APPELLATE COURT OPINIONS

The Defendant, Jimmy Richard Burrow II, pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, a Class C felony; possession of methamphetamine, a Class A misdemeanor; possession with intent to sell or deliver a Schedule V controlled substance, a Class E felony; and possession of a firearm after a felony drug conviction, a Class C felony. See T.C.A. §§ 39-13-1003 (Supp. 2020) (subsequently amended) (aggravated burglary), 39-17-434(a)(4) (2018) (possession of methamphetamine), 39-17-417(a)(4) (Supp. 2020) (subsequently amended) (possession of a Schedule V controlled substance), 39-17-1307(c)(1) (2018) (subsequently amended) (possession of a firearm). He received an effective ten-year sentence to be served in confinement but was subsequently released to a residential drug recovery program. The Defendant violated the terms and conditions of the recovery program, and, after a hearing, the trial court ordered the Defendant to serve his sentence. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred by failing to consider alternative sentencing and the Defendant’s amenability to future rehabilitation. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant, Laverick Clark, of one count of attempted first degree murder with serious bodily injury, one count of attempted first degree murder, two counts of especially aggravated burglary, one count of aggravated assault, and one count of stalking. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to a total effective sentence of twenty-five years. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred when it denied his motion for a mistrial and when it sentenced him. He also contends the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for attempted first degree murder. Following our review, we affirm the trial court’s judgments.

A Knox County jury convicted the Defendant, Bryan Anthony Capps, of two counts of sexual battery, two counts of sexual battery by an authority figure, and one count of violating the Sexual Offender Registry. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to an effective eight-year sentence to be served in the Tennessee Department of Correction. In his appeal, the Defendant argues that (1) the evidence was insufficient to show that the Defendant qualified as an authority figure or that he conducted an overnight visit at a residence with minors present; (2) the trial court’s oath as administered to the minor witnesses, which included a “pinky promise,” amounted to an improper comment on their credibility; (3) the trial court erred by allowing the prosecution to question a defense witness about felony convictions more than ten years old; and (4) the trial court erred by denying split confinement and by imposing consecutive sentences. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgments of the trial court.

The Defendant, Charles Lynell Sims, pled guilty in the Knox County Criminal Court to aggravated assault, a Class C felony, in exchange for a Range II sentence of eight years, with the manner of service left to the trial court’s determination. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court ordered the Defendant to serve the entire eight-year sentence in confinement.  On appeal, the Defendant argues that the trial court abused its discretion in ordering a sentence of total confinement.  Based on our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The Defendant, Sergio Rangel, was convicted by a Knox County Criminal Court jury of facilitation of aggravated burglary, a Class D felony, and sentenced by the trial court as a Range I, standard offender to four years, suspended to three years of supervised probation following twelve months of confinement. The sole issue the Defendant raises on appeal is whether the evidence is sufficient to sustain his conviction. Based on our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court but remand for entry of a corrected judgment to reflect the correct conviction offense. 

After the denial of a motion to suppress, Charles Ivie Porter, Defendant, pled guilty to two counts of possession of methamphetamine with the intent to sell in exchange for the dismissal of seven additional drug charges in two separate cases.  He received an effective sentence of twelve years in incarceration.  Pursuant to the plea agreement, the parties reserved a certified question of law for appeal under Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 37(b)(2).  After a review, we determine that we do not have jurisdiction to address the certified question because it does not meet the requirements of Rule 37(b)(2) and State v. Preston, 759 S.W.2d 647 (Tenn. 1988). Therefore, we dismiss the appeal.

Stacy Michelle Cochran, Defendant, entered an open plea of guilty to three felonies and one misdemeanor. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced her as a Range II multiple offender to an effective sentence of twenty-four years to be served at 35%, plus eleven months and 29 days to be served at 75%. Defendant claims that the State entered into a plea agreement for her to be sentenced as a Range I offender and that the trial court erred in sentencing her as a Range II offender. Because the record on appeal, which does not contain the transcript of the plea submission hearing or the transcript of the sentencing hearing, is inadequate for meaningful appellate review, we are precluded from addressing the issue. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed. 

