State of Tennessee v. Jeffery T. Siler
The pro se Defendant, Jeffrey T. Siler, appeals the Knox County Criminal Court’s order summarily dismissing his motion to correct a clerical error. See Tenn. R. Crim. P. 36. The State has filed a motion to affirm the trial court’s order pursuant to Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Rule 20. Following our review, we conclude that the State’s motion is well-taken and affirm the order of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Corey Allen Harris
The Defendant, Corey Allen Harris, was convicted after a jury trial of attempted second degree murder, aggravated assault, and employment of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, and he received an effective eighteen-year sentence. The Defendant filed a motion for a new trial asserting that the evidence was insufficient and that the prosecutor’s argument was so improper as to constitute plain error. On appeal, the Defendant renews the challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence and the prosecutor’s closing argument, and he asks for relief based on the omission from the jury instructions of the statutory definition of attempt. Because the jury was not properly instructed on the elements of the offense of attempted second degree murder, we reverse the convictions for attempted second degree murder and employment of a firearm during the commission of attempted second degree murder, and we remand for further proceedings. The aggravated assault conviction is affirmed. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Michael Ray Hogan
The Defendant, Michael Ray Hogan, appeals as of right from the Sullivan County Criminal Court’s revocation of his probation and reinstatement of the remainder of his four-year sentence based upon his committing new offenses, failing to report his arrests to his probation officer, and for failing to report to his probation officer. The Defendant contends that the trial court abused its discretion by: (1) finding that the Defendant violated his probation because the firearm and suspected marijuana were seized in violation of his Fourth Amendment rights; (2) considering proof that occurred after the violation warrant was filed; (3) and requiring the Defendant to serve the balance of his sentence in custody. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Sonya Nale
The Defendant, Sonya Nale, is charged by indictment with bribery of a public servant, a Class B felony. See T.C.A. § 39-16-102 (2018). After the trial court granted the Defendant’s motion to disqualify the Twelfth Judicial District Attorney’s office, we granted the State’s application for an interlocutory appeal pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 9 to review the trial court’s order. We reverse the trial court’s order disqualifying the district attorney general’s office from prosecuting the case. |
Bledsoe | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Sonya Nale - concurring in part and dissenting in part
I respectfully dissent from the majority’s holding that the trial court abused its discretion by disqualifying the Twelfth Judicial District Attorney General’s office. As noted by the majority, a trial court’s decision to disqualify a prosecutor or an entire district attorney general’s office is reviewed under an abuse of discretion standard. Clinard v. Blackwood, 46 S.W.3d 177, 182 (Tenn. 2001); State v . Culbreath, 30 S.W.3d 309, 313 (Tenn. 2000). A court abuses its discretion by “apply[ing] an incorrect legal standard, or reach[ing] a decision which is against logic or reasoning that caused an injustice to the party complaining.” State v. Shirley, 6 S.W.3d 243, 247 (Tenn. 1999); see Clinard, 46 S.W.3d at 182. |
Bledsoe | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Stanley Allen
The Shelby County Grand Jury issued an indictment charging Defendant, Stanley Allen, with aggravated statutory rape, solicitation of a minor, and sexual battery. Following a trial, a jury found Defendant guilty of solicitation of a minor and sexual battery. The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the charge of aggravated statutory rape. Defendant later entered a no contest plea to a lesser-included offense of assault by offensive touching on this charge. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed an effective one-year sentence suspended to three years of supervised probation, and the court denied Defendant’s request for judicial diversion. On appeal, Defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for sexual battery and that the trial court abused its discretion in denying judicial diversion. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jo C. Borden
Jo C. Borden, Defendant, pled guilty in an open plea in case number 19-360-3 to two counts of retaliation for past action and, in case number 19-361-3, to one count of vehicular assault; three counts of reckless aggravated assault; one count of reckless endangerment with a vehicle; and three counts of driving on a revoked license. The trial court sentenced Defendant to an effective sentence of five years in case number 19-360-3 and to an effective sentence of ten years in case number 19-361-3, and it aligned the sentences in the two cases consecutively. On appeal, Defendant argues that the trial court improperly sentenced him as a Range III, persistent offender, that it erred by imposing a sentence of confinement, and that it abused its discretion by aligning his sentences consecutively. After a thorough review, we determine that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by imposing consecutive sentences or by denying alternative sentencing but that the trial court erred in sentencing Defendant as a Range III, persistent offender. Accordingly, we remand for resentencing consistent with this opinion. |
Henderson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dashun Shackleford
