State of Tennessee v. Deborah M. Nowakowski

The Defendant-Appellant, Deborah Nowakowski, was convicted by a Wilson County jury of driving under the influence (DUI) and driving on a revoked license.  At a subsequent bench trial, the trial court found that Nowakowski had five previous DUI convictions and one previous conviction for driving on a revoked license.  She was therefore convicted of DUI, sixth offense, and violating the Motor Vehicle Habitual Offenders Act (MVHOA).  She received a total effective sentence of twelve years, eleven months and twenty-nine days’ incarceration.  On appeal, the sole issue presented for our review is whether the trial court erred in holding harmless the erroneous admission of a statement referencing Nowakowski’s prior DUI convictions.  Discerning no reversible error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.