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TN Legal News Now
News From the Tennessee Bar Association


This legal news update is provided to you weekly by the Tennessee Bar Association as a service to Tennessee lawyers. TBA members receive these breaking legal news and court opinions daily. When you join the Tennessee Bar Association you will also receive this service each day. You can unsubscribe to this newsletter using the link at the bottom of this edition.
Today's News
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TJC Announces New Home to Serve Clients

The Tennessee Justice Center (TJC) today announced plans for a new home in South Nashville. The public service law firm, now celebrating its 25th anniversary, will be housed in Nashville’s Cameron-Trimble neighborhood, now called Chestnut Hill. “The neighborhood has a proud 150-year history of struggle for racial and economic justice,” TJC Executive Director and co-founder Michelle Johnson said. “We will be near the original site of Meharry Medical College and a law school that trained the first Black lawyers in the South.” Johnson said TJC has raised 82% of the cost of the project, and is still accepting donations to its capital campaign.
 

Biden Nominates 8 to Lead U.S. Attorney’s Offices

President Joe Biden and his administration yesterday nominated eight lawyers to serve as U.S. attorneys, many of them marking the first Black or female prosecutors to lead their districts, the ABA Journal reports. Six lawyers would be the first Black or female Black attorneys in their districts. They are: Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland; Rachael S. Rollins for the District of Massachusetts; Zachary A. Myers for the Southern District of Indiana; Clifford D. Johnson for the Northern District of Indiana; Nicholas W. Brown for the Western District of Washington; and Trini E. Ross for the Western District of New York. Vanessa Waldref is nominated to be the first female U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Washington. Matthew M. Graves was nominated for U.S. attorney in the District of Columbia and would be responsible for supervising the U.S. Capitol riot prosecutions.
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Shelby Commissioners Approve Mitchell-Sims for Judicial Vacancy

Shelby County commissioners on Monday voted to appoint Judicial Commissioner Danielle Mitchell-Sims as the new Division 3 General Sessions Court Judge, the Daily Memphian reports. Mitchell-Sims will complete the term of retiring Judge John Donald, but has indicated that she’ll run for a full eight-year term in the 2022 county elections. She was selected by the County Commission on the third round of voting with a majority of seven required. Seven other applicants have announced they will also run for the post in 2022.

Metro Council to Nix Monthly Probation Supervision Fee

Metro Council last week voted unanimously to eliminate a monthly $35 probation supervision fee billed to those on probation, the Tennessean reports. The vote is part of a series of reform measures Metro Nashville is implementing to relieve financial burden on criminal defendants and to reduce recidivism. Councilman Brandon Taylor says the Council wanted to help those “already down on their luck” and “give people a chance to get back to society without being financially burdened.” Taylor chairs Metro’s 37208 special committee, which was created in 2019 to tackle the high incarceration rate in the neighborhood. The committee has recommended reducing fines and fees, a strategy that a 2020 study from the PFM’s Center for Justice and Safety Finance says is vital to reform. The probation supervision fee was established in 1991 at $20 a month before being increased to $25 in 2006 and to $35 in 2008. Revenue collected from the fee went into the city’s general fund. Metro has set aside $662,500 in the fiscal 2022 budget to make up for the revenue.
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Head of TDOC Announces Retirement

Tony Parker, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC), today announced that he is retiring, the Tennessean reports. Parker began his career with the state 38 years ago as a prison guard in West Tennessee. A native of Union City, Parker was originally appointed to lead TDOC in 2016 by former Gov. Bill Haslam and was reappointed in 2019 by Gov. Bill Lee. The state comptroller last year found that TDOC leadership failed to ensure data on inmate deaths, assaults, medical treatment and day-to-day operations was accurate. Another audit also found that prison officials misclassified the deaths of eight inmates and improperly investigated allegations of sexual abuse. Parker advocated for prison employee pay raises and earlier this year supported legislation making it a felony for inmates to possess a cellphone inside a prison.
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Justice Department Not Pursuing Retrial of Ex-Pilot President

The U.S. Justice Department will not seek to try former Pilot Company President Mark Hazelwood for a second time on charges of wire fraud and witness tampering, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. A motion was filed today with the U.S. District Court in Knoxville by acting U.S. Attorney Trey Hamilton asking for “the court’s leave” to dismiss all charges against Hazelwood and two Pilot Company subordinates. All three were convicted in 2018 of trying to defraud Pilot’s trucking customers, but the convictions were overturned by a federal appellate court, which ruled a judge was wrong to allow jurors to hear recordings of Hazelwood making racist and sexist remarks. Hamilton gave three reasons for the unexpected move: “personal circumstances” of the Pilot staffers who pleaded guilty, many of whom spent time in prison; the “challenge” of everything involved in a retrial; and “limited government resources.”  
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Tennessee Museum to Open Forrest Bust to Public

The Tennessee State Museum will allow the public to view three busts removed from the state Capitol last Friday. According to U.S. News & World Report, the busts of Confederate cavalry general and KKK leader Nathan Bedford Forrest; Union Navy Admiral David Farragut, who served during the American Civil War; and U.S. Navy Admiral Albert Gleaves, who served during World War I, are on display at the museum beginning today. Supporters of Farragut protested the placement, arguing he should have been placed in the Farragut Folklife Museum in east Tennessee, far away from Forrest.

