Sandy Green v. Virginia Evans
M2011-00276-COA-R3-CV
This is a grandparent visitation case. The child at issue was adjudicated dependent and neglected; the appellant paternal great-grandmother was awarded legal custody. Months later, the child’s mother died. The appellee maternal grandmother then filed a petition in juvenile court seeking both custody and alternatively grandparent visitation. The order denying the grandmother’s petition was appealed to the circuit court for a de novo hearing. The circuit court denied the grandmother’s petition for custody, but awarded grandparent visitation. The custodian great-grandmother now appeals. We reverse and dismiss the grandmother’s petition.
Authoring Judge: Judge Holly M. Kirby
Originating Judge:Judge Robbie T. Beal |
Williamson County | Court of Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
Asata D. Lowe v. James Fortner, Warden
E2011-00048-CCA-R3-HC
The Petitioner, Asata D. Lowe, was convicted by a Blount County jury of two counts of first degree premeditated murder, two counts of felony murder in the perpetration of a robbery, two counts of felony murder in the perpetration of a theft, one count of especially aggravated robbery, and one count of theft. Lowe subsequently filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the Blount County Circuit Court, which was dismissed after a hearing. On appeal, Lowe argues that the judgments are void because numerous constitutional errors deprived the trial court of authority to try and sentence him. He asserts that his right to a fair trial was violated by the State’s failure to disclose evidence and the trial court’s failure to instruct the jury properly, that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated by the seizure and admission at trial of evidence, that his right to the effective assistance of counsel was violated by his counsel’s performance at trial, and that his right against double jeopardy and due process rights were violated by multiplicitous indictments. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the habeas court.
Authoring Judge: Judge Camille R. McMullen
Originating Judge:Judge David R. Duggan |
Blount County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
John P. Konvalinka, Trustee v. American International Group, Inc.
E2011-00896-COA-R3-CV
This is an appeal of an order setting aside a default judgment. The plaintiff obtained a default judgment against the defendant. The defendant then filed a motion to set aside the default judgment, which was granted. The order setting aside the default judgment was certified as final pursuant to Rule 54.02 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure. The plaintiff now appeals. We find that Rule 54.02 certification was improvidently granted, and we dismiss the appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction.
Authoring Judge: Judge Holly M. Kirby
Originating Judge:Chancellor Jerri Bryant |
Bradley County | Court of Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
Ashley Renee Reed v. Michael Eugene Reed
M2011-00980-COA-R3-CV
Mother appeals from the trial court’s post-divorce determination that a substantial and material change of circumstances occurred that warranted a modification of the parenting plan and the designation of Father as the primary residential parent of their children. Mother also appeals the termination of her alimony payments and an award of attorney’s fees to Father. We affirm the finding that a substantialand material change of circumstance occurred and that it is in the best interests of the children that Father be the primary residential parent. We affirm the termination of alimony to Mother and the award of attorney’s fees to Father.
Authoring Judge: Judge Frank G. Clement, Jr.
Originating Judge:Judge C. L. Rogers |
Sumner County | Court of Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
Jacob L. Peachy v. State of Tennessee
M2011-01133-CCA-R3-PC
The petitioner, Jacob L. Peachy, appeals the Rutherford County Circuit Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. The petitioner, pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement, pled guilty to attempted aggravated burglary, a Class D felony, in exchange for a sentence of two years in confinement. On appeal, he contends that his guilty plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered due to the ineffective assistance of counsel. Specifically, the petitioner contends that trial counsel was ineffective by improperly advising him that his sentence was to be served on probation. Following careful review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Originating Judge:Judge Don R. Ash |
Rutherford County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
Cardiac Anesthesia Services, PLLC v. Jon Jones
M2011-01715-COA-R3-CV
This case involves the application of the statute of limitations to a legal malpractice action. Appellee attorney drafted a contract for Appellant medical provider; the contract contained a fee-split clause in contravention of Tennessee Code Annotated Section 63-6-225. When the other party to the contract, a hospital, allegedly breached the contract and sued the medical provider, the medical provider counterclaimed for breach of contract. The hospital answered the complaint and filed a motion for summary judgment, asserting that the contract was illegal and unenforceable.The trial court ruled that Tennessee Code Annotated Section 63-6225 did not apply to the contract at issue. A jury returned a verdict in favor of the medical provider for more than one million dollars. The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that Tennessee Code Annotated Section 63-6-225 invalidated the contract, and remanded the case for dismissal. Within one year of the Court of Appeals opinion, the medical provider filed this legal malpractice case against the drafting attorney. The trial court dismissed the case as beyond the one-year legal malpractice statute of limitations. We affirm.
