William Floyd Cartwright v. State of Tennessee

The Petitioner, William Floyd Cartwright, challenges the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief attacking his jury conviction for first degree premeditated murder. On appeal, the Petitioner first raises a free-standing claim that the jury instruction requiring the jury to “accept the law as given by the [trial] court” was violative of the Tennessee Constitution and warrants post-conviction relief. The Petitioner then alleges that he received ineffective assistance at trial due to trial counsel’s (1) failure to move for a new preliminary hearing due to an incomplete recording of the first; (2) failure to fulfill a promise made during opening statement that the victim was on house arrest with supporting proof at trial; (3) failure to adequately cross-examine the medical examiner about the victim’s cause of death; (4) failure to seek to have the proof re-opened in order to call the co-defendant to the stand after the co-defendant had accepted a plea; and (5) failure to object to the aforementioned jury instruction. He also submits that the cumulative effect of trial counsel’s errors deprived him of a fair trial. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.