State of Tennessee v. Michael Aaron Jenkins and Perley Winkler, Jr.
A Monroe County Circuit Court jury convicted the appellants, Michael Aaron Jenkins and Perley Winkler, Jr., of two counts of attempted first degree premeditated murder and one count of attempted aggravated arson. After sentencing hearings, Jenkins received an effective seventeen-year sentence and Winkler received an effective forty-year sentence. On appeal, the appellants contend that the evidence is insufficient to support the convictions and that the trial court erred by prohibiting them from questioning one of the victims, David Senn, about a prior felony conviction. In addition, Jenkins contends that the trial court should have allowed him to cross-examine Senn in front of the jury about Senn’s untruthfulness during an offer of proof, that the trial court should have granted his motion to sever his trial from that of his codefendant, and that the State committed prosecutorial misconduct during its closing argument. Winkler contends that the trial court erred by allowing the State to question a second victim about a threatening message Winkler allegedly left on a cellular telephone and that his sentence is excessive. After a review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we conclude that the evidence is sufficient to support the convictions and that the trial court properly sentenced Winkler. The appellants’ remaining issues are waived because the appellants failed to provide an adequate record on appeal. |
Monroe | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Joseph Valentine Hill
Defendant, Joseph Valentine Hill, was charged with one count of DUI, second offense, a class A misdemeanor, and with seven counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a class C felony. He entered pleas of guilty as charged in each count and submitted to a sentencing hearing with no agreement as to the length or manner of service of the sentences. The trial court sentenced Defendant to four years for each aggravated assault conviction and to 11 months and 29 days for the DUI second offense conviction. The DUI sentence and three of the aggravated assault sentences were ordered to be served concurrently with each other. The remaining four aggravated assault sentences were ordered to be served concurrently with each other, but consecutively to the first grouping of sentences, for an effective sentence of eight years. The trial court ordered the eight-year sentence to be served in incarceration. Recognizing that the DUI, second offense conviction requires a mandatory minimum period of incarceration, Defendant argues on appeal that the trial court erred by declining to grant him probation after serving the above-noted mandatory minimum confinement. After careful review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Bedford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bobby Hughlett
The defendant, Bobby Hughlett, appeals from the trial court’s denial of any form of alternative sentencing, including probation. The defendant entered pleas of nolo contendere to attempted aggravated robbery and robbery, both Class C felonies. The defendant was given an agreed sentence of ten years for each count, to run concurrently, as a persistentoffender, with a 45% release eligibility date. The defendant contends that the court abused its discretion in denying him an alternative sentence, including probation, and erred in finding the defendant was on probation at the time of committing these offenses. After review, we affirm the sentences imposed by the trial court. |
Tipton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Derrick D. Crutcher
A Davidson County Criminal Court jury convicted the defendant, Derrick D. Crutcher, of simple possession of cocaine, in this case a Class E felony, see T.C.A. § 39-17-418(a), (e) (2006), and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class A misdemeanor, see id. § 39-17- 425(a)(1). In this appeal as of right, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. Because the evidence is sufficient, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Robert J. Montville v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Robert J. Montville, appeals the Hickman County Circuit Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his convictions for simple assault and reckless driving and his resulting effective sentence of eleven months, twenty-nine days to be served as twenty-four hours in jail and the remainder on supervised probation. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that he received the ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Based upon the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Hickman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Deborah N. Cotter
The appellant, Deborah N. Cotter, was convicted by a jury in the Hamblen County Criminal Court of aggravated robbery and was sentenced to ten years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, she argues that the evidence is insufficient to support her conviction, particularly because no witness identified her in court as the robber. She also contends that the trial court erred in arriving at her sentence. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Hamblen | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bryant C. Overton
A Rutherford County jury convicted the Defendant, Bryant C. Overton, of aggravated kidnapping, aggravated robbery, attempted first degree murder, and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. The trial court ordered the Defendant to serve an effective sentence of sixty years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the trial court’s judgments in part, but we reverse them in part based upon a sentencing error. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Alvin T. McGee v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Alvin T. McGee, filed for post-conviction relief from his convictions for attempted burglary and vandalism between $500 and $1000, alleging that his guilty pleas were not knowingly and voluntarily entered. The post-conviction court denied the petition, and the Petitioner now appeals. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Mitzi Rollins
The appellant, Mitzi Rollins, pled guilty in the Moore County Circuit Court to one count of initiating a false report under Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-16-502. The plea agreement provided that she would be sentenced to two years and ten months, with the trial court to determine the manner of service. After a hearing, the trial court denied the appellant’s request for alternative sentencing, citing her lengthy criminal history and the repeated unsuccessful attempts to use less restrictive sentencing. The appellant contends the trial court erred by ordering her to serve her sentence in confinement. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Moore | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v Charles E. Lowe-Kelley