New Federal Program Seeks to Stem Foreclosures, Evictions

With less than a week before federal moratoriums on evictions and foreclosures are set to expire, the Biden administration is racing to put resources in place to ensure low-income families do not lose their homes, Fox 17 reports. So far, the administration has resisted calls to extend the bans beyond the current expiration date of July 31. Instead, the government has announced plans to expand assistance for mortgage holders at risk of foreclosure by allowing certain borrowers to extend the length of their mortgages and lock in lower monthly payments. Estimates indicate that 1.55 million homeowners are seriously delinquent in their payments.
 
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Court to Review 6 New Cases

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently granted review to six cases. The Raybin Supreme Court Hot List reviews the cases, which raise issues including mootness, the Health Care Liability Act, probation violations, attorney fees, speedy trials and ineffective assistance of counsel.
 

Court Rescinds Some COVID-19 Orders, Provides Updated Guidance

The U.S. Supreme Court last week rescinded several orders it put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. On July 19, it rescinded its March 19, 2020, order regarding filing deadlines and its April 15, 2020, order regarding the filing of documents. The court clerk also provided updated COVID-19 guidance the same day. View the orders or read more about the action from Law360.
 
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Vanderbilt Law Student Wins TBA Writing Competition

The TBA Administrative Law Section recently announced that Vanderbilt Law School 3L Kyle M. Brinker has won its 2021 Section Writing Competition. Brinker’s article, A Gundy Revival in the Age of Public Health, looks at the nondelegation doctrine and how the doctrine should be interpreted in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Brinker analyzes how the U.S. Congress enacted broad laws delegating authority during the public health crisis and argues that “principles” of delegation should be more lenient in times of emergency. This year's competition was sponsored by the Administrative Law Section, Burr & Forman LLP and Memphis Area Legal Services. Brinker is articles editor on the Vanderbilt Law Review. He served as a summer associate last year at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson in Washington D.C. Read more from the school.
 

Davidson County Lawyer Censured

Davidson County attorney Terry Renease Clayton yesterday received a public censure from the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Clayton discovered that he had accidentally overpaid a client after issuing a check to himself for fees, resulting in an overdraft of the account. The client returned the overpaid funds, but Clayton delayed in removing his earned fee from trust, doing so in multiple payments over three months. He did not have a client ledger on this matter and his conduct resulted in the commingling of his funds with client funds for three months. In addition to the public censure, Clayton must also attend a Trust Account Workshop from the BPR.
 
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Business Education Series Continues Thursday

The TBA's Summer Business Education Webinar Series continues Thursday with a one-hour session on Using Core Financial & Productivity Reports. Attendees will learn how balance sheets, trust accounts, profit & loss statements, chart of accounts and more can be used to manage and improve their practices on a day-to-day basis. The virtual program will run from noon to 1 p.m. CDT and offer one hour of dual CLE credit.
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Tax Law Series 2021 Now Available for On-Demand Veiwing!

The Tax Law Series 2021 is now available to watch on demand! The four-part series includes What’s New with the IRS? with Kati Sanford Goodner; Update on CARES Act, PPP Round 2 & ERC with Brad Sagraves; Biden Your Time Until the Next Tax Bill with Joe Fernandez and Ethan Ward; and The Informal Conference Process with Kristin Husat and Phillip Ewing. Each program offers one hour of CLE credit and may be purchased separately.
 
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Nashville Physician Considering Run for Governor

Dr. Jason Martin, a pulmonary and critical care specialist in Nashville, is considering running for the Democratic nomination for governor in 2022, the Nashville Post reports. Martin has never run for office but, after working in a COVID-19 unit at Sumner Regional Medical Center, has become more outspoken about health care and critical of Gov. Bill Lee’s response to the pandemic. Carnita Atwater of Memphis is the only other Democrat in the race thus far, with Memphis City Councilmember J.B. Smiley also reportedly considering a run for the nomination. Martin has filed paperwork to establish a fundraising committee, but it has not yet been posted to the state campaign finance website.
 
Court Opinions

You can obtain full-text versions of these opinions by selecting the link below each opinion’s summary paragraph. Your email software should give you the option of reading the opinion online or downloading it to your computer or mobile device. Decisions from the 6th Circuit Court that are not designated for publication are not included in this report.

JAMIE HENDERSON, AS SURVIVING SPOUSE OF DAVID JOE TURNER v. PEE DEE COUNTRY ENTERPRISES, INC., ET AL.

Court: TN Workers Comp Appeals Board

Attorneys:

M. Reed Martz and J. Hale Freeland, Oxford, Mississippi, for the surviving spouse- appellant, Jamie Henderson

Lee Anne Murray and Taylor R. Pruitt, Brentwood, Tennessee, for the employer- appellee, Pee Dee Country Enterprises, Inc.

Judge(s): GODKIN

This is the second appeal in this death case. As in the initial appeal, the issue concerns the trial court’s award of attorney’s fees. In both appeals, the trial court entered orders awarding substantially less than the fees requested by the surviving spouse’s attorney and provided for in a contract between the surviving spouse and her attorney. The underlying claim for death benefits was resolved without a trial, but the employer objected to the amount of the attorney’s fees sought by the surviving spouse’s attorney and to the payment of those fees in a lump sum. Following a hearing on the request for attorney’s fees, the trial court awarded a lump sum fee but reduced the fee from 20% to 7.5% of the difference between the recovery achieved under Tennessee law and the maximum recovery available under Mississippi law. Following the first appeal by the surviving spouse, we vacated the trial court’s order and remanded the case for further consideration of the statutory provisions governing the review and approval of attorney’s fees. The trial court subsequently issued an order addressing the statutory provisions, and it again awarded a lump sum fee based on 7.5% of the difference between the recovery achieved in Tennessee and the potential recovery in Mississippi. The surviving spouse has again appealed. Upon careful consideration of the statutory provisions at issue, we reverse the trial court’s order and remand the case for entry of an order approving the attorney’s fee agreed to by the surviving spouse and her attorney.

hendersonj_072721.pdf
 

DARRELL WAYNE BUMPAS v. STATE OF TENNESSEE

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Ryan C. Caldwell, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Darrell Wayne Bumpas.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Ruth Anne Thompson, Senior Assistant Attorney General; Glenn R. Funk, District Attorney General; and Jenny Charles, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): AYERS

Petitioner, Darrell Wayne Bumpas, appeals the denial of his post-conviction petition, arguing that the post-conviction court erred in concluding that he received effective assistance of counsel. Following our review of the entire record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

bumpasd_072721.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. QUINTON CAGE

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Quinton Cage, Nashville, Tennessee, pro se.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Ruth Anne Thompson, Assistant Attorney General; John W. Carney, Jr., District Attorney General; and Art Bieber, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): WITT

The petitioner, Quinton Cage, appeals the Montgomery County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his motion to correct an illegal sentence, filed pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1. Also before us is the petitioner’s motion, filed pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 14, to consider post-judgment facts. Because the petitioner’s claim of a double jeopardy violation is not cognizable in a Rule 36.1 motion, we affirm the trial court’s summary dismissal of the motion to correct an illegal sentence. Furthermore, because the post-judgment facts posited by the petitioner do not relate to actions that occurred after the judgment in this case, we deny the petitioner’s motion to consider post-judgment facts.

cageq_072721.pdf

STERLING LAMARR COOPER v. SHAWN PHILLIPS, WARDEN

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Sterling Lamarr Cooper, Wartburg, Tennessee, Pro Se.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Ronald L. Coleman, Assistant Attorney General; and Russell Johnson, District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): MCMULLEN

The Petitioner, Sterling Lamarr Cooper, appeals the summary dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court.

coopers_072721.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MATTHEW THOMAS DOTSON

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

M. Jeffrey Whitt and Richard L. Gaines (on appeal), Knoxville, Tennessee, and A. Philip Lomonaco and Bailey Harned (at trial), Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Matthew Thomas Dotson.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Katherine C. Redding, Assistant Attorney General; Russell Johnson, District Attorney General; and Robert Edwards and Alyson H. Kennedy, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): HOLLOWAY

Matthew Thomas Dotson (“Defendant”) appeals his Roane County convictions for first degree felony murder in the perpetration of aggravated child abuse, first degree felony murder in the perpetration of aggravated child neglect, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated child neglect, for which he received an effective sentence of life without parole. Defendant contends that: (1) the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress his May 3, 2012, statements to law enforcement; (2) the State improperly elicited testimony from a witness regarding Defendant’s prior drug usage and the trial court abused its discretion by denying Defendant’s request for a mistrial following such testimony; (3) the trial court abused its discretion by admitting photographs of the victim into evidence; and (4) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions. Following a thorough review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court but remand for entry of amended judgments reflecting proper merger of offenses as outlined below and for the imposition of sentences in Counts 4 and 5.

dotsonm_072721.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JUSTIN CASE JENKINS

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Brennan M. Wingerter, Assistant Public Defender (on appeal), and Greg Gookin (at hearing), Assistant District Public Defender, for the appellant, Justin Case Jenkins.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Jonathan H. Wardle, Assistant Attorney General; Jody Pickens, District Attorney General; and Shaun Brown, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): WITT

The defendant, Justin Case Jenkins, appeals the Madison County Circuit Court’s imposition of an effective 16-year sentence and $9,820.35 in restitution for his guilty- pleaded convictions of burglary, theft, vandalism, identity theft, felony evading arrest, and various driving offenses. We affirm the imposition of consecutive sentences but, because the trial court failed to comply with the statutory requirements in ordering restitution, we reverse the restitution orders and remand for a new restitution hearing.

jenkinsj_072721.pdf
 

Questions, Comments? Email us at TBAToday@tnbar.org

About this publication: TN Legal News Now is a compilation of news digests compiled by TBA staff and stories about the TBA and other activities written by TBA staff or members. Statements or opinions herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Tennessee Bar Association, its officers, board or staff.

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