Cooper v. State

Dana L. Cooper seeks a belated appeal of his criminal conviction and sentence, alleging that his trial counsel advised him that no right to appeal existed and that the trial court never informed him differently.

In Lee v. State, 813 So.2d 275 (Fla. 5th DCA 2002), we held that when a petitioner alleged that he was not informed of his right to appeal, he was entitled to a hearing to determine if his allegation had merit and, if so, whether petitioner could have ascertained the right to appeal by exercise of reasonable diligence. Fla. R.App. P. 9.141(c)(4)(A). See also Coyle v. City of Ft.…