State of Tennessee v. Christopher Strater Falls

The Defendant, Christopher Strater Falls, appeals from his convictions for first degree felony murder and theft of property valued at $10,000 or more but less than $60,000, for which he received an effective sentence of life imprisonment. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions because the State failed to establish a theft of the victim’s vehicle or that he was the perpetrator of the victim’s murder. The Defendant also argues that the trial court erred in admitting certain hearsay statements made by the victim, including large portions of a four-page letter she had authored expressing her fear of the Defendant and her desire to end their relationship, as well as pointing toward him as a suspect in the event of her death, under the “then existing state of mind” exception of Tennessee Rule of Evidence 803(3). After reviewing the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.