State of Tennessee v. Michael Patrick Sullivan and Deborah Clark Buckner, Alias
Case Details
- Judge(s)
- Judge D. Kelly Thomas, Jr.
- Status
- Published
- Procedural Posture
- Criminal appeal from Knox County Criminal Court convictions; Sullivan's appeal dismissed for lack of jurisdiction; Buckner's appeal affirmed.
Related Laws
No specific laws identified for this ruling.
Outcome
Appeal affirmed for Buckner; Sullivan's appeal dismissed due to lack of jurisdiction based on judicial diversion. Both defendants convicted of animal cruelty with suspended sentences of eleven months, twenty-nine days.
Excerpt
The Defendants, Michael Patrick Sullivan and Debra Clark Buckner, alias, appeal from their Knox County Criminal Court convictions for animal cruelty, for which they each received an effective sentence of eleven months, twenty-nine days, suspended to supervised probation. On appeal, the Defendants argue that Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-14-211 requiring a probable cause determination by a qualified livestock examiner is a condition precedent to an animal cruelty conviction and that the evidence was insufficient to establish the examiner's qualifications in this case. Following our review, we conclude relative to co-defendant Sullivan that this court is without jurisdiction to consider his appeal because he was granted judicial diversion. Relative to co-defendant Buckner, we affirm.
What This Ruling Means
This summary was generated to explain the ruling in plain English and is not legal advice.
Similar Rulings
Defendant, Montrell Reid, appeals from his guilty-pleaded convictions for harassment and stalking, both Class A misdemeanors. Under the plea agreement, Defendant agreed to serve eleven months and twenty-nine days for each count, with the sentences to be served consecutively and the manner of service to be determined by the trial court. At sentencing, the trial court denied Defendant's request for probation and ordered that he serve his sentence in confinement. On appeal, Defendant contends that the trial court erred in denying his request for probation. Following our review, we affirm the trial court's judgments as to the denial of probation, but we remand for a determination of the percentage of service pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-35-302(d).
The Madison County Grand Jury indicted Defendant, Andre Davis, Jr., for one count each of harassment and aggravated stalking. A jury found Defendant guilty as charged, and the trial court imposed an effective two-year sentence. Defendant appeals and argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions. After a careful review of the record and the briefs of the parties, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
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