State of Tennessee v. Robert W. Hawkins
Robert W. Hawkins (“the Defendant”) was convicted by a jury of one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury. The trial court merged the two convictions into the conviction of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced the Defendant as a Range I standard offender to a term of five years, with one year to be served in confinement and the remainder on probation. The Defendant now appeals, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence and arguing that the trial court improperly commented on the motivation of the Defendant during his testimony. He also alleges that the trial court should have sentenced him to full probation. Upon our thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Stewart | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
George L. Morgan v. David Sexton, Warden, et al
The petitioner, George L. Morgan, appeals the Johnson County Criminal Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus, arguing that the court should have held an evidentiary hearing to consider his claim that his dual convictions and consecutive sentences for second degree murder and attempted aggravated robbery are illegal and void because they violate double jeopardy principles. Because the petitioner has failed to state a cognizable claim for habeas corpus relief, we affirm the summary dismissal of the petition pursuant to Rule 20, Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. |
Johnson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Jerry McGaha v. Tony Howerton, Warden, et al
The petitioner, Jerry McGaha, appeals the Morgan County Criminal Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus, arguing that the trial court lacked the jurisdiction to accept his guilty pleas to nine counts of child rape because his plea agreements did not include the mandatory requirement of community supervision for life. Because the petitioner has failed to state a cognizable claim for habeas corpus relief, we affirm the summary dismissal of the petition. |
Morgan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Keith Sales
Appellant, Keith Sales, was indicted by the Shelby County Grand Jury for two counts of pssession of 26 grams or more of cocaine with intent to sell, two counts of possession of Alprazolam with intent to sell, and one count of possession of a handgun as a convicted felon. Appellant’s arrest was as the result of the execution of a search warrant based upon information provided by a confidential informant. Appellant filed a motion to suppress the evidence seized as a result of the search. The trial court denied the motion to suppress, and Appellant pled guilty reserving a certified question for appeal challenging the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress. Appellant pled guilty in a negotiated plea agreement to one count each of possession of 5 grams or more of cocaine, one count of possession of Alprazolam, and one count of possession of a handgun as a convicted felon. He received an effective nine-year sentence. On appeal, Appellant argues that the information set out in the affidavit does not meet the two prong test set out in Spinelli v. United States, 393 U.S. 410, 89 S. Ct. 584, 21 L. Ed.2d 637 (1969) and Aguilar v. Texas, 378 U.S. 108, 84 S. Ct. 1509, 12 L. Ed.2d 723 (1964), (“Aguilar-Spinelli”), as adopted in State v. Jacumin, concerning the proof of the reliability of a confidential informant. We have reviewed the record on appeal, and conclude that the information supplied in the affidavit meets the Aguilar-Spinelli/Jacumin test. Therefore, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
James L. Johnson v. Jim Morrow, Warden
The Petitioner, James L. Johnson, pro se, appeals the Bledsoe County Circuit Court’s dismissal of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus from his 2006 convictions for rape and attempt to commit aggravated sexual battery and his resulting ten-year sentence. The Petitioner contends that the trial court erred by denying him habeas corpus relief. He argues that his convictions and sentences are void because the indictment for rape was defective and his guilty pleas were unknowing and involuntary. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Bledsoe | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Alberto Eddie Deleon v. State of Tennessee
On appeal, the petitioner, Alberto Eddie Deleon, contests the Hamilton County Criminal Court’s denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus, asserting that he was incarcerated for an excessive time span prior to instigation of extradition proceedings. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Melissa Cole
The defendant was found guilty by a jury of second degree murder, a Class A felony, arson, a Class C felony, and tampering with evidence, a Class C felony. Prior to trial, the defendant pled guilty to an additional count of tampering with evidence, a Class C felony. She was sentenced to four years for the arson and three years on each count of tampering with evidence, with each sentence to run concurrently but consecutive to a twenty-one year sentence for the second degree murder, for a total effective sentence of twenty-five years. On appeal, the defendant claims that the evidence is insufficient to support her conviction for second degree murder and that the trial court erred by sentencing her to partial consecutive sentences. After carefully reviewing the record and the arguments of the parties, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
McNairy | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Tosha Taylor v. State of Tennessee
The pro se petitioner, Tosha Taylor, appeals the denial of her motion to reopen her post-conviction petition. Because she failed to comply with the statutory requirements for seeking review of a dismissal of a motion to reopen a post-conviction petition, we dismiss the appeal. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Thomas Dee Huskey
After a trial by jury, the defendant was found guilty of one count of especially aggravated kidnapping and three counts of aggravated rape, all Class A felonies. He received four twenty-year sentences, all to run concurrently. On appeal, the defendant claims that the trial court erred by using criminal convictions he received for crimes committed after those committed in the instant case to enhance his present sentences from fifteen to twenty years. After review we conclude that the trial court did not err by enhancing the defendant’s sentences. We affirm. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Bobby A. Raymer
