Opinion FlashOctober 8, 2003Volume 9 — Number 183 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 STATE OF TENNESSEE v. BRIAN LARICE CURETON Court:TCCA Attorneys: Ross E. Alderman, District Public Defender; William J. Steed, Assistant Public Defender, on appeal; C. Dawn Deaner, Assistant Public Defender, at trial; and Clark B. Thornton, Assistant Public Defender, at trial, for the appellant, Brian Larice Cureton. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Elizabeth B. Marney, Assistant Attorney General; Victor S. Johnson, III, District Attorney General; Bernie McEvoy, Assistant District Attorney, and Katrin Miller, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: WOODALL First Paragraph: Following a jury trial, Defendant, Brian Larice Cureton, was convicted of one count of first degree felony murder and one count of aggravated child abuse. The trial court sentenced Defendant to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole for the felony murder conviction. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced Defendant to twenty-five years imprisonment for the aggravated child abuse conviction as a Range I offender and ordered the sentence for aggravated child abuse to run concurrently with Defendant's life sentence. Defendant now appeals his convictions and sentencing alleging (1) that the evidence is insufficient to support Defendant's convictions for first degree felony murder and aggravated child abuse beyond a reasonable doubt; (2) that the trial court erred in not allowing Defendant to cross examine Kinoltra Ewing about her willingness to take a polygraph test; (3) that the trial court erred in not redacting portions of Defendant's statement to the police; (4) that the trial court erred in not instructing the jury on facilitation of aggravated child abuse and felony murder as lesser included offenses; (5) that the trial court erred in permitting the State's expert witness to offer opinions outside her area of expertise; and (6) that Defendant's sentence for aggravated child abuse was excessive. After a thorough review of the record and the arguments and briefs of counsel, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/curetonbl.wpd STATE OF TENNESSEE v. LONNIE WALTER HURD Court:TCCA Attorneys: Mark Toohey, Kingsport, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Lonnie Walter Hurd. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General & Reporter; P. Robin Dixon, Jr., Assistant Attorney General; H. Greeley Wells, Jr., District Attorney General; and B. Todd Martin, Assistant District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: WITT First Paragraph: The defendant, Lonnie Walter Hurd, appeals from his Sullivan County Criminal Court jury convictions of driving under the influence (DUI) and possession of cocaine. On appeal, he claims that the convicting evidence is insufficient, that certain evidence was improperly admitted, that the testimony of a state's witness violated the witness sequestration rule, and that the trial court erred in permitting a defense witness to be cross-examined about her prior drug convictions. Discerning no reversible error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/hurdl.wpd RONGIE LELAND TAYLOR v. STATE OF TENNESSEE Court:TCCA Attorneys: Lisa Zavogiannis, McMinnville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Rongie Leland Taylor. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Assistant Attorney General; Dale Potter, District Attorney General; and Thomas J. Miner, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: SMITH First Paragraph: The post-conviction court denied the appellant's petition for post-conviction relief following his guilty plea to robbery with an agreed five-year sentence. In this appeal, the appellant argues: (1) his guilty plea was not entered voluntarily and knowingly; and (2) his trial counsel failed to provide him effective assistance relating to the entry of his plea. We affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/taylorrongie.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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