State of Tennessee v. Dennis Charles Arellano, a/k/a Chuck Arellano, a/k/a Dr. Chuck Arellano
The defendant, Dennis Charles Arellano, a/k/a Chuck Arellano, a/k/a Dr. Chuck Arellano, pled guilty to one count of TennCare fraud valued between $10,000 and $60,000, one count of impersonating a licensed professional, and one count of reckless endangerment. The defendant agreed to a total effective sentence of six years and restitution in the amount of $30,000, with the manner of service of the defendant’s sentence left to the discretion of the trial court. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced the defendant to nine months in the county jail and the balance of his sentence on probation. He was also ordered to perform 200 hours of public service work. On appeal, the defendant asserts that the trial court erred by denying his request for judicial diversion or, in the alternative, a sentence of full probation. After reviewing the record, we conclude that the trial court properly sentenced the defendant and affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Franklin | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Zandy Orlando Nelson a/k/a Vandy A. Nelson
The defendant, Zandy Orlando Nelson a/k/a Vandy A. Nelson, appeals as of right his Davidson County Criminal Court conviction of aggravated assault for which he received a sentence of eleven years as a persistent offender, consecutive to a previously imposed sentence. He argues that the evidence is insufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court erred in denying a motion for continuance when the State filed a notice to seek enhanced punishment on the day of trial. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Artis Whitehead v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Artis Whitehead, appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court’s order summarily dismissing as untimely his petition for post-conviction relief. On appeal, the petitioner argues that his petition for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court tolled the one-year limitations period for filing a post-conviction petition, and because his petition was filed within one year of the Supreme Court’s order denying certiorari, his post-conviction petition was timely. The petitioner also argues that because counsel incorrectly informed him that the deadline for filing his postconviction petition was one year after the Supreme Court denied certiorari, due process requires the tolling of the one-year limitations period. After reviewing the record, we conclude that while the petition was untimely, further development of the record is necessary to determine whether counsel’s advice regarding the limitations period constituted “misrepresentation, either attributable to deception or other misconduct,” see Williams v. State, 44 S.W.3d 464, 469 (Tenn. 2001), that necessitated due process-based tolling of the limitations period. As such, we reverse the judgment of the post-conviction court and remand the case for an evidentiary hearing. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Stanley Blue
The defendant, Stanley Blue, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of facilitation of premeditated first degree murder, attempted second degree murder, and reckless endangerment. The trial court imposed sentences of thirty-four years, fifteen years and six years, respectively; the trial court also ordered the thirty-four-year sentence to be served consecutively to the six-year sentence for a total effective sentence of forty years. In this appeal as of right, the defendant contends that (1) the trial court erred in allowing the State to define premeditated murder and felony murder during voir dire, (2) the trial court erred in denying an excusal for cause of a juror, (3) the trial court erred in its instructions regarding facilitation, (4) the trial court erred by excluding expert testimony, and (5) the evidence is insufficient to support a conviction for attempted second degree murder. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jason Clark v. Cherry Lindamood, Warden and State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Jason Clark, appeals the Wayne County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for habeas corpus relief. The Petitioner was indicted for first degree felony murder and especially aggravated robbery, and he ultimately pleaded guilty as charged. On appeal, the Petitioner argues that the indictment against him was fatally defective and, thus, deprived the trial court of subject matter jurisdiction and violated principles of due process. Specifically, he argues that the indictment did not state the charges against him; i.e., failed to include the words “especially aggravated robbery” and “first degree felony murder.” The habeas corpus court dismissed the petition, finding that the Petitioner had failed to state a cognizable claim for relief. We agree and affirm the order summarily dismissing the petition. |
Wayne | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bruce Warren Scarborough
The defendant, Bruce Warren Scarborough, was convicted by a Knox County Criminal Court jury of two counts of aggravated rape, Class A felonies, and was sentenced to consecutive terms of sixty years as a career offender in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that the trial court erred in (1) denying his motion to suppress the in-court and out-of-court identifications of him and his tattoos, (2) failing to grant a new trial due to prosecutorial misconduct during closing argument, (3) classifying him as a career offender, and (4) ordering consecutive sentences. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James Terry