A Sumner County grand jury indicted appellant, Bobby A. Raymer, for one count of especially aggravated kidnapping and one count of aggravated robbery, and a jury found him guilty of both counts. The trial court imposed an effective sentence of thirty years to be served at 100% release eligibility. On appeal, appellant raises the following issues: (1) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain his convictions; (2) whether the trial court should have merged the two convictions; (3) whether the trial court erred in granting the State’s motion in limine to exclude evidence of the victim’s prior convictions; and (4) whether the trial court erred in denying appellant’s motion to use a demonstrative exhibit. Upon review of the record and the applicable case law, we conclude that the conviction for especially aggravated kidnapping must be reversed and remanded for a new trial. The conviction for aggravated robbery is affirmed. |
Sumner | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Matthew Brian Graham
The Defendant, Matthew Brian Graham, appeals the Rutherford County Circuit Court’s order revoking his probation for one count of attempted child abuse and three counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and ordering the remainder of his effective eight-year sentence into execution. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Gerry Hoover v. State of Tennessee
Petitioner, Gerry Hoover, was convicted by a Coffee County jury of three counts of rape of a child. He was sentenced to an effective sentence of forty-eight years. Petitioner’s convictions and sentence were affirmed on appeal. See State v. Gerry Hoover, No. M200701595-CCA-R3-CD, 2008 WL 768928, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Nashville, Mar. 25, 2008), perm. app. denied (Tenn. Sept. 29, 2008). Petitioner subsequently sought post-conviction relief on the basis of ineffective assistance of counsel. After a hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief. Petitioner appeals. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Coffee | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Henry Floyd Sanders
Appellant, Henry Floyd Sanders, was indicted for six counts of aggravated sexual battery and four counts of rape of a child. On appellant’s motion, the trial court dismissed one count of aggravated sexual battery on the grounds of insufficient evidence. The jury returned verdicts of guilty on all remaining counts. The trial court ordered appellant to serve partial consecutive sentences of ten years each for the aggravated sexual battery convictions and twenty years each for the rape of a child convictions, yielding an effective forty-year sentence. Appellant raises three issues on appeal: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress his statements to a third party; (2) whether the trial court erred in denying his motion for judgment of acquittal due to a variance between the bill of particulars and the State’s election; and (3) whether the trial court erred in ordering partial consecutive sentences. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Steven Shane Neblett
A Dickson County jury convicted the Defendant, Steven Shane Neblett, of aggravated assault, and the trial court sentenced him to three years, to be suspended after the service of one year of incarceration. On appeal, the Defendant contends that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction, in part, because the State failed to prove that he did not act in self-defense; (2) the trial court offered the jury vague and inappropriate jury instructions; and (3) the trial court erred when it sentenced him by not applying applicable mitigating factors and by imposing an excessive sentence. After a thorough review of the record and relevant authorities, we affirm the trial court’s judgment. |
Dickson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Joel Ernest Blanton v. State of Tennessee
A White County jury convicted petitioner, Joel Ernest Blanton, of one count of rape of a child and two counts of aggravated sexual battery, for which the trial court ordered an effective twenty-four-year sentence. Following the direct appeal, petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief alleging several instances of ineffective assistance of counsel. On appeal, petitioner pursues only one claim of error, that trial counsel was ineffective for failing to obtain visitor logs from the Tennessee Department of Correction (“TDOC”) that could have been used to impeach the primary material witnesses against him. Following our review of the record, the parties’ briefs, and applicable case law, we agree with petitioner and reverse and remand this case for a new trial. |
White | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Brandon Keith Ostein and Jamie Lynette Dean
The Davidson County Grand Jury returned a two-count indictment charging Brandon Keith Ostein (hereinafter“Ostein”) and Jamie Lynette Dean (hereinafter“Dean”) as co-defendants. Count 1 charged possession with intent to sell or deliver 300 grams or more of cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school, and Count 2 charged possession of drug paraphernalia. The evidence was seized as a result of the search of Ostein’s person during a traffic stop of a Hummer driven by Dean, the search of a Ford F-150 pickup truck registered to Dean and parked at a location away from the traffic stop, and the search of a residence leased to Ostein’s father for which Ostein paid the rent. Ostein filed a pre-trial motion to suppress the use of all evidence against him based upon unconstitutional seizures and searches. Dean did not file a motion to suppress the use of evidence against her, and did not join in Ostein’s motion. Dean did not participate in the suppression hearings. The trial court granted Ostein’s motion to suppress evidence. Upon the State’s request to dismiss charges against both Ostein and Dean, the trial court dismissed all charges against them based upon the State’s representation that it could not proceed to trial. Promptly thereafter, the State filed a notice of appeal as to both Ostein and Dean. After a thorough review of the record we dismiss the State’s appeal from the trial court’s order dismissing, upon request of the State, the charges against Dean. As to the trial court’s order suppressing evidence against Ostein, we affirm in part and reverse in part. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Christopher A. Williams v. Tony Howerton, Warden
The Petitioner, Christopher A. Williams, pro se, appeals the Morgan County Criminal Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus from his attempt to commit aggravated robbery and felony murder convictions and resulting sentence of life imprisonment. The Petitioner contends that the trial court erred by summarily dismissing his petition for a writ of habeas corpus in that his convictions and sentences are void because his right to counsel was denied and his privilege against self-incrimination was violated. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Morgan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Duvale Vashawn Pruitt
In this procedurally complex case, the Defendant, Duvale Vashawn Pruitt, pled nolo contendere to multiple drug-related charges, and the trial court sentenced him to an effective sentence of ten years of probation. The Defendant’s probation officer filed two probation violation warrants, one in September and another in October of 2007. After a hearing, the trial court ordered the Defendant to serve 90 days in jail and then start his probationary sentence again. In February 2011, the Defendant’s probation officer filed a third probation violation warrant based upon the Defendant’s possession of a switchblade knife at a courthouse, and the trial court issued a warrant for the Defendant’s arrest. After a hearing, the trial court revoked the Defendant’s probation and ordered him to serve his sentence of ten years at 30% in the Tennessee Department of Correction. It is from this judgment that the Defendant now appeals. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Allan Pope
In presentments by a Sullivan County Grand Jury, appellant, Allan Pope, was charged with four counts of theft of services more than $1,000 but less than $10,000; one count of official misconduct; one count of using public equipment for private purposes; and one count of theft of services more than $10,000 but less than $60,000. A jury found appellant not guilty of all counts of theft of services more than $1,000 but less than $10,000. He was found guilty of the remaining counts. The trial court imposed a one-year suspended sentence for official misconduct and a three-year suspended sentence for theft of services more than $10,000 but less than $60,000 and placed appellant on probation for six years. On appeal, appellant raises the following issues: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying appellant’s motion for judgment of acquittal or motion for new trial; (2) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction for official misconduct; (3) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction for private use of county equipment; (4) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction for theft of services more than $10,000 but less than $60,000, and; (5) whether the trial court erred in ordering restitution. Upon review of the record, we agree with appellant and conclude that the evidence was insufficient to sustain the convictions for official misconduct and private use of public property, therefore we reverse the judgments of conviction and dismiss those counts of the indictment. We affirm the judgment of the trial court on theft of services more than $10,000 but less than $60,000 and remand the matter for entry of judgments consistent with this opinion. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Robert Eric Collins v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Robert Eric Collins, appeals from the Hawkins County Criminal Court’s denial of post-conviction relief from his two guilty plea convictions for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, Class C felonies, and his effective three-year community corrections sentence. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that counsel provided ineffective assistance by (1) failing to advise him properly of potential conflicts of interest and (2) forcing him to plead guilty by telling him that he could not receive a fair trial in Hawkins County. We affirm the judgement of the trial court. |
Hawkins | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James Basil Conner
The defendant pled guilty to two counts of aggravated burglary, Class C felonies, and was sentenced as a range I, standard offender to two concurrent three-year sentences, to be served on probation. The defendant requested judicial diversion, but the trial court denied this request. The defendant now appeals, claiming that the trial court abused its discretion by failing to grant him judicial diversion. After carefully reviewing the record and the arguments of the parties, we conclude that the trial court failed to expressly consider numerous criteria that it was required to consider in making the determination of whether to grant or deny judicial diversion. Consequently, the judgments of the trial court are reversed and the case is remanded to the trial court for reconsideration in light of all relevant factors in a manner consistent with this opinion. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Billie Joe Welch v. State of Tennessee
The Petitioner, Billie Joe Welch, appeals as of right from the Roane County Criminal Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. The Petitioner was convicted of second degree murder, a Class A felony. He received a sentence of eighteen years as a Range I, violent offender. The Petitioner challenges the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief as well as the performance of trial and appellate counsel. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. |
Roane | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Demetrie Owens v. State of Tennessee
A Marshall County jury convicted the Petitioner, Demetrie Owens, of aggravated burglary and two counts of theft of property valued over $1000, and the trial court sentenced him as a Range II offender to an effective sentence of ten years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, this Court affirmed the Petitioner’s convictions and sentence. State v. Demetrie Darnell Owens, No. M2009-02611-CCA-R3-CD, 2010 WL 3448138 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Nashville, Sept. 2, 2010), no perm. app. filed. The Petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, which the post-conviction court dismissed after a hearing. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel because his trial counsel did not adequately cross-examine the State’s witnesses and because he improperly “opened the door” to proof of a prior bad act by the Petitioner. After a thorough review of the record and applicable authorities, we affirm the post-conviction court’s judgment. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Antonio Jamarc Warfield
A Maury County jury convicted appellant, Antonio Jamarc Warfield, of especially aggravated robbery, a Class A felony, and especially aggravated burglary, a Class B felony. The trial court sentenced him to serve an effective sentence of twenty-one years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, appellant argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions. After reviewing the record, the parties’ briefs, and applicable law, we affirm the conviction of especially aggravated robbery, modify the conviction of especially aggravated burglary to aggravated burglary, and remand for entry of a judgment on the aggravated burglary conviction consistent with this opinion. |
Maury | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Quinton A. Cage v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Quinton A. Cage, filed an application to reopen his petition for post-conviction relief, asserting that he was incompetent when his post-conviction petition was filed. The post-conviction court denied the motion,and the petitioner appeals. Upon review, we dismiss the appeal as untimely. |
Montgomery | Court of Criminal Appeals |