The Defendant, Artevious Moore, Jr., pled guilty to theft of property and was placed on judicial diversion. Thereafter, the Defendant pled guilty to aggravated assault, leaving sentencing to the trial court. He also agreed to have the trial court rescind his judicial diversion, enter an adjudication of guilt as to the theft charge, and allow the court to impose the sentence. After a consolidated sentencing hearing, the court denied alternative sentencing and sentenced the Defendant to three years for the aggravated assault conviction and two years for the theft conviction. The trial court ordered the sentences to be aligned consecutively for an effective sentence of five years to be served in confinement. The Defendant appealed, challenging the consecutive sentences and the denial of alternative sentencing. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the trial court’s judgments.

Defendant, Travis Andrew Harris, was convicted of first degree premeditated murder and
possession of a firearm by a felon convicted of a violent crime. The trial court imposed an
effective sentence of life plus twelve years. On appeal, Defendant contends that the
evidence at trial as to his premeditation and identity was insufficient to support his murder
conviction. We conclude that the evidence was sufficient and affirm Defendant’s
conviction. The judgments of the trial court are affirmed.

The Defendant, Raymond Mefford, was convicted of two counts of aggravated assault following a bench trial in the Robertson County Circuit Court. He was sentenced to serve four years in confinement. On appeal, the Defendant challenges the trial court’s denial of alternative sentencing, arguing that the trial court should have offered the elderly and homeless Defendant rehabilitative treatment in the form of housing assistance or work programs. Following our review, we affirm.

The Petitioner, William G. Creasy, appeals the Trousdale County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus relief. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals.

A Claiborne County jury convicted the Petitioner, Jamie Scott Brock, of first degree murder in 2006, and the trial court sentenced him to life imprisonment. More than thirteen years after his conviction was affirmed on appeal, the Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief in 2024. The post-conviction court summarily dismissed the petition after finding it to be untimely and concluding that principles of due process did not toll the running of the statute of limitations. The Petitioner appealed. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

A Knox County jury convicted the Defendant, Eugenio Gomez Ruiz, of furnishing alcohol to a person under twenty-one years of age, a Class A misdemeanor. The trial court sentenced the Defendant to eleven months and twenty-nine days, ordering that the sentence be suspended after service of six months in confinement. On appeal, the Defendant argues that the trial court erred (1) in finding that the crime is a strict liability crime and thereby erred in denying his requests for a jury instruction on mental states and to introduce evidence relevant to certain defenses; and (2) in sentencing him to serve six months in confinement. He also asserts that the State committed prosecutorial misconduct by charging him with a strict liability offense instead of one requiring a culpable mental state. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Petitioner, Doyle Wayne Mason, Jr., 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 object to the State’s closing argument, failing to adequately advise
him concerning the State’s plea offer, and failing to move to exclude discovery received
on the eve of trial. Petitioner further argues that appellate counsel was ineffective for
failing to raise on direct appeal the issue of Juror 2’s presence on the jury. Following our
review of the entire record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the postconviction
court.

In 2022, the Petitioner entered a best interest plea to one count of reckless homicide and two counts of selling fentanyl. By agreement, the State dismissed multiple other pending charges, and the trial court entered the agreed sentence of fifteen years. In 2024, the Petitioner filed a petition for habeas corpus relief contending that, pursuant to the circumstances of the plea, the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the case, nullifying his convictions. The habeas corpus court summarily dismissed the petition. The Petitioner filed an untimely appeal but claims that he improperly filed for appeal in the wrong court. On appeal, he maintains his subject matter jurisdiction claim. After review, we affirm the habeas corpus court’s judgment.

Pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement, Defendant, Joseph Sakai Hall, pleaded guilty in the Davidson County Criminal Court to one count of aggravated assault involving serious bodily injury, a Class C felony, and received a sentence of three to four years as a Range I offender with the trial court to determine the length and manner of service and whether to grant Defendant’s request for judicial diversion.  Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court denied Defendant’s request for diversion and sentenced him to four years with 180 days to serve and the remainder to be supervised on probation.  After a careful review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. 

The Petitioner, Justin Quistopher Webb, pled guilty to attempted first degree murder and theft of property and received a sentence of twenty years. Thereafter, he filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging that his plea counsel rendered ineffective assistance in failing to advise him of the significant consequences of the plea. After a hearing, the post-conviction court denied the petition by finding that plea counsel was not ineffective. On appeal, the Petitioner argues that the post-conviction court erred in denying his petition, asserting that he proved his allegations by clear and convincing evidence. Upon our review, we respectfully disagree and affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment.

The Defendant, Bobby V. Summers, appeals the trial court’s summary dismissal of his motions to correct an illegal sentence. The State has filed a motion asking this Court to affirm pursuant to Court of Criminal Appeals Rule 20. Said motion is hereby granted.

A Bedford County jury found the Defendant, Bobby Daniel Pettie, guilty of possession of a firearm with the intent to go armed during the commission of a dangerous felony, among other offenses. The court then imposed a six-year sentence for this conviction after implicitly finding that the Defendant had a qualifying prior felony conviction. Thereafter, the Defendant sought to have his sentence declared illegal pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1, arguing that the jury did not find that he had a qualifying prior felony conviction. The trial court denied the motion, finding that the Defendant waived the jury’s determination of the issue. The Defendant appealed to this court. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The Petitioner, Joseph E. Graham, appeals from the Montgomery County Circuit Court’s denial of post-conviction relief from his convictions for two counts of first degree felony murder, seven counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, five counts of attempted aggravated robbery, and one count of especially aggravated burglary and his effective sentence of life imprisonment plus twenty years. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred by (1) denying relief on his ineffective assistance of counsel claim and (2) denying his motion for a continuance of the post-conviction hearing. We affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Petitioner, Mickey Verchell Shanklin, appeals the post-conviction court’s order denying his petition for post-conviction relief in which he challenged his convictions for the sale of heroin, the delivery of heroin, the sale of fentanyl, and the delivery of fentanyl and his effective sentence of thirty years of imprisonment as a Range III, persistent offender. On appeal, Petitioner asserts that trial counsel was ineffective in failing to submit the controlled substance for independent testing. Because Petitioner filed an untimely notice of appeal, we dismiss the appeal.

A Maury County jury convicted the Defendant, William Wylie, of second degree murder, among other offenses. The trial court imposed a sentence of twenty years. On appeal, the State asks this court to dismiss the appeal because the Defendant’s notice of appeal was untimely. Upon our review, we agree that the Defendant’s notice of appeal was untimely and that the interest of justice does not require us to waive the timely filing requirement. We respectfully dismiss the appeal.

Joey Dewayne Callahan (“Defendant”) appeals from his Marshall County Circuit Court convictions for possession with intent to sell or deliver more than 0.5 grams of methamphetamine, possession of a prohibited weapon, possession with the intent to use drug paraphernalia, resisting arrest, and reckless driving, for which he received a total effective sentence of fifteen years’ incarceration. Defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to establish his intent to sell the methamphetamine. Following a thorough review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

A Davidson County jury convicted the Defendant, Brentnol Calvin James, of first degree premeditated murder, and the trial court imposed a life sentence. On appeal, the Defendant asserts that the evidence of premeditation was insufficient to support his conviction, and that the trial court erred by failing to provide a jury instruction on self-defense. After review, we affirm the trial court’s judgment.

The Petitioner, Monoleto D. Green, acting pro se, appeals from the order of the Davidson County Criminal Court summarily dismissing his second petition seeking a writ of habeas corpus. Pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals, we affirm.