State of Tennessee v. Terrell Smith

The defendant, Terrell Smith, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of attempted voluntary manslaughter, a Class D felony; possession of a firearm on school property, a Class E felony; and employment of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony, a Class C felony. He was sentenced to an effective term of eight years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that: (1) the trial court erred in allowing the victim to display scars from his gunshot wounds to the jury; (2) the State committed prosecutorial misconduct by introducing evidence of the defendant's prior conviction for unlawful possession of a weapon via cross-examination of his mother and the court should have, thus, declared a mistrial; and (3) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction for attempted voluntary manslaughter. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.