State of Tennessee v. Jonathan Womack
The Defendant, Jonathan Womack, pled guilty to possession of less than .5 grams of methamphetamine with intent to sell or deliver. He agreed to a sentence of six years, all of which was suspended after sixty days’ incarceration. As part of the plea agreement, the Defendant reserved a certified question of law challenging the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress the evidence obtained during the warrantless search of his residence, which was conducted following a “knock and talk” encounter and claimed exigent circumstances. After a thorough review of the applicable law, we conclude that the officers encroached upon the curtilage of the Defendant’s home to conduct the “knock and talk” at the backdoor of his residence and that they, thereafter, created any exigent circumstances. However, we further conclude that the evidence found on the Defendant’s person was obtained pursuant to an independent source—a valid warrant for his arrest. Therefore, the order of the trial court denying the motion to suppress is affirmed. |
Coffee | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Travis Meadows
Appellant, Travis Meadows, pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted aggravated sexual battery, Class C felonies. The trial court sentenced him to four years on each count, to be served consecutively, for an effective eight-year sentence. The effective eight-year sentence was suspended, and appellant was placed on supervised probation. As part of the plea agreement, appellant reserved a certified question of law challenging the denial of his motion to suppress. On appeal, appellant argues that the State failed to include the certified question in the judgment form and filed the judgment form without notice to appellant; therefore, the State violated the terms of the plea agreement. Appellant also argues that the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress his statement to law enforcement due to the coercive and misleading nature of the interrogation. Following our review of the briefs, the record, and the applicable law, we dismiss appellant’s appeal. |
Putnam | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Randall Wayne Cagle
Defendant, Randall Wayne Cagle, appeals from the trial court’s judgment revoking his probation. Defendant pled guilty in the Hickman County Circuit Court to four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor. The judgments are not in the appellate record, but according to other documents and testimony at the probation violation hearing, the trial court imposed an effective sentence of eight years to be served entirely on supervised probation. Approximately five months later, a violation of probation warrant was filed and served on Defendant. Following a hearing, the trial court concluded that Defendant had violated probation. The trial court deemed its ruling as a “partial revocation” and ordered Defendant to serve sixty days in the Hickman County Jail and to thereafter be placed back on supervised probation. Defendant has appealed the trial court’s revocation order. The trial court erroneously allowed testimony of Defendant’s failure to pass a polygraph test. Therefore, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand this matter for a new probation violation hearing in which the results of any polygraph test, any evidence of Defendant’s refusal (or willingness) to submit to a polygraph examination, and any statements made by Defendant as to why he would not submit to a polygraph examination are not to be admitted into evidence or otherwise relied upon by the trial court. |
Hickman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jerry Rommell Gray v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Jerry Rommell Gray, was convicted in Knox County of felony murder, attempted especially aggravated robbery, and attempted gravated robbery. Trial counsel filed a premature notice of appeal and failed to file a timely motion for new trial. On direct appeal, this Court reviewed Petitioner’s issues, other than sufficiency of the evidence, for plain error. State v. Jerry Rommell Gray, No. E2010-00637-CCA-R3-CD, 2012 WL 2870264, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. July 13, 2012). Petitioner’s convictions were affirmed. Petitioner subsequently filed an untimely petition for post-conviction relief in which he sought a delayed appeal based on ineffective assistance of counsel, specifically alleging that trial counsel’s failure to file a timely motion for new trial was presumptively prejudicial. Without ruling on the timeliness of the petition, the post- onviction court determined Petitioner was entitled to a delayed appeal but instructed Petitioner that he was not permitted to file an additional motion for new trial. After a review of the record and authorities, we reverse the decision of the post-conviction court and remand the matter for a hearing, during which the post-conviction court should first determine whether the statute of limitations for postconviction petitions should be tolled. If the post-conviction court determines that the statute should be tolled for due process considerations, the court should then determine if Petitioner received ineffective assistance of counsel and is entitled to a delayed appeal under Tennessee Code annotated section 40-30-113, which authorizes the filing of a motion for new trial when no motion for new trial was filed in the original proceeding. Consequently, the judgment of the post-conviction court is reversed and remanded. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Adrian Lamont Henry v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Adrian Lamont Henry, pled guilty to second degree murder, a Class A felony, and was sentenced to forty years in confinement. The petitioner filed the instant petition for post-conviction relief, in which he alleged that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel and that his guilty plea was involuntary. Following an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief. On appeal, the petitioner argues that his constitutional rights were violated when he was not given proper Miranda warnings and when he was interviewed while under the influence of marijuana. The petitioner also argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel when trial counsel: (1) failed to communicate the defense strategy, defenses, or theory of the case with the petitioner; (2) failed to file a motion to suppress the petitioner’s statements to law enforcement; (3) failed to utilize important witnesses; and (4) pressured the petitioner into pleading guilty. The petitioner argues that due to these errors, his guilty plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered. After our review of the parties’ briefs, the record, and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Joshua Lee Steele
The Defendant, Joshua Lee Steele, pleaded guilty to second degree murder, agreeing to allow the trial court to determine his sentence. The trial court sentenced him to serve twenty-five years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred when it sentenced him because it did not properly consider the mitigating factor that the Defendant assisted authorities in tecting or apprehending other persons who had committed the offenses. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable authorities, we affirm the trial court’s judgment |
Monroe | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Lonta Montrell Burress, Jr. and Darius Jerel Gustus
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Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Latickia Tashay Burgins
The defendant, Latickia Tashay Burgins, through counsel, sought automatic review of the trial court’s revocation of bail pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 8. The defendant argues that the trial court’s reliance upon Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-11-141(b) to revoke and deny pretrial bail following her garnering additional charges violates Article I, section 15 of the Tennessee Constitution. Upon full consideration of the defendant’s motion for review and the State’s response, we conclude that Code section 40-11-141(b) violates the constitutional guarantee to pretrial bail by permitting a trial court to hold a defendant without bail pending trial. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment of the trial court denying the appellant pretrial bail and remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Devaughn Edwards
The defendant, Devaughn Edwards, was convicted of three counts of facilitation of kidnapping, two of which subsequently were merged; two counts of facilitation of robbery, and one count of facilitation of aggravated burglary, for which he received an effective sentence of sixteen years. On appeal, he argues that the evidence was not sufficient to sustain the convictions for facilitation of kidnapping and that the court erred in imposing consecutive sentencing. Following our review, we affirm the judgments. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Joe Travis Northern Jr.
The defendant, Joe Travis Northern, Jr., was convicted by a Madison County Criminal Court jury of possession of more than one-half ounce of marijuana with the intent to sell or deliver, a Class E felony; possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony with a prior felony, a Class D felony; possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, a Class E felony; tampering with evidence, a Class D felony; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor, and was sentenced by the trial court as a Range II, multiple offender to an effective term of eighteen years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence in support of his convictions and argues that the trial court imposed an excessive sentence. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Caleb Wayne Dehoog
The defendant, Caleb Wayne DeHoog, was convicted by a Madison County Criminal Court jury of attempted aggravated burglary, a Class D felony; two counts of aggravated assault, Class C felonies; and one count of aggravated criminal trespass, a Class A misdemeanor. He was sentenced to three years for the attempted aggravated burglary, five years for each count of aggravated assault, and eleven months and twenty nine days for the aggravated criminal trespass. The court ordered that the sentences for the two aggravated assault convictions be served consecutively to each other but concurrently with the sentences on the other convictions, for an effective term of ten years. On appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and the trial court’s imposition of consecutive sentences. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Tamekia Shantell Jones
Defendant, Tamekia Shantell Jones, was charged with Class A misdemeanor theft from Macy’s store in an indictment returned by the Madison County Grand Jury. Following a jury trial, she was found guilty as charged. The trial court sentenced her to serve eleven months and twenty-nine days in the Madison County jail, to be served consecutively to a sentence for convictions in Hardeman County. In this appeal, Defendant’s sole issue is a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence to support the conviction. After a thorough review of the record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the trial court pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Lucian Alan Green
