The Commercial Appeal take a deep dive into what it says is an increasing mortality rate at the Shelby County Jail. The paper found that 52 individuals have died in custody since 2016, and that in just the past three years, the mortality rate has gone up sharply compared to the average population. The majority of deaths have been attributed to cardiovascular issues, followed by suicide and then by drug use. One individual was killed by a fellow inmate. The paper also looks at nationwide trends on inmate deaths and the lack of reliable information when deaths occur.

Petitioner, Billy Joe Nelson, appeals as of right from the Coffee County Circuit Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, wherein he challenged his convictions for aggravated kidnapping, carjacking, robbery, and aggravated rape. On appeal, Petitioner asserts that he received ineffective assistance of trial counsel based upon counsel’s failure to (1) move to suppress the evidence obtained by Petitioner’s arrest, the search of his girlfriend’s mother’s home, and the search of a cell phone he shared with his girlfriend; (2) move to suppress the victim’s identification of Petitioner on a surveillance recording as impermissibly suggestive; (3) investigate DNA evidence or contest the chain of custody of the victim’s rape kit and the DNA standards for the victim and Petitioner; (4) introduce a voice exemplar of Petitioner to prove that the perpetrator’s voice in the background of the victim’s 911 call was not his; and (5) use telephone records to cast doubt on the State’s timeline of events and establish that a witness had reason to lie about Petitioner’s involvement in the offenses. Petitioner also alleges that the State withheld exculpatory evidence relative to the victim’s rape kit and DNA standards for the victim and Petitioner. Following our review, we affirm.

The Petitioner, Angela Montgomery, was convicted in the Rutherford County Circuit Court of six counts of rape of a child, for which she received an effective sentence of forty years’ imprisonment to be served at one hundred percent. This court affirmed her convictions, and she filed a petition for post-conviction relief claiming that she received the ineffective assistance of counsel. After an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court granted relief. The State then appealed, claiming for the first time that the petition was untimely. This court remanded the case to the post-conviction court to determine whether the Petitioner was entitled to due process tolling of the one-year statute of limitations. The post-conviction court held that she was not and denied the petition as untimely. The Petitioner now appeals contending that she is entitled to due process tolling because, despite her repeated requests, trial counsel failed to provide her with a copy of the trial transcript. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

The Defendant, Robert Joseph Atkins, was convicted in the Knox County Criminal Court of second degree murder, tampering with evidence, and unlawful possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and received an effective thirty-one-year sentence. On appeal, he claims that (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his murder conviction, (2) the trial court erred by admitting testimony about his prior assault of the victim, (3) the trial court erred by admitting an unauthenticated video into evidence, (4) the trial court should have granted a new trial because a police officer, who testified at trial, was the subject of an internal affairs investigation, (5) the trial court committed plain error by allowing the medical examiner to testify outside her area of expertise, and (6) he was denied his right to a fair trial under the cumulative error doctrine. Based upon the oral arguments, the record, and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

A Madison County jury convicted Defendant, Brian Allen Armstrong, of two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and one count of possession of a prohibited weapon. The trial court sentenced Defendant to an effective term of fifteen years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, Defendant argues that the evidence was insufficient to sustain his convictions and that the trial court erred in denying his requested jury instruction on the defense of necessity. After reviewing the record, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

In this interlocutory appeal, the employer contends the employee did not meet his burden of proof at the expedited hearing for entitlement to medical benefits. The employee injured his right wrist when closing the door to a shipping container. The employer initially accepted the injury as compensable and provided medical treatment, including surgery. Following surgery, the employee continued to have swelling in his wrist and noticed issues with grip strength and dropping objects. After additional testing, the employee’s authorized physician diagnosed carpal tunnel syndrome and recommended another surgery, which the employer denied. Following an expedited hearing, the trial court found the employee was likely to prevail at trial and issued an order requiring the employer to provide the surgery. The employer has appealed. Having carefully reviewed the record, we affirm the trial court’s decision and remand the case.

For the week of August 14, 2023 - August 18, 2023

Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp’s office has released surveillance footage of a shooting that killed an alleged offender Aug. 11 at a Speedway in Chattanooga, WDEF reports. City police officers were seeking to serve warrants on several individuals, including Roger Heard Jr., who were suspected of a number of criminal activities. Police located Heard at the gas station and when they attempted to approach his vehicle, Heard shot an officer, wounding him in the arm. Police then killed Heard, a Black man, which lead to calls from community members for a full investigation, AP reports. Police say they later found a large amount of cash, approximately one pound of marijuana and a stolen firearm on Heard, who as a previously convicted felon should not have been in possession of a firearm.

The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance voted last week to take no action regarding allegations of questionable contributions to Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk's reelection campaign, News Channel 5 reports. Registry board members credited Funk for quickly working to respond to questions raised by media reports and argued that there was nothing else for them to do since no one filed a sworn complaint alleging violations of campaign finance laws. The station had questioned payments to companies that were not registered with the state and the affidavits of two donors, one who told the station he did not make a donation and another who could not recall making a donation to Funk's campaign.

Legal Aid of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold three legal clinics this week. On Wednesday, a legal clinic specifically for veterans will be held from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT at Operation Stand Down, 1125 12th Ave. S., Nashville 37203. On Thursday, a clinic will be held at the Greenhouse Ministries, 309 South Academy St., Murfreesboro 37130 from 3-4:30 p.m. CDT. Then on Saturday, the Belmont Clinic will be held from 9:30-11:30 a.m. CDT at 2005 12th Ave. S., Nashville 37204. See all August clinics. To volunteer, contact Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131.