COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINIONS

State of Tennessee v. John Edward Winn, Jr.
M2009-00094-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge Seth Norman

The Defendant, John Edward Winn, Jr., was placed on probation for eight years after pleading guilty to aggravated burglary and aggravated assault. Following a revocation hearing, the trial court revoked the Defendant's probation and ordered him to serve the remainder of his eight-year sentence in the Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant contests the trial court's evidentiary rulings during the revocation hearing and the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the revocation. Upon our review of the record and the parties' briefs, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand for a new hearing.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Robert Thomas Reed
E2009-00629-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Richard R. Vance

The Defendant, Robert Thomas Reed, was convicted of driving under the influence (DUI) (first offense), a Class A misdemeanor, and driving after having been declared a motor vehicle habitual offender (MVHO), a Class E felony. Following a sentencing hearing, the Defendant was sentenced as a Range I offender to two years with service of six months in the county jail and the balance to be served on probation for the MVHO conviction and a concurrent sentence of eleven months, twenty-nine days suspended to six months for the DUI conviction. On appeal, the Defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence that formed the basis of both convictions. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Sevier Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Alfred Turner - Dissenting
W2007-00891-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Camille R. McMullen

In large part, I agree with the majority in this case. However, I must respectfully dissent from my colleagues’ conclusion reversing the judgment of the trial court based on its failure to exclude Tate’s and Blades’ testimony regarding their acquittals.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Alfred Turner
W2007-00891-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge W. Otis Higgs

The defendant, Alfred Turner, was found guilty by a jury of the lesser included offenses of facilitation of felony murder, a Class A felony, and facilitation of second degree murder. After merging the convictions, the trial court sentenced the defendant to twenty-five years of incarceration as a Range I, standard offender. On appeal, he argues that: insufficient evidence exists to support his conviction; a proper chain of custody for the introduction of DNA evidence was not established; the trial court erred in allowing into evidence that two other individuals had been acquitted of this murder; and the trial court erred in both jury instructions and sentencing. After careful review, we conclude that even though sufficient evidence existed to support the defendant's convictions, the defendant's sentence ran afoul of Blakely and the prior acquittals of two other individuals deprived the defendant of a fair trial. Therefore, the error requires a remand for a new trial.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Marvin Anthony Matthews v. Tony Parker, Warden
W2010-00442-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge J.C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge R. Lee Moore

The petitioner, Marvin Anthony Matthews, appeals the lower court's denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. The state has filed a motion requesting that this court affirm the lower court's denial of relief pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. We conclude that the state's motion is meritorious. Accordingly, we grant the state's motion and affirm the judgment of the lower court.

Lake Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Robin Lynn Cooper, Alias
E2009-00291-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge Kenneth F. Irvine, Jr.

The defendant, Robin Lynn Cooper, was convicted of attempted second degree murder, a Class B felony; rape, a Class B felony; aggravated rape, a Class A felony; especially aggravated kidnapping, a Class A felony; and three counts of aggravated kidnapping, a Class B felony. The convictions for the Class B felony kidnappings were merged into one count. The defendant was sentenced to life without parole as a repeat violent offender for the rape, aggravated rape, especially aggravated kidnapping, and three convictions of aggravated kidnapping and to a concurrent sentence of twelve years at thirty percent for attempted second degree murder. On appeal, he argues that: the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions; the trial court erred in admitting evidence; the trial court abused its discretion when it failed to grant a continuance; and the presence of his parole officer's folder on the witness stand violated a court order that the State could not mention that he was on parole. After careful review, we affirm the judgments from the trial court.

Knox Court of Criminal Appeals

Courtney Means v. State of Tennessee
W2008-01039-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge James M. Lammey, Jr.

Petitioner, Courtney Means, appeals the dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief in which he alleged that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance of counsel. Specifically, Petitioner contends that (1) the search of his car and seizure of a gun was unconstitutional; (2) counsel failed to file a motion to suppress the victim's identification; (3) counsel failed to file a motion to suppress his statement to police; and (4) the introduction of a gun into evidence with a different serial number than the gun that was found in his vehicle violated his due process rights. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that Petitioner has failed to show that his trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance of counsel, and we accordingly affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Craig E. Shears v. State of Tennessee
E2008-02726-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Bob R. McGee

The Petitioner, Craig E. Shears, filed a petition for post-conviction relief attacking his conviction of first degree murder on the basis of ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Following an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief based upon its finding that the Petitioner had failed to prove his allegations by clear and convincing evidence. In this appeal as of right, the Petitioner contends that trial counsel was ineffective in failing to effectively argue a motion to suppress his statement and in preparing for trial. The Petitioner also contends that co-counsel was ineffective in failing to request a continuance when co-counsel was hired to assist trial counsel. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Knox Court of Criminal Appeals

Daniel Livingston v. Stephen Dotson, Warden
M2009-02062-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge Cheryl Blackburn

Petitioner, Daniel Livingston, appeals the trial court's denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. The State has filed a motion pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee, for this Court to affirm the judgment of the trial court by memorandum opinion. We grant the motion and affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

Ivan Moreno A/K/A Fernando Fileto A/K/A Roberto Lepe-Cervantes v. State of Tenessee
M2009-00393-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Judge Steve Dozier

Petitioner, Ivan Moreno, a/k/a Fernando Fileto a/k/a/ Roberto Lepe-Cervantes, pled guilty to felony murder, aggravated rape, and especially aggravated robbery. Petitioner received an effective sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Petitioner then filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief claiming ineffective assistance of counsel and an involuntary guilty plea. After a hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief. Petitioner seeks a review of the post-conviction court's decision. Because Petitioner has failed to prove that his guilty plea was involuntary or that he received ineffective assistance of counsel, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. George C. Kilgore
M2009-01539-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Judge John H. Gasaway, III

The Montgomery Count Grand Jury indicted Appellant for aggravated robbery and possession of .5 grams or more of cocaine. After a bench trial, the trial court found Appellant guilty as charged. Appellant was sentenced to two, concurrent twelve-year sentences to be served at 35% as a Range II, multiple offender. On appeal, Appellant argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for aggravated robbery. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that the evidence was sufficient. Therefore, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Montgomery Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Jerry Orlando Weaver
E2009-01767-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J.C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge Donald R. Elledge

An Anderson County jury convicted the defendant, Jerry Orlando Weaver, of two counts of facilitation of possession of less than one-half gram of cocaine for sale or delivery, Class D felonies. The trial court sentenced the defendant as a career offender to twelve years for each count, to be served consecutively in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the defendant argues that the trial court erred in sentencing him as a career offender and in imposing consecutive sentences. Following our review of the record, the parties' briefs, and the applicable law, we conclude that the defendant failed to timely file his notice of appeal and that his claims do not warrant consideration in the "interest of justice." Therefore, we dismiss his appeal.

Anderson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Mickey Earl Brown
M2009-00786-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge Cheryl Blackburn

The Defendant, Mickey Earl Brown, appeals his conviction upon a guilty plea in the Davidson County Criminal Court for aggravated assault, a Class C felony. The trial court sentenced the Defendant as a Range III, persistent offender to eleven years in the Department of Correction, to be served consecutively to a prior six-year sentence. On appeal, the Defendant contends that his sentence is excessive and that the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentencing and in denying alternative sentencing. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Craig O. Majors
M2009-00483-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Michael R. Jones

The Defendant, Craig O. Majors, was convicted by a Montgomery County jury of especially aggravated kidnapping, a Class A felony, attempted aggravated robbery, a Class C felony, and aggravated burglary, a Class C felony. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to concurrent sentences of twenty years as a Range I offender for the especially aggravated kidnapping conviction and to six years each as a Range II offender for the attempted aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary convictions, for a total effective sentence of twenty years. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant contends that (1) the State's exercise of peremptory challenges to excuse African-Americans from the jury pool resulted in a systematic exclusion of African-Americans from the jury, (2) his convictions for especially aggravated kidnapping and attempted aggravated robbery violate due process, (3) there is insufficient evidence of his identity as the perpetrator, and (4) the trial court imposed an excessive sentence. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Montgomery Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Danny Lee Greene
E2008-02423-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge R. Jerry Beck

The defendant, Danny Lee Greene, was convicted by a jury of second degree murder and sentenced to twenty-three years as a violent offender. On appeal, he contends that the trial court improperly denied him a jury instruction concerning voluntary intoxication. After careful review, we conclude no error exists and affirm the judgment from the trial court.

Washington Court of Criminal Appeals

Eric P. Lumpkin v. State of Tennessee
W2009-01738-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge James C. Beasley, Jr.

The petitioner, Eric P. Lumpkin, appeals the post-conviction court's denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. He argues that the post-conviction court erred in finding that he received the effective assistance of appellate counsel. After review, we affirm the denial of the petition.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Joe Marvin Ellison v. State of Tennessee
W2009-02380-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge Roy B. Morgan, Jr.

The petitioner, Joe Marvin Ellison, appeals the post-conviction court's denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, arguing he received the ineffective assistance of counsel which caused him to enter unknowing and involuntary guilty pleas. After review, we affirm the denial of the petition.

Madison Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Donovan Michael Munroe
E2008-00129-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr
Trial Court Judge: Judge Robert H. Montgomery, Jr.

