Defendant, Terrance Terrell King, appeals from the Knox County Criminal Court’s denial of his motion seeking resentencing for a drug-related conviction under Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-17-432(h). Defendant contends the trial court erred in denying the motion, and the State contends this court does not have jurisdiction to consider Defendant’s appeal. Defendant rejects the State’s assertion. After reviewing the applicable law and the parties’ arguments, we conclude Defendant does not have an appeal as of right available to him, and the appeal is therefore dismissed.

The Petitioner, Douglas Eugene Horton, appeals from the Henderson County Circuit Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his 2018 convictions for two counts of possession with intent to sell a controlled substance, four counts of possession of a firearm with intent to go armed during the commission of a dangerous felony, and four counts of facilitation of possession of a firearm with intent to go armed during the commission of a dangerous felony, for which he is serving an effective fifteen-year sentence. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that the post-conviction court erred by denying relief on his ineffective assistance of counsel allegations for counsel’s (1) failure to obtain adequate discovery, (2) failure to challenge the search warrant resulting in the Petitioner’s arrest, (3) failure to subpoena the Petitioner’s daughter and his girlfriend as witnesses at the trial, (4) failure to play a body camera recording purporting to show officer misconduct, and (5) cumulative errors during the trial. We affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Defendant, Timothy Elliott Davis, was convicted by a jury of driving under the influence of an intoxicant (“DUI”) and driving under the influence of an intoxicant with a blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”) greater than 0.8 (“DUI per se”). Defendant pled guilty to DUI, third offense following the jury verdict on the first two counts. The trial court sentenced Defendant to eleven months, twenty-nine days, suspended to supervised probation upon service of seven months in the county jail. On appeal, Defendant argues that the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress the results of a blood alcohol test and that the evidence is insufficient to support the guilty verdict. Following our review of the record, the briefs, and oral arguments of the parties, we affirm the judgments of the trial court but remand for correction of the judgment forms consistent with this opinion.

This appeal involves a petition to terminate parental rights. The juvenile court found by clear and convincing evidence that three grounds for termination existed as to the mother: (1) abandonment by failure to support; (2) persistent conditions; and (3) failure to manifest an ability and willingness to assume custody or financial responsibility. The juvenile court also found that the termination was in the best interest of the child. The mother appeals. We affirm.

This is an appeal of the trial court’s compensation order awarding extraordinary relief under Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-242. The employee was working as a home health nurse when she slipped on ice and injured her right shoulder, middle finger, hip, and knee. After an initial compensation hearing, the employee was awarded permanent partial disability benefits consistent with her impairment rating and future reasonable and necessary medical benefits. At the end of her initial benefit period, she filed a new petition for benefits seeking permanent total disability benefits or, in the alternative, extraordinary relief. After a hearing at which the employee and two vocational experts testified, the court awarded two hundred seventy-five weeks of permanent disability benefits pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-242(a)(2). The employer has appealed. Upon careful consideration of the record and the arguments of counsel, we affirm the court’s decision and certify it as final.

Week of October 30, 2023 - November 3, 2023

Franklin attorney, TBA Criminal Justice Section member and former YLD president David Veile launched his campaign for Circuit Court Judge for the 21st Judicial District. Veile has over 19 years of trial experience in civil and criminal law, and he also served seven years as a Metro Nashville police officer. The position became vacant with the recent retirement of Judge Michael Binkley. The Republican primary will be held March 5, 2024, and the general election will be Aug. 1. Read the press release. 

U.S. law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher announced it has teamed up with Jewish organizations to launch a legal helpline for college students and teachers who experience antisemitism on campus, Reuters reported. The Campus Antisemitism Legal Line (CALL) is led by volunteers from Gibson Dunn, the Anti-Defamation League, Hillel International and the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law. Incidents of antisemitic discrimination, intimidation, harassment, vandalism or violence that may necessitate legal action can be reported to the CALL website or text “CALLhelp” to 51555 to report. Last week, more than 80 major U.S. law firms urged the deans of the nation's law schools to take an "unequivocal stance" against antisemitism, Islamophobia and discrimination on their campuses amid the latest fighting between Israel and Hamas.

The Memphis Bar Association's Access to Justice Committee will honor the 2023 Champions of Justice today at an event at Butler Snow, 6075 Poplar Ave. # 500, Memphis 38119. A reception and awards ceremony will be held from 5-6:30 p.m. CDT. Go here to register.

Belmont University College of Law, Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS), and TBA's Young Lawyers Division partnered to hold an Essential Documents for Essential Workers Clinics for veterans at Operation Stand Down in Nashville this weekend. At this clinic, attorneys and students provided wills, powers of attorney and advanced health care directives. Thank you to our partners and everyone who participated.