State of Tennessee v. Barry Leon Ferguson
The Appellant, Barry Leon Ferguson, pled guilty in the Dyer County Circuit Court to possession of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell or deliver, possession of oxycodone with intent to sell or deliver, and possession of marijuana with intent to sell or deliver and reserved a certified question of law concerning the sufficiency of the affidavit underlying the search warrant issued in this case. Based upon the oral arguments, the record, and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the trial court’s denial of the motion to suppress. |
Dyer | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Timothy McKinney
The defendant, Timothy McKinney, appeals his convictions for one count of attempted murder in the second degree, one count of employing a firearm during the commission of attempted murder in the second degree, two counts of reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, and three counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, for which he received an enhanced sentence of life in prison without possibility of parole as a repeat violent offender. On appeal, the defendant contends the trial court abused its discretion when allowing improper impeachment questions during the cross-examination of the defendant; the trial court erred when failing to declare a mistrial; the State tainted the trial with improper statements made during closing arguments; the trial court erred when sentencing the defendant to life in prison as a violent offender; and the cumulative effect of these errors prejudiced the defendant and entitle him to a new trial. Following our consideration of the arguments of the parties, record, briefs, and applicable law, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Timothy McKinney - Dissenting
I respectfully dissent. It is clear that the State committed prosecutorial error three times during closing arguments: (1) argument regarding “adequate provocation,” (2) argument regarding a hypothetical of the victim dying, and in so doing misstated the law, and (3) arguments that vouched as to the truth of State witnesses: (a) the victim, (b) Renardo Hibbler, (c) Javier McKissick, and (d) the police officers who worked the case. All of the improper arguments are set forth in the majority opinion. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jerry Brandon Phifer v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Jerry Brandon Phifer, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his convictions for aggravated burglary and theft of property valued over $1000. Petitioner argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel and that his convictions were based on evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution. After a review of the record and the briefs of the parties, we determine Petitioner has failed to establish that he received ineffective assistance of counsel and Petitioner’s Fourth Amendment claim is waived. Accordingly, the judgment of the post-conviction court is affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Ronald Henry Aho v. State of Tennessee
In 2012, the Warren County Grand Jury indicted Petitioner, Ronald Henry Aho, in case number F-13913 for aggravated burglary and theft of property over $1,000 but less than $10,000. Petitioner was also indicted in case number F-13974 for two counts each of aggravated burglary and theft of property over $1,000 but less than $10,000. In January 2014, Petitioner entered best interest guilty pleas in case numbers F-13913 and F-13974 to a total of two counts of aggravated burglary and two counts of theft over $1,000 but less than $10,000 in exchange for the dismissal of the remaining charges and the dismissal of charges contained in three additional indictments. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Petitioner was sentenced to serve a total effective sentence of twenty-three years, with the first fifteen years to be served at sixty percent release eligibility and the last eight years to be served at forty-five percent release eligibility. Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that he received ineffective assistance of counsel and that his pleas were unknowingly and involuntarily entered. Following an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief. After review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Warren | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Matthew Perry v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Matthew Perry, appeals the post-conviction court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief in which he challenged his convictions for first degree felony murder and attempted aggravated robbery. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by leaving before the close of the trial, which effectively pressured the Petitioner not to testify in his own defense, and by failing to introduce an exculpatory photograph into evidence. Upon reviewing the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Laylon Ward, Jr.