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Steven Stafford
Originating Judge:Judge Larry B. Stanley, Jr. |
Putnam County | Court of Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Anthony Brown
W2010-01764-CCA-R3-CD
A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant-Appellant, Anthony Brown, of possession of 0.5 grams or more of cocaine with intent to deliver, a Class B felony, simple possession of cocaine, a Class A misdemeanor, and simple possession of marijuana, a Class A misdemeanor. The conviction for simple possession of cocaine was merged with the Class B felony, and Brown received an effective twenty-year sentence as a Range II offender. On appeal, Brown argues that (1) the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction of possession with intent to deliver, (2) the State committed prosecutorial misconduct at trial, and (3) the trial court erred in instructing the jury. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge Camille R. McMullen
Originating Judge:Judge Lee V. Coffee |
Shelby County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Tray Turner
E2010-02540-CCA-R3-CD
The Defendant, Tray Turner, appeals as of right from a jury conviction for aggravated robbery, a Class B felony, in the Criminal Court for Knox County. Following a sentencing hearing, the court imposed a sentence of 14 years incarceration at 100 percent service. The Defendant contends (1) that the State presented insufficient evidence to sustain his conviction for aggravated robbery and (2) that the trial court erred in ordering him to serve 100 percent of his sentence. After a review of the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
Originating Judge:Judge Bob R. McGee |
Knox County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
Ray Turner v. State of Tennessee
M2011-01746-CCA-R3-HC
In 2008, a Davidson County jury convicted the Petitioner, Ray Turner, of one count of conspiracy to deliver 300 grams or more of cocaine and one count of delivering 300 grams or more of cocaine. This Court affirmed the Petitioner’s convictions on appeal. See State v. Kenneth Miller and Ray Junior Turner, No. M2008-02267-CCA-R3-CD, 2010 WL 1644969 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Nashville, Apr. 22, 2010). The Petitioner filed a petition for habeas corpus relief, in which he alleged that his indictment was void because the State improperly amended the indictment to include that he committed the offenses in a school zone and that the trial court erred when it sentenced him. On appeal, he contends the habeas corpus court erred when it dismissed his petition. After a thorough review of the record and applicable authorities, we affirm the habeas corpus court’s judgment.
Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer
Originating Judge:Judge Cheryl Blackburn |
Davidson County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Nero Oswald Jones
W2011-00465-CCA-R3-CD
Nero Oswald Jones (“the Defendant”) appeals jury convictions for first degree premeditated murder and voluntary manslaughter, claiming that the trial court erred in: (1) allowing statements made by the Defendant to law enforcement officials; (2) excluding the Defendant’s line of questioning on cross-examination of a witness regarding potential bias based upon alleged romantic interest; (3) excluding testimony of one witness purporting to impeach the testimony of another witness; and (4) allowing the testimony of a lay witness based on her experience with firearms. The Defendant also challenges the sufficiency of the evidence for both convictions. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the Defendant’s convictions.
Authoring Judge: Judge Jeffrey S. Bivins
Originating Judge:Judge J. Weber McCraw |
Hardeman County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/30/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Jawad K. Salman
M2010-02337-CCA-R3-CD
Jawad Salman (“the Petitioner”) filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea for conspiracy to manufacture less than one hundred plants of marijuana, a D felony. The trial court denied the motion, and final judgment was entered. The Petitioner timely appealed, asserting that his guilty plea was void because of the failure to reduce the Petitioner’s guilty plea to a signed writing and that the trial court erred by not allowing the Petitioner to withdraw his guilty plea. We affirm the trial court’s judgment pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals.
Authoring Judge: Judge Jeffrey S. Bivins
Originating Judge:Judge Robert E. Burch |
Dickson County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Joseph L. Lands
W2011-00386-CCA-R3-CD
Defendant, Joseph L. Lands, pled guilty to vehicular homicide by intoxication, and he intended, pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 37(b)(2), to reserve the following certified question of law for appeal: “Whether proof of actual attempts by law enforcement officers to obtain a lawful warrant must be placed on the record before the court may find that exigent circumstances exist, such that the warrant requirement can be excused?” After review of the entire record, we conclude this appeal must be dismissed.
