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Senate Judiciary continues budget hearings
The Senate Judiciary Committee today heard testimony on budgets for the courts and the Post Conviction Defender. The courts' budget, which included money to create a new judgeship in the 22nd Judicial District (Giles, Lawrence, Maury and Wayne counties), increase judges' pay and fund a criminal records project, was forwarded to the Finance Committee without recommendation. Under the plan, trial judges' salaries would increase from $118,000 to $140,000 annually. In other action, the committee adopted recommendations that the Post Conviction Defender budget be approved with two improvements.
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TODAY'S OPINIONS
Click on the category of your choice to view summaries of today’s opinions from that court, or other body. A link at the end of each case summary will let you download the full opinion in PDF format. To search all opinions in the TBALink database, go to our OpinionSearch page. If you have forgotten your password or need to obtain a password, you can look it up on TBALink at http://www.tba.org/getpassword.mgi.
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Howard H. Vogel
Knoxville, Tennessee
Editor-in-Chief, TBALink
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KEITH DWAYNE GREENE v. CLARA FAYE HELTON GREENE
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Douglas T. Jenkins, Rogersville, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Keith Dwayne Greene.
William E. Phillips II, Rogersville, Tennessee, for the Appellee, Clara Faye Helton Greene.
Judge: LEE
The issue presented in this post-divorce case involves the interpretation of a provision in the divorce
decree allowing the wife to keep the mobile home she was awarded in the divorce on the land the
husband received in the divorce for "as long as she needs to or has any desire to do so." The
husband initiated this action seven years after the divorce, asserting that the provision should be
construed as an award of periodic alimony, which should be terminated due to the wife's remarriage.
The trial court held that the provision was unambiguous, was part of the division of the marital estate
and not alimony, and was consequently not modifiable. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/greenek030706.pdf
RUBY POPE v. ERVIN BLAYLOCK, ET AL.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
James E. Blount, IV, of Memphis, Tennessee for Appellant, Ruby Pope.
Gary R. Wilkinson and Forrest R. Jenkins, Germantown, Tennessee for Appellees, Ervin Blaylock
and Patricia Blaylock.
Judge: CRAWFORD
This is a premises liability case arising from Plaintiff/Guests' fall over a landscaping wall while walking down Defendants/Homeowners' walkway after dark. The trial court granted summary judgment to Defendants/Homeowners. Finding that there is a dispute of material fact as to whether the lighting conditions created a dangerous condition on the Defendants/Homeowners' property, and that McIntyre requires a comparison of the respective negligence of the parties, we reverse and
remand.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/poper030706.pdf
SUN-DROP BOTTLING COMPANY, INC., v. HERB HELTON
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Scott C. Williams and Caroline Thomas Trost, Columbia, Tennessee, for Appellant.
L. Bruce Peden, Columbia, Tennessee, for Appellee.
Judge: FRANKS
In this Declaratory Judgment action, the Trial Court held the contracts the parties were operating under were at will contracts. Defendant has appealed. We affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/sundrop030706.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JOSEPH BRYAN ADAIR
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Joseph Bryan Adair, Pro Se.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Sophia S. Lee, Assistant Attorney General;
William E. Gibson, District Attorney General; and John A. Moore, Assistant District Attorney
General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WEDEMEYER
Following a bench trial, the Defendant, Joseph Bryan Adair, was convicted of driving at a speed
of 69 miles per hour in a 50 miles per hour speed zone, a Class C misdemeanor. The Defendant
now appeals, contending that his traffic citation was invalid because it was not signed by the
State Trooper who issued the ticket. Finding that there exists no reversible error, we affirm the
judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/adairj030706.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JAMES N. HARRELL
With Dissenting Opinion
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Michael Galligan, and John Partin, McMinnville, Tennessee, for the appellant, James N. Harrell.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Preston Shipp, Assistant Attorney General;
Dale Potter, District Attorney General; and Larry Bryant, Assistant District Attorney General, for
the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WOODALL
Defendant, James N. Harrell, seeks interlocutory review of the Warren County Circuit Court's affirmance of the State's denial of his application for pretrial diversion. Defendant is charged with vehicular homicide by recklessness, four counts of reckless aggravated assault, underage
possession and consumption of alcohol, and underage driving while impaired. After unsuccessfully requesting pretrial diversion, Defendant appealed to the trial court, who
determined that the district attorney general had not abused his discretion when denying Defendant's request. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/harrellj030706.pdf
WITT DISSENTING
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/harrellj_diss030706.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MARSHALL WARD HOWELL
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Andrew Jackson Dearing, III, Assistant District Public Defender, for the appellant, Marshall Ward Howell.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General & Reporter; Jennifer L. Bledsoe, Assistant Attorney General; and Michael D. Randles, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of
Tennessee.
