Pounder v. State

2015 Ark. 138

• Court: Supreme Court of Arkansas
• Decided: April 2, 2015
• Docket: CR-14-1057
• Status: Published

Opinion

Cite as 2015 Ark. 138

SUPREME COURT OF ARKANSAS No. CR-14-1057

TERRY JOE POUNDER Opinion Delivered April 2, 2015 APPELLANT PRO SE MOTION FOR COPY OF V. APPEAL RECORD [SEBASTIAN COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT, FORT SMITH DISTRICT, STATE OF ARKANSAS NOS. 66CR-04-997, 66CR-04-998, 66CR- APPELLEE 04-999, 66CR-04-1000, 66CR-04-1160]

HONORABLE STEPHEN TABOR, JUDGE

APPEAL DISMISSED; MOTION MOOT.

PER CURIAM

In 2005, appellant Terry Joe Pounder entered a plea of guilty in the Sebastian County

Circuit Court, Fort Smith District, to four counts of aggravated robbery, first-degree criminal

mischief, theft by receiving, and robbery. An aggregate sentence of 396 months’ imprisonment

was imposed. On October 9, 2014, appellant filed a petition in the trial court seeking to proceed

in forma pauperis with a “motion for belated appeal, habeas corpus.” The trial court denied the

petition, and appellant timely lodged an appeal from that order. Now before us is appellant’s

pro se motion for copy of appeal record.

We dismiss the appeal, and the motion is moot inasmuch as it is clear from the record

that appellant could not prevail on appeal. An appeal of the denial of postconviction relief will

not be permitted to go forward when it is clear from the record that the appeal is without merit.

Hinkston v. State, 2014 Ark. 504 (per curiam); Chambliss v. State, 2014 Ark. 188 (per curiam). Cite as 2015 Ark. 138

The petition to proceed in forma pauperis provides no articulated basis for proceeding

with a motion for belated appeal of the denial of habeas relief. The petition includes only the

statement that appellant desires to file a “motion for belated appeal, habeas corpus.” Even

though the petition to proceed in forma pauperis refers to “habeas,” there is nothing in the

petition to indicate the nature of a habeas petition or the grounds on which petitioner intends

to rely to support his petition to proceed as an indigent. Under such circumstances, we cannot

find any ground to reverse the trial court’s order.