(06/21/2004)
Judge John S. McLellan Assumes Presidency of Statewide Judicial Organization
Circuit Court Judge John McLellan, III, of Kingsport has assumed the top leadership role in the Tennessee Judicial Conference, which includes all of the state’s 185 trial, senior and appellate judges. He accepted the president’s gavel at the TJC Spring conference in Nashville, succeeding Circuit Court Judge Don Ash of Murfreesboro.
“My judicial colleagues are among the nation’s brightest and most capable judges, so my election to lead our organization is a tremendous honor,” said McLellan, who is the organization’s 52 nd president. “My goal during the coming year is, along with the other members of our conference, to serve the cause of justice by continuing to provide for the fair, accessible and impartial administration of justice.”
Additionally, he said, he will encourage Tennessee’s judges to continue programs in schools, communities and civic clubs across the state to promote a better understanding of the judicial branch of government.
“I feel that a goal of the Tennessee Judicial Conference is to continue to sustain a system of justice which works efficiently and effectively with public confidence and citizen support,” McLellan said.
Other new TJC officers are Circuit Court Judge W. Neil Thomas, III, of Chattanooga, vice president; Criminal Court Judge Stephen M. Bevil of Chattanooga, secretary; Chancellor Telford E. Forgety, Jr., of Dandridge, treasurer; and Criminal Court Judge Arthur T. Bennett of Memphis, president-elect.
Executive Committee members are Court of Appeals Judge David R. Farmer of Jackson and Criminal Court Judges James C. Beasley, Jr., and Chris Craft of Memphis, representing West Tennessee; Circuit Court Judges Barbara N. Haynes of Nashville, Timothy L. Easter of Franklin and Ross H. Hicks of Springfield, representing Middle
Tennessee; and Circuit Court Judge Kelly D. Thomas, Jr., of Maryville, Chancellor Thomas R. Frierson of Morristown and Circuit Court Judge Jean A. Stanley of Johnson City, representing East Tennessee.
The last conference president from the Second Judicial District was in 1989-90 when Chancellor Richard Ladd served.
McLellan has been on the bench since 1994 when he was appointed to the Circuit Court for Sullivan County, Division I. He was elected in 1996 and again in 1998 to an 8-year term. He previously served as Sullivan County attorney from 1978-1994.
Since 1999, he has been a member of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary, which enforces the code of conduct for judges. He was a director of the Tennessee Trial Judges Association in 1996-97 and has been a member of the Kingsport Bar Association since 1971. He also is a member of the American Judicature Society and the American Trial Lawyers Association. He currently serves on the Board of Governors of the University of Tennessee National Alumni Association.
McLellan graduated from Dobyns-Bennett High School in 1964 and the University of Tennessee in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration. In 1970, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee Law School in Knoxville. He and his wife Wanda G. McLellan have two sons, John and Jason Ray, and two granddaughters, Brittany Star and Kaile Pearl.
(06/17/2004)
Gwyn Appointed as new TBI Chief
NASHVILLE — Governor Phil Bredesen today named Mark Gwyn as the new director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
Gwyn, who currently serves as assistant director in charge of the TBI’s Forensic Services Division, will become the eighth director in the Bureau’s 53-year history. He succeeds Larry Wallace, who retired last year after serving as TBI director since 1992.
“Mark is a highly effective TBI veteran who understands the Bureau’s culture and who has a vision for constant improvement,” Bredesen said. “He has the highest commitment to working with federal and local law-enforcement agencies to stamp out crime in Tennessee , and he has the highest commitment to integrity.”
Gwyn will be sworn in as director on June 28 for a six-year term. He was selected from a field of three finalist candidates submitted by the TBI director nominating commission, a five-member panel consisting of representatives from the judicial and legal communities.
“I’m honored to join this long line of distinguished directors,” Gwyn said. “I’m a firm believer in the TBI’s mission and ability to combat crime across the state. I’m looking forward to working with federal and local law-enforcement authorities to coordinate our efforts. And I’m looking forward to working with the TBI’s dedicated workforce to improve our performance.”
In his new role as director, Gwyn will oversee the TBI’s five major divisions: Criminal Investigation, Drug Investigation, Forensic Services, Information Systems and Administrative Services. The Bureau, which has a total of 424 employees, is headquartered in Nashville and operates six regional offices across the state.
