COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINIONS

Marlon Fitzgerald v. State of Tennessee
W2006-01603-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Judge Paula L. Skahan

The Appellant, Marlon Fitzgerald, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief by the Shelby County Criminal Court. Fitzgerald was convicted by a jury of first degree premeditated murder, felony murder, and theft of property. On direct appeal, this court affirmed the convictions and held that there was sufficient evidence to support the convictions and that the trial court’s failure to charge the jury with lesser-included offenses was harmless error. Fitzgerald then filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging the ineffective assistance of counsel, which the post-conviction court denied following an evidentiary hearing. After a review of the entire record on appeal and the arguments of the parties, we affirm.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Reginald Cortez Richardson
W2006-02372-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Judge J. Weber McCraw

The Appellant, Reginald Cortez Richardson, was convicted by a McNairy County jury of two counts of Class B delivery of cocaine and was sentenced, as a Range II offender, to concurrent  twelve-year sentences in the Department of Correction. On appeal, Richardson raises the single issue of whether the evidence is sufficient to support his convictions. Following review, the judgments of conviction are affirmed.

McNairy Court of Criminal Appeals

Edward L. Williams v. State of Tennessee
E2006-02408-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge Richard R. Baumgartner

Following a jury trial, the petitioner, Edward L. Williams, was convicted of premeditated first degree murder and especially aggravated robbery. The trial court imposed consecutive sentences of life for the murder conviction and twenty-two years for the especially aggravated robbery conviction. On direct appeal, this court remanded for entry of an amended judgment reflecting a sentence of life with the possibility of parole and deleting any reference to a merger of the premeditated murder count and the felony murder count. The court further ordered that the sentences run concurrently rather than consecutively. The judgment of the trial court was otherwise affirmed. State v. Edward L. Williams, No. E2002-00325-CCA-R3-CD, 2003 WL 22462533 (Tenn. Crim. App. at Knoxville, Oct. 31, 2003), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Dec. 19, 2005). The petitioner filed a timely petition for post-conviction relief which the post-conviction court subsequently denied after an evidentiary hearing. The petitioner now appeals. In this appeal, the petitioner contends that his trial counsel was ineffective. Following a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Knox Court of Criminal Appeals

Cornelius Boales v. State of Tennessee
W2006-01866-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge Donald H. Allen

Petitioner was convicted by a jury of one count of felony possession of cocaine with intent to sell, a class B felony, and one count of felony possession of marijuana with the intent to sale, a class E felony. Petitioner was sentenced as a Range I offender to twelve years for the cocaine conviction and two years for the marijuana conviction to be served concurrently in the Tennessee Department of Correction and a $100,000 fine. Petitioner’s conviction was affirmed by this court. See State v. Boales, 2005 WL 517538, at *1. (Tenn. Crim. App., at Jackson, March 3, 2005) perm. app. denied (Tenn. June 27, 2005). This Court also affirmed his sentence as to incarceration, but reduced the fine imposed to $50,000. See Boales, 2005 WL 517538. Petitioner timely filed a petition for postconviction relief alleging ineffective assistance of trial counsel. The trial court dismissed the petition. After a thorough review of the record of the post-conviction hearing, this Court affirms the judgment of the trial court dismissing the petition.

Henderson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. James William Gann, Jr.
M2006-01230-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge L. Craig Johnson

The defendant, James William Gann, Jr., was convicted of first degree premeditated murder, arson, and setting fire to personal property. See T.C.A. §§ 39-13-202(a)(1), -14-301(a)(1), -14-303(a) (1997). He received a sentence of life with the possibility of parole for the premeditated murder conviction. The trial court imposed a sentence of six years for the arson conviction and two years for the setting fire to personal property conviction to be served consecutively to each other and to the murder conviction for an effective sentence of life plus eight years. In this appeal, the defendant asserts (1) that the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions, (2) that the trial court erred in the admission of certain evidence, (3) that the State engaged in prosecutorial misconduct, and (4) that his sentence is excessive. Upon our review of the record, there is no reversible error and the judgments of the trial court are affirmed.

Coffee Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Walter Martin
W2006-01148-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge James C. Beasley, Jr.

The Defendant, Walter Martin, was convicted of rape, a Class B felony, and sentenced to ten years at 100% in the Department of Correction. On direct appeal, he argues that the evidence was insufficient to establish Shelby County as the proper venue for his trial and that he was erroneously sentenced. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court and the Defendant’s sentence but remand for correction of two clerical errors made in the judgment of conviction.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Richard Yarbrough
E2005-02659-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge Richard R. Baumgartner

The defendant, Richard Yarbrough, was convicted by a Knox County jury of the sale of less than 0.5 grams of cocaine, the delivery of less than 0.5 grams of cocaine, and possession of drug paraphernalia. The convictions for sale and delivery were merged, and the defendant was subsequently sentenced to eleven years for that conviction and eleven months and twenty-nine days for the paraphernalia conviction, with the sentences to run concurrently. On appeal, he contends that: the evidence was insufficient to convict him for the sale and delivery of cocaine because the sale was incomplete; the trial court erred in allowing a bag containing rock cocaine-like pieces of evidence to be introduced during trial; and the trial court erred in sentencing. After review, we conclude that no error exists and affirm the judgment from the trial court.

Knox Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Adrian Porterfield
W2006-00169-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge W. Fred Axley

The defendant, Adrian Porterfield, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of voluntary
manslaughter, a Class C felony, and was sentenced to serve four years and six months in the county workhouse as a Range I, standard offender. On appeal, the defendant challenges the trial court’s judgment on grounds that: (1) the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction; (2) the trial erred in admitting a hearsay statement by the victim; (4) the trial court erred in not allowing evidence of drugs found on the victim’s body; (5) the trial court erred in not allowing testimony of a statement the victim made to police regarding his involvement in a robbery of the defendant; (6) the trial court erred in denying alternative sentencing; and (7) the length of his sentence is excessive. We affirm the trial court but remand the case for a corrected judgment because the sentence imposed in the judgment conflicts with the sentence reflected in the sentencing hearing transcript.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Davidson M. Taylor - Concurring
W2006-00543-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Paula L. Skahan

I fully concur in the judgment of the Court that Appellant’s convictions and sentences should be affirmed. However, I disagree with the majority’s rationale concerning the striking by the trial court of Ms. Taylor’s testimony that she had never seen her husband intoxicated.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Davidson M. Taylor
W2006-00543-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Judge Paula L. Skahan

The Appellant, Davidson M. Taylor, appeals his convictions by a Shelby County jury for felony evading arrest in a motor vehicle and driving under the influence (“DUI”). For his felony conviction, Taylor received a one-year suspended sentence. Taylor was also sentenced to eleven months and twenty-nine days for the DUI conviction, with forty-eight hours to be served in confinement. On appeal, Taylor argues that the trial court misapplied established rules of evidence when it ruled that a defense witness’ testimony be stricken. Following review of the record before us, we find no error and affirm the judgments of conviction and resulting sentences.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Lavon Nunnery
M2006-02054-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge Jerry Scott

After a bench trial, the Rutherford County Circuit Court convicted the defendant, Lavon Nunnery, of misdemeanor assault for threatening to turn his pit bulldog loose on his neighbor. The trial court subsequently sentenced him to eleven months, twenty-nine days in the county workhouse, to be served consecutively to the three-year sentence for assault with a deadly weapon for which he was on probation at the time of the instant offense. In a timely appeal to this court, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence, arguing that the proof was insufficient to show that the victim reasonably feared imminent bodily injury from the dog. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Rutherford Court of Criminal Appeals

Mindy Sue Dodd v. State of Tennessee
M2006-02384-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge James K. Clayton, Jr.

