JORDAN HARP v. STATE OF TENNESSEE - Articles

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JORDAN HARP v. STATE OF TENNESSEE

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Nov 10, 2025

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys 1: Lance R. Chism (on appeal and at post-conviction hearing), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Jordan Harp.

Attorneys 2: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; G. Kirby May, Assistant Attorney General; Steven J. Mulroy, District Attorney General; and Monica Timmerman, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): EASTER

Petitioner, Jordan Harp, appeals the denial of his post-conviction relief petition. Petitioner was indicted by the Shelby County Grand Jury for first degree premeditated murder and especially aggravated kidnapping. Pursuant to a March 2022 negotiated plea agreement, Petitioner pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of second degree murder and to especially aggravated kidnapping and received an effective sentence of forty years.1 Petitioner timely sought post-conviction relief, alleging several instances of ineffective assistance of counsel and that his guilty pleas were unknowingly and involuntarily entered. After only hearing from Petitioner’s trial counsel, the post-conviction court stated, “I don’t need to hear anything from [Petitioner],” and denied Petitioner the opportunity to testify and present witnesses. The post-conviction court then denied relief. Because we conclude that Petitioner was not afforded a full and fair hearing on his post-conviction petition, we reverse the judgment of the post-conviction court and remand this case for a new hearing on his post-conviction petition.

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