, the court held that because revocation proceedings are not designed to punish criminal conduct but to supervise offenders, and because modifications are not "punishment," there is no constitutional bar to subsequent revocation. Regarding Due Process, the court held that Carlos waived the issue; however, even on the merits, no violation occurred because the trial court never held a prior formal hearing or issued a prior formal adjudication on the Dec. 8 violations before the final revocation. Regarding the Bill of Costs, the court held the $15.00 time payment fee was premature under Dulin and struck it from the judgment.

Practical Application

• Monitoring Probation Adjustments: Family litigators should realize that an "administrative" ISF placement of an opposing party is not a final resolution. You can still argue in a SAPCR or divorce case that the party is at high risk of revocation because the State maintains the right to formally revoke based on that same conduct.
• Evidentiary Strategy: If you represent the protected party, obtain the records of the "administrative modification." Even if the State didn't formally adjudicate the violations, the fact that the court felt an ISF was necessary is powerful evidence of a "history or pattern" of violence or neglect under Texas Family Code § 153.004.
• Preservation of Error: If you are defending a client in a "crossover" situation where the criminal court is doubling back on old violations, ensure you object specifically on both Double Jeopardy and Due Process grounds to avoid the waiver issue seen in Carlos.

Checklists

Evaluating the Finality of Criminal Modifications

• [ ] Review the Criminal Docket: Was a formal "Motion to Proceed" or "Motion to Revoke" filed prior to the modification?
• [ ] Identify the Hearing Type: Was there a court reporter present and evidence taken, or was the modification signed "in chambers" or through the probation department?
• [ ] Check for a "Plea of True": Did the party formally admit to the violations in open court during the prior modification?
• [ ] Analyze the Order: Does the order modifying conditions state it is a "disposition" of a pending motion, or is it a supplemental order of supervision?

Leveraging Criminal Conduct in Family Court

• [ ] Subpoena Probation Records: Get the "Violation Reports" that led to the administrative modification.
• [ ] Determine Revocation Status: If the State has not yet revoked, use the Carlos holding to argue that the party remains in legal jeopardy and is therefore an unstable placement for a child.
• [ ] Distinguish "Punishment": In custody hearings, argue that an ISF stay was a "condition of supervision," not a "sentence," meaning the party has not yet "paid their debt" or been rehabilitated for the underlying domestic violence.

Citation

Carlos v. State, Nos. 07-25-00242-CR, 07-25-00243-CR, 07-25-00244-CR (Tex. App.—Amarillo Feb. 26, 2026, no pet. h.) (mem. op.).

Full Opinion

Full Opinion Link

Family Law Crossover

This ruling is a potent weapon in Texas divorce and custody litigation where a party is attempting to minimize their criminal history. Often, a spouse in a divorce will claim, "The judge already dealt with that incident by sending me to ISF; it's over." Carlos proves that is legally false. Because the Amarillo court held that administrative modifications do not trigger Double Jeopardy, the conduct remains "actionable" by the State. In a family law context, this allows the litigator to argue that the opposing party is a "ticking time bomb" for incarceration. If the conduct (e.g., choking a spouse or hitting a child) can still be used to revoke their probation because no formal hearing was held, then the threat to the child's stability is ongoing. Litigators should use this to argue against unsupervised access, noting that the criminal justice system has specifically not completed its adjudication of the conduct, despite the administrative intervention. ~~40b55c12-d274-4185-a065-79838e0d1d7c~~