Authoring Judge: Judge Thomas T. Woodall
Originating Judge:Judge J. Weber McCraw |
McNairy County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Vernon Motley
W2010-01989-CCA-R3-CD
The defendant, Vernon Motley, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of first degree premeditated murder and sentenced to life imprisonment. On appeal, he argues that: (1) the trial court gave an improper jury instruction on premeditation; (2) the trial court erred when it did not grant the defendant’s motion for a mistrial based on a Brady violation; (3) the trial court erred when it allowed testimony of the victim’s dying declaration to include information concerning the motive for the killing; and (4) the State’s argument during closing was improper and amounted to plain error. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Originating Judge:Judge Lee V. Coffee |
Shelby County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
Fred H. Gillham v. City of Mt. Pleasant, et al.
M2010-02506-COA-R3-CV
A residential property owner challenged the procedures used by a planning commission and city commission in granting a rezoning application submitted by two industrial companies. The companies asked that the zoning for 95.2 acres of land be changed from agricultural to special impact industrial for the purpose of developing a landfill to dispose of salt cake produced as a byproduct of their smelting businesses. The property owner also asserted that two of the commissioners had a conflict of interest and that their participation granting the application invalidated the procedure. The defendants filed a motion to dismiss and motion for judgment on the pleadings. The trial court granted the defendants’ motions after concluding the planning commission and city commission complied with the procedural requirements of Tenn. Code Ann. §§13-7-203(a) and 6-20-215 and that the two commissioners had no conflict of interest since they had no ownership interest in the rezoning applicants. We affirm the trial court’s judgment dismissing the property owner’s complaint.
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Patricia J. Cottrell
Originating Judge:Judge Robert L. Jones |
Maury County | Court of Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
Johnny J. Peterson v. State of Tennessee
W2011-00367-CCA-R3-PC
The petitioner, Johnny J. Peterson, appeals the post-conviction court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his first degree murder and attempted first degree murder convictions. On appeal, he argues that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel. After review, we affirm the denial of the petition.
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Originating Judge:Judge James C. Beasley Jr. |
Shelby County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
Johnny J. Peterson v. State of Tennessee - Concurring
W2011-00367-CCA-R3-PC
I concur in the results reached in the majority opinion. I respectfully disagree, though, with the reasoning used. I believe the evidence fairly raised the issue of self-defense, thereby justifying an instruction to the jury. I also believe that under the facts in this case, selfdefense was not inconsistent with a claim of reckless homicide. I, however, am not persuaded that counsel performed deficiently nor that prejudice has been shown.
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Originating Judge:Judge James C. Beasley Jr. |
Shelby County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/29/12 | |
Kathryn M. Claiborne v. Larry W. Goldston
E2011-00135-COA-R3-CV
In this case, Kathryn M. Claiborne sought to set aside a quitclaim deed relating to property given to Larry W. Goldston. The trial court set aside the deed but awarded damages to Larry W. Goldston based upon his counterclaim for unjust enrichment. Kathryn M. Claiborne appeals. We affirm the judgment of the trial court as modified.
Authoring Judge: Judge John W. McClarty
Originating Judge:Chancellor John F. Weaver |
Knox County | Court of Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Steven Thacker
M2011-01061-CCA-R3-CD
Appellant, Steven Thacker, appeals the revocation of his probation, claiming that the trial court abused its discretion by revoking his probation and ordering execution of the original sentence. Finding no error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge Roger A. Page
Originating Judge:Judge J. Curtis Smith |
Sequatchie County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
James Alton Campbell v. State of Tennessee
M2011-00434-CCA-R3-PC
The petitioner, James Alton Campbell, appeals the partial denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. In this appeal, the petitioner asserts that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Discerning no error, we affirm.
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Originating Judge:Judge Thomas W. Graham |
Grundy County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
Lauren Ephgrave Jarrell v. Emmett Blake Jarrell
W2011-00578-COA-R3-CV
The parties’ Parenting Plan required that major decisions regarding religious upbringing be made jointly, and if no consensus could be reached, that the dispute be submitted to a mediator. Mother had the parties’ children baptized without Father’s knowledge or consent, and Father filed a petition for civil and criminal contempt against Mother. The trial court found Mother in civil contempt, but it dismissed the criminal contempt petition, apparently for insufficient notice. We reverse the trial court’s finding that Mother was in civil contempt, and its award of attorney fees to Father based upon the civil contempt finding. We also reverse the trial court’s dismissal of Father’s criminal contempt petition, and we remand for further criminal contempt proceedings.