The Defendant-Appellant, Dashun Shackleford, was convicted by a Knox County Criminal Court jury as charged in a twenty-count indictment; four alternative counts each of aggravated robbery against four victims and four corresponding counts of criminal gang offense enhancement. The trial court merged the aggravated robbery convictions into four counts and imposed a total effective sentence of twenty years’ incarceration to be served at 85 percent. On appeal, the Defendant argues that (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his gang enhancement convictions; and (2) the gang enhancement counts violate his constitutional rights to due process and expressive association. Upon our review, we conclude that the State failed to sufficiently prove the gang enhancement counts and failed to comply with the notice requirements mandated by Tennessee Code Annotated § 40-35- 121(g). Accordingly, we reverse and vacate the judgments in Counts 13 through 16, and remand for resentencing as to those counts. Because the gang enhancements are no longer applicable to the Defendant’s case, we decline to address the constitutional questions raised in this appeal. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Joshua V. Lowe
The Appellant, Joshua V. Lowe, pled guilty in the Maury County Circuit Court to theft of property valued at $10,000 or more but less than $60,000. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the Appellant received a sentence of six years in the Tennessee Department of Correction and was placed on probation. The trial court ordered restitution in the amount of $52,000 to be paid in monthly installments of $773. On appeal, the Appellant contends that the trial court abused its discretion by failing to consider the Appellant’s ability to pay when setting the amount of restitution. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Maury | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. McArthur Bobo
The Defendant-Appellant, McArthur Bobo, was convicted by a Shelby County criminal court jury of second-degree murder in 2009. Following a remand from our supreme court, the trial court held a new hearing on the Defendant’s motion for new trial on May 12, 2021, which the trial court denied. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred 1) in denying the motion for new trial because it was unable to act as thirteenth juror in determining the sufficiency of the evidence; 2) in failing to grant a mistrial or striking the testimony of a witness whose written statement was allegedly not provided to the Defendant; 3) in denying the Defendant’s motion to suppress; 4) in admitting jailhouse calls into evidence; 5) in allowing testimony that children were present near the shooting scene; and 6) in failing to grant a mistrial based on a totality of all errors. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Troy Springfield v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Troy Springfield, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing the post-conviction court erred in finding he received the effective assistance of counsel. After our review of the record, briefs, and applicable law, we affirm the denial of the petition. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jerry P. Haley v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Jerry P. Haley, appeals the denial of his petition for writ of error coram nobis by the Lauderdale County Circuit Court, arguing the coram nobis court erred in summarily dismissing the petition because newly discovered evidence exists which is material to his case. After our review, we affirm the denial of the petition. |
Lauderdale | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
James A. McCurry v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, James A. McCurry, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in finding that he received the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Following our review of the entire record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Misty Rose Brown
The Defendant-Appellant, Misty Rose Brown, acting pro se, was convicted of one count of child abuse and neglect and one count of facilitation of rape of a child following a trial. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to twelve years for the facilitation conviction and eleven months and twenty-nine days for the child abuse and neglect conviction, to be served concurrently. The Defendant, again acting pro se, appeals her convictions and argues that the evidence is insufficient to sustain her convictions. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Giles | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Rashad Dewayne Seay, Jr. v. State of Tennessee
A Wilson County jury convicted the Petitioner, Rashad Dewayne Seay, Jr., of two counts of the sale of .5 grams or more of a Schedule II controlled substance, and the trial court sentenced him to consecutive sentences of eighteen years for each offense. The Petitioner timely filed a petition for post-conviction relief, which the court summarily dismissed as untimely. On appeal, we reversed the summary dismissal. Rashad Dewayne Seay, Jr. v. State, No. M2017-01128-CCA-R3-PC, 2018 WL 3203442, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Nashville, June 29, 2018), no perm. app. filed. On remand, the post-conviction court held an evidentiary hearing after which it filed a written order denying the Petitioner relief. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred because his trial counsel was ineffective for failing to ensure the Petitioner was present during the jury instructions, failing to ensure that the jury was properly instructed, failing to adequately investigate and prepare an identification expert, and failing to inform the Petitioner of the consequences of withdrawing his direct appeal. After review, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment. |
