The Defendant, Caprice Lashon Peete, was convicted by a Tipton County Circuit Court jury of first degree premeditated murder, for which he received a sentence of life imprisonment. On appeal, the Defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence and argues that the trial court erred by not excusing a juror who failed to disclose that she knew one of the State’s primary witnesses, by not allowing the Defendant to cross-examine another State’s witness about the underlying facts of the witness’s 2023 conviction for convicted felon in possession of a firearm, and by allowing the prosecutor to make inappropriate comments in closing argument without an adequate curative instruction by the trial court or the trial court’s enforcing its order that the prosecutor retract the inappropriate comment. The Defendant further argues that he is entitled to a new trial under the doctrine of cumulative error. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

A Williamson County jury convicted the Defendant, James Andrew DiDomenico, of four counts of rape, and the trial court imposed an effective sentence of ten years’ incarceration. On appeal, the Defendant raises several issues. First, he contends that the trial court committed the following trial errors: (1) excluding evidence that the victim was dating a former client; (2) admitting cumulative testimony that repeated the victim’s account; (3) admitting testimony concerning letters sent by the Defendant’s divorce attorneys to the victim; and (4) refusing to instruct the jury on the defense of mistake of fact. He further argues that, even if these alleged errors are individually insufficient to warrant reversal, their cumulative effect deprived him of a fair trial. The Defendant also challenges the denial of his motion for a new trial based on purportedly newly discovered evidence, as well as the trial court’s sentencing determinations. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgments of the trial court.

A property developer purchased a portion of a two-story building without having fully examined the property prior to acquiring it. The only existing means of accessing the second floor of his property was via a staircase owned by his neighbor. The developer did not have an express easement to use the staircase, and disagreements arose between the developer and his neighbor over the developer’s use of his neighbor’s staircase. In response, the developer filed suit. The developer claimed an easement implied by prior use, an easement by necessity, and/or a prescriptive easement. At trial, the neighbor sought, in effect, an involuntary dismissal at the close of the developer’s proof. The trial court granted that motion, reasoning that the developer failed to meet his burden of proof with respect to all three of his easement theories. The developer appeals. We affirm.

In this compensation appeal, the employee questions the trial court’s decision to grant the employer’s motion for summary judgment. The employee suffered electrical burns in the course and scope of his work as an electrician. The employer accepted the claim and provided medical treatment until the authorized treating physician released the employee at maximum medical improvement, at which time it ceased providing benefits. Following an expedited hearing, the trial court ordered the employer to provide another panel, which it did. After that selected physician also released the employee from care, the court entered a scheduling order. The employer then filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing the employee did not have any admissible medical proof that his on-going medical complaints arose primarily out of his employment. The employee did not respond to the motion, and the trial court determined the employer had negated an essential element of the employee’s claim. As a result, the trial court granted the employer’s motion for summary judgment, and the employee has appealed. Having carefully reviewed the record, we affirm the trial court’s decision and certify it as final.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has set 2026 execution dates for four death row inmates, including Christa Pike, the state’s only woman on death row. According to the Tennessean, The court issued orders on Sept. 30 scheduling executions for Tony Carruthers on May 21, Anthony Darrell Dugard Hines on Aug. 13, Pike on Sept. 30 and Gary Wayne Sutton on Dec. 3. Carruthers was sentenced to death for the 1994 kidnapping, shooting and burying alive of three people in Memphis and has argued he is mentally ill and incompetent to be executed. Hines was sentenced for the 1985 rape, robbery and murder of a motel maid, and his case briefly reached the U.S. Supreme Court before being reversed. Pike was convicted for the 1995 torture killing of a fellow Knoxville Job Corps student and would be the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years; her attorneys cite her youth and severe mental illness as grounds to commute her sentence. Sutton was sentenced for the 1992 killings of a friend and the friend’s sister in Blount County; he maintains his innocence and supporters say he is intellectually disabled. Tennessee resumed executions earlier this year following a pause in 2022, and all four inmates continue to challenge their sentences on legal and mental health grounds.

Dueling proposals to end the federal government shutdown failed in the U.S. Senate today. While critical services such as mail delivery and Social Security and Medicare benefits continue, other federal operations have ground to a halt, sending the government into its 22nd shutdown since 1976. Starting today, federal workers nationwide are affected, including more than 32,000 Tennesseans, the Tennessean reports. The state is expected to see closures at national parks, including the Great Smoky Mountains and Manhattan Project sites, as well as local U.S. Department of Agriculture farm service centers. According to The Hill, federal courts may be forced to limit operations as soon as next week after funding lapses, potentially delaying trials and hearings across the country. Unlike past shutdowns, when courts were able to rely on fees and other resources to maintain functionality, ABC News reports that years of tighter budgets and rising costs make sustaining full operations much more difficult today.

U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman on Tuesday declined to dismiss key portions of the civil rights lawsuit filed by Tyré Nichols’ family and estate against the city of Memphis. Lipman ruled that the city’s motion to dismiss was denied in part, saying Nichols’ mother, RowVaughn Wells, had shown enough evidence to argue that the actions of former Memphis police officers who beat Nichols in January 2023 could have stemmed from lax supervision and a corroded police culture, the Daily Memphian reports. Lipman also declined to dismiss Police Chief C.J. Davis from the suit and rejected the city's arguments of qualified immunity, but did dismiss three EMTs who responded to the scene on Jan. 7, 2023. Wells and her attorneys said they look forward to continuing the fight for accountability.

In October, Tennessee lawyers are joining colleagues across the country to increase meaningful access to justice and commitment to pro bono work. Now in its 17th year, Tennessee’s statewide Celebrate Pro Bono Month initiative brings together legal services providers with bar associations, law schools, law firms and individual volunteers to offer free services to those unable to afford a lawyer. The month of October is an opportunity to focus attention on the significant need for pro bono services as well as a time to celebrate the outstanding work of those in the legal community who volunteer their services throughout the year. Events, including in-person and virtual opportunities to volunteer, will be promoted in TBA Today throughout the month. The American Bar Association's National Pro Bono Celebration will be held the week of Oct. 19, recognizing lawyers' roles in supporting communities through pro bono work. If you have information about an upcoming pro bono event, please share it with TBA at tbatoday@tnbar.org.

Two law schools have introduced optional essay questions incorporating AI on their applications this year, reflecting the technology’s growing role in legal education and the practice of law, Reuters reports. The University of Miami School of Law’s new essay asks applicants to submit a detailed prompt for a generative AI large language model to generate a “comprehensive analysis” that will help them make an informed decision about which law school to attend. Applicants must also provide three to five follow-up AI prompts to help explore their law school options. The new AI essay has proven more popular, with 45% of applicants submitting responses so far. Additionally, the University of Michigan Law School has a new optional essay question that requires them to use AI to answer a question on how they use generative AI tools and asks them to predict how much they will use generative AI by the time they graduate from law school and why.

University of Tennessee (UT) leadership, partners, faculty and students gathered Sept. 9 to dedicate the newly named Winston College of Law and Frank Winston Law Building on the Knoxville campus. “We are profoundly grateful to the Bill Gatton Foundation for its transformational gift, which apart from the naming also establishes the Frank Winston Public Interest and Business Law Fellows, a signature scholarship program that will enable us to attract talented future lawyers who will carry on Frank Winston’s storied legacy for years to come,” Dean and Elvin E. Overton Distinguished Professor of Law Lonnie T. Brown Jr. said in a press release. The fellowships will provide full scholarships covering three years of studies, plus a stipend, paid summer work experience and additional educational and professional activities. The gift also introduces Frank Winston Law Grants, which will award $1,000 annually for three years to at least 50 students in each class to help with the cost of law school. In May, UT announced the college’s naming in recognition of the Gatton Foundation’s gift honoring Winston, an alumnus of the college and former Tennessee lawmaker.