COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OPINIONS

State vs. Troy S. Sales
M1998-00012-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: W. Charles Lee

M1999-00107-CCA-R3-CD
M1999-00107-CCA-R3-CD

State vs. Bobby J. Young
M1998-00402-CCA-R3-CD

M1998-00437-CCA-R3-CD
M1998-00437-CCA-R3-CD

State vs. Paul Max Quandt, Jr.
M1998-00446-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: James Curwood Witt

State vs. Glen H. Earls
M1998-00447-CCA-R3-CD

M1998-00467-CCA-R3-CD
M1998-00467-CCA-R3-CD

M1998-00460-CCA-R3-CD
M1998-00460-CCA-R3-CD

M1998-00424-CCA-R3-CD
M1998-00424-CCA-R3-CD

State vs. William Davis, Jr.
M1999-01738-CCA-R3-CD

State vs. Ricky Dale Langford
M1999-01740-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: Leonard W. Martin

State vs. Calvin Otis Tankesly
M2000-00135-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Joe G. Riley
Trial Court Judge: Jane W. Wheatcraft

State vs. Frankie E. Casteel
E1999-00076-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: Douglas A. Meyer
Following a jury trial, the defendant was convicted of the first-degree murders of Richard Mason, Kenneth Griffith and Earl Smock in the Hamilton County Criminal Court, Douglas A. Myer, J., and the defendant appealed. The Court holds (1) that the trial court's failure to follow statutory procedures before admitting evidence that the defendant had committed prior bad acts was harmless error; (2) evidence that the defendant had threatened trespassers was properly admitted; (3) the evidence was sufficient to convict the defendant; (4) failure to swear-in the jury prior to voir dire was at most harmless error where the jury was impaneled in another county and sworn in there; (5) the trial court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to allow the defendant to present alternative perpetrator evidence when that evidence was too far removed in time and place to connect it to the murders; (6) the trial court's failure to suppress evidence found on the defendant's property was proper because the evidence was seized during a search for the victims; (7) testimony about the contents of incriminating letters and newspaper articles was necessary to explain the defendant's attempt to destroy them; (8) the trial court properly allowed the state to cross examine the defendant about items seized from his home; but (9) the admission of five hours of an extremely prejudicial conversation between the defendant, his wife and his mistress in order to allow the jury to hear one adoptive admission was reversible error, especially when (10) the state relied on the unfairly prejudicial portion of the conversation when arguing its case to the jury in order to highlight the defendant's character. Reversed and remanded.

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Trial Court Judge: Donald P. Harris

State of Tennessee v. Marico Finnie
W2004-02166-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: John P. Colton, Jr.

W1998-00455-CCA-MR3-CD
W1998-00455-CCA-MR3-CD
Trial Court Judge: James C. Beasley, Jr.

State vs. Dennis Bondon
W1999-01686-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: Chris B. Craft

03C01-9810-CR-00376
03C01-9810-CR-00376
Trial Court Judge: D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.

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Trial Court Judge: Seth W. Norman

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Victor James Cazes v. State of Tennessee
W1998-00386-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge Joseph M. Tipton
Trial Court Judge: Judge Chris Craft

The petitioner, Victor James Cazes, appeals as of right from the order of the Shelby County Criminal Court denying him post-conviction relief from his 1990 convictions for felony murder,  aggravated rape and first degree burglary. The petitioner was sentenced to death for the murder conviction and received twenty-five-year and six-year sentences, respectively, for the aggravated rape and burglary convictions. The judgments of conviction were affirmed on direct appeal. State v. Cazes, 875 S.W.2d 253 (Tenn. 1994). In this post-conviction appeal, the petitioner raises the  following issues: