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| Friday, April 01, 2011 |
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TBA flood video named finalist in national competition
The Tennessee Bar Association has been selected as a finalist for Sonic Foundry's seventh annual Rich Media Impact Awards. The four-minute video documents the efforts of Tennessee lawyers and the TBA in the wake of devastating flooding that hit Middle Tennessee in May 2010. Use of various resources enabled the TBA to get information out quickly to lawyers who wanted to help, or already were helping but needed questions answered about FEMA, the Home Buyout Program, and more.
Winners in the competition will be announced May 17 at the Mediasite User Conference in Madison, Wis. The video was produced by TBA AV/Webcasting Coordinator Angie Bianchi, with voice-over by TBA Publications Coordinator Landry Butler. Webcasts about the flood resources were produced by TBA Assistant Director of CLE Mindy Thomas-Fulks.
Watch the video
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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.
00 - TN Supreme Court
00 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals
00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules
01 - TN Court of Appeals
10 - TN Court of Criminal Appeals
00 - TN Attorney General Opinions
00 - Judicial Ethics Opinions
00 - Formal Ethics Opinions - BPR
02 - TN Supreme Court - Disciplinary Orders
You can obtain full-text versions of the opinions two ways. We recommend that you download the Opinions to your computer and then
open them from there. 1) Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This should give you the option to
download the original document. If not, you may need to right-click on the URL to get the option to save the file
to your computer. 2) Do a key word search in the Search Link area of TBALink. This option will allow you to view
and save a plain-text version of the opinion.
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IN THE MATTER OF SHELBY L. B.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Deana C. Hood, Franklin, Tennessee, for the appellant, J. E. N.
Thomas H. Miller, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, S. L. B.
Judge: COTTRELL
The divorced mother of a nine year old girl joined with an unrelated man in a petition to terminate the parental rights of the child's father and to adopt, with the intention of having
the unrelated man adopt the child in place of the father, while the mother retained her own parental rights. The trial court granted the father's motion to dismiss the petition, holding that the petitioner lacked standing because the statutes governing termination of parental rights and adoption require that the mother relinquish her parental rights or that they be terminated before an adoption by an unrelated individual or non stepparent may proceed. We
affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/shelbylb_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. IN RE: AARON BONDING COMPANY (ELISHA TOMLINSON AND TOMMY GREGORY)
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
James O. Martin, III, Nashville, Tennessee for the Appellant, Elisha Tomlinson.
William B. Bruce, Nashville, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Tommy Gregory.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Lindsy Paduch Stempel, Assistant
Attorney General; Victor S. Johnson, III, District Attorney General; John Zimmerman, Assistant District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WEDEMEYER
The trial court found the Defendants, Elisha Tomlinson and Tommy Gregory, in contempt of court for their part in the depleting of $250,000 in certificates of deposit held as collateral for the bond writing ability of Aaron Bonding Company. On appeal, both Defendants contend that the evidence is insufficient to sustain this finding. After a thorough review of the record and applicable authorities, we affirm the trial court's judgments.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/aaronbonding_040111.pdf
ANTONIO ARNOLD v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Andrew Hutchinson, Paul K. Guibao, and Matthew S. Lyons, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Antonio Arnold.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Matthew Bryant Haskell, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Tracey Jones,
Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
The petitioner, Antonio Arnold, appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court's denial of his petition for post-conviction relief. The petitioner was convicted by a Shelby County jury of
felony murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated burglary, and aggravated assault. He was subsequently sentenced to an effective term of life in prison. On appeal, he contends that the denial of his petition was error because he received ineffective assistance of counsel at trial. Following review of the record before us, we affirm the denial of the petition.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/arnolda_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. AARON BENARD BARNETT
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
George Morton Googe, District Public Defender, and Gregory D. Gookin, Assistant Public Defender, for the appellant, Aaron Benard Barnett.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder, Assistant Attorney General; James G. (Jerry) Woodall, District Attorney General; and Shaun A. Brown, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
The defendant, Aaron Benard Barnett, was convicted of aggravated burglary, a Class C felony, and vandalism over $1000, a Class D felony. He was sentenced to six years for
aggravated burglary and four years for vandalism, with the sentences to run consecutively. On appeal, he argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions and that
the trial court improperly imposed consecutive sentences. After careful review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/barnetta_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. BRIAN HERVERY
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Vicki M. Carriker (on appeal); Greg Carmen and Samuel Rodriguez, III (at trial), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Brian Hervery.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Counsel; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Damon Griffin, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Brian Hervery, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of attempted second degree murder, a Class B felony; three counts of aggravated assault, a
Class C felony; and one count of the employment of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony. The trial court merged one of the convictions of aggravated assault into
the conviction for attempted second degree murder and sentenced the defendant as a Range I offender to concurrent terms of ten years for the attempted murder conviction and three years for the aggravated assault convictions. Because the defendant had a prior conviction for voluntary manslaughter, the court sentenced him to ten years at 100% for the firearm conviction and ordered that the sentence be served consecutively to the ten-year sentence for attempted murder, in accordance with Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-17-1324. The defendant raises four issues on appeal: (1) whether the trial court erred by granting the
State's motion in limine to exclude evidence that would have shown the victims' bias; (2) whether the trial court erred by not declaring a mistrial following the prosecutor's improper
closing comments; (3) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain the convictions; and (4) whether the trial court imposed an excessive sentence. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/herveryb_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MICHAEL MARTIN
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Joseph A. McClusky (on appeal); and Jeffery Woods (at trial), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Michael Martin.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Rachel E. Willis, Senior Counsel; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Betsy Carnesale, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Michael Martin, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of attempted second degree murder, a Class B felony; aggravated assault, a Class C felony; and violation of an order of protection, a Class A misdemeanor. The aggravated assault conviction merged into the attempted second degree murder conviction, and the defendant was sentenced to eighteen years as a Range II offender on the attempted second degree murder conviction and eleven months, twenty-nine days on the violation of an order of protection conviction, to be served consecutively. On appeal, the defendant argues that (1) the trial court erred in allowing photographs of the victim's wounds into evidence; (2) the trial court erred in allowing evidence regarding injuries the victim's grandparents sustained during the commission of the offense; (3) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his conviction for attempted second degree murder; (4) the cumulative effect of the errors at trial was sufficient to justify a new trial; and (5) the trial court erred in sentencing him as a Range II offender. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/martinm_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. NAPOLEON STEPHAN MEREDITH
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Caesar Cirigliano, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Napoleon Stephan Meredith.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; J. Ross Dyer, Senior Counsel; Victor S. Johnson, III, District Attorney General; and Jeff Burks, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: OGLE
A Davidson County Criminal Court Jury convicted the appellant, Napoleon Stephan Meredith, of two counts of aggravated robbery. The trial court imposed a total effective
sentence of nine years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the appellant argues that the trial court erred in failing to allow the appellant to be viewed from a close distance by the jury and that the error forced him to relinquish his Fifth Amendment right not to testify. Upon review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/meredithn_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. GREGORY D. ROBERTS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
John W. Leach, Memphis, Tennessee (on appeal); and Leslie Miller, Somerville, Tennessee (at trial), for the appellant, Gregory D. Roberts.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Counsel; D. Michael Dunavant, District Attorney General; and Terry Dycus, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Gregory D. Roberts, was convicted by a Fayette County jury of illegal voting, a Class D felony, for having intentionally voted in a November 2008 election knowing that he was ineligible to vote due to his felony convictions for infamous crimes. He was subsequently sentenced by the trial court as a Range II offender to four years in the Department of Correction, with the sentence suspended to fifteen days in the county jail with the remainder of the time on supervised probation. The defendant raises essentially three issues on appeal: (1) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain the conviction; (2) whether the trial court erred by not instructing the jury to disregard a lay witness's testimony
regarding similarities in signatures; and (3) whether trial counsel was ineffective for not moving for a directed verdict. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial
court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/robertsg_040111.pdf
MACK TRANSOU v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Mack Transou, Henning, Tennessee, Pro Se.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Counsel; James G. Woodall, District Attorney General; and Alfred L. Earls, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The pro se petitioner, Mack Transou, appeals the denial of his motion to reopen his post-conviction petition. Because he failed to comply with the statutory requirements for seeking review of a dismissal of a motion to reopen a post-conviction petition, we dismiss the appeal.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/transoum_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. RODGER WATTS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Robert Wilson Jones, District Public Defender; Harry E. Sayle, III, Assistant Public Defender (on appeal); and Russell White, Assistant Public Defender (at trial), for the appellant, Rodger
Watts.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Lindsy Paduch Stempel, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Anita Spinetta and
Reggie Henderson, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Rodger Watts, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of theft of property valued between $10,000 and $60,000, a Class C felony; burglary of a
building, a Class D felony; and evading arrest, a Class A misdemeanor. He was sentenced to nine years for the theft and four years for the burglary, to be served consecutively as a Range II offender, and eleven months and twenty-nine days for the evading arrest, to be served concurrently to the felonies. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the
convicting evidence with regard to his theft conviction. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/wattsr_040111.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DEVON O'NEAL WIGGINS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
James E. Lanier, District Public Defender; H. Tod Taylor, Assistant Public Defender, Dyersburg, Tennessee, for the Defendant-Appellant, Devon O'Neal Wiggins.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder, Assistant Attorney General; C. Phillip Bivens, District Attorney General; and Lance E. Webb, Assistant District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: MCMULLEN
The Defendant-Appellant, Devon O'Neal Wiggins, was convicted by a Dyer County jury of sale of cocaine over 0.5 grams in a drug-free zone, a Class B felony. He was sentenced as a Range III, persistent offender to twenty years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. The trial court ordered that this sentence be served consecutive to a thirty-year sentence for case number 07-CR-461. On appeal, Wiggins claims: (1) the insufficiency 1 of the evidence; (2) the jury instructions should have included the offense of sale of a counterfeit controlled substance; (3) the trial court erred by denying his motion for a bifurcated trial; (4) the testimony of an expert witness violated his rights under the Confrontation Clause; (5) his sentence was excessive; (6) the trial court improperly commented on the evidence; (7) the State committed prosecutorial misconduct during its closing argument; and (8) cumulative error. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/wigginsd_040111.pdf
IN RE: SPENCE ROBERTS BRUNER, BPR 019056
Court: TSC-Disciplinary Order
Judge: CLARK
Order for Hearing
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/bruners_040111.pdf
IN RE: IVAN OMAR LOPEZ, BPR 026441
Court: TSC-Disciplinary Order
Judge: CLARK
Reinstatement
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/lopezi_040111.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
General Assembly News
Tenn. Government
Disciplinary Actions
Upcoming
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Sergeant convicted of threatening judge in video |
| A federal court jury today convicted Army Sgt. Franklin Delano "Dale" Jeffries II of threatening Knox County Chancellor Michael W. Moyers in a video posted on the internet.
U.S. District Court Judge Thomas W. Phillips scheduled a sentencing hearing for May 9.
Jeffries' attorney, Ralph Harwell, said the case will likely be appealed on the grounds of constitutional right to free speech. |
The News Sentinel has more, including the video
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| Commission: Audit needed for Knox drug court |
| Although there are no accusations, the
Knox County Commission passed a resolution earlier this week calling for an audit of the county's drug court in the wake of Judge Richard Baumgartner's resignation. "When I see a change of leadership, my instinct always is, let's take a look at the books," said County Law Director Joe Jarret.