A Maury County Circuit Court jury convicted the defendant, Charles E. Lowe-Kelley, of two counts of first degree premeditated murder, two counts of first degree felony murder, and nine counts of attempted first degree murder. At sentencing, the trial court imposed consecutive sentences of life with the possibility of parole for each first degree premeditated murder conviction, merged the first degree felony murder convictions into the first degree premeditated murder convictions, and imposed concurrent sentences of 15 years’ incarceration for each attempted first degree murder conviction to be served concurrently with the life sentences. On appeal, in addition to contesting the sufficiency of the evidence, the defendant contends that the trial court erred by (1) denying his motion for a continuance, (2) allowing a juror to remain on the jury who expressed an opinion about the case, (3) admitting evidence without establishing a proper chain of custody, (4) admitting a taperecorded conversation between the defendant and a separately-tried co-defendant, and (5) imposing consecutive sentences. Because the defendant failed to file a timely motion for new trial, all issues except the sufficiency of the evidence and sentencing are waived. Furthermore, the untimely motion for new trial rendered the notice of appeal untimely. In the interest of justice, however, we waive the timely filing of the notice of appeal and review the remaining issues. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Maury | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Douglas Wayne Young
A Sullivan County Criminal Court Jury convicted the appellant, Douglas Wayne Young, of aggravated rape and sentenced him to twenty-two years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the appellant claims that the trial court erred in (1) admitting the appellant’s nine millimeter handgun into evidence; (2) admitting scientific evidence from a DNA and serology expert; (3) finding that there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction; (4) giving the jury an instruction concerning flight; and (5) imposing a sentence of twenty-two years. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Brent Blye
Following a jury trial, the Defendant, Brent Allen Blye, was convicted in Case Number S50,833 of possession with intent to sell 26 grams or more of cocaine, a Class B felony, and two Class A misdemeanors and was sentenced by the trial court pursuant to an agreement by the parties. At the sentencing hearing, the Defendant pled guilty to several felony and misdemeanor charges in three unrelated cases and was sentenced pursuant to a plea agreement to an effective term of 30 years. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant contends that (1) his pro se motions should be considered as a motion for new trial in Case Number S50,833; (2) the evidence presented at trial was insufficient to sustain his convictions in Case Number S50,833; (3) the trial court erred in denying his motion to withdraw his guilty pleas in Case Numbers S46,736, S48,639, and S51,239; (4) his right to a speedy trial was violated in Case Number S46,736; (5) the trial court erred in sentencing him; and (6) the trial judge who presided over the sentencing hearing for all four cases should have recused herself. Following our review, we affirm the convictions but remand the case for the entry of corrected judgments consistent with this opinion. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Deadrick Garrett
The defendant, Deadrick Garrett, was convicted of first degree premeditated murder and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court erred in excluding evidence regarding the victim’s prior convictions and parole status. After careful review, we affirm the judgment from the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Lloyd Andra Webb
The Defendant, Lloyd Andra Webb, pled guilty to possession with intent to sell twenty-six grams or more of cocaine, a Class B felony, and to possession of marijuana, a Class A misdemeanor. See T.C.A. §§ 39-17-417 (2010); 39-17-418 (2010). He was sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to nine years for the possession with intent to sell conviction and to eleven months, twenty-nine days for the misdemeanor possession conviction, to be served concurrently. He was order to serve fifteen weekends in the Blount County Jail with the balance of his sentences on community corrections. The Defendant’s plea agreement reserved a certified question of law regarding the legality of the traffic stop that led to his arrest. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Blount | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Tony Chester McNally
The Defendant, Tony Chester McNally, pled guilty to introducing contraband into a penal institution, a Class C felony. See T.C.A. § 39-16-201 (2010). He was sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to three years’ confinement, to be served consecutively to sentences he was serving at the time of this offense. The Defendant’s plea agreement reserved a certified question of law regarding the legality of the questioning that led to his conviction. Because we conclude that the certified question is not dispositive of the case, we dismiss the appeal. |
Hawkins | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v Patrick Rico Edwards
Defendant, Patrick Rico Edwards, was indicted by the Davidson County Grand Jury for murder in the perpetration of a theft and first-degree premeditated murder, both in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-202. After a jury trial began on August 21, 2008, the trial court granted a mistrial. On March 19, 2009, Defendant pleaded guilty to the lesser-included offense of second degree murder. Following a sentencing hearing on May 12, 2009, Defendant was sentenced to serve 21 years in confinement at 100 percent. In this appeal, Defendant challenges the length of his sentence. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that Defendant’s sentence is not excessive and affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jamie W. Stanfill
The Defendant, Jamie W. Stanfill, pled guilty to three counts of theft of property between $10,000 and $60,000, Class C felonies; one count of theft of property between $1000 and $10,000, a Class D felony; and five counts of burglary of a motor vehicle, Class E felonies. The Defendant agreed to a ten-year sentence, with the trial court to determine the manner of service of his sentence. After a hearing, the trial court ordered him to serve his sentence in confinement. The Defendant appeals, contending the trial court improperly denied his request for an alternative sentence. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the trial court’s judgments. |
Sumner | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bennie E. Massey
