Opinion ID: 2104099
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Direct Appeal by the State

Text: In this appeal, the State first argues that the issues satisfy the requirements under Rule 3(b) and (c) of the Arkansas Rules of Appellate ProcedureCriminal to allow this court to hear the State's appeal. The State requests that this court allow it to make a collateral attack on void judgments of acquittal pursuant to Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 60(a), which this court would be applying for the first time to criminal proceedings. The State attempts to analogize this relief to a defendant's ability to seek postjudgment relief in Rule 37 petitions and petitions for writ of habeas corpus, and argues that if the defendant is afforded such relief, the State should be also. The State argues that such a ruling would be important to the correct and uniform administration of the criminal law. Dawson responds that this appeal should not be considered because it turns on the specific facts of this case and, therefore, does not involve interpretation of the criminal rules with widespread ramifications. Furthermore, Dawson argues that State appeals are not allowed merely to show that the trial court erred. Arkansas Rules of Appellate ProcedureCriminal 3(b) and (c) state: (b) Where an appeal, other than an interlocutory appeal, is desired on behalf of the state following either a misdemeanor or felony prosecution, the prosecuting attorney shall file a notice of appeal within thirty (30) days after entry of a final order by the trial judge. (c) When a notice of appeal is filed pursuant to either subsection (a) or (b) of this rule, the clerk of the court in which the prosecution sought to be appealed took place shall immediately cause a transcript of the trial record to be made and transmitted to the attorney general, or delivered to the prosecuting attorney, to be by him delivered to the attorney general. If the attorney general, on inspecting the trial record, is satisfied that error has been committed to the prejudice of the state, and that the correct and uniform administration of the criminal law requires review by the Supreme Court, he may take the appeal by filing the transcript of the trial record with the clerk of the Supreme Court within sixty (60) days after the filing of the notice of appeal. (Emphasis added.) Before addressing the merits of the State's claim in this case, the court must first decide whether this issue is properly before us under Rule 3(c). State v. Thompson, 343 Ark. 135, 34 S.W.3d 33 (2000); State v. Stephenson, 330 Ark. 594, 955 S.W.2d 518 (1997). Specifically, the court must decide whether the correct and uniform administration of justice requires us to review this point. This court's review of the State's appeals is not limited to cases that would establish precedent. Thompson; State v. Gray, 330 Ark. 364, 955 S.W.2d 502 (1997). As a matter of practice, this court has only taken appeals which are narrow in scope and involve the interpretation of law. State v. Banks, 322 Ark. 344, 345, 909 S.W.2d 634 (1995). Where an appeal does not present an issue of interpretation of the criminal rules with widespread ramifications, this court has held that such an appeal does not involve the correct and uniform administration of the law. State v. Harris, 315 Ark. 595, 868 S.W.2d 488 (1994). Appeals are not allowed merely to demonstrate the fact that the trial court erred. State v. Spears and Boyce, 123 Ark. 449, 185 S.W. 788 (1916). Where the resolution of the issue on appeal turns on the facts unique to the case, the appeal is not one requiring interpretation of our criminal rules with widespread ramification, and the matter is not appealable by the State. State v. McCormack, 343 Ark. 285, 34 S.W.3d 735 (2000); State v. Guthrie, 341 Ark. 624, 19 S.W.3d 10 (2000); State v. Howard, 341 Ark. 640,19 S.W.3d 4 (2000). In reviewing the State's basis for a direct appeal, it is clear that the State is requesting that this court allow it to collaterally attack judgments in criminal cases based on Ark. R. Civ. P. 60. Rule 60(a) and (b) state: (a) Ninety-Day Limitation. To correct errors or mistakes or to prevent the miscarriage of justice, the court may modify or vacate a judgment, order or decree on motion of the court or any party, with prior notice to all parties, within ninety days of its having been filed with the clerk. (b) Exception; Clerical Errors. Notwithstanding subdivision (a) of this rule, the court may at any time, with prior notice to all parties, correct clerical mistakes in judgments, decrees, orders, or other parts of the record and errors therein arising from oversight or omission. During the pendency of an appeal, such mistakes may be so corrected before the appeal is docketed in the appellate court and thereafter while the appeal is pending may be so corrected with leave of the appellate court. This rule was revised by per curiam order on January 27, 2000, in response to case law. [1] The commentary to the rule notes that as amended, subdivision (a) is a slightly modified version of the prior subdivision (b). Subdivision (a) states the general rule that the court may, with prior notice to all parties, modify a judgment, decree or order within ninety days of its filing with the clerk to correct errors or mistakes or to prevent the miscarriage of justice. The revised subdivision (b) now expressly states an exception from the ninety-day limit for clerical mistakes and errors arising from oversight or omission, which may be corrected at any time with prior notice to the parties. The amendment is consistent with Lord v. Mazzanti, 339 Ark. 25, 2 S.W.3d 76 (1999) (decision prior to modification which streamlined Rule 60(a) and (b)) wherein this court stated: Rule 60(a) is merely a restatement of Arkansas's well-settled law, empowering the trial court to enter nunc pro tunc judgments to cause the record to speak the truth, whether in criminal or civil cases. See Lovett v. State, 267 Ark. 912, 591 S.W.2d 683 (1979); McPherson v. State, 187 Ark. 872, 63 S.W.2d 282 (1933); Richardson v. State, 169 Ark. 167, 273 S.W. 367 (1925). Just recently we upheld a trial court's authority to enter an order nunc pro tunc in a criminal case when more than a year and a half had passed since the original judgment had been filed and mandate had issued. McCuen v. State, 338 Ark. 631, 999 S.W.2d 682 (1999). While we noted in McCuen that Rule 60(a) itself does not specifically refer or apply to a criminal case, it is obvious that Rule 60(a) does apply to civil cases, and its plain language adopts the same longstanding rule utilized in all casesthat trial courts may correct clerical errors at any time. In these circumstances, a trial court's power to correct mistakes or errors is to make the record speak the truth, but not to make it speak what it did not speak but ought to have spoken. [Citations omitted.] Lord, 339 Ark. at 28-29. However, as the court noted in Lord, it has specifically found that prior Rule 60(a) does not apply in a criminal case. See McCuen v. State, 338 Ark. 631, 999 S.W.2d 682 (1999) (court denies use of prior Rule 60(a) in criminal cases or to correct errors in a criminal judgment to make it speak the truth); see also, Ibsen v. Plegge, 341 Ark. 225, 15 S.W.3d 686 (2000) (court denies use of current Rule 60 in criminal cases or to allow reconsideration of a circuit court's order remanding a case to municipal court after petitioner failed to appear in circuit court). Regardless of whether the current Rule 60(a) or (b) has been or ever could be applied to criminal cases, the theory behind the rule has been applied to criminal cases. See, e.g., McCuen ; Lovett v. State, 267 Ark. 912, 591 S.W.2d 683 (Ark.App. 1979); McPherson v. State, 187 Ark. 872, 63 S.W.2d 282 (1933); Richardson v. State, 169 Ark. 167, 273 S.W. 367 (1925). However, relief under the current Rule 60(a) may only be granted within the ninety days, and the court's power to modify expires after the passage of the ninetieth day. See Cigna Ins. Co. v. Brisson, 294 Ark. 504, 744 S.W.2d 716 (1988); City of Little Rock v. Ragan, 297 Ark. 525, 763 S.W.2d 87 (1989). Exceptions to the ninety-day time limit are noted in Rule 60(b) and Rule 60(c). Rule 60(b) allows clerical errors in judgments, decrees, orders, or other parts of the record and errors therein arising from oversight or omission to be corrected at any time or with permission of the appellate court if the appeal is pending. In McCuen , for example, this court upheld a trial court's modification of an order over a year and a half after the original judgment had been filed and mandate had issued. The correction in McCuen , however, was made to include language in the judgment reflecting a fine levied against McCuen in open court but which was omitted in the written order. Such a correction is one that is specifically allowed under the current Rule 60(b) to correct a clerical error to make the record speak the truth, but not to make it speak what it did not speak but ought to have spoken. Lord, 339 Ark. at 29. In addition, Rule 60(c) allows a judgment to be set aside under certain circumstances not applicable here. Here, the State is asking this court to allow its appeal in this case and others to challenge void judgments of acquittal pursuant to Rule 60(a) or (b). There are three problems with the State's position. First, the State is asking for specific relief under Rule 60(a) or its theoretical equivalent, and such relief may only be granted by the court within ninety days of the entry of the judgment. Here, Dawson's judgment of acquittal was entered by the circuit court on January 13, 2000. Almost sixty days later, the State filed its motion to vacate that order on March 23, 2000. The court, however, did not issue its decision on the motion until June 9, 2000, almost five months and well over ninety days after the judgment was entered. As such, the State's ability to utilize Rule 60(a) or its theoretical equivalent expired. See Slaton v. Slaton, 330 Ark. 287, 956 S.W.2d 150 (1997); Griggs v. Cook, 315 Ark. 74, 864 S.W.2d 832 (1993). Furthermore, the State's grounds for vacating the judgment do not fall within any of the exceptions in Rule 60(c), which would allow modification after the ninety-day time limit. Second, our case law only allows modification of an order after ninety days under the current Rule 60(b) to correct mistakes or errors [or] to make the record speak the truth, but not to make it speak what it did not speak but ought to have spoken. Lord, 339 Ark. at 29, 2 S.W.3d 76. Here, the State is not requesting an appeal to correct an error or mistake in the judgment itself to speak the truth as it occurred in the proceedings, but instead to change the circuit court's actual order to make it speak what it did not speak but ought to have spoken. Rule 60(b) or its theoretical equivalent was not intended for such use, and to allow the State to use it in criminal cases for any purpose but to correct one of the limited reasons in Rule 60(b) or (c) would be to misapply the rule. Finally, allowing the State to use Rule 60 here would only act to expand the State's ability to appeal cases beyond those allowed under Ark.R.App.P.Crim. 3. Rule 3 requires that the State show that there is a reason for the appeal, and to allow Rule 60(a) to apply in this case would automatically give the State a reason to appeal every time a judgment of acquittal is entered in circuit court without having to show that it is for the correct and uniform administration of the criminal law. This court has stated: There is a significant and inherent difference between appeals brought by criminal defendants and those brought on behalf of the State. The former is a matter of right, whereas the latter is not derived from the Constitution, nor is it a matter of right, but is granted pursuant to Rule 3. Guthrie, 341 Ark. at 628, 19 S.W.3d 10. Applying Rule 60 here would create and apply a rule broader than necessary in this case. We hold that the State has not demonstrated that the appeal of this matter involves the correct and uniform administration of the law and the direct appeal pursuant to Rule 3 is dismissed.