State of Tennessee v. Judge Brooks
A Shelby County Criminal Court jury convicted the appellant, Judge Brooks, of first degree premeditated murder, and the trial court sentenced him to life imprisonment. In this appeal, the appellant claims (1) that the trial court improperly admitted the victim’s prior statements into evidence under the hearsay rule’s forfeiture by wrongdoing exception, Tennessee Rule of Evidence 804(b)(6), and in violation of the Confrontation Clause; (2) that the trial court erred by admitting evidence of the appellant’s prior assault on the victim pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Evidence 404(b); and (3) that the evidence is insufficient to support the conviction. While we conclude that the trial court improperly admitted hearsay into evidence, we conclude that the error was harmless and affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Antonio Young v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Antonio Young, appeals from the order dismissing his petition for writ of habeas corpus. The state has filed a motion requesting that this court affirm the trial court's denial of relief pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. The petitioner has failed to establish that he is entitled to habeas corpus relief. Accordingly, the state's motion is granted and the judgment of the trial court is affirmed. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Earnest Banks
The defendant, Earnest Banks, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of aggravated burglary and sentenced to nine years in the Department of Correction as a Range II multiple offender. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. Following our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Kevin Hunter Biggs - Dissenting
I respectfully dissent from the result reached by the majority, and would affirm the judgment of the trial court. In 1978, based upon the United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Burks v. United States, 437 U.S. 1, 98 S. Ct. 2141 (1978), and Greene v. Massey, 437 U.S. 19, 98 S. Ct. 2151 (1978), the Tennessee Supreme Court held in State v. Cabbage, 571 S.W.2d 832, 835 (Tenn. 1978), that the thirteenth juror rule in Tennessee must be abolished, because it violated principles of double jeopardy. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Kevin Hunter Biggs
A Hamilton County Criminal Court jury convicted the defendant, Kevin Hunter Biggs, of one count of aggravated sexual battery, a Class B felony. The trial court sentenced the defendant to eight years in the Department of Correction to be served at one hundred percent as a child rapist.1 The defendant appeals, claiming (1) that the successor trial judge was not qualified to act as thirteenth juror; (2) that the trial court erred in failing to include attempted aggravated sexual battery as a lesser included offense; (3) that the state withheld exculpatory information from the defendant in violation of Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83, 83 S. Ct. 1194 (1963) and Rule 16 of the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure; (4) that the designated trial judge erred in concluding the defendant’s newly discovered evidence was not likely to change the result of the trial; and (5) that the trial court erred in admitting irrelevant and highly prejudicial character and hearsay testimony. Concluding that the successor trial judge could not act as the thirteenth juror, we reverse the judgment of the trial court and remand the |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Barry C. Melton
The defendant, Barry C. Melton, was convicted of facilitating the manufacture of methamphetamine, a Class D felony, and possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia, Class A misdemeanors. The trial court sentenced him as a Range I, standard offender to two years for the felony conviction and eleven months, twenty-nine days for each of the misdemeanor convictions, for a total effective sentence of two years, with sixty days to be served in confinement and the balance on probation. On appeal, he argues that the evidence is insufficient to support his facilitation conviction and that he should have been granted full probation. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Warren | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. James Timothy Taylor
The defendant, James Timothy Taylor, was convicted in a Robertson County bench trial of one count of passing a forged check, a Class E felony, and sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to two years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he contends that the evidence was insufficient to sustain his conviction and that the trial court erred by admitting into evidence a copy of the original check. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Robertson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Latonya Taylor
The defendant, Latonya Taylor, was convicted by a jury of three counts of premeditated first degree murder and three counts of felony first degree murder. The latter three counts were merged with the premeditated first degree murders. The defendant was also convicted of especially aggravated robbery (Class A felony) and two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping (Class A felony). An effective sentence of life without parole plus twenty years was imposed. She appeals the convictions. From our review of the record we conclude that the evidence was sufficient to support the verdicts, and there being no other reversible errors, the judgments of conviction are affirmed. |
Rutherford | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Henry Zillon Felts
Henry Zillon Felts, the defendant, was convicted of attempted first degree murder (Class A felony) and aggravated burglary (Class C felony). The defendant was sentenced to an effective sentence of twenty-one years at 100% in the Department of Correction. He now appeals as of right his convictions. After review, we affirm the judgments of conviction. |
Sumner | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Antonio Arnold
The defendant, Antonio Arnold, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of felony murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated burglary, and aggravated assault. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and four evidentiary rulings of the trial court. Upon our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Gregory O. Cherry
The Hardin County grand jury returned two indictments1 against the Defendant, Gregory O. Cherry, charging him with thirteen drug offenses. In separate plea agreements, the Defendant pled guilty to five offenses: (1) possession with intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell .5 grams or more of cocaine, (2) simple possession of marijuana, (3) possession of drug paraphernalia, (4) selling a Schedule IV controlled substance, and (5) delivering less than .5 grams of cocaine. The plea agreements provided that the Defendant would receive an effective sentence of ten years with the manner of service to be determined by the trial court. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court ordered that the Defendant’s ten-year sentence be served in the Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant argues that the trial court erred in denying an alternative sentence. Finding no error, we affirm the judgments of the Hardin County Circuit Court. |
Hardin | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Andre Smith
The defendant, Andre Smith, appeals the trial court’s denial of judicial diversion. The defendant pled guilty to theft over $1000, a Class D felony. Following a hearing, the trial court denied the defendant’s request for judicial diversion and ordered the defendant to serve his sentence on supervised probation. After careful review, we affirm the trial court’s denial of judicial diversion. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Octavian Demetrius Reeves v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Octavian Demetrius Reeves, appeals the Madison County Circuit Court’s dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief from his conviction for second degree murder and resulting sentence of twenty-five years. On appeal, the petitioner claims that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel because his attorney failed to cross-examine witnesses thoroughly and failed to file a motion for a change of venue. We affirm the trial court’s dismissal of the petition. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Tenica Dickerson
The defendant, Tenica Dickerson, and her sister, Latamia Dickerson, were involved in an argument at a Waffle House in Jackson. She was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. A jury convicted her for the charged offense. The trial court sentenced her to thirty days to be served at seventy-five percent. The defendant appeals the trial court’s judgment arguing that the evidence is insufficient to support her conviction. We have reviewed the record and find that there is sufficient evidence. Therefore, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Madison | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
Danny L. Fish, Jr. v. State of Tennessee
The petitioner, Danny L. Fish, Jr., appeals the Hardeman County Circuit Court’s dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief from his conviction for sexual battery by an authority figure, a Class C felony, and his resulting sentence of five years in the Department of Correction. The petitioner contends that he received ineffective assistance of counsel, rendering his no contest plea unknowing and involuntary. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. |
Hardeman | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jeffrey Owen Walters
The Appellant, Jeffrey Owen Walters, was convicted by a Marshall County jury of second degree murder and sentenced to twenty-three years and nine months in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he has raised two issues for our review: (1) whether the evidence is sufficient to support the conviction; and (2) whether the State failed to furnish Walters all of his in-custody statements in violation of Tenn. R. Crim. P. 16. Following review, we conclude that the evidence is sufficient to support the verdict, and, although we find that the State violated the discovery rule, we conclude that the error is harmless. Accordingly, the judgment of conviction is affirmed. |
Marshall | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Timothy R. Bouton
The Defendant, Timothy R. Bouton, pled guilty to vehicular manslaughter and reckless endangerment and was sentenced to ten years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred: (1) when it failed to have him execute an ex post factor waiver with regard to the 2005 Sentencing Act; (2) in its application of enhancement and mitigating factors; and (3) when it denied him probation or other alternative sentencing. After reviewing the record and applicable authorities, we conclude that the trial court erred when it failed to have the Defendant execute an ex post factor waiver with regard to the 2005 Sentencing Act. Therefore, we reverse the case and remand it for a new sentencing hearing. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Jackie Allen
The Appellant, Jackie Glenn Allen, appeals the sentencing decision of the Lincoln County Circuit Court. Allen pled guilty to the crimes of rape and incest and was subsequently sentenced to concurrent sentences of ten years and six months for the rape and five years for the incest. After review of the record, we affirm the sentences as imposed. |
Lincoln | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Andrew L. Collins and Terrance D. Grizzard