In a two-count indictment, appellant, Lucian Alan Green, was charged with burglary of a building other than a habitation and theft of property valued at more than $1,000 but less than $10,000, both Class D felonies. The jury found him guilty as charged, and the trial court sentenced him as a standard offender to concurrent terms of three years, six months at thirty percent release eligibility for each offense to be served in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Appellant now challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and the trial court’s sentencing decision. Upon our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Robertson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Kenneth James Morris
Kenneth James Morris (“the Defendant”) was convicted by a jury of manufacture of a Schedule II controlled substance within a drug-free zone and promotion of methamphetamine manufacture. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to 15 years. On appeal, the Defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his convictions and claims the jury improperly weighed certain testimony and incorrectly assessed the credibility of a witness. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Weakley | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James Tremelle Hunt
In this delayed direct appeal, the defendant, James Tremelle Hunt, challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his 2011 Davidson County Criminal Court jury convictions of one count of aggravated rape, one count of aggravated robbery, one count of attempted aggravated robbery, two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, and two counts of aggravated assault. Because the defendant failed to file a timely petition for post-conviction relief, the trial court lacked jurisdiction to grant the delayed appeal in this case. As a result, the appeal must be dismissed. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Brandon Jones
The defendant, Brandon Jones, was convicted of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, a Class E felony, and possession of a deadly weapon with intent to employ it in the commission of a dangerous felony, a Class D felony. He was sentenced to mandatory consecutive sentences of two years and four years for the respective convictions. On appeal, the defendant contends that: (1) the trial court erred by allowing evidence regarding the defendant’s custodial statements; (2) the trial court erred by allowing hearsay testimony regarding statements made by the passenger in the defendant’s car; (3) the trial court erred in allowing a police officer to testify as an expert and offer opinion testimony; and (4) the evidence is insufficient to support the two convictions. Following review of the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Billy Rapier
Defendant, Billy D. Rapier, and two co-defendants, Cassandra Haynes and Leveris Keller, were charged with aggravated robbery. Mr. Keller was also charged with felony evading arrest, and Defendant was charged with evading arrest. Pursuant to a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of the charges and received concurrent sentences of eight years for aggravated robbery and eleven months, twenty-nine days for evading arrest. On appeal, Defendant argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions because the defense of duress barred his convictions. We affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Robert Echols
A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant, Robert Echols, of aggravated robbery, aggravated burglary, and theft of property valued over $1,000. The trial court merged the theft of property conviction and the aggravated robbery conviction, and it ordered the Defendant to serve an effective sentence of twenty years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant contends that: (1) the admission of the victim’s preliminary hearing testimony violated his constitutional right to confront and cross-examine itnesses against him; (2) the trial court erred when it admitted into evidence an unsigned statement of the Defendant; (3) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his convictions; and (4) the trial court erred when it sentenced him. After a thorough review of the record and relevant authorities, we affirm the trial court’s judgments. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Desmond O'Brian Anderson and Camillia Harrison
A Madison County jury convicted Desmond Obrian Anderson of aggravated burglary, especially aggravated kidnapping, and aggravated robbery. The jury convicted Camillia Harrison of aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery. The trial court ordered the defendants to serve effective sentences of twenty years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, Defendant Anderson asserts that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions; (2) the trial court improperly denied his motion to sever after his codefendant had testified; and (3) the trial court erred when it failed to sentence him as an Especially Mitigated Offender. Defendant Harrison asserts that: (1) the trial court should have admitted the transcript of the preliminary hearing into evidence; and (2) the trial court should have severed the defendants’ charges in this case. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the trial court’s judgments. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Timothy A. Baxter v. State of Tennessee