The defendant, James Terry, was convicted by a Cocke County Circuit Court jury of one count of rape, a Class B felony, and was sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to twelve years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he contends that the evidence is not sufficient to support his conviction and that his sentence is excessive. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Cocke | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Anita Kay Broughton
A Claiborne County jury convicted the Defendant, Anita Kay Broughton, of one count of premeditated first degree murder. The trial court sentenced her to life in prison. The Defendant appeals, contending that: (1) the State presented insufficient evidence of premeditation; (2) the trial court abused its discretion when it did not admit a DVD video of the crime scene; (3) the trial court erred when it did not admit prior inconsistent statements of witnesses; and (4) the prosecuting attorney improperly argued that the Defendant had previously raped one of the witnesses. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the trial court’s judgment. |
Claiborne | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Eric C. Turner and Robert Dee Scribner, II
The defendants, Eric D. Turner and Robert Dee Scribner, II, were indicted by the Davidson County Grand Jury in a three-count indictment for rape of a child, a Class A felony, with Scribner charged with two counts and Turner charged with one count. Following their jury trial, Scribner was convicted of one of the two counts with which he was charged and sentenced as a child rapist to sixteen years at 100 percent in the Department of Correction. Turner was convicted of the lesser-included offense of attempted rape of a child, a Class B felony, and sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to ten years in the Department of Correction. Both defendants challenge the sufficiency of the convicting evidence on appeal. Turner additionally argues that the trial court erred by instructing the jury on the lesser-included offense of attempted rape of a child, and Scribner argues that the trial court erred by admitting DNA evidence without a proper chain of custody, by not granting a requested special jury instruction, and by enhancing his sentence beyond the minimum in the range. Having reviewed the record and found no error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Harvey L. Webb v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Harvey L. Webb, appeals from the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. In this appeal, he contends that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Harvey Baker v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Harvey Baker, appeals the denial of habeas corpus relief by the trial court. Petitioner contended that the indictment on which his conviction was based was duplicitous, vague, ambiguous, faulty, and incomplete. As a result, Petitioner contended that the indictment was void. The trial court summarily dismissed the petition. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Hardeman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Michael H. Palmer v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Michael H. Palmer, appeals the dismissal of his pro se petitions for post-conviction relief in the Criminal Court for Sullivan County. He claims to have entered guilty pleas to reckless endangerment and telephone harassment and to have entered a nolo contendere plea to assault. On appeal, he contends that the trial court erred in dismissing the petitions without appointing counsel and in refusing to rescind the order dismissing the post-conviction petitions. We affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Ronald L. Davis v. State of Tennessee
The Appellant appeals the trial court's dismissal of his petition for a writ of error coram nobis. Having determined that the trial court properly denied the petition, this Court hereby affirms the judgment of the trial court. |
Maury | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Reggie Carnell James
A Madison County jury convicted the defendant, Reggie Carnell James, of one count of first degree murder and one count of tampering with evidence. The trial court sentenced the defendant to life in prison for the murder conviction and ten years as a Range II, multiple offender, for the evidence tampering conviction. On appeal, the defendant argues that the evidence produced at trial was insufficient to sustain his convictions. After reviewing the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jerome Bond v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Jerome Bond, appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. Following his convictions for first degree felony murder and especially aggravated robbery, the petitioner was sentenced to consecutive sentences of life imprisonment and twenty-five years. On appeal, the petitioner argues that he was denied his Sixth Amendment right to the effective assistance of counsel, specifically arguing that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to call an alibi witness at trial. Following review of the record, the denial of post-conviction relief is affirmed. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Curtis Palmer v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Curtis Palmer, appeals the post-conviction court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. On appeal, he argues that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel. Specifically, he argues that his trial counsel was ineffective as follows: (1) counsel admitted the petitioner’s guilt during the trial without the petitioner’s consent; (2) counsel failed to adequately investigate possible grounds for a speedy trial; (3) counsel failed to challenge invalid indictments; and (4) counsel failed to properly litigate the suppression of evidence. After a thorough review of the record and the parties’ briefs, the judgment of the post-conviction court denying post-conviction |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Melvin L. Cofer v. Wayne Brandon, Warden, State of Tennessee