Following a Montgomery County bench trial, the Defendant, Bennie E. Massey, was convicted of five counts of sexual battery by an authority figure, a Class C felony, and sentenced to six years, to be served on probation. The trial court also ordered the Defendant to serve forty-eight hours in jail every two weeks for the first year of his sentence. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions because the evidence presented by the State is based solely upon the victims’ testimony and those victims, he asserts, are accomplices to the sexual battery in that they consented to the unlawful touching. Further, he asserts that the trial court improperly imposed consecutive sentencing. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we conclude that the victims were not accomplices, in that their consent was coerced by the Defendant, and that the evidence, therefore, supports the Defendant’s convictions. We further conclude that the trial court properly sentenced the Defendant. As such, we affirm the trial court’s judgments. |
Montgomery | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Dewitt William Stickle, III
The Defendant, Dewitt William Stickle III, was charged with two counts of aggravated assault. Following a jury trial, he was convicted of one count of the lesser-included offense of assault, a Class A misdemeanor. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-101(b)(1). In this direct appeal, the Defendant, who maintained that he hit the victim in self-defense, contends that the trial court erred when it excluded testimony intended to corroborate his theory that the victim was the first aggressor. After our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Jackson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Shawn Blair v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Shawn Blair, appeals the post-conviction court’s dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief from his two convictions for simple possession of marijuana and resulting sentences of eleven-months, twenty-nine days for each conviction to be served consecutively. The post-conviction court summarily dismissed the petition without appointing counsel or conducting a hearing on the basis that the Petitioner had filed it while his direct appeal was pending. The Petitioner argues that he is entitled to post-conviction relief because he did not plead guilty knowingly and voluntarily and because he received the ineffective assistance of counsel. The State contends that the post-conviction court improperly dismissed the petition because the Petitioner did not file it prematurely. Upon review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we reverse the judgment of the post-conviction court and remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Andrew Colin Hicks
The Defendant, Andrew Colin Hicks, appeals as of right from the trial court’s denial of judicial diversion following his guilty plea to facilitation of attempted aggravated arson, a Class C felony. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed a sentence of three years probation. The Defendant contends that the trial court erred by denying his application for judicial diversion. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Robert Conley
Defendant, Robert Conley, filed a pro se notice of appeal which was timely as to the trial court’s order denying Defendant’s motion for reduction of sentence pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 35. The trial court subsequently appointed counsel to represent Defendant. In his brief on appeal, Defendant challenges the trial court’s order revoking his community corrections sentence and ordering service of the fourteen-year sentence by incarceration, in addition to arguing that the trial court erred by denying his Rule 35 motion. We conclude that the issue regarding revocation of the community corrections sentence is waived by Defendant’s failure to timely appeal that order. Further, we find that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying Defendant’s Rule 35 motion, and, accordingly affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Sonny Wayne Smith
Defendant, Sonny Wayne Smith, was indicted by the Marshall County Grand Jury for harassment, a class E felony, in violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-17-308. Defendant entered a guilty plea to the offense as charged. Following a sentencing hearing, Defendant was sentenced as a Range I standard offender to serve two years in confinement, and his sentence was ordered to be served consecutively to a misdemeanor sentence. In this direct appeal, Defendant challenges the length of his sentence and the consecutive sentencing. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Willie Long, Jr.
A Madison County Circuit Court Jury convicted the appellant, Willie Long, Jr., of two counts of the sale or delivery of a Schedule I drug and one count of simple possession/casual exchange of a Schedule I drug. The trial court imposed a total effective sentence of eleven years in the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) and ordered the appellant to serve eleven months and twenty-nine days of his felony sentences in the county jail “day for day” prior to being released on community corrections. On appeal, the appellant argues that the evidence adduced at trial was insufficient to sustain his convictions, that the trial court erred in enhancing the appellant’s felony sentences to eleven years, and that the trial court erred in ordering the appellant to serve eleven months and twenty-nine days of his felony sentences in the county jail “day for day.” The State concedes that the trial court erred in imposing “day for day” confinement in the county jail but argues the judgments should be affirmed in all other respects. Upon review, we affirm the appellant’s convictions and the length of the sentences imposed but remand for a correction of the judgments to provide that the appellant is entitled to earn good conduct credits while serving eleven months and twenty-nine days of his felony sentences in jail. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
James Paul Hurt v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, James Paul Hurt, was convicted by a Marshall County jury of selling 0.5 grams or more of cocaine and delivery of 0.5 grams or more of cocaine. The trial court merged the convictions, and on direct appeal, this court affirmed the judgment of the trial court. State v. James Paul Hurt, No. M2006-02381-CCA-R3-CD, 2007 WL 4552987 (Tenn. Crim. App. at Nashville, Dec. 27, 2007), no perm. to app. filed. Subsequently, Petitioner timely filed a petition for post-conviction relief. Following an evidentiary hearing, the trial court denied relief and dismissed the petition. Petitioner appeals, arguing that his trial counsel provided ineffective assistance of counsel. Following review of the briefs and the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction trial court. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals |
