Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

Tennessee Speeding Ticket Lawyers understand that Tennessee law enforcement officers use traffic citations to help keep our roadways safe; but receiving a traffic citation can have lasting consequences for Tennessee drivers. Some of the more common traffic citations in Tennessee include:

• Driving Without a License
• Driving Without Registration
• Driving Without Insurance
• Leaving the Scene of an Accident
• Mechanical Violations
• Reckless Driving
• Running a Red Light or Stop Sign
• Seat Belt / Child Restraint Violations
• Speeding

Mailing a traffic citation payment may seem like the easiest answer for many drivers. Paying the traffic citation, however, means that a Tennessee driver will automatically be convicted of the offense. A conviction can mean paying a fine and/or court costs, increased car insurance premiums, probation, points added to your driving record and even suspension of your driver's license. The Tennessee Department of Safety Traffic Violation Points System means that a Tennessee driver can accumulate between 1 to 8 points on his or her driver’s license for a speeding ticket. If a Tennessee driver accumulates 12 points in one year, that driver may face license suspension.

Many Tennessee drivers faced with traffic citations find that an experienced Tennessee traffic attorney may help them reach the best resolution for their situation. By contacting a Tennessee traffic attorney, drivers can review their individual cases and receive assistance and advice that will help control the impact of their traffic citation. If you receive a speeding ticket in Tennessee, contact one of our speeding ticket attorneys today. All initial consultations are free.

Tennessee Criminal Lawyers understand the impact that an assault charge can have on your life. It is important to realize that the facts of every assault case are different. There are various classifications of assault under Tennessee law. Our Tennessee Attorneys handle assault charges in the Gatlinburg, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and Knoxville area. An individual charged with assault should contact a Tennessee Criminal Lawyer as quickly as possible in order to maximize legal avenues for the best possible resolution.

Unlike other jurisdictions, there is no assault / battery distinction under Tennessee criminal law. Basically, what other jurisdictions call a battery is also called an assault in Tennessee. According to Tennessee criminal law, a person commits assault when they:

• Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes bodily injury to another;

• Intentionally or knowingly causes another to reasonably fear imminent bodily injury; or

• Intentionally or knowingly causes physical contact with another and a reasonable person would regard the contact as extremely offensive or provocative. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-101 (2007).

A charge of assault based upon the first two bullets above is considered to be a Class A misdemeanor. A charge of assault based upon the last bullet is considered to be a Class B misdemeanor. Misdemeanors in Tennessee are generally scaled from A to C. An A misdemeanor is considered more severe than either a B or C misdemeanor. Likewise, B misdemeanors are generally more severe than C misdemeanors.

It certain situations, an assault may become aggravated. A person commits aggravated assault when they:

• Intentionally or knowingly commit an assault as defined above and that assault:

(A) Causes serious bodily injury to another; or

(B) Uses or displays a deadly weapon; or

• Recklessly commits an assault by causing bodily injury to another, and:

(A) Causes serious bodily injury to another; or

(B) Uses or displays a deadly weapon. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-102 (2007).

This is not an exhaustive list of the different ways to commit aggravated assault. Aggravated assault under the first bullet is a Class C felony. Aggravated assault under the second bullet is a Class D felony. Felonies in Tennessee are more severe than misdemeanors. In Tennessee, felonies are scaled from A to E. A felonies are the more severe than E felonies. If you are charged with either assault or aggravated assault under Tennessee law, it is important to contact a Tennessee Criminal Attorney to ensure the best possible resolution to your case.

Knoxville criminal defense lawyers realize that life can be busy. It is important to realize that courts take it seriously when you fail to appear for your court date. This undermines the court’s authority and increases the court’s workload.

The failure to appear statute in Tennessee provides an offense for people who knowingly fail to appear at court or other official proceedings or penal institutions when directed to appear by a lawful authority. According to Tennessee law, it is unlawful for any person to knowingly fail to appear as directed by a lawful authority if the person:

• Has been lawfully issued a criminal summons;
• Has been lawfully commanded to appear for booking and processing pursuant to a criminal summons;
• Has been lawfully issued a citation in lieu of arrest;
• Has been lawfully released from custody, with or without bail, on condition of subsequent appearance at an official proceeding or penal institution at a specified time or place; or
• Knowingly goes into hiding to avoid prosecution or court appearance. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-16-609 (2007)

The offense of failure to appear does not cover the failure to make a supervisory meeting with a probation or parole officer, or any other appearance for which there was a reasonable excuse. In addition, the failure to appear statute does not apply to witnesses.

Punishment for failure to appear depends on whether the crime for which the offender failed to appear is a misdemeanor or a felony. If the occasion for which the defendant's appearance is required is a misdemeanor or the defendant failed to appear for booking, then the violation is a Class A misdemeanor. If the occasion for which the defendant's appearance is required is a Class A misdemeanor or a felony, failure to appear is a Class E felony.

The court may order the sentence to be served consecutively to any sentence received for the offense for which the person failed to appear. If you have been charged with failure to appear, or any other crime in East Tennessee, contact a criminal defense attorney. Our office defends clients charged with criminal offenses in Knoxville, Sevierville, Newport, Loudon, Maryville, Johnson City, and Morristown.

Tennessee criminal defense attorneys assist their clients with reckless endangerment charges in the Knoxville, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and the Gatlinburg areas. Each reckless endangerment case in Tennessee will be different. Tennessee criminal defense lawyers understand that their clients usually lacked malicious intent when the charges were brought.

A person commits reckless endangerment if he or she recklessly engages in conduct that places, or may place, another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury. To act recklessly is to act with a conscious disregard of the likelihood that the conduct will cause an illegal result. Reckless endangerment is a Class A misdemeanor; however, reckless endangerment committed with a deadly weapon is a Class E felony. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-103 (2007).

It is interesting to note that no harm is required to be convicted of reckless endangerment in Tennessee. Some examples of conduct that may or may not give rise to reckless endangerment are the following:

• The defendant's conduct in firing shots at a house, where occupants were not his intended victims, constituted reckless endangerment. State v. Wilson, 924 S.W.2d 648 (Tenn. 1996).
• Defendant's mere discharge of a gun into the air or up into a tree top was not sufficient to constitute the commission of reckless endangerment. State v. Fox, 947 S.W.2d 865 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996).
• Driver who had a couple of drinks and approached a blind curve at night at such speed that he could not stop in time to avoid hitting a car in his lane attempting to make a legal left turn was reckless and was aware of the risk created by his driving, but consciously disregarded it. State v. Lewis, 978 S.W.2d 558 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1997).
• Evidence was sufficient to support reckless endangerment conviction where testimony indicated defendant was driving fifteen to twenty miles over the speed limit and "whipped up into" an unsuspecting man's driveway, such that the man had to run to avoid being run over. State v. Neely, 1 S.W.3d 679 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1999).

Many reckless endangerment charges are brought against drivers, but the offense could be committed in an unlimited different number of situations that do not involve vehicles. If you are charged with either misdemeanor or felony reckless endangerment in Tennessee, contact a Tennessee criminal defense attorney. Tennessee criminal defense attorneys will fight for your rights at every stage of the criminal process. Tennessee criminal defense lawyers will challenge the heavy burden that the state must prove to convict you of a reckless endangerment charge.

Tennessee sex crime lawyers realize the consequences that a conviction for a sex crime can have upon your life. There are numerous different sex crimes under Tennessee law, and the differences between the various prohibited conducts can sometimes be slight.

The crime of indecent exposure closely resembles the crime of public indecency, which will be discussed in a later blog. There are basically three different subsections for the state to prosecute someone for under the indecent exposure statute. The first subsection of the statute encompasses behavior that people would traditionally believe should constitute indecent exposure. According to Tennessee law, A person commits the offense of indecent exposure who:

(A) In a public place, or on the private premises of another, or so near thereto as to be seen from the private premises:

(i) Intentionally:

• Exposes the person's genitals or buttocks to another; or
• Engages in sexual contact or sexual penetration; and

(ii) Reasonably expects that the acts will be viewed by another and the acts:

• Will offend an ordinary viewer; or
• Are for the purpose of sexual arousal and gratification of the defendant. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-511 (2007).

The offense of indecent exposure expands prior law by including acts of sexual contact or sexual penetration in a public place, or on the private premises of another, or where the activity may be seen from the private premises of another.

(B) A less commonly known form of indecent exposure pertains to the following behavior. A person can commit the offense of indecent exposure who knowingly invites, entices or fraudulently induces the child of another into the person's residence for the purpose of attaining sexual arousal or gratification by intentionally engaging in the following conduct in the presence of the child:

• Exposure of such person's genitals, buttocks or female breasts; or
• Masturbation.
• The defendant must be eighteen years of age or older and the child victim must be less than thirteen years of age for this section to apply. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-511 (2007).

(C) A person confined in a penal institution, commits the offense of indecent exposure who with the intent to abuse, torment, harass or embarrass a guard:

• Intentionally exposes the person's genitals or buttocks to the guard; or
• Engages in sexual contact Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-511 (2007).

The penalties for indecent exposure can be stiff. Depending upon the circumstances, it might be a felony, or a misdemeanor. If you are charged with indecent exposure under Tennessee law, contact a criminal defense attorney. Our lawyers handle sex crime cases in Knoxville, Sevierville, Newport, Maryville, Dandridge, Morristown, and Johnson City.

Tennessee sex offense attorneys handle many sexual offenses. Our lawyers work in Knoxville, Sevierville, Gatlinburg, Newport, Johnson City, and Morristown. According to Tennessee law, a person commits the offense of public indecency who, in a public place knowingly or intentionally:

• Engages in sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy, bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation, excretory functions or other ultimate sex acts;
• Appears in a state of nudity; or
• Fondles the genitals of the person, or another person. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-511 (2007).

The prohibited conduct which constitutes most crimes is generally illegal no matter where the location of that conduct occurs. Public indecency is somewhat different than most crimes because the prohibited behavior may legally occur in certain locations. In other words, what is illegal in a parking lot probably is legal in your home under this statute. The definition of “public” becomes an important part of the public indecency statute.

According to the statute, "public place" means any location frequented by the public, or where the public is present or likely to be present, or where a person may reasonably be expected to be observed by members of the public. "Public place" includes, but is not limited to, streets, sidewalks, parks, beaches, business and commercial establishments, whether for profit or not-for-profit and whether open to the public at large or where entrance is limited by a cover charge or membership requirement, bottle clubs, hotels, motels, restaurants, night clubs, country clubs, cabarets and meeting facilities utilized by any religious, social, fraternal or similar organizations. Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-13-511 (2007).

Interestingly, it is a statutory defense to public indecency that the person made intentional and reasonable attempts to conceal himself or herself from public view while performing an excretory function, and the person performs the function in an unincorporated area of the state.

The crime of public indecency differs slightly from the crime of indecent exposure in that in indecent expose, the defendant must reasonably expect that the acts will be viewed by another and the offended person must be an "ordinary viewing person."

The penalties for public indecency are as follows: A first or second offense is a Class B misdemeanor punishable only by a fine of five hundred dollars. A third or subsequent offense is a Class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine of one thousand five hundred dollars or confinement for not more than eleven months and twenty-nine days, or both. If you have been charged with public indecency, contact a criminal defense lawyer.