Paul Eddie Weaver v. State of Arkansas

Paul Eddie WEAVER v. STATE of Arkansas

CR 97-146                                          ___ S.W.2d ___

                    Supreme Court of Arkansas
               Opinion delivered February 24, 1997


Appeal & error -- motion for rule on clerk treated as one for belated appeal 
     -- good cause for granting. -- Where counsel for appellant accepted
     responsibility for failing to file a timely notice of appeal,
     the supreme court treated the motion as one for belated appeal
     and granted it, noting that failure on the part of counsel to
     perfect an appeal for a criminal defendant who wishes to
     appeal constitutes good cause for granting a belated appeal.


     Motion for Rule on the Clerk treated as Motion for Belated
Appeal; granted.
     Larry Hartsfield, for appellant.
     No response.

     Per Curiam. 
     The appellant, Paul Eddie Weaver, has filed a motion for rule
on the clerk.  His attorney, Larry Hartsfield, accepts
responsibility for failing to file a timely notice of appeal. 
     We treat this motion as one for belated appeal and grant the
motion.  Failure on the part of counsel to perfect an appeal for a
criminal defendant who wishes to appeal constitutes good cause for
granting a belated appeal.  See In Re: Belated Appeals in Criminal
Cases, 265 Ark. 964 (1979) (per curiam).  
     A copy of this opinion will be forwarded to the Committee on
Professional Conduct.