In 2001, a Hardeman County jury convicted the Petitioner, Melvin L. Cofer, of one count of driving under the influence (“DUI”), third offense, one count of aggravated vehicular homicide, and one count of vehicular homicide. The trial court sentenced the Petitioner to a twenty-one year effective sentence. The Petitioner filed a petition for habeas corpus relief in which he alleged that his indictment was fatally defective. The habeas corpus court summarily denied the petition. On appeal, he contends that the habeas corpus court erred when it summarily dismissed his petition and failed to appoint him counsel. After a thorough review of the record and applicable authorities, we reverse the judgment of the trial court, and remand the case for the appointment of counsel and for a hearing on the issue of the sufficiency of the indictment for aggravated vehicular homicide. |
Wayne | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Scotty Lee Johnson
The defendant, Scotty Lee Johnson, appeals from the revocation of his probation. In this appeal, he contends that the trial court erred by ordering incarceration. Discerning no error, we affirm. |
Blount | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Alisha J. Glisson
The Defendant, Alisha J. Glisson, was convicted of felony murder, aggravated robbery, and three counts of attempted aggravated robbery. She was sentenced to an effective sentence of life imprisonment. On appeal, the Defendant presents a single issue for our review: whether the proof is sufficient to support her conviction for felony murder. She argues that the State failed to show that she was criminally responsible for the death of the victim and, alternatively, failed to sufficiently corroborate the testimony of the accomplices. After a review of the evidence in the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Anthony L. Williams
A jury convicted the Defendant, Anthony L. Williams, of first degree premeditated murder, felony aggravated assault, and felony reckless endangerment. The trial court ordered the Defendant to serve a life sentence for his first-degree murder conviction, a four-year sentence for his aggravated assault conviction, and a two-year sentence for his felony reckless endangerment conviction. The Defendant appeals, contending: (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his conviction for first degree premeditated murder; (2) the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on self-defense; and (3) the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on defense of others. After thoroughly reviewing the record and the relevant authorities, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Spencer Louis Lark, Jr.
Following a jury trial with co-defendant Maurice Nash, Defendant, Spencer Louis Lark, Jr., was found guilty of two counts of aggravated assault, a Class C felony, and one count of reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, a Class E felony. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced Defendant as a Range II, multiple offender, to six years for each aggravated assault conviction, and two years for his felony reckless endangerment conviction. The trial court ordered Defendant to serve his sentences concurrently for an effective sentence of six years. Defendant does not appeal the length or manner of service of his sentences. In his appeal, Defendant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. After a thorough review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Tipton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Edward Leon Davis
The defendant, Edward Leon Davis, was convicted by a jury of delivery of a Schedule II controlled substance (cocaine) weighing more than .5 grams, a Class B felony. For his conviction, the defendant received a sentence of ten years. On appeal, the defendant raises the following issues: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying the defendant’s motion for a mistrial; (2) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain his conviction; (3) whether the trial court imposed an excessive sentence; and (4) whether the trial court erred in denying the defendant probation or alternative sentencing. |
Fayette | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Archie Ray Moore
The Defendant, Archie Ray Moore, was convicted of selling .5 grams or more of a substance containing cocaine. The trial court sentenced him as a Range II, multiple offender to nineteen years in the Department of Correction. In this direct appeal, he argues that (1) the State presented evidence insufficient to convict him; and (2) the trial court erred in denying him community corrections and in setting the length of his sentence. After our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Lincoln | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Brandon D. Thomas
The Defendant, Brandon D. Thomas, was convicted by a jury of misdemeanor evading arrest. He was sentenced to serve eleven months and twenty-nine days in the Warren County Jail. In this direct appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred in refusing to instruct the jury on resisting arrest as a lesser-included offense of misdemeanor evading arrest. We conclude that this contention lacks merit, and we accordingly affirm. |
Warren | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Michael S. Morani v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Michael S. Morani, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. In this appeal he asserts that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Cumberland | Court of Criminal Appeals |
