Brunswick L. Robinson v. State of Tennessee
E2016-02429-CCA-R3-HC
| Tenn. Crim. App. | Apr 21, 2017Background
- In 2005 Robinson pled guilty to attempted sale of a Schedule II drug; he received a five-year suspended sentence with 180 days to serve. Judgment (Feb. 14, 2006) showed no pretrial jail credit and ordered the sentence to run consecutively to his other cases.
- On Nov. 13, 2014, Rutherford County revoked Robinson’s probation and ordered him to serve the five-year sentence; the Violation of Probation Order granted 497 days of jail credit.
- Robinson filed a habeas petition in Rutherford County on Oct. 12, 2016; it was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction on Oct. 17, 2016 because he was incarcerated in Johnson County.
- Robinson filed a second pro se habeas petition in Johnson County on Oct. 28, 2016, alleging the court failed to apply jail credits and that his sentence had expired; he asserted this was his first application.
- The State moved to dismiss, arguing (1) a prior application existed and Robinson failed to attach it as required by Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-21-107, and (2) failure to award jail credits does not render a sentence void; the trial court granted the motion and summarily dismissed the petition.
- The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed under Tenn. Ct. Crim. App. R. 20, holding Robinson failed to meet procedural requirements and did not prove the judgment was void or his sentence expired.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Robinson satisfied procedural requirements for a habeas petition (prior application disclosure) | Robinson claimed the Oct. 28 petition was his first application for habeas relief. | State showed an earlier Oct. 12 petition and argued Robinson failed to attach it or explain its omission as required by statute. | Court held Robinson failed to comply with § 29-21-107; summary dismissal was proper. |
| Whether failure to apply jail credits renders the sentence illegal (void) | Robinson argued the trial court failed to apply ordered jail credits, making the sentence illegal/void. | State argued failure to award jail credits does not render a sentence illegal and is insufficient for habeas relief. | Court held failure to award jail credits does not make the judgment void; claim insufficient for habeas relief. |
| Whether Robinson’s five-year sentence had expired | Robinson asserted his sentence was expired. | State (and court) noted record did not show when the sentence began and that, even assuming it began Nov. 13, 2014 with 497 days credit, it had not expired. | Court held Robinson failed to prove by preponderance that the sentence expired; no relief granted. |
Key Cases Cited
- Faulkner v. State, 226 S.W.3d 358 (Tenn. 2007) (habeas relief limited to void judgments or expired sentences)
- State v. Ritchie, 20 S.W.3d 624 (Tenn. 2000) (scope of habeas corpus relief)
- Summers v. State, 212 S.W.3d 251 (Tenn. 2007) (distinguishing void vs. voidable judgments; summary dismissal when petition fails to show voidness)
- Wyatt v. State, 24 S.W.3d 319 (Tenn. 2000) (burden to establish void judgment by preponderance)
- Dykes v. Compton, 978 S.W.2d 528 (Tenn. 1998) (defining facially invalid/void judgments)