State of Tennessee v. Jeffery T. Siler
E2021-00395-CCA-R3-CD
| Tenn. Crim. App. | Mar 22, 2022Background:
- On Oct. 7, 2011 Siler pled guilty in three Knox County cases (Nos. 93968, 95116, 95117) to aggravated burglary and received three 10-year probationary sentences (persistent offender), structured as an aggregate 20-year unsupervised probation term.
- The state sentences were ordered to run concurrently with a federal 192-month sentence; judgment forms contained differing "to expire" dates and special-condition notations.
- The Sixth Circuit reversed Siler’s federal conviction (United States v. Siler), the federal case was dismissed, and Siler was released to serve his state probation in June 2013.
- Siler was later arrested for probation violations and, on Nov. 14, 2014, the trial court revoked probation for at least two state cases (95116, 95117) and ordered execution of the state sentences.
- Siler filed multiple Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36 motions seeking clerical correction to obtain 622 days of credit for time spent in federal custody; earlier Rule 36 relief was denied and this court previously affirmed that the 622 days had reduced his probationary (street) time and were forfeited when probation was revoked as to the second ten-year terms.
- In the third Rule 36 motion Siler also sought credit in case no. 93968; the trial court denied relief as barred by the law-of-the-case; the Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed pursuant to Rule 20.
Issues:
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Siler is entitled to 622 days of jail credit for time in federal custody applied to his state judgments | Siler: the 622 days should be credited to the state judgments (initially sought for 95116/95117 and later also for 93968) | State: the time already reduced Siler’s probation (street time); after revocation that credit was forfeited for the second ten-year terms; credit was applied to the first ten-year term (93968) | Court: No credit for 95116/95117 (forfeited upon revocation); the 622 days were applied to the first ten-year term (93968) at revocation; denial affirmed |
| Whether the law-of-the-case doctrine bars relitigation of the credit claim | Siler: this motion attacks original judgments (including 93968) and is not the same issue decided earlier | State: the claim is substantially the same as previously decided for 95116/95117; prior appellate decision controls | Court: Law of the case precludes relitigation as to 95116/95117; although 93968 wasn’t separately litigated earlier, the record shows credit was applied there and relief is denied |
Key Cases Cited
- Brown v. Tennessee Dep’t of Corr., 11 S.W.3d 911 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1999) (concurrent sentences give credit toward each sentence for each day in custody)
- Bullard v. Dep’t of Corrections, 949 P.2d 999 (Colo. 1997) (concurrent confinement credits apply to each sentence)
- Memphis Publ’g Co. v. Tenn. Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Bd., 975 S.W.2d 303 (Tenn. 1998) (explaining law-of-the-case doctrine)
- Myers v. State, 462 S.W.2d 265 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1970) (preclusion of relitigation of issues previously decided)
- United States v. Siler, [citation="526 F. App'x 573"] (6th Cir. 2013) (federal conviction reversed and remanded/dismissed)