Opinion ID: 1057579
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 20

Heading: mr hester's sentences for attempted first degree murder and aggravated arson

Text: Mr. Hester takes issue with the sentences he received for his two non-capital convictions on three grounds. First, he insists that the Court of Criminal Appeals erred by affirming sentences greater than the minimum fifteen-year sentences for these offenses. Second, he asserts that the Court of Criminal Appeals erred by affirming the trial court's decision to require that his non-capital sentences be served consecutively. Finally, he argues that the Court of Criminal Appeals erred by affirming the manner in which the trial court considered his mitigating evidence.
In addition to the death sentence Mr. Hester received for the murder of Mr. Haney, he received two non-capital sentences as a result of his convictions for attempted first degree murder and aggravated arson. The trial court sentenced Mr. Hester to twenty-five years in prison for the attempted first degree murder conviction and twenty years in prison for the aggravated arson conviction. The trial court also ordered these sentences to be served consecutively to each other and consecutively to the death sentence. Mr. Hester argued in the Court of Criminal Appeals that the manner in which the trial court sentenced him for his non-capital convictions violated Blakely v. Washington, 542 U.S. 296, 124 S.Ct. 2531, 159 L.Ed.2d 403 (2004) because the trial court based the sentences on enhancement factors that had neither been submitted to nor found by the jury. He also asserted that the trial court had erred by ordering consecutive sentencing and by failing to properly credit and weigh his mitigating evidence. The State conceded that the trial court ran afoul of Blakely v. Washington by relying on factors that were neither admitted by Mr. Hester nor found by the jury beyond a reasonable doubt. However, the State argued that the trial court's consideration of factors neither admitted by Mr. Hester nor found by the jury was harmless error because no reasonable jury would have failed to find the facts beyond a reasonable doubt necessary to support each of these factors. The Court of Criminal Appeals did not agree with the State's contention that the trial court's consideration of factors that were neither admitted by Mr. Hester nor found by the jury was harmless error. Noting that the applicable sentencing statutes required the imposition of a presumptive sentence if there are no other enhancement or mitigating factors, [74] the Court of Criminal Appeals decided to approach the non-capital sentences Mr. Hester received on the basis that no enhancement or mitigating factors were applicable. [75] Accordingly, the Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Mr. Hester's twenty-year sentence for aggravated arson because it was the presumptive sentence for the offense. However, the Court of Criminal Appeals did not affirm Mr. Hester's twenty-five-year sentence for attempted first degree murder because it was greater than the presumptive sentence and because the trial court had considered three impermissible enhancement factors. Instead, the Court of Criminal Appeals reduced Mr. Hester's sentence for attempted first degree murder from twenty-five years to twenty yearsthe presumptive sentence for attempted first degree murder. State v. Hester, 2009 WL 275760, at . The Court of Criminal Appeals also determined that the trial court properly considered Mr. Hester's mitigating evidence. State v. Hester, 2009 WL 275760, at . Finally, the Court of Criminal Appeals found no error with regard to the trial court's decision to impose consecutive sentences for Mr. Hester's non-capital convictions. State v. Hester, 2009 WL 275760, at . Both Mr. Hester and the State disagree with the manner in which the Court of Criminal Appeals addressed the issues regarding the non-capital sentences. Mr. Hester continues to take issue with any sentences greater than fifteen years and with being required to serve these sentences consecutively. The State has abandoned its argument that the trial court's consideration of enhancement factors that were neither admitted by Mr. Hester nor found by the jury was harmless error, and it has declined to defend the sentences for Mr. Hester's non-capital convictions. Instead, it asserts that these sentences should be vacated and that the case should be remanded for resentencing with instructions to consider only the defendant's prior convictions as an enhancement factor in the absence of the defendant['s] stipulation to any others. While the State does not directly address the Court of Criminal Appeals' decision regarding the manner in which the trial court weighed Mr. Hester's mitigating evidence, its assertion that the non-capital convictions should be vacated and that the case should be remanded for resentencing implicitly concedes that reconsideration of Mr. Hester's mitigating evidence is appropriate. The State also argues that Mr. Hester's briefing on the consecutive sentencing issue is so deficient that he has waived consideration of the issue.
Prior to 2005, Tennessee's sentencing statutes established a sentencing range and a presumptive sentence for all classes of felonies other than capital murder. State v. Banks, 271 S.W.3d at 144. Under the sentencing procedures required by these statutes, a trial court could not increase a defendant's sentence above the presumptive sentence unless it found that enhancement factors existed. State v. Banks, 271 S.W.3d at 144. If the trial court determined that enhancement factors existed, it then had the authority to increase a defendant's sentence up to the maximum sentence provided for that range. State v. Banks, 271 S.W.3d at 144. The United States Supreme Court's decision in Blakely v. Washington placed a constitutional cloud over the power of trial courts in Tennessee to sentence defendants beyond the statutory presumptive sentence based on facts not reflected in the jury's verdict. Accordingly, in 2005, the Tennessee General Assembly amended the sentencing statutes to make the statutory sentencing guidelines advisory and to remove the presumptive sentences for each class of felonies other than capital murder. State v. Banks, 271 S.W.3d at 144-45; State v. Carter, 254 S.W.3d 335, 342-43 (Tenn.2008). The removal of the presumptive sentences and rendering the guidelines advisory cured the Sixth Amendment defect noted in Blakely v. Washington and enabled Tennessee's trial courts to sentence a defendant to any sentence within the applicable range as long as the length of the sentence is consistent with the purposes and principles of the sentencing statutes. State v. Banks, 271 S.W.3d at 145 (quoting Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-210(d) (2006)). In revising Tennessee's sentencing provisions, the General Assembly authorized defendants, such as Mr. Hester, whose crimes were committed before June 7, 2005 but after July 1, 1982, to be sentenced under the new law by executing a waiver of their ex post facto protections. [76] Mr. Hester declined to execute this waiver. Accordingly, his sentencing should have been in accordance with the sentencing procedures established by the pre-2005 sentencing scheme subject to the limitations imposed by the Sixth Amendment.
While it is not lost on us that the State has recommended that the sentences for Mr. Hester's non-capital convictions should be vacated and that the case be remanded for resentencing, we are not required to accept the State's concession or to follow its recommendation. Harris v. State, 301 S.W.3d 141, 145 (Tenn.2010); Barron v. State, Dep't of Human Servs., 184 S.W.3d 219, 223 (Tenn.2006). While a remand may be an appropriate remedy to redress a trial court's error in sentencing, it is not the only remedy available to the appellate courts. The Criminal Sentencing Reform Act of 1989 expressly empowers the appellate courts to direct the entry of an appropriate sentence without remanding for resentencing. Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-401(c)(3) (2006). Under the circumstances of the present case, we have concluded that entry of appropriate sentences, rather than a remand for resentencing, is the proper remedy for the statutory and constitutional violations that occurred with regard to Mr. Hester's sentencing on his non-capital convictions. When a defendant challenges a sentence on appeal, he or she bears the burden of showing that the sentence is improper. Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-401, sentencing comm'n cmts. Tennessee's appellate courts review challenges to the length, range, or manner of service of a sentence de novo with a presumption of correctness. Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-401(d); State v. Franklin, 308 S.W.3d 799, 825 (Tenn.2010). This presumption is conditioned, however, upon an affirmative showing that the trial court applied and considered the relevant facts and circumstances and adhered to the proper sentencing principles. State v. Franklin, 308 S.W.3d at 825; State v. Carter, 254 S.W.3d at 344-45; State v. Ashby, 823 S.W.2d 166, 169 (Tenn.1991). Where a trial court fails to meet these requirements, an appellate court's review is de novo with no presumption of correctness. State v. Franklin, 308 S.W.3d at 825; State v. Carter, 254 S.W.3d at 345. As found by the Court of Criminal Appeals and conceded by the State, the trial court erred in sentencing Mr. Hester for his non-capital convictions. Accordingly, our review of the trial court's sentencing decisions with regard to Mr. Hester's non-capital convictions is de novo with no presumption of correctness. For the purpose of this case, we find that Mr. Hester has carried his burden of demonstrating that his non-capital sentences were improper. The State has conceded that the trial court violated the Sixth Amendment by considering the enhancement factors included in Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-114(3)-(6), (10) (Supp.1999). In light of the State's concession, [77] the balancing of the enhancing and mitigating factors in this case involves weighing Mr. Hester's mitigation evidence against his prior criminal history which includes numerous misdemeanor offenses and one felony theft conviction. We have examined the portions of the record relevant to the sentences for Mr. Hester's two non-capital convictions. In light of the State's concessions, the evidence that informs our sentencing decision is limited to Mr. Hester's mitigating evidence and the evidence of Mr. Hester's prior criminal convictions. Based on our consideration of this evidence, we do not share the trial court's opinion regarding the insubstantiality of either Mr. Hester's mitigating evidence or the evidence regarding Mr. Hester's prior criminal convictions. Having considered the circumstances of the present case and the sentencing considerations set forth by the Tennessee General Assembly and having weighed the mitigating factors presented by Mr. Hester against the remaining enhancing factor, we have determined that weight and gravity of the factors is essentially in equipoise. Accordingly, consistent with Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-210(c) as it existed prior to its 2005 amendment, we have decided to impose twenty-year sentences on Mr. Hester for both of his aggravated arson and attempted first degree murder convictions. [78]
After careful study of the parties' briefs with regard to the issue of consecutive sentencing, we are persuaded that the decision of the Court of Criminal Appeals on this issue should be affirmed. Moreover, because we find that the opinion of the Court of Criminal Appeals, State v. Hester, 2009 WL 275760, at , adequately states the facts and the law on this issue, we adopt this above stated portion of the opinion as the opinion of this Court and include it as an appendix to this opinion. Accordingly, on remand, the trial court shall enter a revised judgment imposing on Mr. Hester consecutive twenty-year sentences for his convictions for attempted first degree murder and aggravated arson and directing that these sentences be served consecutively to his death sentence.