Christopher A. Johnson v. State of Tennessee
The Defendant, Christopher A. Johnson, seeks to appeal as of right from the trial court's denial of his "Petition to Enforce the Plea Agreement." The State argues that this appeal should be dismissed because an appeal as of right does not lie from a trial court's denial of a petition to enforce a plea agreement. We agree with the State's argument and dismiss this appeal. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. William Cartwright
Defendant, William Cartwright, pled guilty to one count of attempt to manufacture methamphetamine, a Class D felony. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Defendant received a sentence of three years as a Range I standard offender with the manner of service of his sentence to be determined by the trial court. After a sentencing hearing, the trial court ordered Defendant to serve his sentence in confinement. Defendant appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in denying him alternative sentencing. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Sequatchie | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jimmy Albert Warren
The defendant, Jimmy Albert Warren, indicted for second offense driving under the influence and DUI per se, filed a pre-trial motion to suppress all evidence. The trial court granted the motion in part and denied it in part, holding that the field sobriety tests and the statements made by the defendant prior to his arrest were admissible, but that the blood alcohol content test results were not. In this interlocutory appeal initiated by the state, each party claims that the trial court erred. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed. |
Tipton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jeffery D. Rhoades
The defendant, Jeffery D. Rhoades, appeals from the Dyer County Circuit Court’s 2004 revocation of his 1996 sentences for burglary and theft. We affirm the revocation of probation and the ordering of confinement for the balance of the original effective sentence, but we modify the provisions for sentence credits and remand. |
Dyer | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Darius Jones
The defendant, Darius Jones, was convicted of one count of 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. The trial court ordered 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 1. In this appeal of right, the defendant argues that the evidence was insufficient, that the trial court erred by admitting photographs of the crime scene, that the trial court erred by limiting the defense cross-examination of a homicide detective, that the trial court erred by admitting the videotaped preliminary hearing testimony of one of the victims, that the trial court erred in its instructions to the jury, that the sentence was excessive, and that cumulative error requires reversal. The conviction for felony murder and sentence of life with the possibility of parole are affirmed. The remaining judgments of conviction are affirmed, but the causes are remanded for resentencing. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
James W. Taylor aka Lutfi S. Talal v. Wayne Brandon, Warden
The Petitioner, James W. Taylor (aka Lutfi S. Talal), filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus seeking relief from an allegedly void judgment, which the trial court dismissed. The Petitioner now appeals contending that the trial court erred when it dismissed his petition because: (1) his presentments were fatally defective which deprived the trial court of proper jurisdiction; (2) the trial judge violated his constitutional rights; (3) the trial court erred when it ordered that the Petitioner's sentences run consecutively; (4) the trial court erred when it found that the Petitioner was a Range II offender; (5) the trial court erred when it approved an illegal judgment of conviction; and (6) the habeas corpus court erred when it denied the Petitioner a right to respond to the State. Finding no error in the judgment of the trial court, we affirm the trial court's dismissal of the Petitioner's petition for habeas corpus relief. |
Hickman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Charles Jackson, Jr.
Defendant, Charles Jackson, Jr., entered a plea of guilty to possession of cocaine of over 0.5 grams with intent to sell, a Class C felony. The trial court imposed the recommended sentence of eight years as a Range II multiple offender. As a part of the plea agreement, Defendant reserved two certified questions of law under Rule 37(b)(2)(i) of the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure arguing that the trial court erred in not suppressing items found during a search of his vehicle. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Robertson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Larry E. Shannon
The defendant, Larry E. Shannon, appeals the trial court's order extending his probation by an additional eighteen months. He contends that the trial court lacked jurisdiction because his sentence expired before the probation revocation warrant was issued. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Eric Thomas v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Eric Thomas, appeals as of right from the dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief by the Shelby County Criminal Court. He seeks relief from his Class C felony conviction for robbery and resulting sentence of eight years and one day in confinement. He contends that the post-conviction court erred in dismissing his petition and that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Ricky Grover Aaron
In June of 2001, the appellant, Ricky Grover Aaron, was convicted by a jury of especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor and false imprisonment. As a result of his convictions, the trial court sentenced the appellant to eleven (11) years for the conviction for especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor and eleven months, twenty-nine days on his conviction for false imprisonment. The trial court further ordered that the appellant’s sentences be served concurrently to each other, but consecutively to a federal sentence he was already serving. On July 8, 2004, this Court affirmed both the appellant’s convictions and the sentence imposed by the trial court. See State v. Ricky Grover Aaron, No. M2002-02288-CCA-R3-CD, 2004 WL 1533825 (Tenn. Crim. App. at Nashville, Jul. 8, 2004). On July 14, 2004, the appellant filed a petition to rehear, urging this Court to consider the impact of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. ___, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004), delivered on June 24, 2004, on his sentence. Finding the position well-taken due to the potential impact of the Blakely decision upon the current Tennessee Sentencing Act, this Court granted the petition to rehear on August 2, 2004. The parties filed supplemental briefs fully addressing their view of the impact of Blakely on the appellant’s sentence. After a thorough review, we conclude that in light of Blakely, the trial court impermissibly considered certain enhancement factors to arrive at the appellant’s sentence for especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor. Therefore, we modify the appellant’s sentence for especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor from eleven (11) years to nine (9) years. Accordingly, the portion of the previous opinion of this Court affirming the appellant’s sentence is vacated. All other portions of this Court’s previous opinion are affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Ricky Grover Aaron - Concurring
I concur with Judge Smith’s lead opinion; however, I am writing separately for two reasons. First, I have reconsidered, and upon further reflection, retreat from my earlier position that sentences found to be in violation of Blakely should be remanded for a new sentencing hearing in the trial court. Until such time as there is clear authority for our courts to deal with Blakely issues, whether by case law or by statute, judicial economy and sentencing considerations, including uniformity of application of sentencing factors, dictates that most sentences found to be in violation of Blakely should be modified, if at all, by the appellate courts. Clearly, the appellate courts have been given the authority to do so by the legislature Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-401(c). |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Ricky Grover Aaron - Dissenting
The majority concludes that modification of the appellant’s eleven-year sentence is required in light of Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. __, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004). I must respectfully dissent. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Kevin Taylor v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner appeals the trial court's denial of his petition for writ of error coram nobis. Particularly, he avers that the court abused its discretion in summarily dismissing his petition solely on the lack of credibility of the affiant supporting the petition. We remand the matter to the trial court for an evidentiary hearing. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James Michael Moffitt
The defendant, James Michael Moffitt, appeals from the Hamblen County Criminal Court's imposition of a conviction of rape and a sentence of ten years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and the propriety of a ten-year sentence. Because the conviction is unsupported by sufficient evidence establishing the corpus delicti, we reverse the conviction and dismiss the indictment. |
Hamblen | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Dennis Eugene Evans v. State of Tennessee
The Defendant, Dennis Eugene Evans, pled guilty to robbery and aggravated kidnapping. The Defendant was sentenced as a Range I standard offender to concurrent terms of three and eight years, respectively. The original judgments indicated that the Defendant would be eligible for parole after having served thirty percent of his sentence. The trial court subsequently corrected the judgment for the Defendant's aggravated kidnapping conviction to reflect that the sentence was to be served at one hundred percent. The Defendant subsequently filed a petition for post-conviction relief to set aside the corrected judgment. The trial court summarily denied relief, and this appeal followed. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Lawrence Allen Hodge v. David Mills, Warden
The Petitioner, Lawrence Allen Hodge, 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. Because Petitioner has failed to show either that his sentence has expired or that the trial court was without jurisdiction, we grant the State's motion and affirm the judgment of the lower court. |
Lauderdale | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Roderick Davis
The defendant, Roderick Davis, was convicted by a ShelbyCountyCriminal Court jury of especially aggravated robbery, for which he received a sentence of 24 years, and especially aggravated burglary, for which he received a sentence of eleven years. The trial court imposed the sentences to run consecutively. On appeal, the defendant claims that the convicting evidence is insufficient and that the trial court erroneously excluded alibi evidence, instructed the jury, and sentenced him. Upon review, we affirm the conviction of especially aggravated robbery, reverse the conviction of especially aggravated burglary and modify it to aggravated burglary, and modify the sentences. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Roderick Davis - Dissenting
The majority concludes that modification of the defendant’s sentences for especially aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary is required in light of Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. __, 124 S. Ct. 2531 (2004). I must respectfully dissent. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Linda Herron
The appellant, Linda Herron, was convicted by a jury in the White County Criminal Court of second degree murder. The trial court sentenced the appellant to eighteen years incarceration in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the appellant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting her conviction and the trial court's jury instructions. Upon review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
White | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Morris Pepper v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Morris Pepper, appeals as of right from the Lincoln County Circuit Court's denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his conviction for first degree premeditated murder and sentence of life imprisonment. The petitioner contends that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel at trial. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Lincoln | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
In Re: AB Bonding Company, Inc.
