State of Tennessee v. Patrick Wayne Tripp

A Lincoln County jury convicted the Defendant, Patrick Wayne Tripp, of rape of a child, a Class A felony; aggravated child abuse, a Class A felony; aggravated child neglect, a Class A felony; sexual exploitation of a minor, a Class D felony; and attempted incest, a Class D felony. The trial court imposed a total effective sentence of forty-two years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant raises four issues: (a) whether the trial court erred when it denied his motion for a judgment of acquittal; (b) whether the evidence at trial was sufficient to support his convictions; (c) whether the trial court committed plain error when it instructed the jury on the offense of rape of a child; and (d) whether the trial court erred when it sentenced the Defendant. After a thorough review of the record and relevant authorities, we conclude the evidence supports the Defendant's convictions, the trial court properly instructed the jury, and the trial court properly sentenced the Defendant. Therefore, we affirm the trial court's judgments.