Judge: WADE
The defendant, Marshall Ward Howell, entered a plea of guilty to sale of a controlled substance.
The trial court imposed a sentence of eight years to be served in a community corrections
program after service of a period of incarceration. Five months after his conviction, the
community corrections sentence was revoked and the defendant was ordered to serve the
remainder of his term in the Department of Correction. In this appeal, the single issue presented
for review is whether revocation was proper. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/howellm030706.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. CHRISTA G. PIKE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
John C. Ford, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Christa G. Pike.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Brent C. Cherry, Assistant Attorney General;
Victor S. (Torry) Johnson, III, District Attorney General; and Michael D. Rohling and Kathy
Morante, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
The defendant, Christa G. Pike, appeals her conviction for attempted first degree premeditated
murder, a Class A felony. The defendant contends she was acting in defense of a third party, an
inmate, and that the evidence is insufficient to support her conviction. Finding no error at trial,
we affirm the conviction.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/pikec030706.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE V. LARRY ALLEN WHITED and WILLIAM HENRY RUTHERFORD
With Dissenting Opinion
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Walter H. Stubbs, Gallatin, Tennessee, for the appellant, Larry Alan Whited.
Charles R. Bobbitt, Jr., Hendersonville, Tennessee, for the appellant, William Henry Rutherford.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Rachel E. Willis, Assistant Attorney General;
Lawrence Ray Whitley, District Attorney General; and Sallie Brown, Assistant District Attorney
General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WELLES
The Defendants were convicted of second degree murder and reckless endangerment. Defendant
Whited was also convicted of three counts of aggravated assault. On appeal, both Defendants
argue that the trial court erred by allowing the State to introduce evidence of certain activity they
engaged in after the crimes were committed, and that the evidence is insufficient to support their
convictions. Defendant Whited argues that the trial court erred by denying his motion to
suppress the statement he gave to the police. Both Defendants also challenge the trial court's
sentencing determination. After review, we affirm the trial court's judgments in all respects.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/whitedl030706.pdf
HAYES DISSENTING IN PART
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/whitedl_diss030706.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Legislative News
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Bredesen creates task force to study DUI laws |
| Governor Phil Bredesen signed an executive order Monday establishing the Governor's Task Force on DUI Laws in Tennessee. The task force is charged with conducting a comprehensive review of the law and any relevant judicial opinions, and recommending changes that would create a more comprehensive, clear and easily understandable framework of DUI laws in the state. |
Read more in the Chattanoogan.com
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| Students sue over school ban on Confederate flag |
| Three students and their parents filed a federal lawsuit against the Blount County school system last week claiming their free-speech rights are being denied by a ban on clothing depicting the Confederate battle flag. |
Read more in the Knoxville News Sentinel
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| Volunteers needed for state mock trial contest |
| The TBA Young Lawyers Divison is looking for attorneys who would like to volunteer for the 2006 Tennessee State High School Mock Trial Competition in Nashville March 17-18. Those who volunteer for at least one round on Friday and one round on Saturday receive complimentary lodging and reimbursement for travel expenses. For more information or to sign up, contact this year's competition chair Jordan Keller at (615) 259-9344 or jkeller@lassiterlaw.com |
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| Legislative News |
| East Ridge legislator suffers stroke |
| Rep. Jack Sharp, R-East Ridge, suffered a stroke yesterday morning and is in stable condition in the coronary care unit at Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga. Sharp has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment for lung cancer. He was elected to the state legislature in 1994. He currently serves on the Transportation Committee and Agriculture Committee. |
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| Senate committee adds three votes to illegal list |
| The special state Senate committee investigating the District 29 election voted 6-0 last week to add three felons to its list of illegal votes - raising to 12 the total votes it suspects are not legitimate. The committee is scheduled to reconvene on Thursday to decide how to proceed. |
The Memphis Commercial Appeal has the story
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