Baumgartner, who oversaw the drug court from its inception more than a decade ago, resigned as Criminal Court judge and pleaded guilty to official misconduct for buying prescription pills from a drug court probationer. The program provides treatment to nonviolent offenders who agree to plead guilty and submit to a rigorous program of weekly meetings and testing. |
Read more in the News Sentinel
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| Judge: Duke lacrosse players may sue prosecutor, police |
| Three former Duke lacrosse players falsely accused of rape in North Carolina are allowed to pursue a lawsuit against former District Attorney Mike Nifong and police investigators who handled their case, U.S. District Judge James Beaty ruled Thursday.
The players can pursue claims such as malicious prosecution, concealment of evidence and fabrication of false evidence, he ruled, but dismissed several other accusations, such as intentional infliction of emotional distress. |
WCYB.com has the story
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| Judge Mays serious, but light-hearted, too |
| U.S. District Court Judge Hardy Mays is regarded a highly capable legal mind and a Southern gentleman who also doesn't mind letting his lighter side show, a feature story points out.
For instance, at a recent hearing, which drew the presence of 18 attorneys and five more via teleconference, the group assembled before Mays included some of the best-known names in the Memphis legal community.
"I feel as if I've wandered into a year-end (continuing legal education seminar)," Mays said as he took his place on the bench. "Believe me -- you're not getting any credit." |
Read the profile by The Daily News
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| Public forum answers questions on legal issues |
| Cleveland attorneys Jack Tapper, Marcia McMurray and Ginger Wilson Buchanan spoke to a packed crowd answering general questions regarding wills, inheritance and probate laws. The community legal forum that held at the Cleveland Bradley Public Library. |
The Cleveland Daily Banner reports
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| General Assembly News |
| Former senator tells all, explores forgiveness, in personal blog |
| Former state Sen. Paul Stanley begins his new blog with a little history:
"Two years ago my life was quite different...
I chaired of one of the Senate's most powerful committees, was a husband and father and held a bright political future. All that came crashing down as a result of a series of unfortunate circumstances, brought on by many poor decisions that began with me." Stanley details the sting operation that brought his extramarital affair with an intern -- and his political career -- to a halt. |
Read his blog
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| Tenn. Government |
| Ramsey says will not run for governor again |
| Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey told reporters at his weekly press conference on Thursday that he is categorically ruling out another bid for governor. |
WRCB carried this AP story
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| Disciplinary Actions |
| Suspension of Davidson County lawyer dissolved |
| The temporary suspension imposed on Ivan Omar Lopez filed March 3, was dissolved April 1. He is
reinstated to the practice of law, determined by a hearing panel of the Tennessee Supreme Court. |
Download the court's order
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| Harriman lawyer suspended |
| On March 25 Spence Roberts Bruner
was temporarily suspended from the practice of law pursuant to Tennessee Supreme Court
Rule 9, Section 4.3, because of his failure to comply with his Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program (TLAP) monitoring agreement.
On March 31 Bruner filed a petition to dissolve the suspension and requested an
immediate hearing. |
Download the court's order
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| Upcoming |
| UT Colloquium to focus on public health law |
| The intersection of public health and the law will be the focus of the upcoming Public Health Law Colloquium, co-sponsored by the University of Tennessee College of Law, the Tennessee Bar Association, the Baker Center for Public Policy and the UT Center for Public Health. Programming will begin April 7 at 5 p.m. on the UT College of Law campus and continue April 8 at 9 a.m. at the Baker Center. |
Register now for the free event
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| TBA Member Services |
| Ship directly from Microsoft Office Outlook with FedEx QuickShip |
| Now you can ship your FedEx packages directly from the Microsoft Office Outlook application -- and save money doing it. It's a fast and convenient way to easily access some of the most popular features on fedex.com using Microsoft technology. That's why you should Think FedEx First.
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Take advantage of your member discounts on select FedEx shipping services and FedEx OfficeSM business services
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Discontinue your TBA Today subscription? ... Surely not!
But if you must, visit the TBALink web site at:
http://www.tba2.org/tbatoday/unsub_tbatoday.php
Questions, comments: Email us at TBAToday@tnbar.org
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 2011 Tennessee Bar Association
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