A Madison County jury found the Petitioner, Timothy A. Baxter, guilty of aggravated assault, and the trial court sentenced him to a twelve-year sentence in the Tennessee Department of Correction. The Petitioner appealed, and this Court affirmed the conviction in State v. Timothy A. Baxter, No. W2012-00361-CCA-R3-CD, 2013 WL 1197867 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Jackson, March 25, 2013), perm. app. denied (Tenn. June 13, 2013). The Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, pro se, which he later amended with the assistance of counsel. The Petitioner subsequently filed a motion requesting that the post-conviction judge recuse himself. The post-conviction court held an evidentiary hearing on the motion to recuse and the petition for post-conviction relief, after which it denied both. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred when it denied his post-conviction petition because he received the ineffective assistance of counsel at trial, and he further contends that the post-conviction court erred when it denied his motion to recuse because there was a reasonable basis for questioning the post-conviction judge’s impartiality. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgments. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Carl Renee Brown v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Carl Renee Brown, appeals pro se from the summary dismissal of his 2013 petition for post-conviction relief, which challenged his 1987 convictions of criminal attempt to sell cocaine pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-6-417 (1982) (repealed 1989). Because the petition was filed decades beyond the applicable statute of limitations and because the petitioner failed to either allege or prove a statutory exception to the timely filing or a due process tolling of the statute of limitations, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jeremy Shane Grooms v. Gerald McAlister, Warden
In 2009, the Petitioner, Jeremy Shane Grooms, pleaded guilty to theft of property valued over $1,000 and aggravated burglary, and he was sentenced to eight years. One year of his sentence was to be served in jail, with the remainder to be served on community corrections. In December of 2009, a warrant was issued for the Petitioner’s arrest, alleging that he had violated his community corrections sentence by driving under the influence (“DUI”) and by attempting to break into and enter a vehicle. The warrant stated that the Petitioner had been sentenced to twelve years of community corrections for his original convictions. In 2014, the Petitioner filed a petition for habeas corpus relief, contending that his sentence had expired. The trial court dismissed the Petitioner’s petition. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the trial court erred when it dismissed his petition because “it met the qualifications for relief under the statute.” The State counters that the appeal is untimely and further that the habeas corpus court properly dismissed the petition. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the habeas corpus court’s dismissal of the Petitioner’s petition for habeas corpus relief. |
Cocke | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Justin Andrew Jones
Appellant, Justin Andrew Jones, pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of an intoxicant and was sentenced to eleven months and twenty- ine days, suspended to probation after forty-eight hours of incarceration. As part of the plea agreement, appellant reserved a certified question of law in which he challenged the denial of his motion to suppress. On appeal, appellant argues that the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress because the arresting officer did not have reasonable suspicion to stop appellant and because the officer was acting outside of his community caretaking function when he stopped appellant. Following our review of the briefs, the record, and the applicable law, we dismiss appellant’s appeal. |
Sevier | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Gregory Duff
A Knox County Criminal Court jury found the Defendant, Gregory Duff, guilty of two counts of aggravated kidnapping, Class B felonies. See T.C.A. § 39-13-304. The trial court merged the two counts and sentenced him as a Range II, multiple offender to nineteen years’ imprisonment at 100 percent release eligibility. In this appeal, the Defendant argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court erred in admitting 911 recordings into evidence. Upon review, we affirm the judgment 1 of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Larry Lee Smith
A Knox County Criminal Court jury found the Defendant, Larry Lee Smith, guilty of aggravated rape, a Class A felony, and two counts of ggravated kidnapping, Class B felonies. See T.C.A. §§ 39-13-502, -304. The trial court merged the two counts of aggravated kidnapping and sentenced the Defendant to an effective sentence of life without parole. On appeal, the Defendant argues that: (1) the trial court erred in allowing the State to introduce evidence of his prior felony convictions; and (2) the trial court erred in the manner in which it allowed the State to present proof of his prior convictions. Finding no reversible error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals |
