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| Monday, April 12, 2010 |
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Court nominee list does not include Clinton
Seven names have been confirmed by the White House as potential nominees to replace Justice John Paul Stevens, who is retiring this summer. The Associated Press also reports that the administration today ended speculation about a possible nomination of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, with White House press secretary Robert Gibbs saying President Obama "is going to keep her as his secretary of state."
WRCB-TV carried this AP story
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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 or to obtain a text version of each opinion, 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 the TBA's Membership Central.
01 - TN Supreme Court
00 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals
00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules
00 - TN Court of Appeals
04 - TN Court of Criminal Appeals
01 - TN Attorney General Opinions
00 - Judicial Ethics Opinions
00 - Formal Ethics Opinions - BPR
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SUPREME COURT DISCRETIONARY APPEALS Grants & Denials List
Court: TSC
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2010/certlist_041210.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. BRIAN DAVID BLACK
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Ardena J. Garth, District Public Defender; Richard Kenneth Mabee, Assistant Public Defender (on appeal); and Kandi Rankin, Assistant Public Defender (at trial), for the
appellant, Brian David Black.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Matthew Bryant Haskell, Assistant Attorney General; William H. Cox, III, District Attorney General; and William H. Hall,
Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: TIPTON
The Defendant, Brian David Black, appeals from the Hamilton County Criminal Court's order revoking his probation for theft of property over $500, a Class E felony, and ordering him to serve his three-year sentence in the Department of Correction. He argues that the trial
court erred in ordering his sentence to be served, rather than imposing some less severe sanction. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2010/blackb_041210.pdf
ERODITO D. LOPEZ-CARRANZA v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Erodito D. Lopez-Carranza, Pro Se.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Rachel E. Willis, Assistant Attorney General; and Victor S. Johnson, III, District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WELLES
The Petitioner, Erodito D. Lopez-Carranza, was charged with one count of aggravated sexual battery, a Class B felony. See Tenn. Code Ann. section 39-13-504(b). On May 2, 2005, he pleaded guilty to one count of attempted aggravated sexual battery, accepting an out-of-range sentence of seven years in the Department of Correction, to be served as a multiple offender at thirty-five percent. On July 6, 2009, the Petitioner filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the Circuit Court for Hickman County. On July 24, 2009, the State filed a motion to dismiss the petition. The habeas corpus court granted the motion. The Petitioner now
appeals that grant. We affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2010/carranzae_041210.pdf
GEORGE HARDIN v. JIM MORROW, WARDEN
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
George Hardin, Pikeville, Tennessee, Pro Se.
Robert E. Cooper, Attorney General and Reporter; and John H. Bledsoe, Senior Counsel, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: THOMAS
The Petitioner, George Hardin, appeals as of right from the Bledsoe County Circuit Court's order summarily dismissing his petition for a writ of habeas corpus. The State has filed a
motion requesting that this court affirm the order pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals. The Petitioner seeks to re-litigate a previously litigated claim. Accordingly, the State's motion is granted and the judgment of the habeas corpus court is affirmed.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2010/harding_041210.pdf
JEFFERY T. SILER, JR. v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Jeffery T. Siler, Pro Se, Only, Tennessee.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; and Clark B. Thornton, Assistant Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: MCMULLEN
The Petitioner, Jeffery T. Siler, Jr., appeals the Knox County Criminal Court's summary dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief as untimely. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that due process considerations toll the one-year statute of limitations for post-conviction relief and entitle him to a delayed appeal. Upon review, we reverse the judgment of the post-conviction court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2010/silerj_041210.pdf
Execution of Charter School Agreements
TN Attorney General Opinions
Date: 2010-04-12
Opinion Number: 10-45
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/AG/2010/ag_10_45.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Politics
Court of the Judiciary
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Hamilton Chancery election set, candidates line up |
Gov. Phil Bredesen issued a writ of election to replace Chancellor Howell Peoples today, setting the election for Aug. 5, Election Commission attorney Chris Clem said. The Republican caucus is set for April 29, when delegates will be selected. Its convention will be May 13, when delegates will select a nominee. Election officials said Democrats are also expected to hold a one-day session to choose a contender. Attorneys could also run as independent candidates.
Two Chattanooga attorneys did not waste any time and today announced their candidacies. Valerie Epstein, an attorney with the Chattanooga firm of Berke, Berke and Berke, said one of her main goals if elected would be to put in place an electronic filing system for Chancery Court. Read more about her in the The Times Free Press.
Linda B. Hall is a solo practitioner with her law office is in Soddy Daisy. She said she has spent her entire career working with the types of cases heard by Chancery Court, and
will be running for the Republican nomination. Learn more about her in The Chattanoogan.
The Judicial Selection Committee has already chosen three attorneys to be submitted to the governor for an interim chancellor, but he has not chosen one.
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Read more about the election in The Chattanoogan
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| DA wants deleted TV interview as murder evidence |
| Footage that aired on a TV documentary that contained a gang member talking about a murder, caused the Davidson County District Attorney's office to want to see what was left on the cutting room floor.
The rift between the district attorney's office and the media company once again brings into focus an ongoing national discussion about the limits of journalistic protection when a crime has been committed.
"Journalists should not become arms of the police department or the prosecution," said Frank Gibson, executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. "Their job isn't to investigate things and then turn their notes over to law enforcement." |
The Nashville City Paper reports
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| Editorial: Prison bill should become law |
| In an editorial today, the Commercial Appeal writes that a bill passed by the House Thursday -- doubling prison time for armed-robbery convicts -- "is a reasonable approach toward making violent and nonviolent offenders pay for their crimes. The Senate, which is scheduled to consider the bill Tuesday, should join the House and pass it."
Under the bill, which still must be passed by the Senate, a person convicted of armed robbery would have to serve at least five years and 11 months in prison before becoming eligible for parole. That is up from two years and five months under current law. |
Read the editorial
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| Giving in judicial elections has risen since 'Citizens United' |
| Predictions that the recent Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission ruling will unleash a torrent of corporate money are wildly overblown, free speech advocates insist.
But a closer look at state-level elections suggests that independent political expenditures by corporations, unions and other special interests are substantial, especially in judicial elections. The Citizens United ruling may impact judicial races even more drastically than federal elections, some experts argue. |
The National Journal looks at the issue
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| BPR suspension likely next for Lockett |
| Former Knox County Law Director Bill Lockett could have his law license suspended as early as this week for stealing thousands of dollars from his old law firm, according to the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility. Lockett, 55, pleaded guilty last Thursday to embezzling thousands of dollars in fees from the firm of Kennerly, Montgomery & Finley. |
The News Sentinel has the story
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| Politics |
| Court clerk candidates spar at TSU debate |
| Juvenile Court Clerk Vic Lineweaver stressed his experience as his strongest selling point for reelection during a Saturday debate with the six other candidates trying to oust him in this May's Democratic primary.
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The Nashville City Paper has more
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| Court of the Judiciary |
| Pera affidavit supports Bell's desire to depose Daniel |
| Judge John A. Bell submitted a supplemental response to disciplinary counsel's motion for protective order today, seeking to take the deposition of Disciplinary Counsel J.S. Daniel, "due to Mr. Daniel's status as a witness in these proceedings." The response includes an affidavit by "legal ethics expert" Lucian Pera, which supports Bell's request that he be permitted to depose Daniel. |
Download Bell's response
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About this publication: Today's News is a compilation of digests of news reports of interest to Tennessee lawyers compiled by TBA staff, links to digested press releases, and occasional stories about the TBA and other activities written by the TBA staff or members. Statements or opinions herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Tennessee Bar Association, its officers, board or staff.
© Copyright 2010 Tennessee Bar Association
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