The petitioner, Mindy Sue Dodd, was convicted by a Rutherford County jury of first degree murder and conspiracy to commit first degree murder in the death of her husband, Sherman Henry Dodd. She received concurrent sentences of life in prison and twenty years. This court affirmed her convictions on direct appeal, and her application for permission to appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court was denied. State v. Mindy S. Dodd, No. M2002-01882-CCA-R3-CD, 2003 WL 22999444, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Dec. 23, 2003), perm. to appeal denied (Tenn. June 1, 2004). The petitioner sought post-conviction relief alleging, inter alia, denial of her constitutional right to effective assistance of counsel. After a hearing, the post-conviction court found that the petitioner had failed to show that her trial counsel was ineffective and dismissed her petition. Following our review of the record and the findings of the post-conviction court, we affirm the dismissal of the petition.

Rutherford Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Joseph Hall
E2006-02403-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge R. Steven Bebb

Following a jury trial, Joseph Hall was convicted of two counts of aggravated sexual battery. Defendant was sentenced to ten years for each count to run concurrently. On appeal, Defendant argues (1) the trial court erred by failing to require that the state provide defense counsel with taped forensic interviews of the victims; (2) the evidence was legally insufficient to convict Defendant of aggravated sexual battery; and (3) the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of attempted aggravated sexual battery. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

McMinn Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Robert Christopher Maclin
W2006-02546-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge Joseph H. Walker, III

The Defendant, Robert Christopher Maclin, was convicted of driving on a revoked license and possession of more than .5 grams of cocaine with intent to deliver. He was sentenced as a Range II, multiple offender to thirteen years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his cocaine conviction because he was not in possession of cocaine when he was arrested. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Tipton Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Antonio Currie
W2006-02764-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge W. Otis Higgs, Jr.

The defendant, Antonio Currie, was convicted of voluntary manslaughter, a Class C felony, and sentenced as a Range II, multiple offender to seven years in the county workhouse. On appeal, he argues that the evidence is insufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court erred in denying probation. Based on our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Allen Jean Stephens v. State of Tennessee
W2006-02773-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge William B. Acree

A Weakley County Circuit Court jury convicted the petitioner, Allen Jean Stephens, of possession of more than one-half gram of cocaine with intent to sell and possession of drug paraphernalia, and the trial court sentenced him as a Range III, persistent offender to an effective sentence of twenty three years in confinement. This court affirmed the petitioner’s convictions. See State v. Allen Jean Stephens, No. M2004-00531-CCA-R3-CD, 2005 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 668 (Jackson, June 23, 2005), perm. to appeal denied, (Tenn. 2005). Subsequently, the petitioner filed a petition for postconviction relief, and the post-conviction court denied the petition after an evidentiary hearing. On appeal, the petitioner contends that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel because his trial attorney failed to argue at his pretrial suppression hearing that no probable cause existed for a search warrant to be issued for his home and failed to argue on direct appeal that the trial court did not make a necessary finding of fact regarding the motion to suppress. Based upon the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Weakley Court of Criminal Appeals

Tony Alan Winsett v. State of Tennessee
W2007-00149-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Judge William B. Acree

The Appellant, Tony Alan Winsett, appeals the Obion County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his “Motion for Delayed Appeal” following the Circuit Court’s March 28, 2006 dismissal of his pro se petition for post-conviction relief, which alleged only that his sentence was illegal. On January 9, 2007, Winsett, proceeding pro se, filed a “Motion for Delayed Appeal” seeking to appeal the March 2006 dismissal of the petition. In his motion, Winsett also asserted new grounds for relief, including ineffective assistance of counsel and a motion to suppress issue. After review, we conclude that this court is without jurisdiction to entertain the appeal. See Tenn. R. App. P. 3(b). Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed.

Obion Court of Criminal Appeals

Christopher Brown v. Tony Parker, Warden (State Of Tennessee)
W2007-01122-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge Joseph H. Walker, III

The Petitioner, Christopher Brown, appeals the trial court's denial of his petition for habeas corpus relief. The State has filed a motion requesting that this Court affirm the trial court's denial of relief pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. Petitioner has failed to allege any ground that would render the judgments of conviction void. Accordingly, we grant the State's motion and affirm the judgment of the lower court.

Lauderdale Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Robin Chambers
E2006-02147-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge R. Jerry Beck

The defendant, Robin M. Chambers, pled guilty to twenty-two counts of forgery, Class E felonies, twenty-three counts of identity theft, Class D felonies, three counts of theft of property under $500, Class A misdemeanors, and one count of criminal impersonation, a Class B misdemeanor. The defendant was sentenced to fourteen years and six months in confinement as a Range I, standard offender. The defendant was denied alternative sentencing by the trial court. On appeal, the defendant argues that the trial court erred in denying her alternative sentencing instead of the imposed term of confinement. Following our review of the full record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Sullivan Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Calvin Renard Steel
W2006-02032-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge Joseph H. Walker, III

The defendant, Calvin Renard Steel, was convicted by a Lauderdale County jury of possession with the intent to deliver one-half gram or more of cocaine, a Class B felony, and received a sentence of twelve years as a Range II, multiple offender. In this appeal, he contends that the evidence was not sufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence. We conclude that no error exists, and we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Lauderdale Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Dontae Lamont Brown
W2006-01800-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge Joseph H. Walker, III

A Lauderdale County Circuit Court jury convicted the appellant, Dontae Lamont Brown, of attempted first degree murder and aggravated assault. The trial court sentenced him to thirty-two years and eight years, respectively, and merged the convictions. On appeal, the appellant contends that (1) the evidence is insufficient to support the convictions, (2) the trial court erred by giving the jury a flight instruction, and (3) the trial court improperly enhanced his sentences. Based upon the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the jury’s guilty verdicts and the appellant’s thirty-two-year sentence for attempted murder. However, given that the trial court merged the aggravated assault conviction into the attempted murder conviction, the court should have entered only one judgment of conviction. Therefore, we remand the case for the trial court to enter a single judgment reflecting the merger of the convictions.

Lauderdale Court of Criminal Appeals

Curtis Buford v. State of Tennessee
W2006-02125-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge Paula L. Skahan

The petitioner, Curtis Buford, was convicted in the Shelby County Criminal Court of aggravated robbery, and he received a sentence of twenty years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Subsequently, the petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that his counsel was ineffective. The post-conviction court denied the petition, and the petitioner now appeals. Upon review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Leroine Martin v. State of Tennessee
E2006-02280-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Mary Beth Leibowitz

The Petitioner, Leroine Martin, pled guilty to two counts of second degree murder and one count of aggravated robbery. He filed a petition for post-conviction relief alleging that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel prior to and during the guilty plea proceedings. The post-conviction court denied his petition. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment.

Knox Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Matthew Jordan Buentiempo
E2006-01791-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.

The Appellant, Matthew Jordan Buentiempo, appeals the order of the Blount County Circuit Court revoking his probation and reinstating his original sentences of confinement. On appeal, Buentiempo alleges that the trial court erred in revoking his probation. After a review of the record, we affirm.

Blount Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Michael R. King
M2006-01932-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge George C. Sexton

The defendant, Michael R. King, was indicted by the Dickson County Circuit Court Grand Jury on two counts of driving under the influence of an intoxicant (DUI), second offense. See T.C.A. §§ 55-10-401, -403(a)(1) (2004). He moved to suppress the results of his blood alcohol test. Following the circuit court’s denial of the motion, a plea agreement resulted in a nolle presequi of count one (DUI), a guilty plea to count two (DUI per se, see id. § 55-10-401(a)(2)), and the reservation of a certified question of law: “Whether the trial court erred following a suppression hearing held on July 10, 2006, that the results of the Defendant’s blood alcohol test may be admitted into evidence?” Because the certified question was not properly reserved for review, we  dismiss the appeal.

Dickson Court of Criminal Appeals