State of Tennessee v. Robert Page
W2016-01524-CCA-R3-CD
| Tenn. Crim. App. | Jun 12, 2017Background
- Petitioner Robert Page was convicted of second degree murder for participating in the beating and death of Roosevelt Burgess and sentenced to 38 years in the Tennessee Department of Correction.
- This court reversed Page’s conviction on direct appeal for failure to instruct on facilitation, remanding for a new trial, which later culminated in a Supreme Court reversal limiting plain error review.
- Page filed a post-conviction relief petition, which was denied, and then a Rule 36.1 motion to correct an illegal sentence asserting two enhancement factors violated Blakely.
- The trial court summarily dismissed Page’s Rule 36.1 motion on June 21, 2016, without a hearing.
- The State argues Page failed to plead a colorable claim that his sentence was illegal; Page argues the enhancements used to increase his sentence were invalid under Blakely.
- The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the trial court, holding that Blakely-based claims are appealable errors, not illegal sentences, and that Page failed to state a colorable claim for correction.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Rule 36.1 requires a hearing when a sentence is allegedly illegal. | Page | State | No; no colorable claim shown; denial affirmed. |
| Whether Blakely-based enhancements render a sentence illegal or merely appealable error. | Page | State | Blakely claims are appealable errors, not illegal sentences. |
| Whether Page's two enhancement factors render the sentence illegal under Rule 36.1. | Page | State | Not a colorable claim for an illegal sentence; not fatal under Rule 36.1. |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Wooden, 478 S.W.3d 585 (Tenn. 2015) (colorable-claim standard; categorization of sentencing errors)
- Cantrell v. Easterling, 346 S.W.3d 445 (Tenn. 2011) (fatal vs appealable sentencing errors; statutory authority)
- Davis v. State, 313 S.W.3d 751 (Tenn. 2010) (sentencing errors; not all errors render sentence illegal)
- Summers v. State, 212 S.W.3d 251 (Tenn. 2007) (methodology of sentencing review; appealable errors)
- State v. Page, 184 S.W.3d 223 (Tenn. 2006) (procedural posture on prior conviction and remand history; plain-error analysis)