State vs. Lester Parker E2000-00282-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Acree
Trial Court Judge: D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
The defendant appeals from a jury trial conviction for criminal attempt to possess Schedule II controlled substance with intent to deliver. In the appeal, the defendant alleges that the evidence was insufficient to support the jury's verdict, the trial court erred in allowing a positive drug test of the defendant to be admitted into evidence, and the trial court erred in denying the defendant's motion to remand the case to the General Sessions Court for a preliminary hearing. We conclude that the issues presented for appeal are without merit and affirm the trial court.
Blount
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Jerry L. Johns E2000-00505-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Ray L. Jenkins
The Defendant, Jerry L. Johns, appeals from the order of the trial court dismissing his "Motion to Vacate Judgment" as barred by the statute of limitations. The trial court apparently treated the Defendant's motion as a petition for post-conviction relief. We hold that the trial court properly treated the Defendant's motion as a petition for post-conviction relief and that the motion was properly dismissed because it was barred by the statute of limitations, because another post-conviction petition had already been filed and resolved on the merits, and because the grounds for relief alleged by the Defendant had been previously determined. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Knox
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Randy Lee Bowers E2000-00585-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: R. Jerry Beck
After entering guilty pleas to possession of a Schedule VI controlled substance (marijuana); driving under the influence, third offense; and driving while his license was revoked, after a second or subsequent conviction for driving under the influence, the Criminal Court for Sullivan County conducted a sentencing hearing and then sentenced the defendant. The defendant contends that the trial court erred in ordering consecutive sentences and in failing to place him on probation after the service of the minimum sentence of one hundred-twenty days for DUI third offense. After careful review, we interpret the defendant's sentence to be three hundred-eighteen (318) days of full incarceration followed by four hundred fifty-five (455) days on supervised probation. Further, we affirm the denial of alternative sentencing.
Sullivan
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Carlos Demetrius Harris E2000-00718-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Stephen M. Bevil
The Defendant, Carlos Demetrius Harris, appeals as of right from his reckless homicide conviction. On appeal, he presents the following six issues: (1) whether the trial court erred by granting the State's motion to amend the indictment from voluntary manslaughter to reckless homicide; (2) whether the trial court erred by allowing inadmissible items into evidence; (3) whether the trial court erred by not allowing testimony by the Hamilton County Medical Examiner that an ordinary person would be unaware that one blow to the head would cause death; (4) whether the trial court erred by granting the State's jury instruction request regarding causation and intent; (5) whether the evidence was sufficient to support the conviction; and (6) whether the trial court erred by sentencing the Defendant to a term of six years and by denying the Defendant alternative sentencing. We find no reversible error; accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Hamilton
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Jeffrey Arch Carter E2000-00738-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Phyllis H. Miller
The defendant, after pleading guilty to two counts of aggravated assault, DUI second offense, and violation of seat belt law, sought alternative sentencing. A sentencing hearing was held and the trial court denied the defendant any form of alternative sentence. The defendant now appeals that denial, asserting that the trial court erred in denying him an alternative sentence. After review, we affirm the trial court's denial of an alternative sentence.
Sullivan
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Christopher Knighton E2000-00746-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Acree
Trial Court Judge: D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
The defendant was convicted by a jury of aggravated rape, aggravated burglary and theft. In his direct appeal, he presents six issues for review. Three of those issues concern the jury selection process, one issue is an evidentiary issue, and the other issues concern the sufficiency of the indictment and the sufficiency of the evidence. With respect to the jury selection process, we hold: the failure to raise the issue of a "Batson violation" during jury selection constitutes a waiver of that issue; the failure to swear the jury before voir dire is not reversible error unless it is shown that a juror did not truthfully answer the questions as the result of not being sworn; and the trial court did not abuse his discretion in refusing to dismiss two jurors for cause. Additionally, we hold that felony drug crimes are relevant to the issue of credibility under Tenn.R Evid. 609, and that under the facts of this case, the unfair prejudicial effect did not outweigh the probative value of the impeaching convictions. Finally, we hold that the indictment charging the defendant with aggravated rape was legally sufficient, and that the evidence was sufficient to support the verdict of the jury for that offense.
Blount
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. John Lee Dockery E2000-00753-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Richard R. Baumgartner
The Defendant, John Lee Dockery, was convicted after a bench trial of fourth offense driving under the influence (DUI) and driving on a revoked license. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant argues that the trial court erred by admitting into evidence statements the Defendant made to the arresting officer before Miranda warnings were given and that the evidence was insufficient to support the DUI conviction. We conclude that the statements made by the Defendant were properly admitted and that the evidence was sufficient to support the convictions. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
Knox
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Matau Goins E2000-01159-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: James E. Beckner
The petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief alleging ineffective assistance of counsel. Specifically, the petitioner alleges that when his attorney informed him that a particular witness was going to testify against him he was scared into pleading guilty. We agree with the post-conviction court's findings that the plea was voluntarily, understandably, and intelligently made. We affirm the post-conviction court's dismissal of the petition.
Hawkins
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Joseph Faulkner W1999-00223-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Carolyn Wade Blackett
The appellant presents this appeal following dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. Faulkner entered guilty pleas to one count of aggravated rape and three counts of aggravated robbery in the Shelby County Criminal Court. Pursuant to his negotiated plea agreement, the appellant was sentenced to an effective sentence of twenty-five years. The plea agreement further provided that his state sentences were to be served concurrently with outstanding federal sentences and that all sentences would be served in federal custody. After pleading guilty to the state charges, the federal government refused to accept Faulkner into federal custody. Faulkner now asserts that his trial counsel was ineffective for providing erroneous advice and, as a result, his guilty pleas were not knowingly and voluntarily entered. Based upon the unfulfilled bargain of his negotiated plea agreement, he asks that his guilty pleas be set aside and that his case be remanded for trial or other appropriate relief. The State concedes that Faulkner is entitled to post-conviction relief. Finding Faulkner's request for post-conviction relief meritorious, we reverse the judgment of the post-conviction court and remand to the Shelby County Criminal Court for further proceedings.
Shelby
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Chester Lebron Bennett E2000-02735-CCA-RM-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Stephen M. Bevil
This case presents an appeal to this court after remand by order of the Tennessee Supreme Court. The Appellant, Chester Lebron Bennett, pled guilty to five counts of criminal exposure to HIV and was sentenced to five concurrent four-year Department of Correction sentences. This court, on direct appeal, remanded the case to the trial court for consideration of alternative sentencing. See State v. Chester Lebron Bennett, No. 03C01-9810-CR-00346 (Tenn. Crim. App. at Knoxville, July 28, 1999), perm. to appeal granted, (Tenn. Oct. 16, 2000). Subsequent to this court's decision, the supreme court released its decision in the case of State v. Daryl Hooper, No. M1997-00031-SCR-11-CD (Tenn. at Nashville, Sept. 21, 2000) (for publication). In State v. Daryl Hooper, the court announced new sentencing considerations regarding the need for deterrence as grounds for denying an alternative sentence. In light of its decision in State v. Daryl Hooper, the court remanded the case to this court for reconsideration. See State v. Chester Lebron Bennett, No. E1998-00614-SC-R11-CD (Tenn. at Knoxville, Oct. 16, 2000). After revisiting this issue under the standards announced in State v. Daryl Hooper, we affirm the trial court's denial of alternative sentencing.
Hamilton
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Michael Cook W2001-01539-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: William B. Acree
The Defendant, Michael Joseph Cook, was convicted of driving under the influence, second offense. The trial court sentenced him to 11 months and 29 days and required him to serve six months of that sentence in the local jail. On appeal, the Defendant contends that (1) the evidence was insufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and (2) the trial court improperly sentenced the Defendant. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Obion
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Michael Cook W2001-01539-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: William B. Acree
The Defendant, Michael Joseph Cook, was convicted of driving under the influence, second offense. The trial court sentenced him to 11 months and 29 days and required him to serve six months of that sentence in the local jail. On appeal, the Defendant contends that (1) the evidence was insufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt and (2) the trial court improperly sentenced the Defendant. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Obion
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Thomas Edward Ford M1999-2362-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: Charles D. Haston, Sr.
The appellant, Thomas Edward Ford, was convicted of Class C felony aggravated assault and Class D vandalism. The Circuit Court of Warren County sentenced the appellant to five years for aggravated assault and two years for vandalism. The sentences were ordered to run consecutively. Upon appeal, the appellant raises the following issues for review: (1) propriety of the five-year sentence; (2) imposition of consecutive sentences; (3) sufficiency of the evidence for aggravated assault; and (4) misleading jury instruction. After review, we find no error. Accordingly, the judgment of the Circuit Court of Warren County is affirmed.
Warren
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. James McKinley Cunningham M1999-01995-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Joe G. Riley
Trial Court Judge: Buddy D. Perry
The defendant was convicted by a Grundy County jury of premeditated first degree murder and sentenced to life. In this appeal, he challenges: (1) the sufficiency of the evidence; (2) the admission of a photograph of the victim's body; (3) the exclusion of testimony relating to statements made by the victim; and (4) the evidentiary rulings relating to the victim's propensity toward violence. Upon our review of the record, we find no reversible error and affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Grundy
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Charles B. Sullivan M1999-02547-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David G. Hayes
Trial Court Judge: Walter C. Kurtz
Charles B. Sullivan entered guilty pleas in the Davidson County Criminal Court to three counts of aggravated rape, one count of especially aggravated burglary, three counts of aggravated burglary, and one count of rape, for which the trial court imposed an effective sentence of fifty-nine years. In this appeal as of right, the appellant contends that the individual sentences are excessive and that partial consecutive sentences are not warranted. After review, we affirm.
State vs. Jason Weiskopf W2000-02308-CCA-RM-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Joe G. Riley
Trial Court Judge: Arthur T. Bennett
This case is before the court upon remand from the Supreme Court of Tennessee for reconsideration in light of State vs. Nichols, ___ S.W.3d ___ (Tenn. 2000). Previously, this court found the "weigh and consider" jury instruction to be in violation of due process. Nichols reached a contrary conclusion; therefore, we now affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Shelby
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Margaret Somerville W1999-01333-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Cornelia A. Clark
Trial Court Judge: Julian P. Guinn
Defendant Margaret Ree Somerville was convicted by a jury of one count of possession of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, a Class B felony, and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed a sentence of twelve (12) years on the felony offense and eleven (11) months, twenty-nine (29) days on the misdemeanor offense. The sentences were run concurrent to one another. Defendant challenges her convictions, asserting that (1) she was denied her right to the timely appointment of counsel; (2) the indictments against her were defective and should be quashed; and (3) the search warrant executed in this case was defective. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
Henry
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Samuel Pegues W1999-01865-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: John Franklin Murchison
The Defendant, Samuel Pegues, was convicted of second degree murder after a jury trial. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant asserts that the evidence presented at trial is insufficient to sustain his conviction, that the trial court erred by denying proposed testimony regarding statements made by the victim on the night of the incident, and that the trial court erred by excluding the Defendant's testimony regarding statements made by the victim that she had stabbed or cut someone. We conclude that the evidence is sufficient to sustain the conviction, that the trial court did err by denying the proposed testimony of statements made by the victim but that such error was harmless, and that the Defendant has waived his issue regarding the statements of the victim that she had stabbed or cut someone. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Madison
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. Michael Smith W1999-02413-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Jon Kerry Blackwood
The Defendant, Michael W. Smith, appeals as of right from the trial court's denial of post-conviction relief. On appeal, he asserts that his conviction for escape, which was entered pursuant to his guilty plea, should be set aside because the plea was entered involuntarily due to his trial counsel's ineffectiveness. We conclude that the trial court properly denied relief based on its findings that the Defendant received effective assistance of counsel and that he entered the plea knowingly and voluntarily. Accordingly, we affirm the denial of post-conviction relief.
Hardeman
Court of Criminal Appeals
State vs. David Wayne Salley E1999-00203-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Curwood Witt, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Phyllis H. Miller
David Wayne Salley appeals from his conviction of aggravated rape. He raises issues related to sufficiency of the evidence, jury instructions on lesser-included offenses, admission of evidence obtained pursuant to search warrants, impeachment of the defendant with prior violent felony convictions, exclusion of evidence of consensual sexual relations with the then-minor victim 21 years before the crime, deficient notice that the state was seeking Range III classification for sentencing, and an excessive sentence. Because there is no error requiring reversal, we affirm.
The appellant, Calvin Otis Tanksley, was convicted by a Davidson County Jury of one count of rape of a child and one count of attempted rape of a child. Based on his classification as a repeat violent offender, the appellant was sentenced upon each count to two consecutive sentences of life without parole. Upon appeal, the appellant raises the following issues: (1) whether the evidence was sufficient to support the verdicts; (2) whether the court erred in ruling the defendant's prior bad acts could be introduced by the State if the defendant presented an alibi defense; (3) whether the court erred in allowing the State to introduce over four hundred pairs of women's undergarments seized from the defendant in an investigation in another county; (4) whether the trial court erred in not suppressing the photographic array; and (5) whether the appellant qualified for sentencing as a repeat violent offender. Finding no reversible error, the judgments are affirmed.
Defendant, Joseph E. Suggs, pled guilty to three counts of child rape, for which he received three consecutive 25-year sentences. On appeal, the defendant raises two issues: 1) whether the trial court erred by imposing the maximum sentence for each count; and 2) whether the trial court erred by imposing consecutive sentences on all counts. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
The appellant/defendant, Marty W. Stanfill, appeals as of right from the judgment of the Davidson County Criminal Court which imposed a sentence of eight (8) years in indictment No. 97-B-1320, for the state offense of unlawful possession of cocaine with the intent to sell or deliver. The trial court ordered this sentence to be served consecutively to a federal conviction, No. 3:97-00087, for conspiracy to distribute cocaine. At the same sentencing hearing, in indictment No. 99-B-865, the trial court imposed, in three separate counts, two (2) eight (8) year sentences for unlawful possession of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, and one (1) year for the unlawful possession of a weapon. These sentences were to be served concurrently with case No. 97-B-1320 and the federal conviction, No. 3:97-00087, imposed by the U.S. District Court for Middle Tennessee at Nashville. The defendant presents one appellate issue: Whether the trial court erred in imposing an eight (8) year sentence in case No. 97-B-1320, consecutive to federal case No. 3:97-00087? After a complete review of the record, briefs of the parties and applicable law, we vacate the judgment of conviction and remand the case for further proceedings.
