State of Tennessee v. Gary W. Young

On May 21, 2001, the appellant, Gary W. Young, pleaded guilty to sale of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance within a thousand feet of a school. He received concurrent twenty-one year sentences for each count. As part of the plea agreement the appellant attempted to reserve a certified question of law to be presented on appeal. See Tenn. R. App. P. 37(b)(2)(i). This question concerns the propriety of a search. On June 19, 2001, the appellant also attempted to withdraw his guilty plea pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 32(f). The trial court denied the motion to withdraw the guilty plea based on this Court's holding in State v. Hall, 983 S.W.2d 710 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998 overruled by State v. Green, 106 S.W.3d 646 2003)). This appeal followed. After a review of the record and the applicable authorities we are of the opinion that the appellant has failed to properly certify an appeal to this Court pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 37(b)(2)(i), and this Court therefore lacks jurisdiction to consider the trial court's denial of the appellant's motion to suppress. However, the appeal of the denied motion to withdraw a guilty plea is properly before this court, and this case must be remanded for consideration of the motion in view of the Tennessee Supreme Court decision in State v. Greene, 106 S.W.3d 646 (Tenn. 2003), which overruled State v. Hall. Finally, the allegation concerning the legality of the appellant's sentences, which has been raised for the first time on appeal, may be presented to the trial court on remand for consideration as a ground to allow withdrawal of the plea