State of Tennessee v. Trevale Demarco Davis
Trevale Demarco Davis, Defendant, appeals the Hamilton County Criminal Court’s probation revocation of his effective five-year sentence for three counts of aggravated burglary and one count of robbery. On appeal, Defendant contends that the trial court abused its discretion by revoking his probation. After review, we affirm the trial court’s judgment. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Chad Anthony Turner
Defendant, Chad Anthony Turner, entered an open guilty plea to theft of property $250,000 or more, a Class A felony. He was sentenced to sixteen years’ incarceration and ordered to pay $100,000, in restitution to be paid in monthly installments of $700, should he make parole. On appeal, Defendant contends the trial court erred by imposing a restitution amount without any significant findings on Defendant’s financial resources and ability to pay and conditioned on the possibility of parole, by ordering a restitution amount which could not be satisfied prior to the end of his sentence, and by denying his request for an alternative sentence. Upon review of the record, the parties’ briefs, and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court regarding the length and manner of Defendant’s sentence. However, we reverse the trial court’s restitution order and remand for a new restitution hearing consistent with this opinion. |
Bradley | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Diane Bailey v. Donald Cobb
This is an appeal from a final order entered on January 23, 2024. The notice of appeal was not filed with the Appellate Court Clerk until February 23, 2024, more than thirty days from the date of entry of the order from which the appellant is seeking to appeal. Because the notice of appeal was not timely filed, we have no jurisdiction to consider this appeal. |
Anderson | Court of Appeals | |
Christopher A. Maxwell v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Christopher A. Maxwell, pleaded guilty to one count of first degree premeditated murder and two counts of attempted first degree premeditated murder, and was sentenced to an effective term of life plus twenty years. Petitioner filed a timely petition for post-conviction relief, which the post-conviction court denied after conducting a hearing. On appeal, Petitioner alleges he was denied the effective assistance of counsel and that his guilty pleas were entered unknowingly and involuntarily. After review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Franklin | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jonathan Darrell Hardin, Alias
The Knox County Grand Jury charged Defendant, Jonathan Darrell Hardin,1 with one count of especially aggravated kidnapping and one count of aggravated assault. Following a jury trial, Defendant was found guilty of the lesser offenses of aggravated kidnapping and assault. The trial court imposed an effective sentence of ten years in the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC), to be served consecutively to a ten-year sentence for a prior conviction. On appeal, Defendant argues: (1) the State committed discovery violations by not disclosing certain evidence; (2) Defendant’s fair trial rights were violated by the State’s failure to preserve and withhold material evidence; (3) the State improperly commented on Defendant’s right to silence; (4) the State improperly commented on Defendant’s post-arrest silence during Defendant’s cross-examination; (5) Defendant’s trial counsel rendered ineffective assistance by not calling an eyewitness witness to testify; and (6) Defendant is entitled to relief based on cumulative error. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Christopher Joe Whaley
A Sevier County jury found the defendant, Christopher Joe Whaley, guilty of possession of a firearm by a |
Sevier | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Logan Darby Helton
Logan Darby Helton, Defendant, claims the trial court abused its discretion by denying his application for judicial diversion relative to his guilty-pleaded convictions for aggravated burglary, aggravated criminal trespass, and unlawful photographing in violation of privacy. Following a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the judgments of the trial court but remand the case for entry of a corrected judgment form in Count 2 reflecting a sentence of eleven months twenty-nine days. |
Bradley | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Horatio Lewis Rice v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Horatio Lewis Rice, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in denying his claims that trial counsel was ineffective by failing to adequately investigate Petitioner’s mental health issues and that Petitioner lacked the mental capacity to enter into a constitutionally valid plea agreement. Following our review of the entire record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Bedford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Shelton Hall, III
Petitioner, Shelton Hall, III, appeals the denial of his motion to correct an illegal sentence, filed pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1. Following our review of the entire record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Roger Earl England
Defendant, Roger Earl England, appeals as of right from his conviction for first degree |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Horace Andrew Tyler Nunez
A Knox County jury convicted Horace Andrew Tyler Nunez, Defendant, of one count of first degree premeditated murder and four counts of reckless endangerment. On appeal, Defendant advances multiple arguments related to: admissibility of evidence; improper jury communications; sufficiency of the evidence; failing to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter; and sentencing. The State argues: the trial court did not err, or alternatively, any error was harmless; the evidence was sufficient; and the sentence was proper. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Robert H. Beckham et al. v. City of Waynesboro, Tennessee
In this personal injury action, the plaintiff slipped and fell while jumping off of a diving board during a visit to a city owned pool, injuring his knee. Thereafter, the plaintiff sued the city based on negligence to recover for his injuries sustained from the accident and his wife sought damages for a derivative claim for loss of consortium. The city filed an answer, raising the Tennessee Recreational Use Statute (hereinafter “the TRUS”) as an affirmative defense. The city then filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that it was immune from liability under the TRUS because the city is a “landowner” as defined by the TRUS, the plaintiff was engaged in a “recreational activity” listed in the TRUS at the time of the accident, and none of the exceptions or limitations to the TRUS were applicable. The trial court agreed and granted summary judgment in favor of the city. The trial court found that the language of the TRUS is not ambiguous and found that the city was immune from liability under the TRUS because the city pool, which is government-owned property, was being used for recreation at the time of the plaintiff’s injury and involved an activity included in the TRUS, “water sports.” The plaintiffs appeal the trial court’s holding that swimming in a city pool is a recreational activity protected under the TRUS. For the reasons stated below, we affirm. |
Wayne | Court of Appeals | |
In Re Dezeray H.
This action involves the termination of a mother’s parental rights to her minor child. Following a bench trial, the court found that clear and convincing evidence existed to establish the following statutory grounds of termination: (1) abandonment by failure to visit; (2) abandonment by failure to support; (3) abandonment by failure to provide a suitable home; (4) substantial noncompliance with the permanency plans; (5) the persistence of conditions which led to removal; (6) severe child abuse; and (7) failure to manifest an ability and willingness to assume custody of the child. The court also found that termination was in the best interest of the child. We affirm the trial court’s ultimate termination decision. |
Shelby | Court of Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Kelby Lerha Taylor
The Defendant, Kelby Lerha Taylor, appeals his convictions for nine counts of incest, eight counts of rape, three counts of sexual battery by an authority figure, two counts of aggravated assault, and one count of aggravated rape. Specifically, the Defendant argues that his substantive due process and fair trial rights were violated when the State, after its case-in-chief, dismissed a count charging continuous sexual abuse of a child under the Child Protection Act (“CPA”). This dismissal occurred after the Defendant had previously withdrawn a motion to sever the offenses based upon his understanding that the presence of the CPA charge necessitated joinder of at least some of the offenses. The Defendant additionally challenges the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his convictions. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
McNairy | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Terrance Collins
Terrance Collins (“Defendant”) appeals from his Shelby County Criminal Court conviction for aggravated arson, a Class A felony, and resulting twenty-year sentence. Defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction and that the trial court abused its discretion by imposing more than the minimum in-range sentence. Following a thorough review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
In Re Angel S. Et Al.
This appeal involves our review of the trial court’s decision to terminate the parental rights of a mother to her two minor children. Having carefully reviewed the record transmitted to us on appeal, we affirm the trial court’s termination of the mother’s parental rights. |
Anderson | Court of Appeals | |
The Wise Group, Inc. et al. v. Dwight Holland et al.
Appellees brought suit under the Tennessee Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act to recover attorney’s fees incurred in attempting to collect an underlying judgment from one of the Appellants. The trial court awarded Appellees’ attorney’s fees. Because the Act does not authorize the recovery of attorney’s fees, we reverse. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
Estate of John A. Queener v. Jim Griffith
The Estate of John A. Queener (the “Estate”), by and through Personal Representative, Carolyn Q. Junck, seeks to recover funds paid out with respect to two certificates of deposit (“CDs”) owned by the decedent, John A. Queener (the “Decedent”), at the time of his death and funds paid from the Decedent’s checking account during his lifetime. The Estate sued Jim Griffith (“Mr. Griffith”), stepson of the Decedent, and relied upon legal theories of undue influence, fraud and/or fraud in the inducement, lack of competency in the contract, and conversion. Following a bench trial, the trial court awarded the Estate $13,355.05 plus pre- and post-judgment interest against Mr. Griffith to reimburse the Estate for a number of checks that Mr. Griffith wrote from the Decedent’s checking account during the Decedent’s lifetime. The trial court denied the Estate any recovery with respect to the CDs. On appeal, the Estate and Mr. Griffith both raise issues with the trial court’s judgment. Discerning no error, we affirm. |
Knox | Court of Appeals | |
In Re A'Jayi A.
Two relatives filed competing petitions to adopt a minor child after his mother’s death. The child’s father was unknown. The trial court conducted a comparative fitness analysis and found that it was in the best interest of the child to be adopted by the child’s maternal grandfather. We affirm. |
Madison | Court of Appeals | |
In Re Justus P.
Appellant/Mother appeals the trial court’s modification of: (1) the parenting plan for the minor child; and (2) Appellee/Father’s child support obligations. Because the trial court erred in setting the parties’ respective monthly gross incomes for child support purposes, we vacate its order concerning child support and remand for recalculation. The trial court’s order granting Father the federal Child Tax Credit is also vacated. The trial court’s order is otherwise affirmed. |
Benton | Court of Appeals | |
Ryan Michael Ramey v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Ryan Michael Ramey, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, |
Unicoi | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Terry Rainwaters, et al. v. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, et al.
Acting under authorization of subsections (1) and (7) of Tennessee Code Annotated section 70-1-305, officers of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), suspecting violations of wildlife laws, entered onto the Plaintiffs’ properties on multiple occasions, seeking to enforce restrictions upon hunting. The TWRA’s officers did so without a warrant or consent. The Plaintiffs brought suit, asserting that the statute authorizing these entries is unconstitutional on its face and as applied, and seeking declaratory and injunctive relief as well as nominal damages. A three-judge trial court panel concluded the statute is unconstitutional on its face and granted declaratory judgment and nominal damages. The three-judge panel divided on two issues. One, the majority pretermitted the as-applied constitutional challenge, while the third judge would have found the statute unconstitutional as applied. Two, the majority declined to grant injunctive relief while the third judge would have granted injunctive relief. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency appeals. We conclude the statute is facially constitutional but unconstitutional as applied. We affirm the award of nominal damages. |
Benton | Court of Appeals | |
Darlene Hall v. Quality Center for Rehabilitation and Healing, LLC
This is an appeal from an order denying a nursing home’s motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings in a wrongful death action commenced by a former resident’s wife. The nursing home argued that the wife was bound by an optional arbitration agreement that she signed during her husband’s admission to the facility. However, the trial court held that the wife was not bound by the arbitration agreement because she signed it in a representative capacity and was not a party to the agreement. This appeal followed. Following the recent Tennessee Supreme Court decision in Williams v. Smyrna Residential, LLC, 685 S.W.3d 718 (Tenn. 2024), we hold that the wife lacked the legal authority to bind her husband to the optional arbitration agreement because she had the powers of only a healthcare agent, and entering into the optional arbitration agreement was not a healthcare decision. Thus, neither the wife nor any of the resident’s heirs are precluded from bringing and maintaining a wrongful death action on the resident’s behalf. For the reasons explained below, we affirm the judgment of the trial court, albeit on different grounds, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. |
Wilson | Court of Appeals | |
Susan Oliver et al. v. Kroger Limited Partnership I
A woman fell in a Gallatin, Tennessee grocery store and suffered a labral hip tear. She and her husband filed suit against the grocery store, alleging claims for premises liability and loss of consortium. The case proceeded to a jury trial. After the close of the plaintiffs’ proof, the store moved for a directed verdict. The trial court granted the defendant’s motion, concluding that the plaintiffs put forth no proof of constructive notice. The plaintiffs appeal; discerning no error, we affirm. |
Sumner | Court of Appeals | |
In Re Royalty Y.
In this case involving termination of the mother’s parental rights to her child, the trial court found that four statutory grounds for termination had been proven by clear and convincing evidence. The trial court further found that clear and convincing evidence demonstrated that termination of the mother’s parental rights was in the child’s best interest. The mother has appealed. Having determined that the trial court erred by failing to make findings concerning the mother’s affirmative defense of lack of willfulness relative to the statutory grounds of abandonment through failure to visit and support the child, we reverse the trial court’s reliance on those grounds. We affirm the trial court’s judgment in all other respects, including the termination of the mother’s parental rights to the child. |
Shelby | Court of Appeals |