State of Tennessee v. Samuel Lee Partin

The defendant pled guilty to two counts of driving after being declared an habitual motor vehicle offender and one count each of "third or subsequent" offense DUI, child endangerment, and vehicular assault, and it was agreed the trial court would determine the sentences. The trial court imposed a total effective sentence of five years, eleven months, and twenty-eight days in incarceration. In this appeal, the defendant argues the trial court erred in sentencing him. We conclude the defendant was indicted for fourth offense DUI, a Class E felony; he pled guilty to the offense as charged in the indictment, yet the plea erroneously referred to the non-existent enhancement classification of "third or subsequent" offense DUI rather than fourth offense DUI; and the defendant was erroneously sentenced for a misdemeanor based upon this non-existent enhancement classification. Because the defendant's guilty plea and sentence for this offense were erroneous and his pleas to all other offenses were part of his agreement to plead guilty, we vacate all judgments of conviction and remand to the trial court for further proceedings.