Shortly after Appellant left, Tunnell received a report of graffiti on a toilet paper dispenser in one of the boys' restrooms.  Officer Michael Shunk, a Fort Worth policeman assigned to Timber Creek, took pictures of the graffiti, which included “Pretty Boy Prince” written in blue ink and stars and “Fresh” written in black ink.  “Fresh” was written in a different style than “Pretty Boy Prince.”  Tunnell thought the graffiti was written with a permanent marker, and Shunk was not able to remove or smear the graffiti with his finger.  The graffiti was cleaned off by the custodial staff, and the markers used to write the graffiti were not recovered. v. << (2012)

Court of Appeals of Texas, Waco.

BACKGROUND FACTS Appellant enrolled at Timber Creek High School on Friday, October 15, 2010.  On that date, principal Todd Tunnell spoke with Appellant and his mother about Appellant's prior placement in an alternative school through Alternative Education and Placement (AEP).  During that conversation, Appellant told Tunnell that he had completed his time in AEP. Appellant was scheduled to start regular classes on Monday, October 18, 2010.  Before Appellant arrived on Monday, Tunnell learned that Appellant had not in fact completed his time in AEP. Upon his arrival at Timber Creek, Appellant was called to the principal's office where they discussed the discrepancies in what Appellant had told Tunnell. During the meeting, Tunnell noticed that Appellant had a “defensive and surly” attitude.  He also noticed that Appellant had “Pretty Boy” written on his backpack, that he was dressed totally in blue, and that he had a tattoo of three dots on his hand.  Tunnell discussed the tattoo with the school resource officer and asked if it had any gang implications. Tunnell told Appellant that he could not attend Timber Creek until he served the rest of his AEP time in Keller.  Tunnell instructed Appellant to wait in the front office for his mother to pick him up.  Appellant left the area he was instructed to wait in, and Tunnell found him in the hallway talking to students.  Tunnell directed Appellant back to the office.  Tunnell recalled walking through the front office again “close to noon” and noticing that Appellant had left. Shortly after Appellant left, Tunnell received a report of graffiti on a toilet paper dispenser in one of the boys' restrooms.  Officer Michael Shunk, a Fort Worth policeman assigned to Timber Creek, took pictures of the graffiti, which included “Pretty Boy Prince” written in blue ink and stars and “Fresh” written in black ink.  “Fresh” was written in a different style than “Pretty Boy Prince.”  Tunnell thought the graffiti was written with a permanent marker, and Shunk was not able to remove or smear the graffiti with his finger.  The graffiti was cleaned off by the custodial staff, and the markers used to write the graffiti were not recovered.

NO. 02–11–00041–CV

Decided: February 03, 2012