STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MICHAEL WAYNE STROUTH - Articles

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STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MICHAEL WAYNE STROUTH

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Apr 6, 2026

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys 1: Larry R. Dillow, Kingsport, Tennessee, for the appellant, Michael Wayne Strouth.

Attorneys 2: Jonathan Skrrnetti, Attorney General and Reporter; Ryan W. Davis, Assistant Attorney General; Barry P. Staubus, District Attorney General; and Amber D. Massengill and Matthew W. Darby, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): WEDEMEYER

A Sullivan County jury convicted the Defendant, Michael Wayne Strouth, of first degree premeditated murder and conspiracy to commit first degree premeditated murder. The trial court imposed a life sentence for the first degree murder conviction and a consecutive twenty-five year sentence for the conspiracy conviction. On appeal, the Defendant asserts that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain his convictions; (2) the trial court erred when it failed to give jury instructions on enhanced identification and general inferences; and (3) the trial court abused its discretion when it sentenced him. After review, we affirm the convictions and the Defendant's life sentence for first degree premeditated murder; however, we vacate the Defendant's sentence for conspiracy to commit first degree murder and the trial court's imposition of partial consecutive sentencing. We remand this case to the trial court for a new sentencing hearing.

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