COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINIONS

State of Tennessee v. Demetruice Bennett
E2025-00599-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Steven W. Sword

In 2023, a Knox County jury convicted the Defendant, Demetruice Bennett, of assault,
several offenses involving the possession of a weapon and evading arrest. The trial court
sentenced the Defendant, a Range II offender, to a total effective sentence of twenty years,
to be served at 100%. On appeal, the Defendant contends that: (1) the trial court erred
when it admitted a video showing that he possessed a firearm on a day different from the
day upon which the indicted offenses occurred; (2) his trial counsel was ineffective for
failing to object to the admissibility of the video; and (3) the evidence is insufficient to
support his convictions related to his possession of a firearm. After review, we affirm the
trial court’s judgments.

State of Tennessee v. Tyrome Cameron Ferguson
E2025-00044-CCA-WR-CO
Authoring Judge: Judge Steven W. Sword
Trial Court Judge: Judge Sandra Donaghy

The Defendant, Tyrome Cameron Ferguson, was charged by a Monroe County grand jury
with two counts of aggravated assault and one count of reckless endangerment with a
deadly weapon relating to an alleged road-rage incident. On the first day of the Defendant’s
trial, the trial court found that the State had violated Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure
16 and declared a mistrial. In a subsequent hearing, the trial court ordered the State to pay
defense counsel $500 “as a contribution toward his attorney[’s] fees” as a sanction for its
discovery violation. The Defendant’s charges were ultimately dismissed by agreement.
The State thereafter filed both an application for extraordinary appeal pursuant to
Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 10 and a petition for common law writ of certiorari
challenging the trial court’s assessment of $500. We denied the State’s application for an
extraordinary appeal but granted its petition for writ of certiorari. State v. Ferguson, No.
E2025-00044-CCA-WR-CO (Tenn. Crim. App. Apr. 1, 2025) (Order). Finding that the
trial court’s order violated the State of Tennessee’s sovereign immunity from suit, we grant
certiorari and reverse and vacate the trial court’s order.

Vonda Star Smith v. State of Tennessee
E2025-00640-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Jill Bartee Ayers
Trial Court Judge: Judge John F. Dugger, Jr.

Petitioner, Vonda Star Smith, appeals the denial of her petition for post-conviction relief, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in denying her claim that the State withheld exculpatory evidence in violation of Brady v. Maryland. Petitioner also argues that the post-conviction court erred in denying her claims that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to (1) obtain a DNA expert, (2) object to a comment made by the trial court, (3) object to the State’s introduction of an undisclosed impeachment statement, and (4) call a corroborating witness. Upon review of the entire record, the briefs of the parties, and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

State of Tennessee v. Jayshawn Edward Williams
E2025-00542-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Timothy L. Easter
Trial Court Judge: Judge G. Scott Green

Jayshawn Edward Williams, Defendant, was convicted by a jury of second degree murder
for the shooting death of Travis Brown in Knoxville. The trial court sentenced Defendant
to a thirty-six-year sentence. After the denial of a motion for new trial, Defendant appealed,
arguing that the evidence was insufficient to support the conviction because the proof did
not establish his identity and because he acted in self-defense. Because we determine the
evidence was sufficient to support the conviction, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

State of Tennessee v. James Hewitt and Kelli Hewitt
M2026-00291-CCA-R8-CO
Authoring Judge: Judge Jill Bartee Ayers; Presiding Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer; Judge Robert L. Holloway, Jr.

This matter is before the Court upon motion of the Defendants, James and Kelli Hewitt, for review of the conditions of their pretrial release. See Tenn. R. App. P. 8; Tenn. Code. Ann. § 40-11-144. The State opposes. For the reasons discussed below, the Defendants’ motion is denied.

Jaylun Malik Currie v. State of Tennessee
W2025-00800-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert H. Montgomery, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge A. Blake Neill

The Petitioner, Jaylun Malik Currie, appeals from the Tipton County Circuit Court’s denial of post-conviction relief from the Petitioner’s convictions for aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault by strangulation, and aggravated criminal trespass and his effective eight-year sentence. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred by denying relief on his ineffective assistance of counsel claims and that he was prejudiced by the cumulative effect of counsel’s alleged multiple instances of deficient performance. We affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Crystal Lee Martin v. State of Tennessee
M2025-01396-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Dee David Gay

The Petitioner, Crystal Lee Martin, entered an Alford or “best interest” plea to DUI on March 17, 2025, and her sentence was immediately executed as time served. On July 17, 2025, the Petitioner filed multiple post-conviction motions, including a “post-conviction relief packet,” which was related to her DUI offense, and also to a separate offense to which she had previously pleaded guilty, been given probation, and her ensuing probation violation convictions. The post-conviction court entered an order stating that the petition was not signed under oath subject to penalty of perjury and gave the Petitioner fifteen days to file an amended petition, and it denied all her other motions. The Petitioner filed a motion stating that her petition was, in fact, properly verified and indicating her refusal to file an amended petition. The post-conviction court summarily dismissed the petition. After review, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment.