The Defendant, Donovan Michael Munroe, appeals from his jury convictions in the Sullivan County Criminal Court for attempted second degree murder, possession of .5 grams or more of cocaine with the intent to sell, both Class B felonies, possession of oxycodone with the intent to sell, a Class C felony, and maintaining a dwelling where drugs are sold, a Class D felony. The trial court imposed Range I sentences of twelve years, eight years, three years, and two years, respectively; the trial court also ordered the sentences for the drug-related offenses to be served concurrently with one another and on supervised probation, but consecutively to the twelve-year sentence of incarceration for attempted second degree murder. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant contends that (1) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress evidence, (2) the trial court erred in admitting evidence seized in Virginia, (3) the trial court improperly limited the examination of witnesses, (4) the State committed prosecutorial misconduct in its closing arguments, (5) the trial court imposed an excessive sentence, and (6) the cumulative effect of these errors deprived the Defendant of due process and a fair trial. Following our review, we conclude that the fines imposed were excessive and order them modified consistent with this opinion. Accordingly, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed in part, reversed in part, and the case is remanded.

Sullivan Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Bobby Dwaine England
E2009-01589-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge David Patterson

The Defendant, Bobby Dwaine England, pled guilty in the Cumberland County Criminal Court to two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, a Class A felony, with the sentence to be determined by the trial court. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed consecutive sentences of twenty-four years as a Range I, standard offender, for a total effective sentence of forty-eight years. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant contends that the trial court imposed an excessive sentence both in length and manner of service. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Cumberland Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Bobby Dwaine England
E2009-01589-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: D. Kelly Thomas, Jr., J.
Trial Court Judge: David Patterson, Judge
The Defendant, Bobby Dwaine England, pled guilty in the Cumberland County Criminal Court to two counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, a Class A felony, with the sentence to be determined by the trial court. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed consecutive sentences of twenty-four years as a Range I, standard offender, for a total effective sentence of forty-eight years. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant contends that the trial court imposed an excessive sentence both in length and manner of service. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Cumberland Court of Criminal Appeals

Billy Ray Farris v. State of Tennessee
W2008-02633-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma Mcgee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge Roy B. Morgan, Jr.

Petitioner, Billy Ray Farris, pled guilty in the Chester County Circuit Court to second degree murder, and he received a sentence of twenty-five years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Thereafter, he filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that his trial counsel was ineffective and that his guilty plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered. The post-conviction court denied the petition, and Petitioner appeals. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Chester Court of Criminal Appeals

Michael Branham v. State of Tennessee
E2009-00775-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Joseph M. Tipton, P.J.
Trial Court Judge: Rebecca J. Stern, Judge
The Petitioner, Michael Branham, appeals the Hamilton County Criminal Court's denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his conviction upon a guilty plea for aggravated assault, a Class C felony, for which he received a three-year sentence with split confinement. He contends that the proof at the post-conviction hearing established that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel, that the trial court failed to review the post-conviction hearing evidence under the standard established in United States v. Cronic, 466 U.S. 648 (1984), and that the trial court committed plain error when it failed to address the issue of prosecutorial misconduct. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Hamilton Court of Criminal Appeals

Neil Lincoln Miller v. Howard Carlton, Warden
E2009-01300-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Joseph M. Tipton, P.J.
Trial Court Judge: Robert E. Cupp, Judge
The Petitioner, Neil Lincoln Miller, appeals pro se the trial court's denial of habeas corpus relief from his conviction upon a guilty plea for second degree murder. The State has filed a motion requesting that this court affirm the trial court's summary dismissal pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. We conclude the petition fails to state a cognizable claim for habeas corpus relief. The State's motion is granted, and the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

Johnson Court of Criminal Appeals

Franklin Howard. v. State of Tennessee
W2009-00279-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: John T. Fowlkes, Judge
Following a remand for a new trial on the charge of first-degree premeditated murder, see State v. Howard, 30 S.W.3d 271 (Tenn. 2000), the Petitioner, Franklin Howard, was convicted of premeditated murder and two counts of felony murder, and the trial court imposed a life sentence. On direct appeal from the second trial, this Court reversed and dismissed the felony murder convictions but affirmed the premeditated murder conviction. State v. Franklin Howard, No. W2002-01680-CCA-R3-CD, 2004 WL 2715346 (Tenn. Crim. App. Nov. 18, 2004), perm. app. denied, (Tenn. Mar. 21, 2005). The Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief claiming he received the ineffective assistance of counsel. The post-conviction court denied relief after a hearing, and the Petitioner now appeals. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Donald Clark v. State of Tennessee
M2009-02088-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge Monte Watkins

Petitioner, Donald Clark, appeals the trial court's denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. The State has filed a motion pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee, for this Court to affirm the judgment of the trial court by memorandum opinion. We grant the motion and affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals