APPELLATE COURT OPINIONS

The petitioner appeals from the Dyer County Circuit Court's dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. In 1994, the petitioner was tried and convicted of first degree murder in the perpetration of a felony and aggravated burglary. His convictions were affirmed, after which he timely filed a petition seeking post-conviction relief, claiming ineffective assistance of trial and appellate counsel, juror misconduct because an alternate juror had lied during voir dire about not knowing the petitioner, insufficient evidence to support the felony-murder conviction, and suppression of exculpatory evidence. After an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied relief. We affirm the post-conviction court's denial of the petitioner's request for post-conviction relief.

The defendant, after being convicted by a jury of first degree murder and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, appeals his conviction and asserts that the trial court erred in three respects: (1) the trial court incorrectly allowed testimony from three witnesses attacking the defendant's reputation for truthfulness; (2) the trial court erred in allowing the State to question the defendant about a prior felony conviction; and (3) the trial court erred in allowing testimony about a prior statement made by the defendant. After review, we affirm the trial court's rulings in all respects.

Robert Ervin, also known as Muhammad Jabbar, was convicted of attempted second degree murder and sentenced to twenty-five years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, Ervin raises one issue for our review: Whether the evidence produced at trial was sufficient to support the verdict. After review, we find the evidence sufficient and affirm the judgment.

The defendant, Robert D. Walsh, was convicted after a jury trial in the Shelby County Criminal court of the aggravated sexual battery of a foster child who was in his care. He appeals this conviction, alleging various errors in evidentiary admissions, impermissible comment on the evidence by the trial court, and improper sentencing. We modify the defendant's sentence to Range I classification and remand for correction of a clerical error in the judgment form. Otherwise, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed.

This is an appeal from defendant's conviction for second degree murder for which he received a sentence of twenty-three years and six months. In this appeal, defendant presents two issues for our review: (1) whether the evidence is sufficient to support the verdict; and (2) whether the trial court erred in defining the mental state of "knowing" for the offense of second degree murder. We conclude the evidence was sufficient to support the verdict; however, we conclude the jury charge constituted plain error by failing to instruct on the applicable definition of "knowing." Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is reversed, and the case is remanded for a new trial.

The defendant was convicted by a Shelby County jury of theft of property valued greater than $10,000 and forgery. The trial court sentenced him to consecutive sentences of 15 years for theft as a persistent offender and six years for forgery as a career offender. In this appeal as a matter of right, defendant alleges (1) the evidence is not sufficient to support the convictions, and (2) his sentence is excessive. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The defendant's conviction for first degree murder during perpetration of robbery was reversed by this court in 1998. The defendant was subsequently retried, again convicted of first degree murder during the perpetration of a robbery, and sentenced to life imprisonment. This appeal followed, whereby the defendant alleges the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction, and the trial court erroneously admitted the audio recording and transcript of the victim's phone call to 911. After a thorough review of the record, we affirm the defendant's conviction and sentence.