As the TBI’s assistant director in charge of forensic services, Gwyn currently oversees the Bureau’s three nationally accredited crime laboratories in Knoxville , Memphis and Nashville and supervises more than 100 forensic scientists and technicians. The state-of-the-art labs perform a wide range of analyses, including toxicology, DNA profiling and firearms identification. He has served as assistant director managing the labs since 2001.
Before that, Gwyn served as an executive officer from 1996 to 2001. Among other responsibilities, he handled special assignments and investigations and helped provide security for the Tennessee Supreme Court. From 1988 to 1996, Gwyn served as a special agent and criminal investigator helping coordinate investigations into violent crime, drug and gambling cases. Before joining the TBI, Gwyn served as a patrolman for the McMinnville Police Department.
Gwyn, 41, is a McMinnville native who holds a bachelor’s degree from Middle Tennessee State University . He is a 1999 graduate of the Tennessee Government Executive Institute, a 1998 graduate of the FBI National Academy and a 1990 graduate of the TBI’s Criminal Investigation Academy
(06/02/2004)
Sharon Gail Lee Selected to Fill Court of Appeals
Nashville – Governor
Phil Bredesen today announced that Monroe County native Sharon Gail
Lee will fill a position on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern
Section. 
“Sharon Lee brings tremendous experience in both the trial and appellate courts to her appointment on the Tennessee Court of Appeals and commands broad respect from her colleagues in the bar,” said Bredesen. “I know she will serve with honor and integrity in this position, and I am pleased she has accepted the appointment.”
Lee has practiced law for 26 years. A sole practitioner, Lee began her law career with J.D. Lee and Associates in Madisonville in 1978, and worked in various partnerships until she established the Sharon G. Lee Law Office in 2001. Lee has vast experience in civil and criminal law, with a primary emphasis on tort practice. She has worked as county attorney for Monroe County since 1991, and also serves as city attorney for Madisonville and Vonore. She is a Rule 31 family mediator.
“I am honored to have been chosen by Governor Bredesen to serve as the first woman on the Eastern Section of the Tennessee Court of Appeals,” said Lee. “I will do all I can to bring the highest level of respect, fairness and integrity to my position on the Court of Appeals.”
Lee, 50, holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration with high honors from the University of Tennessee , Knoxville , and a doctor of jurisprudence from University of Tennessee College of Law, where she graduated in the top 15 percent of her class. She is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association and the Tennessee and American Trial Lawyers Associations. She has served as the Monroe County Bar Association’s president, secretary and currently serves as vice president. She also has been a member of the House of Delegates of the Tennessee Bar Association since 2003, and is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, a group whose members are limited to trial lawyers who have demonstrated exceptional skills, experience and excellence in advocacy.
Lee will stand for election in August 2004 and then for election to a full 8-year term in 2006.
(05/24/2004)
630 Boys State Delegates to Participate in Tennessee Supreme Court Project
American Legion Boys State delegates from high schools in all 95 counties will participate June 2 in the SCALES Program, an acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students. SCALES, a Tennessee Supreme Court initiative, educates young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of government.
The 630 students will attend a special Supreme Court session at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville as part of the week-long Boys State program, sponsored by The American Legion. The 11th grade boys, who are in the top one-third of their high school classes, will hear oral arguments in two actual Supreme Court cases.
Circuit Court Judge John Maddux of Cookeville is coordinating the SCALES Project at Boys State . More than 12,500 students from 285 schools across the state have taken part in SCALES since the Supreme Court initiated it in 1995.
"It is important for these young leaders to fully understand the judicial system and its role in our society,” Chief Justice Frank Drowota said. “SCALES provides them with an opportunity to see the system first-hand.”
Issues in the civil cases students will hear at Boys State include whether divorced parents who share equal custody of children should have to pay child support and whether any support ordered by the court should be based on income. The students also will hear a case in which the court will decide whether a person seeking damages for negligent infliction of emotional distress caused by witnessing the injury or death of another must be related to the victim.
Each participant will receive a handbook containing information about the state and federal court systems and the two cases. In addition, Maddux and other lawyers and judges will conduct educational sessions with the students.