The Defendant, Laylon Ward, Jr., was convicted by a Dyer County jury of reckless aggravated assault. The trial court sentenced the Defendant as a Range II, multiple offender to eight years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant challenges his classification as a Range II offender, arguing that the trial court erred in considering two previous convictions as felonies. After a review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Dyer | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Carey Goodman
The Defendant, Carey Goodman, appeals the trial court’s order requiring him to serve his sentence in confinement after the revocation of his probation. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court in accordance with Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Angela L. Smith
The Defendant, Angela Smith, appeals her conviction for aggravated arson and her resulting sentence of thirty-five years at 100% as a Range II, multiple offender. On appeal, the Defendant raises issues challenging the sufficiency of the evidence, the photographic line-up, and her sentence. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Gibson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Richard Eugene Reed
The Defendant, Richard Eugene Reed, was convicted by a Knox County Criminal Court jury of possession with intent to sell 0.5 gram or more of cocaine in a drug-free school zone, a Class A felony; possession with intent to deliver 0.5 gram or more of cocaine in a drug-free school zone, a Class A felony; possession with intent to sell 0.5 gram or more of cocaine within a drug-free childcare zone, a Class B felony; possession with intent to deliver 0.5 gram or more in a drug-free childcare zone, a Class B felony; possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, a Class D felony; and unlawful possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, a Class D felony. See T.C.A. §§ 39-17-417 (2010) (amended 2012, 2014) (possession of 0.5 gram or more of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver), 39-17-432 (2014) (drug-free school zone and drug-free childcare zone enhancement), 39-13-1324 (2010) (amended 2012, 2014) (possession of firearm during commission of a dangerous felony), 39-17-1307 (2014) (amended 2017) (unlawful possession of a weapon by a convicted felon). The trial court merged the drug-related convictions and sentenced the Defendant to an effective twenty years’ confinement. On appeal, the Defendant contends that (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions and (2) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress. We affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Gregory Nelson v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Gregory Nelson, appeals as of right from the denial of post-conviction relief following an evidentiary hearing. After a review of the briefs of the parties, the postconviction court’s order, and the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Lauderdale | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Dwight Harris v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Dwight Harris, pled guilty in case no. 14-02706 to aggravated burglary. He received a six-year sentence as a Range II multiple offender. Petitioner pled guilty in case no. 15-00395 to aggravated burglary and theft of property valued at more than $1,000. He received an effective sentence of six years as a Range I standard offender to be served consecutively to the sentence in case no. 14-02706. Petitioner subsequently filed a post-conviction petition alleging that he received ineffective assistance of counsel and that his guilty pleas were involuntary. After a hearing on the petition, it was denied by the post-conviction court. On appeal, Petitioner also asserts that he did not receive the effective assistance of counsel and that his guilty pleas were not voluntary. Following our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the postconviction court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
John Ashley Snider v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, John Ashley Snider, pleaded guilty to six drug-related charges in exchange for an effective sentence of ten years of Community Corrections, after the service of eleven months and twenty-nine days. At the time of the plea, he reserved a certified question for appeal regarding law enforcement officers’ warrantless entry into his home and the seizure of his person. This court dismissed the appeal, holding that the certified question was not dispositive of the case. State v. John Ashley Snider, No. W2014-01848-CCA-R3-CD, 2015 WL 5014605, at *3-4 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Jackson, Aug. 25, 2015), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Dec. 14, 2015). The Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that he had received the ineffective assistance of counsel. The post-conviction court held a hearing, after which it denied the petition. On appeal, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
John Ashley Snider v. State of Tennessee - Concurring In Results Only
Trial counsel pursued an appeal following a guilty plea by Petitioner, wherein trial counsel’s work resulted in Petitioner’s appeal being dismissed for a procedural reason. The procedural reason for dismissal of the appeal was that the certified question of law was not dispositive of the case. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bryan Austin Demeza
The Tipton County Grand Jury indicted the Defendant, Bryan Austin DeMeza, on charges of aggravated child neglect, first degree felony murder, and three counts of aggravated child abuse. The Defendant filed a motion to suppress his statements to law enforcement, which the trial court denied. The jury convicted the Defendant as charged and sentenced him to life for the first degree murder conviction. At a sentencing hearing, the trial court merged the Defendant’s convictions for three counts of aggravated child abuse into his conviction for aggravated child neglect and sentenced the Defendant to twenty years to be served concurrently with his life sentence.The trial court denied the Defendant’s motion for new trial. On appeal, the Defendant argues that: (1) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress his statements because he was subject to custodial interrogations without being informed of his rights under Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966); (2) the trial court erred in admitting extrinsic evidence of the Defendant’s prior false statements under Tennessee Rules of Evidence 401 and 608(b); and (3) the evidence was insufficient for a rational juror to have found the Defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The State argues that the trial court erred in merging the Defendant’s three aggravated child abuse convictions into his aggravated child neglect conviction. After a thorough review of the evidence and applicable case law, we affirm the Defendant’s convictions for felony murder and three counts of aggravated child abuse. Because the evidence at trial was insufficient for a rational juror to have found the Defendant guilty of aggravated child neglect beyond a reasonable doubt but was sufficient for a finding of guilt of child neglect, we reduce the Defendant’s aggravated child neglect conviction to child neglect and remand for sentencing on the child neglect conviction. We also conclude that the trial court erred in merging the three aggravated child abuse convictions into the aggravated child neglect conviction and remand for sentencing on the Defendant’s three aggravated child abuse convictions. |
Tipton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Kortney Ball
Defendant was convicted by a Rutherford County Jury of driving under the influence (“DUI”), retaliation for past action, assault, and resisting arrest. The trial court sentenced Defendant to an effective sentence of two years, of which Defendant was ordered to serve six months in incarceration and the balance of the sentence on supervised probation. Defendant appeals his conviction for retaliation for past action, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to support the conviction. For the following reasons, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dewayne Jones
A jury convicted the Defendant, Dewayne Jones, of rape of a child, incest, and aggravated sexual battery for crimes committed against his daughter, and he was sentenced to an effective sentence of thirty-five years. The Defendant appeals, asserting (1) that the evidence was insufficient to sustain the convictions; (2) that the trial court committed error in questioning a witness; (3) that the trial court erred in failing to merge the convictions; (4) that the trial court improperly imposed consecutive sentences; (5) that the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction; and (6) that he is entitled to relief under a theory of cumulative error. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court and remand for correction of a judgment form to reflect the proper statutory provision for the conviction offense. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Corey Jones
A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant, Corey Jones, of aggravated kidnapping, robbery, aggravated burglary, and theft of property valued at $1,000 or more. The trial court imposed an effective nineteen-year sentence. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred in requiring that the Defendant wear physical restraints at trial and that the trial court made improper comments in the presence of the jury regarding the credibility of the State’s witnesses. Upon reviewing the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. We remand for entry of a corrected judgment reflecting a three-year sentence for the theft conviction. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Perry Lewis Sisco
Perry Lewis Sisco, the Defendant, was convicted by a jury of one count of rape of a child and four counts of rape and was sentenced to twenty-five years for rape of a child and to twelve years on each of the rape convictions. The four twelve-year sentences were ordered to be served concurrently with each other but consecutively to the twenty-five-year sentence, for a total effective sentence of thirty-seven years. On appeal, the Defendant claims that: (1) the trial court erred in denying the motion to suppress his statement; (2) the trial court erred in denying his motion for the recusal of the 13th Judicial District Attorney General and his staff; (3) the trial court abused its discretion in sentencing; and (4) there was insufficient evidence to sustain the convictions. Discerning no error, we affirm. |
Putnam | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v Lesandru Deniesh Webster
Defendant, Lesandru Deniesh Webster, was convicted of aggravated robbery and especially aggravated kidnapping. She received an effective sentence of thirty-five years and six months. On appeal, Defendant argues that she was denied her right to a jury selected from a fair cross-section of the community and that the evidence was insufficient to support her convictions. After review, we hold that Defendant is not entitled to relief. The judgments of the trial court are affirmed. |
Maury | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Christopher M. Mullins
The defendant, Christopher M. Mullins, appeals the revocation of the six-year probationary sentence imposed for his 2013 conviction of manufacturing .5 grams or more of methamphetamine, arguing that the trial court erred by ordering that he serve the balance of his sentence in confinement. Discerning no error, we affirm. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
James Allen v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, James Allen, appeals the denial of post-conviction relief from his 2013 Washington County Criminal Court jury convictions of first degree murder and possession of a firearm with intent to employ it during the commission of first degree murder, for which he received a life sentence. In this appeal, the petitioner contends only that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Discerning no error, we affirm. |
Washington | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Antwuan Matias Gordon
Defendant, Antwuan Matias Gordon, entered an open guilty plea to one count of driving a motor vehicle after having been declared a habitual motor vehicle offender, in violation of Tennessee Code Annotated section 55-10-616. The trial court sentenced Defendant to serve four years in incarceration. On appeal, Defendant argues that the trial court erred by denying an alternative sentence. After a review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Benjamin Tate Brown
The Defendant, Benjamin Tate Brown, was indicted for driving under the influence (DUI), driving while his blood alcohol concentration was .08% or more (DUI per se); and DUI, second offense. Following a bench trial, the Defendant was found guilty of DUI, second offense, and the remaining charges were dismissed. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred in not suppressing the evidence because the officer lacked probable cause to stop his vehicle and in finding the offense was a second offense because his convictions were more than ten years apart. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Timothy Mark Hartsfield
In 2016, the Defendant, Timothy Mark Hartsfield, entered a best interest plea to possession of methamphetamine, possession of synthetic marijuana, and unlawful possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony. The Defendant reserved a certified question of law pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 37(b)(2) as to whether the search of the Defendant’s residence was valid based on statements made by the investigating officer in the search warrant application. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to ten years of incarceration. After a thorough review of the record and relevant authorities, we affirm the trial court’s judgment. |
Lawrence | Court of Criminal Appeals |