The defendants, Andrew L. Collins and Terrance D. Grizzard, were each convicted of one count of aggravated assault. In addition, the defendant Collins pled guilty to one count of domestic assault and the defendant Grizzard was convicted of one count of reckless endangerment. Collins received an effective sentence of six years and Grizzard received an effective sentence of eight years. In this appeal, the defendant Collins asserts (1) that the evidence was insufficient to support his conviction for aggravated assault and (2) that the trial court erred by providing a jury instruction on criminal responsibility. The defendant Grizzard asserts (1) that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions and (2) that his sentence is illegal. Because the evidence was insufficient to support the defendant Collins's conviction for aggravated assault, that conviction must be reversed and dismissed. Further, because the record establishes that there are clerical errors on the judgment forms relating to the defendant Grizzard, the cause must be remanded to the trial court for entry of corrected judgments. Otherwise, the judgments of the trial court are affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Yvonne B. Ragland
The defendant, Yvonne B. Ragland, was convicted on her guilty plea to Class D felony theft in the Knox County Criminal Court. The trial court denied her bid for judicial diversion and sentenced her to three years on probation. She appeals the denial of judicial diversion and the length of sentence imposed. Because the trial court erred in denying judicial diversion, we reverse and remand the case with instructions for the trial court to enter an order placing the defendant on judicial diversion with appropriate conditions. |
Knox | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Patty D. Layland Smith
Defendant, Patty D. Layland Smith, pled guilty to two counts of failure to appear, each offense being a Class E felony. Defendant was sentenced as a career offender and ordered to serve six years for each offense, to be served concurrently, with a sixty (60) percent release eligibility date. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court denied probation and any other form of alternative sentencing. Defendant appeals, arguing that the trial court erred in finding that she was not eligible for probation or alternative sentencing. After a full review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Sullivan | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Shrone M. Hill
The Defendant, Shrone M. Hill, pled guilty to five counts of aggravated burglary, and the trial court sentenced him, as a Range I offender, to an effective sentence of eighteen years in prison. On appeal, the Defendant contends that: (1) the trial court erred when it sentenced him to the maximum of six years for each count; and (2) the trial court erred when it ordered two of the five sentences to run consecutively to each other and consecutively to the three concurrent sentences. Finding that there exists no reversible error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. |
Hamilton | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Charles Hall
The defendant, Charles Hall, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of two counts of aggravated robbery. For these offenses, the defendant was sentenced as a repeat violent offender to consecutive sentences of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. On appeal, he argues that: (1) the trial court erred in consolidating the indictments for trial; (2) the trial court erred in sentencing him under the Repeat Violent Offender Act; (3) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions; and (4) the trial court erred in ordering consecutive sentencing. Following our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we reverse the judgments of the trial court and remand for two separate trials. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Calvin Austin
The appellant, Calvin Austin, was charged with violating probation. After a hearing in which the trial court revoked the appellant’s probation solely on the fact that the appellant received a new arrest, the appellant appealed. Because the trial court improperly revoked the appellant’s probation without a finding that the revocation was based on a preponderance of the evidence, we reverse the revocation of probation and remand the case for a hearing in which the trial court determines whether the preponderance of the evidence justifies a revocation. |
Shelby | Court of Criminal Appeals | |
State of Tennessee v. Billy Jackson Coffelt
The petitioner, Billy Jackson Coffelt, was convicted in 1983 of assault with intent to commit first degree murder and assault with intent to commit robbery with a deadly weapon. The trial court imposed a sentence of life for the conviction of assault with intent to commit first degree murder and a sentence of not less than ten and not more than twenty-one years for the conviction of assault with intent to commit robbery. There was no direct appeal. After seventeen years of protracted litigation, the post-conviction court granted the petitioner a delayed appeal of his convictions. At the same time, the post-conviction court denied the remaining claims in the petition for post-conviction relief. The petitioner filed separate notices of appeal in each case. The cases were later consolidated by this court upon motion of the petitioner. The single issue presented in the petitioner's delayed appeal is whether the evidence is sufficient to support the convictions. In his appeal of the denial of his post-conviction petition, the petitioner asserts that he was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Because the evidence was sufficient to support the convictions, the judgments of conviction as to the delayed appeal are affirmed; however, because the petitioner was denied the effective assistance of counsel at trial, the judgment of the post-conviction court denying relief must be reversed, the convictions vacated, and the cause remanded for a new trial. |
Davidson | Court of Criminal Appeals |
