Yelling and Cursing at a Cop, Even a Sergeant, Isn’t Disorderly Conduct
On October 9, 2022, Joshua Gibbons, who apparently maintains a media presence (or something) under the name “Big G Audits,” was unhappy when he saw a Police Sergeant speeding into a drive through lane of a fast food restaurant. While the Sergeant was in line waiting to order, Mr. Gibbons approached the open driver’s side […]
Possessing a Glass Pipe Does Not Violate the Law or Your Probation Unless You Intend to Smoke It
Michelle Ridgeway was doing great on probation for two full years– passing drug screens, paying toward her costs and fines in one of her cases – until the police came to her shared residence for unrelated reasons, and asked to search her bedroom where they found a glass pipe. Based on the pipe and the […]
24-Hour Merger Rule for Prior Felonies Clarified
In State v. Jeremy Brian Poe, the Court of Criminal Appeals did not resolve an apparent split of authority among different panels of the Court regarding the standard of review to use when reviewing a trial court’s determination of sentencing classification, but it did resolve one issue in a client’s favor that should result in […]
Constructive Possession Requires Power and Intent to Exercise Dominion and Control
Maybe Jackson Police Officer Christian McAlister had something personal going on; otherwise, it’s hard to explain what he found so suspicious about Markell Nolen and his 12-year-old daughter stopping at a Jackson gas station in October of 2021. Officer McAlister said he found almost everything about it suspicious. First, apparently the gas station was in […]
State Concedes Error on Appeal Because Pellet Gun Wasn’t a “Deadly Weapon”
In State v. Jason O. Miller, Public Defenders Jeremy Epperson and Caroline Ballentine from Jackson must have felt like they fell through the looking glass when their client was forced to go to trial and get sentenced to eight years at 100% for a crime that was a misdemeanor at best. “At best” is a […]
Use Pre-Trial Motions to Avoid Pitfalls in Sex Offender Registry Cases
Recent cases have highlighted a couple of common issues in cases involving alleged violations of the Sex Offender Registry Statute, Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 40-39-201 to -218. Pre-trial motions are recommended to deal with these issues preemptively and preserve them for appeal. When the State charges a violation of the Sex Offender Registry Statute, one […]
Novel Search and Seizure Issues Arising From Federal Administrative Actions
While Padilla held that effective assistance of counsel requires competence in immigration-related collateral consequences for clients who are accused of state crimes, recent policy shifts in the federal administrative context are beginning to elevate novel search and seizure issues beyond clients’ typical interactions with law enforcement; thus, effective assistance requires competency in that context too. […]
Important Changes in Registry Law for HIV-Related Offenses
We all know that the sex offender registry is ever evolving, and usually to the great detriment of our clients. However, Rachel Meeropol, ACLU Senior Counsel, recently reached out to me to highlight a class of potential clients that are no longer subject to registry requirements, should not be charged with registry violations, and are […]
Helping Clients With Mental Illness and Intellectual Disabilities Navigate the Criminal Legal System
Recently, Dallas Crews, the Conference’s Social Work Program Director, provided some guidance for social workers helping our clients who suffer from mental illness and/or intellectual disability, and it is worth sharing whether the attorney has access to a social worker or not. I: IDENTIFYING THE PROBLEM First, when working with clients who are severely and/or […]
New Office of Conflict Counsel Gets Funded but Remains Undefined
Most of you have heard that a new system for selecting, funding and training attorneys who take our conflicts is coming, but nobody seems sure of exactly what it will look like, in large part because the Administrative Office of the Courts got funding to move forward without any authorizing legislation spelling out the details. […]