Daniel Watson v. State of Arkansas

               Daniel WATSON v. STATE of Arkansas

CR 97-394                                          ___ S.W.2d ___

                    Supreme Court of Arkansas
                Opinion delivered April 29, 1997


Appeal & error -- motion for belated appeal -- good cause for
     granting. -- An admission by an attorney for a criminal
     defendant that the record was tendered late due to a mistake
     on his part is good cause to grant a motion for belated
     appeal.

     Motion for Belated Appeal; granted.
     Ralph M. Cloar, Jr., for appellant.
     No response..

     Per Curiam.
     Daniel Watson, by his attorney, has filed a motion for a rule
on the clerk which we will treat as a motion for belated appeal. 
The notice of appeal was filed in this case on September 18, 1996,
and the judgment was entered on November 19, 1996.
     His attorney, Ralph Cloar, admits in his motion that the
record was tendered late due to his mistaken reliance on the
circuit clerk.
     We find that such an error, admittedly made by the attorney
for a criminal defendant, is good cause to grant the motion.  See
In Re: Belated Appeals in Criminal Cases, 265 Ark. 964 (1979) (per
curiam).
     The motion is, therefore, granted.  A copy of this opinion
will be forwarded to the Committee on Professional Conduct.