State of Tennessee v. Andre Perkins
The defendant, Andre Perkins, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of one count of voluntary manslaughter, a Class C felony, and one count of theft of property over $1000, a Class D felony. The trial court subsequently sentenced the defendant as a Range I, standard offender to consecutive sentences of six years and four years for the respective convictions. On appeal, the defendant asserts that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to support the convictions; and (2) the sentences imposed are excessive based upon the erroneous application of enhancement factors, the failure to apply mitigating factors, and the imposition of consecutive sentencing. Following review of the record, we conclude that the evidence is sufficient to support the conviction for voluntary manslaughter, and we affirm that conviction. However, review of the record reveals that the State failed to establish the element of value with regard to the theft conviction. As such, we modify the conviction to one for theft of property less than $500, a Class A misdemeanor, and remand to the trial court for re-sentencing. With regard to the sentence for voluntary manslaughter, we conclude that the trial court erred in its application of two enhancement factors. The record does support the trial court’s refusal to apply mitigating factors and its imposition of consecutive sentencing. Nonetheless, because of the errors which occurred in sentencing, we remand the case for re-sentencing in accordance with the principles set forth in this opinion. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Joseph Ray Pinson
A McNairy County jury convicted the Defendant-Appellant, Joseph Ray Pinson (“Pinson”), of rape of a child. The trial court sentenced Pinson to twenty years in confinement to be served at 100%. The sole issue for our review is whether the evidence is sufficient to support the conviction. However, we lack jurisdiction to review this matter because there is no order reflecting the trial court’s ruling on Pinson’s motion for new trial. Because the record clearly shows the trial court denied Pinson relief, we remand this case for supplementation of the record with an order denying Pinson’s motion for new trial. |
McNairy | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Willie Andrew Cole
The defendant, Willie Andrew Cole, was convicted by a Davidson County jury of first degree premeditated murder and tampering with evidence, a Class C felony. He was subsequently sentenced by the trial court as a repeat violent offender to concurrent terms of life without the possibility of parole for the first degree murder conviction and six years for the tampering with evidence conviction, to be served consecutively to a previous life sentence for second degree murder. In a timely appeal to this court, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence in support of his first degree murder conviction and argues that the trial court erred by admitting evidence of his prior bad acts, not suppressing his statement, denying his motion to relieve trial counsel, and not addressing alleged prosecutorial misconduct. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Rickey E. Hutchings
The Defendant, Rickey E. Hutchings, appeals as of right from the Williamson County Circuit Court’s revocation of his 1994 probationary sentence for possession of contraband in a penal institution. On June 22, 1998, a warrant was issued against the Defendant, alleging a violation of probation based upon the Defendant’s arrest in Gulfport, Mississippi for possession of approximately one hundred pounds of marijuana with the intent to sell. The warrant was not served on the Defendant until November 27, 2007, and was thereafter amended to include additional criminal behavior. On appeal, the Defendant argues that the delay between the issuance of the probation violation warrant and his revocation hearing violated his right to a speedy revocation hearing and, therefore, that the trial court erred by denying his motion to dismiss the warrants. Because the Defendant was denied the right to a speedy probation revocation hearing, the judgment of the trial court is reversed, and the warrants against the Defendant are dismissed. |
Williamson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Darius Jones
The defendant, Darius Jones, was convicted of one count of first degree felony murder, four counts of aggravated robbery, three counts of attempted especially aggravated robbery, two counts of attempted aggravated robbery, and one count of aggravated burglary. He was sentenced to consecutive sentences of life with the possibility of parole for the felony murder, ten years for each of the aggravated robberies and attempted especially aggravated robberies, and four years for each of the attempted aggravated robberies and the aggravated burglary, for an effective sentence of life plus eighty-one years. On direct appeal, this court affirmed all of the defendant’s convictions and his life sentence for the felony murder conviction but remanded for resentencing on the remaining convictions in light of Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296 (2004). This court also ordered that the trial court revisit the issue of consecutive sentencing and place its specific findings on the record. After being resentenced to life plus fifty-four years, the defendant appeals again, arguing the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentences. Following our review, we conclude that the trial court did not revisit the issue of consecutive sentencing and place specific findings in the record regarding its determination. Accordingly, we remand this matter a second time for the court to do so. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Tyree Robinson
A Shelby County jury convicted the defendant, Tyree Robinson, of first degree premeditated murder, felony murder, and especially aggravated robbery. On his first direct appeal, this court held that the trial court committed reversible error when it failed to instruct the jury, in response to its question, that accomplices could not corroborate each other and then remanded for a new trial. After retrial, the defendant was again convicted of the above three offenses and sentenced to life imprisonment and twenty years, to be served consecutively. On appeal, the defendant argues under an umbrella challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence that: (1) the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury that two of the witnesses, Ilyas Morris and Mieko Saulsberry, were accomplices as a matter of law, and (2) even assuming those witnesses were not accomplices, their testimony was insufficient to corroborate the testimony of the defendant’s accomplices. Upon review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court but remand for entry of amended judgments to reflect the correct offense date. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Brent Walker
