APPELLATE COURT OPINIONS

Defendant was convicted of two counts of possession of cocaine with intent to sell and two counts of simple possession of cocaine. The trial court merged the two counts of possession of cocaine with intent to sell into one count and merged the two counts of simple possession of cocaine into one count. The trial court sentenced the defendant to concurrent sentences of eight years and eleven months and twenty-nine days, respectively, thus imposing an effective eight-year sentence. Defendant appealed on four grounds: (1) there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction for possession with intent to sell cocaine; (2) a search warrant failed to state sufficient facts to establish probable cause to search defendant's apartment; (3) the indictment was multiplicitous; and (4) the trial court erred in ruling that the State could use defendant's prior conviction to show intent. We conclude that all convictions should merge into a single judgment of conviction for possession of cocaine with intent to sell; thus, we vacate the sentence relating to simple possession of cocaine, although this will not change the effective eight-year sentence.

A Davidson County grand jury indicted the defendant on one count of felonious unlawful possession of a weapon and one count of misdemeanor evading arrest. Following a jury trial, the defendant was acquitted of the weapons offense but convicted of evading arrest. At the conclusion of a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced the defendant to eleven months and twenty-nine days for this conviction. The court also ordered this sentence to run consecutively to another sentence stemming from a separate arrest. The defendant next unsuccessfully filed a motion for a judgment of acquittal or, in the alternative, a new trial. Through this appeal he continues to assert that the evidence is insufficient to support his conviction. However, after reviewing the record, we find that this issue lacks merit and, therefore, affirm the defendant's conviction for evading arrest.

The appellant, Daryl Keith Holton, was convicted by a jury in the Bedford County Circuit Court of four counts of first degree premeditated murder. The same jury imposed a sentence of death for each count of murder. The appellant now appeals both his convictions and sentences, presenting the following issues for our review: (1) whether the evidence adduced at trial is sufficient to support the jury's verdicts; (2) whether the statute setting forth the defense of insanity in Tennessee is violative of the United States Constitution in the context of a prosecution for first degree premeditated murder; (3) whether under the United States Constitution inadequate acoustics in the courtroom during his trial denied the appellant his right to a fair trial; (4) whether under the United States and Tennessee Constitutions the imposition of a sentence of death violates a criminal defendant's fundamental right to life; (5) whether the evidence adduced during the guilt/innocence and sentencing phases of the appellant's trial supports the jury's imposition of sentences of death; and (6) whether the appellant's sentences of death are comparatively disproportionate. Following a thorough review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

The defendant contests the trial court's revocation of his probation, more specifically its failure to dismiss the probation revocation warrant. We conclude the trial court did not err in not dismissing the warrant. We affirm the judgment of the trial court with instructions to enter a formal order revoking probation.

Bonding company for absconded defendant appeals final forfeiture of bond and alleges that its agents were without authority to issue an alleged illegal bond. Concluding that bonding company's employee had authority to act, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The petitioner, Joe Hibbler, III's petition for post-conviction relief was denied by the Shelby County Criminal Court following an evidentiary hearing. Because the record supports the lower court's determination that the petitioner did not demonstrate the ineffective assistance of counsel by clear and convincing evidence, we affirm.

Memphis Bonding Company appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court's order denying its petitions for exoneration of liability for the defendant Howard C. Covington's bail bonds for various offenses. Because the record fails to reflect that this case is properly before us as a rightful appeal, we dismiss the appeal.

After failing to report to his arrest house and failing a drug screen, defendant's sentence in the Community Corrections Program was revoked, and defendant appealed the revocation. The record contains substantial evidence to support the revocation. We affirm the judgment.

The defendant was convicted of one count of theft of property, one count of aggravated assault, two counts of criminal simulation, one count of evading arrest, and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia. The criminal simulation convictions were merged by the trial court, and the defendant was sentenced as follows: four years for theft of property, four years for criminal simulation, ten years for aggravated assault, and eleven months and twenty nine days for both evading arrest and possession of drug paraphernalia. On appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his convictions for theft, criminal simulation, and evading arrest. He also alleges that the trial court failed to exclude from evidence hearsay testimony and statements to law enforcement in violation of his Fifth Amendment rights. Further, the defendant asserts that the trial court erred by failing to instruct the jury on the lesser-included offense of attempted criminal simulation. Finally, the defendant challenges the length and manner of service of his sentences. After a review of the record, we reverse and dismiss the defendant's conviction of criminal simulation. The remaining judgments of the trial court are affirmed.

The petitioner, Timothy Roberson, was convicted in 1995 of first degree murder and especially aggravated robbery, receiving respective sentences, to be served consecutively, of life without parole and fifteen years as a Range I, standard offender. Following an unsuccessful direct appeal of his conviction, he filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging ineffective assistance of counsel at trial. The post-conviction court dismissed the petition following a hearing, and the petitioner timely appealed. We affirm the order denying the petition.

The Appellant, Travis Jones, Jr., appeals from the dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. On March 22, 2000, Jones, pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement, entered "best interest" pleas to two counts of second degree murder. As provided by the plea agreement, Jones was sentenced by the Davidson County Criminal Court to consecutive fifteen-year terms for each conviction. On appeal, Jones challenges the post-conviction court's dismissal of his petition, arguing that he was "forced" into pleading guilty due to trial counsel's inadequate pre-trial preparation. Finding no error, the judgment of the post-conviction court is affirmed.