State of Tennessee v. Christopher Oberton Curry, Jr.

Case Number
W2022-00814-SC-R11-CD

Christopher Oberton Curry, Jr. (“Defendant”) sought this Court’s review of his 2022
conviction for unlawful possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony
crime of violence. Pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-17-1307, unlawful
possession of a firearm by a convicted felon is a Class E felony; however, if the prior
conviction is for a felony crime of violence, the punishment is increased to a Class B felony.
At Defendant’s trial in the present case, the State introduced a certified judgment of
conviction for Defendant’s 2017 conviction for robbery, and the trial judge instructed the
jury that robbery is a crime of violence. Robbery, however, is not included in the statutory
definition of crimes of violence set forth in Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-17-
1301(3). Defendant was convicted and received an effective ten-year sentence. On appeal,
Defendant argues, among other things, that the evidence was insufficient to support his
conviction because the State failed to establish that the predicate felony of robbery was a
crime of violence. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed, concluding that robbery is a
crime of violence despite its absence from the statutory definition of the term. We granted
Defendant’s application for permission to appeal to consider whether robbery is
encompassed within the statutory definition of “crime of violence” and to determine
whether the evidence at trial was sufficient to support Defendant’s conviction. After
review, we agree with the lower courts that robbery can be a “crime of violence” within the
definition contained in section 39-17-1301(3). However, we conclude that whether robbery
is a “crime of violence” in a particular unlawful possession of a firearm case is a question
for a properly instructed jury, not the trial judge. Because the State did not present sufficient
evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that Defendant’s prior robbery was
a crime of violence, we reverse, in part, the decision of the Court of Criminal Appeals and
vacate the judgment of the trial court on Count 1. The case is remanded to the trial court
for entry of a new judgment reducing the conviction in Count 1 to a Class E felony and for
further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Authoring Judge
Roger A. Page
Originating Judge
Roy B. Morgan, Jr.
Date Filed
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