The defendant, Brent Walker, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of three counts of second offense driving under the influence, which the trial court merged into a single conviction; one count of reckless driving; one count of refusal to submit to a blood-alcohol concentration test while driving on a revoked license with license revoked for prior driving under the influence; and one count of driving on a revoked license. He was sentenced to an effective term of one year to be served in confinement and five months, twenty-nine days on probation. The defendant appeals, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions and that the trial court imposed an excessive sentence. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jason M. Justice
The defendant, Jason M. Justice, was convicted by a Madison County Circuit Court jury of first degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence, the trial court’s admission of evidence concerning an alleged robbery of the defendant by the victim, and the trial court’s admission of text messages between the defendant’s girlfriend and another witness. After our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Rodney Welch v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Rodney Welch, appeals from the Gibson County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his “Petition to Alter or Amend Sentence,” in which he seeks a judicial determination that the Department of Correction has incorrectly calculated his sentence end date and that he is entitled to immediate release. He also challenges the trial court’s taxing of costs to him. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Gibson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Gregory D. McDaniel v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner appeals the summary dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. The petitioner asserts that he received ineffective assistance of counsel at his probation revocation proceedings. Upon review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Donald Bradley Williams
The defendant, Donald Bradley Williams, pled guilty to one count of evading arrest while operating a motor vehicle, a Class E felony, and one count of joyriding, a Class A misdemeanor. The parties agreed to a six year sentence on the felony evading arrest conviction and an eleven month and twenty-nine day sentence on the joyriding conviction, to be served concurrently. At sentencing the trial court found that the sentences should be served consecutively to a previous sentence for which he was incarcerated. The defendant challenges the consecutive sentencing in this appeal. After reviewing the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jason Malone and Harold Robinson
Defendants Jason Malone and Harold Robinson, along with co-Defendant Johnny Miller, were indicted and tried jointly for aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary. Defendant Miller’s case is not part of this appeal. Following the jury trial, Defendant Malone was found guilty of aggravated robbery, a Class B felony, in count one of the indictment, and the lesser included offense of criminal trespass, a Class C misdemeanor, in count two. Defendant Robinson was found guilty of aggravated robbery in count one, and not guilty of aggravated burglary in count two. The trial court sentenced Defendant Malone as a Range II, multiple offender, to nineteen years for his aggravated robbery conviction, and to a concurrent sentence of thirty days for his criminal trespass conviction. The trial court sentenced Defendant Robinson to sixteen years for his aggravated robbery conviction. In their appeal, Defendant Malone and Defendant Robinson challenge the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. After a thorough review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Thomas Dewayne Moffatt
This appeal involves the question of whether a passenger in a car may be subjected to a pat-down search following a traffic stop if officers suspect the presence of a weapon. The appellee, Thomas Dewayne Moffatt, was indicted by an Obion County grand jury for possession of more than .5 grams of Schedule II cocaine with intent to sell or deliver within 1000 feet of a park (a Class B felony) and tampering with evidence (a Class C felony). He was the passenger in a car which was stopped for a traffic violation, and officers testified that, based upon their belief that a weapon was present, both the driver and the passenger were asked to exit the vehicle with the intent to conduct a pat-down search for weapons. The appellee filed a motion to suppress the evidence seized, the drugs, asserting that the officers did not have reasonable suspicion or probable cause to search him. After hearing testimony at the motion to suppress hearing, the Obion County Circuit Court, relying upon Johnson v. State, 601 S.W.2d 326 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1980), concluded that “there was nothing amiss” and that the officers were not entitled to conduct the pat-down search. Because the State was unable to prosecute the case without the suppressed evidence, the charges against the appellee were dismissed. The State now appeals the denial of the motion to suppress. Following review of the record, we conclude that the trial court erred in granting the motion as the evidence presented preponderates against the court’s findings. As such, we reverse the court’s decision granting the motion, and the case is remanded to the trial court for further action consistent with this opinion. |
Obion | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
William C. Brothers v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, William C. Brothers, filed a petition for habeas corpus relief in the Circuit Court for Lauderdale County (hereinafter “habeas corpus court”) seeking relief from his two convictions for aggravated sexual battery. The habeas corpus court dismissed the petition, and the petitioner now appeals. Upon our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we reverse the dismissal of the petition and remand with instructions for the habeas corpus court to transfer the case to the convicting court for correction of the judgments to reflect that the petitioner is required to provide a specimen for DNA analysis in compliance with Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-35-321. |
Lauderdale | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Brandon McCaslin v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Brandon McCaslin, appeals the dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief in which he alleged that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance of counsel at trial and on appeal. Specifically, Petitioner contends that trial counsel was ineffective because he failed (1) to challenge certain prospective jurors during voir dire; (2) to object to the State’s admission of evidence that Petitioner had a prior conviction for the unauthorized use of a vehicle; (3) to request the trial court to instruct the jury on the use of impeachment evidence; and (4) to preserve and raise issues on appeal other than the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that Petitioner has failed to show that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance and affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Dyer | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Marvin Senathan Hall, Jr.
The defendant, Marvin Senathan Hall, Jr., was convicted by a Tipton County Circuit Court jury of reckless aggravated assault, reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, and felon in possession of a handgun and sentenced as a multiple offender to four years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that (1) the trial court erred in allowing evidence of his prior felony conviction to be presented to the jury when he offered to stipulate to such, and (2) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Tipton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Albert F. Kelly v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Albert F. Kelly, proceeding pro se, presents a Rule 3 appeal from the Shelby County Criminal Court’s summary denial of his motion to reopen his post-conviction petition. In his motion to reopen, the petitioner asserted a new rule of constitutional law and relied upon Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 120 S. Ct. 2348 (2000); Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004); Cunningham v. California, 549 U.S. 270, 127 S. Ct. 856 (2007); and State v. Gomez, 239 S.W.3d 733 (2007) (“Gomez II”), to support his argument that he is entitled to have his sentence reduced to the minimum within the range, as the trial court, not the jury, found applicable enhancement factors. The post-conviction court summarily denied the petition, finding that the petitioner had failed to assert a valid statutory basis for a motion to reopen a post-conviction petition. Following the denial, the petitioner filed a Rule 3 notice of appeal in the Shelby County Criminal Court. Because the petitioner has failed to comply with the statutory requirements for appealing the denial of a motion to reopen, this court is without jurisdiction to review the merits of the issue presented. Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dan Maturen
The defendant, Dan Maturen, appeals the order of the Shelby County Criminal Court revoking his probation. The defendant, pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement, pled guilty to aggravated burglary, a Class C felony, and received a four-year suspended sentence. Subsequently, a probation violation warrant was filed alleging that the defendant had violated the terms and conditions of his probation. Following a hearing, his probation was revoked, and he was ordered to serve the balance of his sentence. On appeal, although conceding that he violated the conditions of probation, the defendant argues that the State’s interests in punishment, deterrence, and insuring restitution to victims would be best served by reinstating his probation. Finding no abuse of discretion in the revocation, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Thomas E. Kotewa v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Thomas Edward Kotewa, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. He pled guilty to second degree murder and received an agreed-upon sentence of fifteen years as a Range I, violent offender. On appeal, he contends that: he received ineffective assistance of counsel; his guilty plea was not entered knowingly and voluntarily; the post-conviction court erred by failing to enter specific factual findings or legal conclusions; and Supreme Court Rule 28 was violated by both the State and the post-conviction court. After careful review, we affirm the judgment from the post-conviction court. |
Anderson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jasper D. Lewis v. State of Tennessee
The Appellant, Jasper D. Lewis, appeals the trial court's dismissal of his petition for habeas corpus relief. The Appellant fails to assert a cognizable claim for which habeas corpus relief may be granted. Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Dennis Wayne Merriweather v. State of Tennessee
Appellant, Dennis Wayne Merriweather, filed a petition for the writ of habeas corpus in which he alleged that his fifteen year sentence for selling controlled substances within 1,000 feet of a school renders the judgment imposed as a result of his guilty plea void because the judgment provides the sentence is to be served at 100%. Because we find the judgment is not void, we hold the habeas court properly dismissed the habeas corpus petition. Accordingly, the judgment of the lower courtis affirmed. |
Hickman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Phyllis Ann Amos
Defendant, Phyllis Ann Amos, entered pleas of guilty to possession of marijuana, a Class E felony; possession of 0.5 grams or more of cocaine, a Class B felony; maintaining a dwelling where controlled substances are kept or sold, a Class D felony; possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor; and felony possession of dihydrocodone, a Class D felony. In accordance with the negotiated plea agreement, Defendant accepted concurrent sentences of eleven months, twenty-nine days for her misdemeanor conviction, one year for her Class E felony conviction, two years for each Class D felony conviction, and ten years for her Class B felony conviction. The felony sentences are as a Range I, standard offender. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed the agreed upon sentences and ordered Defendant to serve her sentences in confinement. On appeal, Defendant argues that the trial court erred in refusing to grant alternative sentencing. After a thorough review of the record, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Ronald Fielding v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Ronald Fielding, appeals as of right the Davidson County Criminal Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief challenging his convictions for three counts of rape of a child, two counts of aggravated sexual battery and one count of rape for which he received an effective fifty-year sentence to be served in the custody of the Department of Correction. On appeal, he alleges that his guilty plea was involuntary and that both trial and appellate counsel were ineffective. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Ronald Fielding v. State of Tennessee - Dissenting
I respectfully dissent. I concur with the analysis in the majority opinion, as far as it goes. I am concerned, though, with the trial court’s ruling that the Petitioner’s claims against trial counsel had been previously determined. I conclude that the record reflects that the Petitioner did not receive a full and fair hearing regarding trial counsel’s representation. I believe the case should be remanded to allow such a hearing on that issue. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dwight Woodlee
he defendant, Dwight Woodlee, appeals as of right his guilty plea convictions for vandalism and civil rights intimidation, both Class D felonies, for which the trial court imposed concurrent four-year sentences to be served on probation. He contends that the trial court erred in denying his application for judicial diversion. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Warren | Court of Criminal Appeals |
