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Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 22, 2021

HELENE N. WHITE, Circuit Judge. Tammy Brawner appeals the district court’s grant of judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50(a), arguing that she presented sufficient evidence for a jury to find that the multiple seizures she suffered while a pretrial detainee in the Scott County jail were the result of Scott County’s unconstitutional policies or customs. Because Brawner presented sufficient evidence for a jury to find Scott County liable for her injuries based on two of its policies, we REVERSE and REMAND IN PART, and otherwise AFFIRM.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 22, 2021

After a jury trial and subsequent retrial on two of the charges, the defendants, Jalean Robert Williams and Markeil Linskey Williams,1 were convicted of first-degree premeditated murder, felony murder, possession of marijuana with intent to sell or deliver, possession of Alprazolam with intent to sell or deliver, and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony. The trial court imposed an effective sentence of life imprisonment plus fourteen years on each defendant. On appeal, both defendants assert the evidence is insufficient to sustain their convictions. In addition, Defendant Markeil argues the trial court erred in allowing the State to ask leading questions, and the trial court’s imposition of consecutive sentences violates the prohibition against double jeopardy. Upon our review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 22, 2021

Jeffrey Allen McNew, Defendant, entered a negotiated guilty plea to one count of aggravated burglary, one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of aggravated robbery, one count of aggravated kidnapping, one count of carjacking, and four counts of aggravated assault. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Defendant was sentenced as a Range III, Persistent Offender, and the trial court determined the length and alignment of the sentences. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court imposed an effective sentence of 135 years. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we determine that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Defendant and affirm the judgments of the trial court. However, we remand for entry of corrected judgments merging the aggravated assault conviction in Count 7 into the aggravated robbery conviction in Count 3 and merging the aggravated assault conviction in Count 8 into the aggravated robbery conviction in Count 4.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 22, 2021

The Defendant-Appellant, Jerry Dale Baker, appeals from the revocation of his probationary sentence for possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell. The sole issue raised on appeal is whether the trial court erred by fully revoking Defendant’s probation and ordering him to serve the remainder of his sentence in confinement. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 22, 2021

This appeal concerns an alleged violation of Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304, the Tennessee Public Protection Act (“TPPA”), as well as common law retaliatory discharge. Jennifer King (“King”), a former shipping and receiving coordinator for Delfasco, LLC, a company that manufactures defense-related products, sued Delfasco, LLC and related entity Delfasco Finance, LLC (“Delfasco” collectively) in the Circuit Court for Greene County (“the Trial Court”) alleging she was wrongfully fired for refusing to share with Delfasco owner Jack Goldenberg (“Goldenberg”) her government-issued password to the Department of Defense (“DOD”) Wide Area Workflow (“WAWF”) system. King had consulted a DOD representative who advised her not to reveal her password. After a trial, the Trial Court found in favor of King and awarded her damages. Delfasco appeals, arguing among other things that King was not asked to perform an illegal act. King raises her own issues concerning damages. We find, inter alia, that the evidence does not preponderate against the Trial Court’s factual findings, and we leave undisturbed the Trial Court’s credibility determinations. King acted under the reasonable belief that it was unlawful to share her password with Goldenberg. Further, the record reflects that King was fired solely because she refused to reveal her password to Goldenberg. We affirm the judgment of the Trial Court in its entirety, and remand for an award to King of her reasonable attorney’s fees incurred on appeal.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 21, 2021

NALBANDIAN, Circuit Judge. This case’s story begins in the 1930s and 1940s when General Electric began designing and manufacturing certain self-propelled, electric passenger railcars that included liquid-cooled transformers. The transformers, which generated a great deal of heat, used a coolant called Pyranol that contains toxic polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). GE sold some of these railcars to government entities whose trains operated on Penn Central lines. Over the years, Pyranol from the transformers escaped and contaminated four Penn Central railyards.

American Premier Underwriters, Penn Central’s successor, had to pay for the costly environmental cleanup. It now seeks to shift that financial burden to GE. The district court rejected APU’s arguments and we agree for three reasons: (1) GE is neither an arranger nor an operator under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); (2) APU assigned away its contractual right to indemnification; and (3) any claims based on reassigned indemnity rights are time barred. Because these three issues decide this appeal in GE’s favor, we decline to address other issues briefed by the parties. We AFFIRM.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 21, 2021

The petitioner, Matthew Sealey, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing the post-conviction court erred in finding he received the effective assistance of counsel prior to and during his guilty plea hearing. Upon our review of the record, briefs, and applicable law, we affirm the denial of the petition.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 21, 2021

The petitioner, William Scott Hunley, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing the post-conviction court erred in finding he received the effective assistance of counsel at trial and on appeal. After our review of the record, briefs, and applicable law, we affirm the denial of the petition.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 21, 2021

The petitioner, Maurico Grandberry, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing the post-conviction court erred in finding he received the effective assistance of counsel at trial. Following our review, we affirm the post-conviction court’s denial of the petition.

Posted by: Karen Belcher on Sep 21, 2021

The pro se petitioner, Roosevelt Bigbee, appeals the denial of his petition for writ of habeas corpus by the Circuit Court for Lauderdale County, arguing the trial court erred in summarily dismissing the petition as the evidence was not sufficient to sustain his conviction. After our review, we affirm the summary dismissal of the petition pursuant to Rule 20 of the Rules of the Court of Criminal Appeals.


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