Jermaine Nelson Buford v. State of Tennessee

In 2018, a Davidson County jury convicted the Petitioner, Jermaine Nelson Buford, of possession of .5 grams or more of cocaine with intent to sell, aggravated assault, felony evading arrest, evading arrest, vandalism of property less than $1,000, and simple possession of marijuana. The trial court sentenced the Petitioner to an effective sentence of thirty years of incarceration. The Petitioner filed a direct appeal, and this court affirmed the judgments of the trial court. State v. Buford, No. M2019-00402-CCA-R3-CD, 2020 WL 414558, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Jan. 27, 2020), perm. app. denied (Tenn. June 3, 2020). The Petitioner then filed a petition for post-conviction relief, alleging the ineffective assistance of counsel. After a hearing, the post-conviction court dismissed the petition. On appeal, the Petitioner maintains that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel by trial counsel’s failure to seek the suppression of evidence from the Petitioner’s cell phone. After review, we affirm the post-conviction court’s denial of post-conviction relief.