Opinion FlashAugust 8, 2003Volume 9 — Number 143 Following this index are summaries of each case, including its name, first paragraph, author's name, and the names of attorneys for the parties of each opinion. This Issue (IN THIS ORDER):
TBA members can get the full-text versions of these opinions three ways detailed below. All methods require a TBA username and password. If you have forgotten your password, you can look it up on-line at http://www.tba.org/getpassword.mgi . If you are a TBA member, but do not have a username and password, you can receive one online at http://www.tba.org/signup.mgi. Here's how you can obtain full-text version. Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This option will allow you to download the original document. Howard H. Vogel JIMMY ALLEN, ET AL. v. WILSON COUNTY INVESTORS, LLC, ET AL. Court:TCA Attorneys: David W. Kious, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for the appellants, Jimmy Allen and Donna Allen. Barbara Hawley Smith, Nashville, Tennessee and Josh A. McCreary, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for the appellees, Wilson County Investors, LLC and Tom Paschal, Trustee for Cumberland Bank. Alan C. Housholder, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellees, J. Atwell Scruggs, III and Eleanor S. Lowe. Judge: CAIN First Paragraph: This case involves an uncollected 1981 judgment against Mrs. Ruth Scruggs, individually and as trustee. Ms. Scruggs died intestate on September 20, 1998. On June 3, 1998, the judgment creditors received a writ of scire facias and the judgment was revived on June 26, 1998. The judgment was registered in Wilson County on November 9, 1998. Her Wilson County property was sold by her heirs on January 15, 2000. On October 19, 2001, the judgment creditors filed suit to enforce their lien. The trial court held for the defendants finding that Ms. Scruggs died over a month prior to the lien's filing; thus, she was not vested with any real property, pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 31-2-103, at the time the lien was filed. We affirm the trial court, finding, in addition, that Ms. Scruggs was never properly served with the scire facias, thus the judgment on that writ is void, and that the registered lien had expired under S 25-1-105 of the Code. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/allenjimmy.wpd RICHARD HUGHEY v. THE METROPOLITAN GOVERNMENT OF NASHVILLE AND DAVIDSON COUNTY Court:TCA Attorneys: Phillip L. Davidson, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Richard Hughey. Karl F. Dean and William Michael Safley, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. Judge: CAIN First Paragraph: Richard Hughey, a former Metropolitan Nashville police officer, appeals the action of the Chancery Court of Davidson County in affirming the adverse decision of the Metropolitan Civil Service Commission, which had rejected his application for police department employment. We affirm the action of the Chancellor. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/hugheyrichard.wpd CHRISTOPHER POPE v. TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION Court:TCA Attorneys: Christopher Pope, Nashville, Tennessee, Pro Se. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Michael E. Moore, Solicitor General; Stephen R. Butler, Assistant Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: CANTRELL First Paragraph: A prisoner in the custody of the Department of Correction was found guilty of a disciplinary offense and sentenced to punitive segregation. He subsequently filed a Petition for Writ of Certiorari, claiming that he was not afforded due process during the disciplinary hearing at which he was convicted. The trial court dismissed his Petition for failure to state a claim. We affirm the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/popec.wpd ALEXANDER C. WELLS v. STATE OF TENNESSEE Court:TCA Attorneys: Phillip L. Davidson, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Alexander C. Wells. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General & Reporter and Kae Carpenter Todd, Assistant Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: CANTRELL First Paragraph: A tenured professor successfully challenged his dismissal through a review in the Chancery Court of Davidson County. Subsequently he filed a claim against the state in the Claims Commission for breach of contract. The Commission dismissed the claim on jurisdictional grounds. We affirm the conclusion that the claim was not based on a "written contract." http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/wellsalexander.wpd STATE OF TENNESSEE v. STEPHEN EUGENE DAVIS Court:TCCA Attorneys: W. Gerald Tidwell, Jr., Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the appellant, Stephen Eugene Davis. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Christine M. Lapps, Assistant Attorney General; William H. Cox III, District Attorney General; and Ben Boyer, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: WOODALL First Paragraph: Defendant, Stephen Eugene Davis, was convicted of violating Tenn. Code Ann. S 55-10-401, which prohibits driving under the influence of an intoxicant. Following a bench trial, Defendant was fined $360 and sentenced to eleven months and twenty-nine days to be suspended after serving thirty days in jail. In this appeal as of right, Defendant argues that the period of confinement imposed is excessive for a first offense and that the trial court placed undue emphasis on Defendant's former employment as a police officer. We agree and conclude that the trial court improperly considered Defendant's failure to accept the State's plea offer. Accordingly, we reduce the period of confinement involved in Defendant's sentence to fifteen days of continuous confinement and affirm the judgment of the trial court in all other respects. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/davisstephene.wpd STATE OF TENNESSEE v. OSCAR REYNOLDS Court:TCCA Attorneys: Robert Wilson Jones, District Public Defender; Garland Ergueden and Henry Sayle, Assistant Public Defenders, for the appellant, Oscar Reynolds. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Steve Jones, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: WILLIAMS First Paragraph: The defendant was found guilty of robbery. His sole issue on appeal is whether the trial court erred in refusing to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of theft. Theft is a lesser included offense of robbery. However, we conclude the failure to instruct the jury was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt. We affirm the judgment of the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/reynoldso.wpd STATE OF TENNESSEE v. WALTER SANCHEZ, JR. Court:TCCA Attorneys: Joseph F. Harrison, Blountville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Walter Sanchez, Jr. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Jennifer L. Bledsoe, Assistant Attorney General; H. Greeley Wells, Jr., District Attorney General; and B. Todd Martin and James Goodwin, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: OGLE First Paragraph: The appellant, Walter Sanchez, Jr., pled guilty to violating an order declaring him to be an habitual motor vehicle offender. The plea agreement provided that the appellant would receive a sentence of two years incarceration in the Tennessee Department of Correction and pay a $500.00 fine. The manner of service of the sentence was to be determined by the trial court. On appeal, the appellant argues that the trial court erred in denying him probation or some other form of alternative sentencing. Upon review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/sanchezw.wpd PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL! GET A FULL-TEXT COPY OF AN OPINION! JOIN THE TENNESSEE BAR ASSOCIATION! SUBSCRIBE TO OPINION FLASH! UNSUBSCRIBE TO OPINION FLASH? ... SURELY NOT! But if you must, visit the TBALink web site at: http://www.tba.org/op-flash.mgi Home • Contact Us • PageFinder • What's New • Help |
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