The appellant, AB Bonding Company, Inc., appeals the order of the Davidson County Criminal |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dereck C. Campbell
The Defendant was convicted for possession of cocaine with intent to sell, possession of marijuana, possession of hydromorphone, possession of diazepam, and possession of drug paraphernalia. The possession of cocaine conviction was a Class B felony and the other convictions were Class A misdemeanors. The jury also recommended fines related to these convictions. The total of the fines was just over $40,000. The trial court sentenced the defendant to eight (8) years for the possession of cocaine offense, and eleven months, twenty-nine days for each of the other offenses. These sentences were run concurrently. The trial court then granted the Defendant's request for alternative sentencing and suspended the Defendant's sentence for possession of cocaine for all but thirty (30) days and allowed him to serve ten years on intensive probation. The defendant appeals his sentence. We affirm the sentence imposed by the trial court. |
Williamson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
John Henry Sparrow, III v. State of Tennessee
This is an appeal as of right from a denial of post-conviction relief. The Defendant, John Henry Sparrow, III, was convicted by jury verdict of attempted especially aggravated kidnaping and received a twelve year sentence. This Court upheld the Defendant's conviction on direct appeal. See State v. John Henry Sparrow, III, No. M2000-03238-CCA-R3-CD, 2002 WL 560958 (Tenn. Crim. App., Nashville, April 16, 2002) (not for citation). The Defendant subsequently filed a petition for post-conviction relief, which was denied. The Defendant now appeals to this Court, raising the single issue of ineffective assistance of counsel. We affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Dickson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Robert Hayden v. State of Tennessee
The Defendant, Robert Hayden, pled guilty to aggravated robbery, especially aggravated kidnapping, and two counts of aggravated rape. His plea did not include an agreement as to his sentences, and he was subsequently sentenced by the court to twelve years for the robbery, twenty-five years for the kidnapping, and twenty-five years for each of the rapes. The sentences were imposed in such a manner as to result in an effective sentence of sixty-two years. The Defendant subsequently filed a direct appeal, claiming that his sentences were excessive. This Court affirmed the trial court's judgments. See State v. Robert A. Hayden, No. M2000-00901-CCA-MR3-CD, 2001 WL 567869 (Tenn. Crim. App., Nashville, May 25, 2001). The Defendant then filed for post-conviction relief, alleging that he received ineffective assistance of counsel in conjunction with his guilty plea and sentencing hearing. He further alleged that his plea was unknowing and involuntary because he was under the influence of medication at the time. After an evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied relief. This appeal followed. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Williamson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Brian K. Mitchell v. Tony Parker, Warden
The petitioner, Brian K. Mitchell, appeals pro se from the Lake County Circuit Court’s dismissal of his petition for habeas corpus relief. The petitioner attacks his conviction for especially aggravated burglary, a Class B felony, for which he received a thirty-year sentence. He contends that his sentence is illegal because, although he is a Range I, standard offender, the sentence he received is the maximum within Range III. We affirm the trial court’s dismissal of the petition. |
Lake | Court of Criminal Appeals |
