Curvis W. Bell, Appellant v. the State of Texas

Summary

The Court held that Article 42.08(b) does not require record evidence of a prior conviction for mandatory cumulation of sentences, and that deleting the cumulation order would violate double jeopardy principles; therefore the trial court's stacking of the retaliation sentence was proper and the Court of Appeals judgment was reversed. Justice Johnson, in a concurring opinion, emphasized that the trial court must have evidence that the defendant was an inmate at the time of the offense.