Wilson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Melvin R. King, III v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Melvin R. King, III, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his convictions and effective life sentence for first degree felony murder, aggravated burglary, employing a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, three counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, reckless aggravated assault, attempted especially aggravated robbery, and aggravated animal cruelty. The Petitioner alleges that trial counsel was ineffective for: (1) failing to pursue intoxication as a defense; (2) failing to file a motion to suppress the Petitioner’s police statement because he was intoxicated when he gave it; (3) failing to adequately cross-examine a victim-witness who tampered with evidence at the crime scene and who gave an inconsistent prior statement; (4) failing to discuss the evidence tampering and inconsistent statement in closing argument; and (5) failing to poll the jurors to ensure they were not influenced by an improper communication from one of the jurors to the District Attorney General. In addition, the Petitioner argues that the cumulative effect of these errors deprived him of a fair trial. We affirm. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Clarence E. McCaleb v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Clarence E. McCaleb, appeals from the Knox County Criminal Court’s dismissal of his petition for post-conviction DNA analysis. The petition sought DNA testing of a fork found on the victim’s bedroom floor. The Petitioner now appeals, arguing that DNA analysis of the fork would result in a reasonable probability that he would not have been prosecuted or convicted if DNA profiles inconsistent with the Petitioner’s and the victim’s were discovered. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the postconviction court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James David Duncan
The Defendant, James David Duncan, was convicted by a Morgan County Criminal Court jury of attempted second degree murder, a Class B felony, and aggravated assault, a Class C felony. See T.C.A. §§ 39-13-210 (Supp. 2017) (subsequently amended) (second degree murder), 39-12-101 (2018) (criminal attempt), 39-13-102(a)(l)(A)(i) (Supp. 2017) (subsequently amended). The trial court sentenced the Defendant to sixteen years for attempted second degree murder and to eight years for aggravated assault, with the sentences to be served concurrently to each other and consecutively to an Anderson County conviction. On appeal, the Defendant contends that ( 1) prosecutorial misconduct occurred during voir dire, opening statement, and closing argument, (2) he is entitled to plain error relief because the trial court failed to conduct a hearing pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Evidence 404(b) regarding prior bad act evidence, (3) the court erroneously instructed the jury, and (4) cumulative trial errors require relief. We affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Morgan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. John Foxx
Defendant, John Foxx, was convicted following a jury trial of sale of less than .5 grams of a Schedule II controlled substance, delivery of less than .5 grams of a Schedule II controlled substance, and simple possession. The trial court ordered Defendant to serve an effective fifteen-year sentence after application of the criminal street gang enhancement statute. On appeal, Defendant argues that the trial court erred in applying the criminal street gang enhancement statute because the statute is unconstitutional and because the evidence was insufficient to support application of the criminal street gang enhancement statute. Following our review of the entire record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jayson Bryant Collier v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Jayson Bryant Collier, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his convictions for possession of one-half ounce or more of marijuana with the intent to sell or deliver within 1000 feet of a school, possession of a firearm with the intent to go armed during the commission of a dangerous felony, theft of property valued at five hundred dollars or less, unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, driving on a revoked license, and speeding. On appeal, he argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel, that his sentence violates the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article I, section 16 of the Tennessee Constitution, and that his sentence is illegal under Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1. After reviewing the record, the parties’ briefs, and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Montgomery | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Timothy A. Baxter v. Grady Perry
The Petitioner, Timothy A. Baxter, appeals the summary dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court. |
Wayne | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Gary Wayne Garrett
Gary Wayne Garrett filed a Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36 motion seeking correction of clerical errors in his judgments of conviction. Mr. Garrett claimed that he was entitled to pretrial jail credit on various counts, several of which were ordered to be served consecutively. The trial court issued a comprehensive written order finding that the judgments correctly awarded pretrial jail credit and dismissed the motion. We determine that this appeal is frivolous and affirm the dismissal of the motion. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Danny Ray Lacy v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Danny Ray Lacy, appeals the Wayne County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus for his first degree murder conviction, for which he received a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The Petitioner contends that the habeas corpus court erred by summarily dismissing his petition. We affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court. |
Wayne | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Vernell Evans
The petitioner, Vernell Evans, appeals the denial of his Rule 36.1 motion to correct an illegal sentence, asserting his sentences are illegal because the trial court incorrectly imposed 100% service requirements for each sentence. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Andrea Gonzalez Martinez
The defendant, Andrea Gonzalez Martinez, pleaded guilty to felon in possession of a handgun, and the trial court imposed a sentence of sixteen 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. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals |
