State of Tennessee v. Ray Rowland
2017 Tenn. LEXIS 325
| Tenn. | 2017Background
- Ray Rowland was indicted for two counts of aggravated assault (use/display of a deadly weapon) and pleaded guilty in 2011 to reduced reckless endangerment charges, receiving concurrent probated eleven-month, twenty-nine-day sentences.
- Police searched Rowland’s home in 2010 after a shooting report; Rowland consented after officers threatened to return with a warrant. Officers seized ~47 items, mostly firearms, many unused and unrelated to the offense.
- Rowland did not file a pretrial motion to suppress the search or seizure and did not litigate the search’s legality before pleading guilty.
- In 2014, three years after his plea, Rowland filed a Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 41(g) motion seeking return of his property; the trial court dismissed it for lack of jurisdiction, noting his guilty plea waived non-jurisdictional claims.
- The Court of Criminal Appeals reversed, holding that continued State retention of non‑contraband, non‑connected property after conviction could be an unlawful post‑judgment seizure under Rule 41(g) and that timing of the motion did not matter; the State sought permission to appeal.
- The Tennessee Supreme Court granted review and reversed the Court of Criminal Appeals, holding Rowland had no appeal as of right under Tenn. R. App. P. 3(b) and that Rule 41(g) does not provide a post‑conviction return‑of‑property remedy where no pretrial suppression was pursued.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether a defendant has an appeal as of right under Tenn. R. App. P. 3(b) from denial of a Rule 41(g) motion after a guilty plea | State: Rule 3(b) limits appeals as of right; Rowland lacks a Rule 3(b) basis | Rowland: Issues not waived; appeal available because retention of property is an unlawful seizure apparent from the record | Held: No appeal as of right. Plea waived non‑jurisdictional defects; Rule 3(b) does not enumerate Rule 41(g) denials as appeals as of right |
| Whether Rule 41(g) applies to post‑judgment retention of property when no pretrial suppression motion was pursued | State: Rule 41(g) applies only when pretrial suppression succeeds; does not create an open‑ended post‑conviction return remedy | Rowland: Continued retention of non‑contraband property is an unlawful seizure subject to Rule 41(g) regardless of timing | Held: Rule 41(g) does not authorize relief for post‑judgment retention absent a successful pretrial suppression — Mayberry and similar cases overruled |
| Whether prior Court of Criminal Appeals decisions (e.g., Mayberry) support post‑conviction Rule 41(g) relief | State: Those decisions are inconsistent with Rule 41(g) text and must be overruled | Rowland: Relied on those precedents to claim entitlement to relief | Held: Mayberry (unpublished) and cases relying on it are overruled; Rule 41(g) must be read as a pretrial suppression remedy |
| Whether the court should amend/interpret Rule 41(g) to provide a post‑conviction return procedure | Court/State: Such reform would be legislative/advisory commission function; court must apply current text | Rowland: Requiring separate civil actions is burdensome and inequitable | Held: Court encourages advisory commission to consider amendment but declines to read new remedy into current Rule 41(g) |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Wooden, 478 S.W.3d 586 (Tenn. 2015) (standard of review for construing rules of procedure)
- Fair v. Cochran, 418 S.W.3d 542 (Tenn. 2013) (rule construction principles; effectuate intent without broadening or restricting)
- State v. Brown, 479 S.W.3d 200 (Tenn. 2015) (give effect to every clause, phrase, and word of a procedural rule)
- Lee Med., Inc. v. Beecher, 312 S.W.3d 515 (Tenn. 2010) (presumption that each word in rule/text has deliberate meaning)
- State v. Pettus, 986 S.W.2d 540 (Tenn. 1999) (guilty plea waives non‑jurisdictional defects)
- State v. Adler, 92 S.W.3d 397 (Tenn. 2002) (defendant has appeal as of right only when Rule 3(b) enumerates it)