Michael Eugene Sample v. State of Tennessee

We granted review in this post-conviction capital case to address two issues: (1) whether the
trial court properly ruled that the petitioner’s claim that the prosecution suppressed exculpatory
evidence was barred by the statute of limitations; and (2) whether the trial court properly determined that the jury’s reliance on the felony murder aggravating circumstance in imposing a death sentence for the offense of felony murder in violation of article I, § 16 of the Tennessee Constitution was harmless error beyond a reasonable doubt. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the denial of post-conviction relief.