COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINIONS

Paul K. Flannigan v. State of Tennessee
W2003-02979-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge James C. Beasley, Jr.

The petitioner, Paul K. Flannigan, appeals pro se from the order of the Shelby County Criminal Court denying his petition for post-conviction relief. The trial court dismissed the petition for failure to state a colorable claim. On appeal, the petitioner asserts that his judgments, indictments, and jury
verdicts are invalid. He further argues that the trial judge and district attorney have acted improperly.  Finding no merit in this appeal, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Patrick Harris
W2004-00469-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Bernie Weinman

The defendant, Patrick Harris, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of first degree murder. In this appeal, he insists that he acted in self-defense and that the evidence is legally insufficient to support his conviction. Finding that the evidence is sufficient and that it entitled the jury to reject the defendant’s claim of self-defense, we affirm the defendant’s conviction.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Deshaun Fly Smith v. State of Tennessee
M2004-00719-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge J. Randall Wyatt, Jr.

On appeal, the petitioner avers that the post-conviction court erred in: (1) failing to rule on post-conviction counsel's motion to withdraw prior to ruling on the post-conviction petition; (2) dismissing the petition summarily; and (3) dismissing the post-conviction petition in an untimely manner. Upon review, we conclude that the post-conviction court properly dismissed the petition without an evidentiary hearing and that the delay in the disposition of the petition did not prejudice the petitioner. We affirm the denial of post-conviction relief.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

Jason Gale Owens And Jordan Blake Owens v. State of Tennessee
W2004-01244-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge William B. Acree, Jr.

This is an appeal as of right from the trial court’s denial of post-conviction relief. Upon entering guilty pleas, the two Defendants were convicted of attempted first degree murder and attempted second degree murder respectively, and received sentences of fifteen and ten years’ incarceration.  The Defendants filed petitions for post-conviction relief, and after a consolidated evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied relief to both Defendants. The Defendants now appeal to this Court raising the issues of ineffective assistance of counsel and involuntary pleas. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Obion Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Ronald Joseph Reece
W2004-01130-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Roger A. Page

Ronald Joseph Reece pleaded guilty to statutory rape for which he received a two-year probationary sentence. Aggrieved of the trial court’s refusal to grant judicial diversion, he now appeals his sentence. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the sentence imposed by the lower court.

Madison Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Jerome Dance
W2004-00576-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge Clayburn L. Peeples

The defendant challenges the imposition of consecutive sentences, based on the Supreme Court’s recent holding in Blakely v. Washington. Our courts have previously held that neither Apprendi nor Blakely affect the trial court’s ability to impose consecutive sentences. Furthermore, upon reviewing the record, we conclude that the trial court properly imposed consecutive sentences based on the defendant’s extensive record, consisting of twenty prior convictions. Therefore, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Gibson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Robbie O. Allen
E2004-00850-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge Phyllis H. Miller

The appellant, Robbie O. Allen, entered Alford pleas in the Sullivan County Criminal Court to two counts of felony failure to appear. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced the appellant on each count to two years incarceration in the Tennessee Department of Correction, to be served concurrently. On appeal, the appellant challenges the trial court's denial of alternative sentencing. Upon review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Sullivan Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Jeremy Sheron Hall a/k/a Rodney Lee Jones
E2003-02946-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Phyllis H. Miller

Convicted by a Sullivan County Criminal Court jury of possession of .5 grams or more of cocaine with intent to sell, the defendant, Jeremy Sheron Hall, a/k/a Rodney Lee Jones, appeals and challenges the trial court's failure to suppress evidence, the admission of hearsay evidence, the imposition of a $100,000 fine, and the length of the sentence imposed. We affirm the criminal court's judgment.

Sullivan Court of Criminal Appeals

Charles Edward Overby v. State of Tennessee
E2004-00962-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge Carroll L. Ross

The petitioner, Charles Edward Overby, was convicted by a jury in the Bradley County Criminal Court of second degree murder, theft over $1,000, theft under $500, aggravated assault, and possession of marijuana. He received a total effective sentence of thirty-five years incarceration in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Subsequently, the petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that his trial counsel was ineffective. The post-conviction court dismissed the petition, finding that counsel was not ineffective. On appeal, the petitioner challenges this ruling and additionally contends that he should have been evaluated for competency prior to the commencement of the post-conviction hearing. Upon our review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Bradley Court of Criminal Appeals

Paul Tobias Davis v. State of Tennessee
M2004-02378-CCA-R3-CO
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Judge Steve R. Dozier

This matter is before the Court upon the State's motion to affirm the judgment of the trial court by memorandum opinion pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. The petitioner, Paul Tobias Davis, has appealed the trial court's order summarily dismissing his "Petition for Pretrial Jail Credit And/or Petition for a Writ of Certiorari." In that petition, the petitioner challenges the calculation of his sentencing credits during his incarceration in the Davidson County Jail from July 8, 2001, until April 17, 2002. Upon a review of the record in this case we are persuaded that the trial court was correct in summarily dismissing the petition and that this case meets the criteria for affirmance pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. Accordingly, the State's motion is granted and the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. David Hopkins Plemons, Jr.
M2004-00460-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge W. Charles Lee

A Marshall County jury convicted the Defendant, David Hopkins Plemons, Jr., of second degree murder, and the trial court sentenced him to nineteen years in prison. On appeal, the Defendant contends that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction because he acted in self-defense when he killed the victim; and (2) the trial court erred when it sentenced him. After thoroughly reviewing the record and the applicable authorities, we affirm the Defendant's conviction and sentence.

Marshall Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. James Robert Davis
W2003-02362-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Judge Joseph H. Walker, III

The appellant, James Robert Davis, was convicted by a jury of felony murder and aggravated robbery. He was sentenced by the jury to life without the possibility of parole on the felony murder conviction and by the trial court to a twenty-year sentence on the aggravated robbery conviction, to be served consecutively to the life sentence. The appellant appeals, arguing that: (1) the trial court erred in admitting statements of the victim as excited utterances; (2) the trial court erred by admitting tape recordings of the appellant’s telephone calls from the jail; (3) the evidence at trial was insufficient to support the convictions; and (4) the evidence at trial did not clearly establish the cause of the victim’s death. For the following reasons, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Tipton Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Kendrick Naylor
W2004-00329-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Jerry L. Smith
Trial Court Judge: Judge James C. Beasley, Jr.

The appellant, Kendrick Naylor, was convicted by a jury of criminal attempt to commit assault, felony evading arrest, and theft of property over $10,000. The trial court sentenced the appellant to four (4) years as a Range II multiple offender for the evading arrest conviction and six (6) months for the attempt to commit assault conviction, to run concurrently to the sentence for evading arrest.  The trial court sentenced the appellant to eight (8) years for the theft of property conviction, to be served consecutively to the four-year sentence for evading arrest, for a total effective sentence of twelve (12) years. After a motion for new trial was denied by the trial court, a timely notice of appeal was filed. On appeal, the following issues are presented for review: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying the appellant’s motion for a mistrial; (2) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain the convictions; and (3) whether the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentences. We affirm the judgment of the trial court and the appellant’s sentence because we determine that the appellant’s history of criminal convictions more than justifies the sentence imposed.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Kevin Troy Greer v. State of Tennessee
M2003-03057-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Judge Steve R. Dozier

The petitioner, Kevin Troy Greer, appeals the dismissal by the Davidson County Criminal Court of his petition for post-conviction relief and request for a delayed appeal. After review of the record, we affirm.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Melissa A. Simmons
M2003-03064-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge Leon C. Burns, Jr.

The Defendant, Melissa Simmons, pled guilty to driving under the influence, first offense, a Class A misdemeanor. As part of the plea agreement, she intended to reserve the right to appeal a certified question of law pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 37(b)(2)(i). Because the judgment form failed to comply with the strict requirements of Rule 37(b)(2), defendant did not properly reserve a certified issue for review. As a result, we are without jurisdiction to review the merits of defendant's claim, and accordingly dismiss her appeal.

Putnam Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Greg Harris
E2003-02834-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge R. Jerry Beck

A Sullivan County Criminal Court jury convicted the defendant, Greg Harris, of criminal conspiracy to sell or deliver more than 300 grams of cocaine, a Class A felony; possession of more than 300 grams of cocaine for resale within 1000 feet of a school, a Class A felony; and two counts of possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor. The trial court sentenced him as a Range I, standard offender to consecutive sentences of twenty-five years for each felony conviction, and concurrent sentences of eleven months, twenty-nine days for each misdemeanor conviction, for an effective sentence of fifty years. The jury fined him a total of $1,005,000. The defendant appeals, claiming that (1) the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress evidence; (2) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions; (3) the trial court erred by admitting irrelevant evidence and allowing prosecutorial misconduct without declaring a mistrial; (4) the jury verdict lacked unanimity because the state failed to elect either sale or delivery in count one of the indictment; (5) his right to a fair trial was violated by the fact he lacked certain materials necessary to prepare for trial, i.e., a map depicting the area surrounding the location of his arrest, a transcript of the suppression hearing, and a list of potential jurors; and (6) the trial court erred by imposing excessive and consecutive sentences. We affirm the defendant's convictions. However, we hold the record is insufficient to justify the trial court's imposition of consecutive sentences and, in light of the rule announced in Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. __, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004), we modify the defendant's sentences to twenty-four years for each felony conviction.

Sullivan Court of Criminal Appeals

Thomas M. Tucker v. Flora J. Holland, Warden
M2003-02837-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge J. Randall Wyatt, Jr.

The Petitioner, Thomas M. Tucker, filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus seeking relief from an allegedly void judgment, which the trial court dismissed without a hearing. On appeal, the petitioner contends that the habeas corpus court erred when it dismissed his petition. Finding no error in the judgment of the habeas corpus court, we affirm its dismissal of the petitioner's petition for habeas corpus relief.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Edward E. Keathley
E2003-02913-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge E. Shayne Sexton

A jury convicted the defendant, Edward E. Keathley, of simple possession of a Schedule II controlled substance and of possession of drug paraphernalia, Class A misdemeanors. Following a sentencing hearing, the defendant was fined a total of $900.00 and sentenced to eleven months and twenty-nine days for each offense. The trial court ordered the defendant to serve the sentences in concurrent split confinement with ninety days in the county jail and the balance of the sentence on probation. On appeal, the defendant argues that the trial court erred in denying alternative sentencing. Based upon our review, we affirm the decision of the trial court.

Campbell Court of Criminal Appeals

Kenneth I. Campbell v. State of Tennessee
M2004-00589-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge J. Randall Wyatt, Jr.

The petitioner, Kenneth I. Campbell, was convicted of first degree murder and theft of property and received an effective sentence of life imprisonment. He later sought both direct and post-conviction appeals, both of which were denied by this court. Subsequently, he filed a petition for post-conviction relief based on the Post-Conviction DNA Analysis Act of 2001, which was dismissed.  He appeals that dismissal, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in dismissing the petition without ordering DNA testing on a bullet introduced at the petitioner’s trial. Following our review, we affirm the post-conviction court’s dismissal of the petition.

Davidson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. Richard P. Holt
M2004-00733-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge Larry B. Stanley, Jr.

he Defendant, Richard P. Holt, pled guilty to various drug related felonies in four separate cases, and he was placed on community corrections, and then transferred to supervised probation for a period of eight years. Subsequently, a probation violation warrant was issued because the defendant left the state without permission, and the defendant was indicted and arrested for theft of property valued over $500.00. After a hearing, the trial court revoked the defendant's probation and ordered the defendant to serve the remainder of his sentences in prison. The defendant now appeals, contending that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to revoke the defendant's probation; and (2) the trial court erred in ordering the defendant to serve the remainder of his sentence in prison. Finding no error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Warren Court of Criminal Appeals

Wilbert Rogers v. State of Tennessee
W2004-00654-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Special Judge Joe H. Walker, III
Trial Court Judge: Judge W. Fred Axley

The petitioner, Wilbert Rogers, appeals the denial of post conviction relief, alleging ineffective assistance of counsel by his trial attorney. The petitioner was originally convicted by jury of second degree murder. After careful review, we affirm the denial of post-conviction relief.

Shelby Court of Criminal Appeals

Karen Renee Howell v. State of Tennessee
E2003-01469-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge James E. Beckner

The Defendant, Karen Renee Howell, pled guilty to three counts of first degree felony murder, one count of attempted first degree murder, two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, and one count of theft over $1,000. After a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced the Defendant to three consecutive terms of life without the possibility of parole for the murders, a consecutive term of twenty-five years for the attempted murder, and a concurrent effective term of twenty-five years for the remaining convictions. The Defendant's convictions and sentences were affirmed on direct appeal. See State v. Howell, 34 S.W.3d 484 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2000). The Defendant subsequently filed for post-conviction relief, alleging that her guilty pleas and sentencing were marred by the ineffective assistance of counsel, and that her guilty pleas were not entered voluntarily, intelligently and knowingly. After a hearing, the trial court denied relief. This direct appeal followed. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Greene Court of Criminal Appeals

Andre Mayfield v. Howard Carlton, Warden
E2004-01561-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Judge Lynn W. Brown

The Defendant, Andre Mayfield, filed for a writ of habeas corpus, seeking to invalidate several convictions he obtained in 1989. The State responded by filing a motion to dismiss. The trial court granted the State's motion and this appeal followed. We affirm the trial court's judgment.

Johnson Court of Criminal Appeals

State of Tennessee v. John Allan Lezotte
E2004-01002-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Gary R. Wade
Trial Court Judge: Judge Carroll L. Ross

The defendant, John Allan Lezotte, entered pleas of guilt to driving under the influence and child endangerment, reserving the right to appeal a certified question of law. See Tenn. R. App. P. 3(b); Tenn. R. Crim. P. 37(b)(2). The single issue presented for review is whether the trial court erred by denying the defendant's motion to suppress. The judgments are affirmed.

Monroe Court of Criminal Appeals

Randall Edwin Cobb v. State of Tennessee
W2004-00156-CCA-R3-HC
Authoring Judge: Judge J. C. McLin
Trial Court Judge: Judge William B. Acree, Jr.

The petitioner, Randall Edwin Cobb, appeals pro se from the order of the Obion County Circuit Court dismissing his petition for habeas corpus relief for failure to state a claim. The petitioner pled guilty in June 2000 to one count for possession of cocaine, a Schedule II controlled substance, with the intent to sell within 1000 feet of a school zone, a Class B felony, and on two counts for sale of a controlled substance within 1000 feet of a school zone, each a Class B felony. In this appeal, he challenges: (1) whether the trial court properly dismissed his habeas corpus petition; (2) whether the petition stated a claim for relief; (3) whether the judgments are void; and (4) whether the indictments were defective. After reviewing the matter, we affirm the decision of the trial court, but remand for entry of corrected judgments.

Obion Court of Criminal Appeals