Opinions

State of Tennessee v. Otis Campbell
W2001-01121-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge Donald H. Allen

The defendant, Otis Campbell, was convicted of two misdemeanor counts of a three-count indictment and sentenced to eleven months and twenty-nine days for possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana. The trial court ordered that the sentences be served consecutively to each other as well as to two other sentences for which he had earlier been placed into the community corrections program. He timely appealed, presenting as his sole argument the claim that the trial court erred in ordering that all of the sentences be served consecutively. We affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Anthony Doty vs. Patrick Whalen
W2001-01854-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: Dewey C. Whitenton
Petitioner-inmate filed a petition for writ of mandamus to require the defendants, prison warden and other officials, to restore visitation privileges of the plaintiff's girlfriend and to expunge from the prison records all references to the revocation of the visitation privileges and to the alleged sexual misconduct that precipitated the revocation. After a nonjury trial, the trial court entered an order of dismissal. Plaintiff has appealed. We affirm as modified and remand for further proceedings.

Margaret Parker vs. Kroger Co.
W2001-01977-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: James F. Russell
Plaintiff, a Tennessee resident, slipped and fell in a Kroger store in Texas. Plaintiff sued defendant in Shelby County Circuit Court, and the parties agreed that Texas law was applicable. The trial court granted summary judgment for defendant, and plaintiff appeals. We reverse and remand.

Dept. of Children Serv. vs. Davina Frazier
W2001-01935-COA-R3-JV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: Christy R. Little
Minor child was removed from mother's custody because mother neglected to provide child with proper medical care and treatment. Mother entered into a permanency plan and child was temporarily placed with a family member. The trial court terminated mother's parental rights to the child, finding clear and convincing evidence that: (1) mother had not substantially complied with the conditions of the permanency plan; (2) there was little likelihood that the conditions leading to child's removal would be remedied in the near future, and that the continuation of the parent-child relationship would greatly diminish the child's chances of early integration into a safe, stable and permanent home. Mother has appealed. We affirm

Margaret Parker v. The Kroger Company
W2002-02279-COA-RM-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: James F. Russell

Margaret Parker v. The Kroger Company
W2002-02279-COA-RM-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: James F. Russell

Charles Crews (Dexter Ridge Shopping Center) vs. Michael Cahhal, et al.
W1999-02354-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Holly M. Kirby
Trial Court Judge: Karen R. Williams
This is a breach of contract case. The plaintiff developer leased space to a corporation for use as a restaurant. The shareholders of the corporation entered into a separate agreement with the developer to guarantee the lease. The corporation defaulted on the lease. The developer filed unlawful detainer warrants in general sessions court against both the corporation and the shareholder guarantors. Thereafter, the corporation filed for bankruptcy, thus staying the general sessions court proceedings as to the corporation. The general sessions court dismissed the entire action, including the claim against the guarantors, because the bankruptcy stay prevented the developer from recovering possession. This decision was appealed to circuit court. Meanwhile, the developer had filed a second lawsuit for breach of contract against the guarantors. The second lawsuit was consolidated with the appeal of the unlawful detainer action pending in circuit court. After a trial, the circuit court affirmed the dismissal of the unlawful detainer action and dismissed the breach of contract action based on the doctrine of former suit pending. This appeal followed. We reverse and remand, finding, inter alia, that the action in general sessions court against the guarantors was for breach of contract and, therefore, recovery of possession of the premises was not required in order to obtain an award of damages against the guarantors.

State of Tennessee v. Kenneth England
E2001-01253-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Trial Court Judge: Judge E. Shayne Sexton

The Defendant pled guilty to three counts of retaliation for past action, a Class E felony, and the trial court sentenced him to four years on community corrections. Three separate violation warrants were subsequently issued against the Defendant. Following a revocation hearing, the trial court revoked the Defendant’s placement on community corrections and ordered that the Defendant serve his original sentence in the Tennessee Department of Correction. The Defendant now appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in revoking his community corrections sentence and ordering him to serve his sentence in confinement. Finding no error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Camila Ray v. State of Tennessee
E2001-01189-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge Ray L. Jenkins

The petitioner appeals from the Knox County Criminal Court's denying her post-conviction relief from her especially aggravated robbery and especially aggravated kidnaping convictions and resulting concurrent fifteen-year sentences that she received in 2000 based upon her pleas of guilty. She contends that her guilty pleas resulted from the ineffective assistance of counsel in that counsel misadvised her about the percentage of her sentence that she would have to serve in confinement. We affirm the trial court's denial of relief.

State of Tennessee v. Jeannie Hudson
E2001-00377-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: Judge Rex Henry Ogle

After pleading guilty to aggravated assault and receiving a sentence of split confinement of three years with nine months to be served day-for-day, defendant appeals her sentence. She requests full probation or allowance of good conduct credits while serving the incarceration portion of her sentence. We affirm the denial of full probation and reverse that portion of the sentence that provides day-for-day service. We hold that a defendant sentenced to the county jail for less than one year is entitled to earn good conduct credits pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 41-2-111(b).

Kenneth R. Griffin v. State of Tennessee
E2001-01932-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Trial Court Judge: Judge Lynn W. Brown

Petitioner, Kenneth R. Griffin, appeals from the trial court's summary dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. Pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-30-206, the trial court entered an order dismissing the petition without an evidentiary hearing. In its order, the trial court made a finding of fact that the petition contained no verification of any facts under oath. Since the petition was devoid of verified facts upon which the trial court could grant relief, it concluded that a dismissal was required. On appeal, the State agrees with Petitioner that the trial court's judgment should be reversed. After a thorough review of the record, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand this case for further proceedings.