(05/21/2004)
Court Majority Orders Resentencing, Cites Prosecutor’s Unconstitutional Use of Statute
In a 4-1 decision, the Tennessee Supreme Court has reversed a Court of Criminal Appeals opinion and ordered a new sentencing hearing for Richard Odom, convicted of the 1991 rape and murder of a Memphis woman, Mina Ethyl Johnson.
The majority opinion, written by Justice E. Riley Anderson, said the trial court erred by permitting the prosecution to rely on a 1998 amendment to a state law to bolster its argument that Odom should be sentenced to death. At the time of Odom’s offense, prosecutors would not have been allowed to present details of his previous violent crimes, but the 1998 amendment abolished the prohibition.
Chief Justice Frank F. Drowota, III, and Justices Adolpho A. Birch, Jr., and Janice M. Holder concurred in the majority opinion, with Justice William M. Barker dissenting. The decision and dissent, filed Friday, resulted from an automatic appeal of Odom’s death sentence. He was originally convicted and sentenced to death in 1992. In 1996, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the trial court for a new sentencing hearing and jurors again imposed the death penalty.
During the second hearing the Shelby County trial judge allowed prosecutors to introduce “improper evidence,” Anderson wrote for the majority. The error by the trial court “led directly to the prosecution’s introduction of detailed and graphic evidence of prior violent felonies committed by the defendant.”
“The law as it existed at the time of the offense prohibited such evidence,” Anderson wrote. “Moreover, the prosecution heavily relied upon the inadmissible evidence underlying the defendant’s prior felonies in arguing that the jury should impose the death penalty for the defendant’s offense in this case.”
The error affected the verdict, the majority concluded. A new sentencing hearing must be “conducted in accordance with the law as it existed at the time of the offense.”
In his dissent, Barker said the 1998 change was procedural and therefore could be applied retroactively. Barker cited five situations spelled out in a 1979 state Supreme Court case, Miller v. State, in which the retroactive application of a law is unconstitutional. He said none of the five situations were applicable to Odom’s case.
“In short, I disagree with the majority opinion to the extent that it suggests that the 1998 amendment affects any substantive right of the defendant,” Barker wrote.
Barker said he would uphold Odom's death sentence.
(05/07/2004)
Criminal Court Judge Watkins Receives National Judicial College Scholarship
Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Monte D. Watkins was the recipient of a scholarship from the National Judicial College in Nevada to attend a week-long course in General Jurisdiction with judges from across the country.
The jurists shared ideas on courtroom and case management, including cases involving self-represented or pro se, litigants. The course is designed, in part, to help judges manage their courtrooms and cases and conduct trials more effectively.
Watkins was appointed by Gov. Phil Bredesen in September 2003 to fill one of two new criminal court positions in Davidson County.
The National Judicial College, founded in 1963, averages 85 courses a year with more than 2,700 judges enrolling from across the nation. It is located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno and includes technology-enhanced classrooms, a 75,000-volume law library, state-of-the-art model courtroom, modern seminar rooms, distance education facilities, computer lab and offices of the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Courts and Media.
(05/05/2004)
Retiring Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Joe Riley Accepts New Position
Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Joe Riley will end a 25-year
career as a member of the state judiciary July 15 to take on a
new role as chief disciplinary counsel for the Court of the Judiciary.
Riley, of Lake County, will investigate complaints of judicial misconduct filed against Tennessee judges. The Court of the Judiciary is charged by state law with receiving complaints and imposing sanctions or recommending removal from office when appropriate. Riley will succeed retired Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Jerry Scott of Murfreesboro, who has been appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to serve as a senior judge.
"It is a tremendous honor to have served more than 25 years in the Tennessee judiciary, which is the finest in the nation," Riley said. "Friendships I have developed across the state will be everlasting. I only hope I have done something positive for the people of Tennessee to give them trust and confidence in our system of justice."
He said the career move also will allow him to "pursue a true passion of many years." He will teach law-related seminars to judges, attorneys and others who are not part of the legal community.
Chief Justice Frank Drowota described Riley's retirement as "a tremendous loss to the judicial system."
"He has been an excellent, fair and hard-working judge as well as a great friend to those who have served with him over the years," the chief justice said. "His judicial service will be missed, but he will continue to provide an important service as disciplinary counsel for the Court of the Judiciary."
Circuit Court Judge J.S. "Steve" Daniel of Murfreesboro, presiding judge
of the Court of the Judiciary, said Riley is an "excellent choice" to
succeed Scott as disciplinary counsel.
"He has served as the presiding judge of the court in years past and is familiar
with the court's responsibilities. Joe has taught judicial ethics for the Tennessee
Judicial Conference and has a passion for the subject," Daniel said. "In addition
to being an excellent counsel, he will make an outstanding ambassador for the
court and the Tennessee judiciary."
Long-time friend and judicial colleague Chancellor Steven Stafford of Dyersburg described Riley as "an extraordinary trial judge and, if possible, a better appellate judge."
"He has consistently been a leader in all aspects of the judiciary and was never afraid to try something different in an effort to improve the judicial system," Stafford said. "He has always been passionate about judicial ethics and, in his new position, will be able to continue to work to improve our judicial system."
A successor to Riley on the 12-member Court of Criminal Appeals will be appointed by Gov. Phil Bredesen to serve until 2006 when the office will be on the ballot. Applicants seeking the appointment will be screened by the state Judicial Selection Commission and three names will be presented to the governor for consideration. A deadline for applications and additional information for attorneys interested in applying will be announced and posted on the court system website at www.tsc.state.tn.us.
Riley graduated from the University of Tennessee and the UT College of Law. He was in the private practice of law from 1972-1978 when he was elected circuit court judge for Lake and Dyer counties. In 1996, he was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals. He was elected to an eight-year term in 1998.
During his tenure as a judge, Riley served as president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference; was a member and presiding judge of the Court of the Judiciary; served as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Memphis School of Law; and chaired the Judicial Performance Program Committee.
(05/04/2004)
420 Local Students Participate in Tennessee Supreme Court Project
Students from four local high schools will participate May 6 in a state
Supreme Court program designed to educate young Tennesseans about the
judicial branch of government.
The 420 students and their teachers will attend a special Supreme Court
session at the Blount County Justice Center where justices will hear
oral arguments in three actual cases. Following oral arguments in the
criminal appeals, students will meet for question and answer sessions
with attorneys who presented each side in their cases.
Participating students and teachers also will join the Supreme Court
for lunch. During lunch and a program, students will be seated at tables
with the five Supreme Court justices, local judges and attorneys, state,
city, county and school officials.
Circuit Court Judge D. Kelly Thomas of Maryville is coordinating the
5th Judicial District project. Schools participating in SCALES - an
acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students
- are from Alcoa, Heritage, Maryville and William Blount High Schools.
Teachers whose classes are involved in the SCALES project attended
a three-hour professional development session led by Tennessee Court
of Criminal Appeals Judge James Curwood Witt of Madisonville who discussed
the state and federal court systems, answered questions and reviewed
their students' cases. Teachers also were provided with notebooks of
materials to use in their classrooms, including suggested activities,
and SCALES Project handbooks for each student.
"The Tennessee Supreme Court believes that knowledge and understanding of the
judicial branch of government are essential to good citizenship," Chief Justice
Frank Drowota said. "The SCALES Project is designed to educate young participants
about the system they will inherit. The interaction we have with the students
at lunch and throughout the day also renews our faith that our nation's future
is in good hands."
Local judges and attorneys met with participating teachers at the professional
development session to schedule classroom visits to discuss the cases
students will hear. After justices rule in the cases, copies of the
court's opinions will be provided to the classes.
"The SCALES Project is important because it creates a partnership between the
judiciary, the Bar and schools to promote a better understanding of the judicial
branch of government," the chief justice said. "We hope that teachers will use
the materials to make judicial education a continuing part of their curriculum."
Issues in the cases students will hear beginning at 8:45 a.m. include
whether an inmate's pro se (filed by the inmate, rather than an attorney)
petition for post-conviction relief presented sufficient grounds to
be entitled to relief and whether the trial court erred in not appointing
counsel to represent the child sex abuser in his post-conviction action;
whether there was sufficient evidence to support convictions for criminally
negligent homicide for the death of a child, reckless endangerment
and reckless aggravated assault and whether the trial court properly
sentenced the inmate who is appealing; and whether the trial court
erred in an attempted rape of a child case by denying alternative sentencing
based on polygraph - or lie detector - results. The three cases are
Connie Lee Arnold v. State of Tennessee, to be heard by students from
Alcoa and Heritage High Schools; State of Tennessee v. Tracy Lorenzo
Goodwin, to be heard by students from Maryville High School; and State
of Tennessee v. Gregory Pierce, to be heard by students from William
Blount High School.