Coy J. Cotham, Jr. v. State of Tennessee
M2025-01171-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Mark J. Fishburn

A Davidson County jury convicted the Petitioner, Coy J. Cotham, Jr., of first-degree premeditated murder and especially aggravated robbery, and the trial court imposed a life sentence without parole and a consecutive twenty-five-year sentence. The Petitioner appealed, and this court affirmed the trial court’s judgments. State v. Coy J. Cotham, Jr., M2012-01150-CCA-R3-CD, 2014 WL 3778613, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. July 31, 2014). Subsequently, the Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief pursuant to the Post-Conviction DNA Analysis Act, which the post-conviction court summarily dismissed. On appeal, the Petitioner maintains that he is entitled to DNA testing of a blue towel recovered from his vehicle. Following our review of the record, we affirm the post-conviction court’s denial of relief.

State of Tennessee v. Jacque Bouvier Bennett
M2025-00342-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Steve R. Dozier

A Davidson County jury convicted the Defendant, Jacque Bouvier Bennett, of aggravated rape of a child, aggravated sexual battery, and assault by offensive touching. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to an effective fifty-year sentence in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant asserts that: (1) the trial court erred when it found the victim competent to testify; (2) the trial court erred when it allowed the victim’s mother to be present during the victim’s testimony; (3) the trial court erred in admitting the victim’s forensic interview; (4) the victim failed to identify the Defendant at trial; and (5) the cumulative effect of these errors undermined the Defendant’s right to a fair trial. After review, we affirm the trial court’s judgments.

State of Tennessee v. Blake Shemar Swann
E2025-00975-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Ross Dyer
Trial Court Judge: John F. Dugger, Jr.

The defendant, Blake Shemar Swann, appeals the order of the trial court revoking his
probation and ordering him to serve his six-year sentence in confinement. Upon our review
of the record and the parties’ briefs, we dismiss the appeal as untimely.

Cedric Taylor v. State of Tennessee
M2025-00674-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Camille R. McMullen
Trial Court Judge: Judge Cheryl A. Blackburn

The Petitioner, Cedric Taylor, entered a guilty plea to possession with intent to deliver twenty-six grams or more of cocaine and resisting arrest, for which he received an effective sentence of fourteen years in confinement. The Petitioner sought post-conviction relief claiming ineffective assistance of counsel based on trial counsel’s failure to pursue a motion to suppress to challenge the constitutionality of the stop and subsequent search of his vehicle, and trial counsel’s failure to appeal his sentence. The Petitioner also claimed that his guilty plea was unknowingly and involuntarily entered due to trial counsel’s misleading advice that he would likely be sentenced to probation. Following a hearing, the post-conviction court granted relief, in part, and ordered a delayed appeal based on trial counsel’s failure to appeal the Petitioner’s sentence. This court subsequently affirmed the trial court’s denial of the Petitioner’s request to serve his sentence on community corrections. See State v. Taylor, No. M2024-00192-CCA-R3-CD, 2024 WL 3879116, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Aug. 20, 2024), appeal denied (Tenn. Nov. 14, 2024). The post-conviction court entered an order denying the issues that were held in abeyance, and the Petitioner now appeals. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court

State of Tennessee v. Timothy Sedman
E2025-00576-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Ross Dyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Justin C. Angel

The defendant, Timothy Sedman, pled guilty to attempted aggravated sexual battery, and
the trial court imposed a sentence of six years’ incarceration in the Tennessee Department
of Correction. On appeal, the defendant argues the trial court erred in denying his request
for alternative sentencing. After reviewing the record and considering the applicable law,
we affirm the judgment of the trial court. However, we remand the case for corrected
judgment forms in counts one through five and counts seven through twenty.

State of Tennessee v. Parnell Quinn Short
E2025-00153-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Alex E. Pearson

A Hamblen County jury convicted the Defendant, Parnell Quinn Short, of theft of property
valued between $1000 and $2500, a Class E felony and fixed a fine of $1750. The trial
court imposed the fine fixed by the jury and sentenced the Defendant, as a career offender,
to serve six years to run consecutively to the Defendant’s convictions in other cases. On
appeal, the Defendant asserts that the trial court erred when it: (1) admitted three of his
prior convictions for impeachment purposes; and (2) imposed the fine set by the jury
without making the statutorily required findings. After review, we affirm the trial court’s
judgment but vacate the imposition of the fine. We remand the case for a sentencing
hearing with respect to the imposition of the fine.

Charles Lane v. State of Tennessee
E2025-00857-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Ross Dyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Jeffrey D. Rader

The petitioner, Charles Lane, appeals the denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus by
the Sevier County Circuit Court, arguing the habeas court erred in dismissing the petition.
The petitioner asserts that his pretrial jail credits were not applied properly and that his
request for transcripts was erroneously denied. Following our review, we affirm the habeas
court’s dismissal of the petition as the petitioner has failed to show he is entitled to relief.

State of Tennessee v. Christopher Lance Osteen
W2024-00986-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Camille R. McMullen
Trial Court Judge: Judge Bruce I. Griffey

The Defendant, Christopher Lance Osteen, entered a guilty plea to two counts of
aggravated kidnapping. As a part of his plea, and pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal
Procedure 37, the Defendant sought to reserve one certified question of law related to the
trial court’s finding that his right to a speedy trial did not attach when he was arrested in
Florida due to his escape status as well as being served with a warrant from Kentucky; one
certified question related to the trial court’s finding that the Defendant’s verbal request to
the Florida court to invoke his constitutional rights was insufficient to properly invoke his
rights to speedy trial and due process; and one certified question related to the trial court’s
finding that the Defendant’s written letters and motion to dismiss sent to both the general
sessions clerk and the district attorney’s office failed to properly invoke his constitutional
rights to a speedy trial and due process as it pertained to his Henry County, Tennessee
general session case arrest warrants. Because the Defendant did not properly reserve
certified issues for review, we are without jurisdiction to review the merits of the
Defendant’s claims, and we dismiss his appeal.

State of Tennessee v. Antonio D. Bennett Tate
E2025-00699-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Steven W. Sword
Trial Court Judge: Judge Tammy M. Harrington

The Defendant, Antonio D. Bennett Tate, appeals from the Blount County Circuit Court
revocation of his community corrections sentence. On appeal, the Defendant argues that
the trial court erred by improperly admitting video footage from a police officer’s bodyworn
camera during the revocation hearing. Following our review, we affirm the judgment
of the trial court.

State of Tennessee v. Boone Beverly
E2025-00302-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Steven W. Sword
Trial Court Judge: Judge Hector Sanchez

The Defendant, Boone Beverly, appeals the trial court’s revocation of his probation. On
appeal, the Defendant argues that the trial court abused its discretion by denying the
Defendant’s request to allocute or speak on his own behalf at his revocation hearing.
Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

State of Tennessee v. Jerome Nchiyako Dooley
E2025-00399-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Jill Bartee Ayers
Trial Court Judge: Judge G. Scott Green

Defendant, Jerome Nchiyako Dooley, pled guilty to one count of sexual battery and received an agreed sentence of five years as a Range III offender, to be served on probation. Following a hearing on a warrant for violation of his probation, the trial court revoked Defendant’s probation and ordered him to serve his original sentence incarcerated. Defendant appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in revoking probation based on a video Defendant posted to TikTok and that the court erred in failing to recuse itself sua sponte. Following a review of the entire record, the briefs and arguments of the parties, and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MICHAEL WAYNE STROUTH
E2024-01790-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge William K. Rogers

A Sullivan County jury convicted the Defendant, Michael Wayne Strouth, of first degree
premeditated murder and conspiracy to comrnit first degree premeditated rnurder. The trial
court irnposed a life sentence for the first degree murder conviction and a consecutive
twenty-five year sentence for the conspiracy conviction. On appeal, the Defendant asserts
that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his convictions; (2) the trial court erred when
it failed to give jury instructions on enhanced identification and general inferences; and (3)
the trial court abused its discretion when it sentenced hirn. After review, we affirm the
convictions and the Defendant's life sentence for first degree prerneditated murder;
however, we vacate the Defendant's sentence for conspiracy to commit first degree murder
and the trial court's imposition of partial consecutive sentencing. We remand this case to
the trial court for a new sentencing hearing.

State of Tennessee v. Anthony Glover
M2025-00820-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Matthew J. Wilson
Trial Court Judge: Judge Larry B. Stanley, Jr.

Defendant, Anthony Glover, appeals the denial of his bid for judicial diversion, arguing that the trial court’s ruling is not entitled to a presumption of reasonableness and that, upon our de novo review, this court should grant him diversion. Because the trial court failed to consider all the appropriate factors and to make the required findings to support its denial of judicial diversion, the judgment of the trial court is reversed. Because we find that the record is insufficient for de novo review, the case is remanded for a new sentencing hearing.

State of Tennessee v. Shamone Davis
M2025-00410-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Timothy L. Easter
Trial Court Judge: Judge James A. Turner

Shamone Davis, Defendant, was convicted of four counts of statutory rape by an authority figure, one count of attempted statutory rape by an authority figure, and three counts of sexual battery by an authority figure for events that involved his stepdaughter. As a result of the convictions, Defendant was sentenced to an effective sentence of thirty years. Defendant appeals, arguing that he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial, the trial court improperly admitted testimony of several witnesses, the evidence was insufficient to support the conviction for attempted statutory rape by an authority figure, and his sentence is excessive. After a thorough review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Fred Auston Wortman, III v. State of Tennessee
W2025-00697-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Ross Dyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge James Jones, Jr.

The petitioner, Fred Auston Wortman, III, pled guilty to two counts of attempted
first-degree murder and solicitation of first-degree murder, stemming from his repeated
attempts to kill his wife. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the trial court imposed an effective
Range II sentence of thirty years with a Range I release eligibility of thirty percent. The
Board of Probation and Parole denied the petitioner release, and after challenging the denial
via other avenues, the petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief in which he
claimed entitlement to relief on grounds of breach of contact. In his petition, the petitioner
claimed that the State violated the terms of his plea agreement by opposing his release at
the parole hearing. The post-conviction court denied the petition, finding it was timebarred.
However, this Court reversed and remanded with instructions for the postconviction
court to make findings relative to whether due process considerations tolled the
statute of limitations. See Wortman v. State, No. W2023-00017-CCA-R3-PC, 2023 WL
6318088, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Sept. 28, 2023). On remand, the post-conviction court
-found the petitioner was not guaranteed release, that the State did not attempt to thwart
the petitioner’s ability to have a parole hearing, and rejected the petitioner’s claim that the
State “acted in bad faith by attending and opposing his parole” because the petitioner
received the benefit of everything to which he bargained. Following a thorough review of
the record, the briefs, and oral arguments of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the postconviction
court denying the petitioner post-conviction relief.

Darren Brown v. State of Tennessee
W2025-01466-CCA-R3-ECN
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert H. Montgomery, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Chris Craft

The Petitioner, Darren Brown, appeals from the Shelby County Criminal Court’s summary
denial of his petition for a writ of error coram nobis from his conviction for first degree
premeditated murder, for which he received a sentence of life imprisonment. He contends
that he is entitled to equitable tolling of the statute of limitations and that he is entitled to
relief on the merits of his petition. We affirm the judgment of the coram nobis court.

State of Tennessee v. Lacy Frank Walls, III
M2024-01603-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Timothy L. Easter
Trial Court Judge: Judge M. Caleb Bayless

Lacy Frank Walls, III, Defendant, was convicted of evading arrest and three counts of possession of a firearm after being convicted of a felony. The trial court sentenced Defendant to an effective sentence of forty years in incarceration. After the denial of a motion for new trial, Defendant appeals, arguing that the trial court refused to consider all of the issues presented in his motion for new trial. After a review, we find the trial court erred by refusing to consider all the issues presented in the motion for new trial. On remand, the trial court should hold a new hearing on the motion for new trial, at which the trial court should consider all the issues in the motion. The trial court should also enter judgment forms for Counts Four and Five and enter corrected judgment forms in Counts One, Two, and Six, reflecting Defendant was convicted after a jury trial and the proper statute under which Defendant is required to serve eighty-five percent of his sentence.

Brian Howard v. State of Tennessee
W2024-01387-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Matthew J. Wilson
Trial Court Judge: Judge Carlyn L. Addison

Petitioner, Brian Howard, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in concluding that he received the effective assistance of trial counsel. He argues trial counsel was ineffective in two ways: first, by failing to sever Petitioner’s trial from that of his co-defendant, or alternatively, failing to introduce the co-defendant’s pretrial statement to police during their joint trial; and second, by failing to waive lesser included offense instructions. He also raises a standalone due process claim, arguing that criminal defendants should have a constitutional right to affirmatively waive lesser included charges contrary to Tennessee law. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.