Jennifer Branham vs. Jeffery Branham
E2003-01253-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Herschel P. Franks
Trial Court Judge: Thomas R. Frierson, II
Mother petitioned the Court to relocate to Kentucky with the parties child, which the Trial Court granted. On appeal, we affirm.

Perr Y M Ar Ch v. Law Renc E Levine,
M2000-02955-COA-R3-CV
Trial Court Judge: Frank G. Clement, Jr.

James Gunter v. Tim Emerton
M2001-00364-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: John J. Maddux
In this action against a police officer for invasion of privacy by placing the plaintiff in false light the trial court granted summary judgment to the defendant. On appeal, the plaintiff claims that the trial judge erred by granting summary judgment on a defense not raised by the defendant. We affirm.

State of Tennessee v. Greg Stewart
M2001-01056-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Norma McGee Ogle
Trial Court Judge: Judge John W. Rollins

Pursuant to a bench trial, the appellant, Greg Stewart, was convicted of two counts of simple possession of a controlled substance. The trial court sentenced the appellant to two concurrent terms of eleven months and twenty-nine days incarceration in the Coffee County Jail. On appeal, the appellant contests the trial court's denial of his motion to suppress the drug evidence due to the lack of proper consent to the search. Upon review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Jo Anne Silverman v. Krsna, Inc.
M2001-01921-COA-R9-CV-
Trial Court Judge: Hamilton V. Gayden, Jr.

M2000-03214-COA-R3-JV
M2000-03214-COA-R3-JV
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Betty Adams Green

Southwest Williamson County Community Assoc. v. J. Bruce Saltsman
M2001-00654-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Irvin H. Kilcrease, Jr.
A group of Williamson County residents whose property was threatened by highway construction filed a Petition for a Declaratory Order against the Tennessee Department of Transportation. They argued that the Department violated the statute that authorized the project by not complying with the environmental standards for construction of an interstate highway. The Administrative Law Judge denied the petition, and the trial court affirmed the ALJ. We affirm the trial court.

Nashville Sash & Door . v. TriStar Builders
M2001-01160-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Chancellor Jeffrey F. Stewart
Trial Court Judge: Walter C. Kurtz
In this case Nashville Sash and Door, Inc. sued Tristar Builders, Inc. and its two stockholders, Robert J. Ivy and Richard L. Cammeron on a debt arising from credit extended under an application of credit. At the conclusion of the plaintiff's proof the trial judge granted the defendants motion under Rule 41 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure and dismissed the complaint. Nashville Sash and Door, Inc. has appealed that decision. We affirm the Trial Court.

Perry March v. Lawrence Levine, et al
M2000-01955-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Frank G. Clement, Jr.

State of Tennessee v. Sean E. Miller
W2001-02045-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Joe G. Riley
Trial Court Judge: Judge Chris B. Craft
The defendant was found guilty by a Shelby County jury of DUI, second offense, and reckless driving. He was sentenced to 11 months and 29 days, all suspended except 60 days for DUI, second offense, and fined $50 for reckless driving. On appeal, he argues: (1) the results of his breath alcohol test were not properly admitted; (2) the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for reckless driving; (3) the trial court improperly aided the prosecution in the presentation of its case; and (4) the trial court erred in ordering the defendant to consent to breath alcohol tests as a condition of his probation. We reverse the judgments of the trial court, dismiss the charge of reckless driving, and remand the DUI charge to the lower court for a new trial.

State of Tennessee v. Paul Flannigan
W2001-00907-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Joe G. Riley
Trial Court Judge: Judge Arthur T. Bennett
The defendant, Paul Flannigan, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of one count of attempted first degree murder, two counts of especially aggravated robbery, three counts of aggravated rape, and one count of aggravated burglary. He received an effective sentence of 125 years. He appeals, raising two points: (1) there was insufficient proof to support his convictions, and (2) his sentences are excessive. We reverse one conviction for aggravated rape and remand that charge for a new trial; we modify some of the judgments for an effective sentence of 93 years; we affirm in all other respects.

State of Tennessee v. Thaddeus Morris
W2001-01691-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: Judge Chris B. Craft

The defendant, Thaddeus Morris, was convicted of three counts of assault, three counts of reckless aggravated assault, one count of aggravated robbery, and one count of carjacking following a jury trial. The trial court merged the three assault convictions with the three reckless aggravated assault convictions and the aggravated robbery conviction with the carjacking conviction. The defendant was sentenced to seven years, six months for each of the reckless aggravated assault convictions, with two of the sentences to be served concurrently and the third to be served consecutively. For the carjacking conviction, the trial court sentenced the defendant to twelve years to be served consecutively to the third reckless aggravated assault sentence, for an effective sentence of twenty-seven years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, the defendant argues: (1) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions for carjacking and aggravated robbery; (2) the trial court erred by not including "moral certainty" in its jury instruction on reasonable doubt; (3) cumulative error occurred during the trial; and (4) the trial court erred in imposing consecutive sentencing. After a careful review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

State of Tennessee v. Annetta Bell
M2001-00771–CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Gary R. Wade
Trial Court Judge: Judge Donald P. Harris

The defendant, Annetta Bell, was convicted after a bench trial of theft of property having a value less than $500.00. The trial court imposed a sentence of 11 months and 29 days. All but six months was suspended. In this appeal as of right, the defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support her conviction.

Betty Louise Moss v. Findlay Industries, Inc.
M2000-02632-WC-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: William H. Inman, Sr. J.
Trial Court Judge: Charles D. Haston, Judge
The trial court awarded benefits for vocational impairment of 55 percent to each of the plaintiff's arms. The defendant insists that the award is excessive, because the anatomical rating was only 1 percent, as a result of carpal tunnel release. The judgment is affirmed.