Including SCALES in the 5th th Judicial District, nearly 13,000 Tennessee
students from 289 schools across the state have taken part in the project
since the Supreme Court initiated it in 1995.
(05/03/2004)
Commission to Meet for Court of Appeals Vacancy
The state Judicial Selection Commission will meet May 16 in Knoxville
to conduct a public hearing and interviews with applicants for a state
Court of Appeals vacancy created by the April 2 death of Judge Houston
Goddard.
The public hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Ballroom, Salons
A & B, at the Radisson Summit Hill Hotel, followed by private interviews
with the 13 applicants. The 17-member commission will submit three
names to Gov. Phil Bredesen, who will appoint a new judge to succeed
Goddard.
Applicants for a seat on the appellate court are Chancellors Thomas
Frierson, II, of Morristown, and G. Richard Johnson of Johnson City;
Judge Jacqueline E. Schulten of Chattanooga; and attorneys Paul Campbell,
III, Whitney Durand and Russell Fowler, all of Chattanooga, Mark A.
Brown, William Brownlow Marsh, M. Denise Moretz and Linda J. Hamilton
Mowles, all of Knoxville, Sharon G. Lee of Madisonville, William Thomas
McFarland of Kingston and Loren E. Plemmons of Lenoir City.
The Court of Appeals position will be on the August ballot in 2004
to fill the unexpired term ending in 2006, when it will again be on
the ballot for a full 8-year term. Appellate court judges are elected
on a retention, or yes-no, statewide ballot. The 12-member Court of
Appeals hears appeals in civil – or non-criminal – cases,
sitting in panels of three in Knoxville, Nashville and Jackson.
Goddard had served on the Court of Appeals since 1974 and was presiding
judge from 1995 until his death at age 77. He also served in the state
Senate from 1967-72.
(04/02/2004)
Supreme Court Grants ‘Senior’ Status to Judge Daniel, Retired Judge Scott
Circuit Court Judge J.S. “Steve” Daniel of Murfreesboro will step down from the 16 th Judicial District position he has held for 24 years to take senior judge status effective Sept. 1. Retired Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Jerry Scott also has been granted senior judge status effective July 1 and will leave his Murfreesboro law practice and no longer will serve as chief disciplinary counsel for the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary.
Senior judges are appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court and may be assigned on a temporary basis to hear cases in any state court. With the addition of Judges Daniel and Scott, there will be five senior judges statewide.
A successor to Daniel will be appointed by Gov. Phil Bredesen to serve until 2006 when the office will be on the ballot. Applicants seeking the appointment will be screened by the state Judicial Selection Commission and three names will be presented to the governor for consideration.
Daniel, who retired from the United States Army Reserve as a military judge, was elected circuit court judge in the 16 th Judicial District in 1980. In addition he teaches as an adjunct professor at Middle Tennessee State University and the Nashville School of Law. He is a member of the faculty of the National Judicial College and has been an instructor at the Tennessee Judicial Academy, the Tennessee Judicial Conference, the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association and other legal organizations.
He is past president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference and the Tennessee Trial Judges Association. He currently serves as the presiding judge of the Court of the Judiciary and is a Fellow of the Tennessee Bar Foundation. He is a member of the Judicial Evaluations Guidelines Commission and the Tennessee Judicial Council.
Scott, a member of the judiciary for more than two decades, retired from the state Court of Criminal Appeals in 1995 after 16 years on the intermediate appellate court, where he was presiding judge.
Scott has been chief disciplinary counsel for the Court of the Judiciary since 1995 when the position was created. He receives, evaluates and investigates complaints against judges alleging violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct. In more serious cases, he acts as prosecutor before the Court of the Judiciary.
He served on the faculties at the Nashville School of Law, the National Judicial College and Columbia State Community College and retired with the rank of brigadier general from the United States Air Force Reserve.