State of Tennessee v. Albert James Saavedra

The Defendant, Albert James Saavedra, was indicted on one count of first degree murder and one count of attempted first degree murder. He was convicted for the lesser-included offense of voluntary manslaughter and for the indicted offense of attempted first degree murder. The trial court reduced the conviction for attempted first degree murder to attempted second degree murder, finding that the evidence was insufficient to prove that the Defendant acted with premeditation. The trial court also sentenced the Defendant to an effective sentence of fourteen years in the Department of Correction. The Defendant appeals, contending that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction for attempted second degree murder; (2) the trial court erred by not instructing the jury on aggravated assault as a lesser-included offense of attempted first degree murder; (3) the trial court erred when it took his motion for judgment of acquittal under advisement and when it denied this motion with respect to attempted second degree murder; and (4) the trial court erred when it denied his Rule 33(f) motion. Finding that there exists no reversible error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.