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Alan E. Highers
Originating Judge:Judge Gina C. Higgins |
Shelby County | Court of Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Bo W. Prendergast
M2011-00571-CCA-R3-CD
A Williamson County Circuit Court jury convicted the defendant, Bo W. Prendergast, of one count of theft of property valued at over $10,000 but less than $60,000, see T.C.A. §§ 39-14-103, -105(4) (2006), and the trial court imposed a sentence of 15 years’ incarceration as a Range III, persistent offender to be served consecutively to a previously imposed sentence. On appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to support his conviction and urges this court to conclude that the trial court committed plain error by excluding a State’s witness’s felony convictions for use as impeachment. Discerning neither a paucity in the evidence nor that substantial justice requires consideration of the alleged error, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Originating Judge:Judge Timothy L. Easter |
Williamson County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
New Life Men's Clinic, Inc. v. Dr. Charles Beck
M2011-01363-COA-R3-CV
Appellee was granted a default judgment against Appellant in the general sessions court. More than five months after the entry of the default judgment, Appellant filed a Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 60.02 motion for relief from the general sessions court’s judgment. The general sessions court dismissed the motion on grounds that it was not timely filed and that the general sessions court, therefore, lacked jurisdiction to set aside its judgment. Appellant appealed to the circuit court. Thereafter, Appellant filed a petition for writ of error coram nobis, which was dismissed sua sponte by the circuit court. Appellant appeals. Because the writ of error coram nobis has long been abolished in the civil law, this filing had no legal effect; consequently, the trial court did not err in dismissing the writ. Affirmed and remanded.
Authoring Judge: Judge J. Steven Stafford
Originating Judge:Judge Barbara N. Haynes |
Davidson County | Court of Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
State of Tennessee v. Rodney K. Glover
M2011-00854-CCA-R3-CD
A Montgomery County Circuit Court jury convicted the defendant, Rodney K. Glover, of conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary, aggravated burglary, conspiracy to commit theft of property valued at over $10,000 but less than $60,000, aggravated robbery, aggravated kidnapping, and theft of property valued at less than $500. At sentencing, the trial court imposed a total effective sentence of 50 years’ incarceration. On appeal, the defendant challenges the trial court’s imposition of sentences as to both the length and alignment of service. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
Authoring Judge: Judge James Curwood Witt, Jr.
Originating Judge:Judge Michael R. Jones |
Montgomery County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
Wendy Ann Burton v. Robert Mark Mooneyham
M2011-00909-COA-R3-CV
In this divorce appeal, husband challenges the trial court’s valuation of his business, the division of marital assets, and the allocation of the debt on the marital residence. Husband also argues that the trial court erred in the amount and length of the alimony award and in awarding attorneyfees to wife. We find that the trial court erred in changing its net valuation of the business, after a second hearing, from $200,000 to $280,000 based upon the updated status of Husband’s payments on the tax lien. As this change did not affect the trial court’s division of the marital estate or the alimony award, however, the error is harmless. In all other respects, we find no error in the trial court’s decision.
Authoring Judge: Judge Andy D. Bennett
Originating Judge:Chancellor Tom E. Gray |
Sumner County | Court of Appeals | 03/28/12 | |
Jeffrey Klocko v. State of Tennessee
M2011-00219-CCA-R3-PC
Jeffrey Klocko (“the Petitioner”) filed for post-conviction relief, challenging his convictions for aggravated sexual battery, sexual battery by an authority figure, and assault by offensive or provocative contact, which resulted in an effective sentence of thirteen years. As his basis for relief, he alleged numerous grounds of ineffective assistance of counsel. After an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief, and this appeal followed. On appeal, the Petitioner asserts that trial counsel failed to interview the Petitioner’s therapist or mother and failed to call either of them at trial, resulting in ineffective assistance. Upon a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.
Authoring Judge: Judge Jeffrey S. Bivins
Originating Judge:Judge J. Randall Wyatt, Jr. |
Davidson County | Court of Criminal Appeals | 03/28/12 |