Aggravated Child Abuse in Tennessee is a Class A felony, carrying between 15-60 years in prison with no parole. In this case, the client was facing a potential 50 year sentence without the possibility of parole.

The victim was Alexander, R.B’s son, who was the product of a casual sexual relationship between R.B. and Y.R. At the time the abuse was discovered, Alexander was approximately 10 weeks old. He had rib fractures and a lung bruise, which was found after he spit up blood one afternoon and x-rays were conducted. There is no doubt the child was abused. The only question was “who did it?”

The proof at trial included the testimony of two doctors, a detective, the mother of the child, the grandmother of the child, and a social worker at Vanderbilt. R.B. testified on his own behalf, as well as his roommate at the time. Both R.B. and the mother were students at Tennessee State University when the abuse occurred.

On the morning of June 10, 2003, Alexander was dropped off with R.B. It was a Wednesday (R.B., who worked and went to school, typically watched his son on Tuesday and Thursday – the other days he was watched by his mother and his maternal grandmother). When the mother picked up Alexander around 4:30 pm that day, she tried to feed him, but he wouldn’t latch. Then, he spit up on her blouse, demonstrating small flecks of blood in the mucus.

She lost it (her testimony and R.B.’s). R.B. proceeded to try to keep his son calm, exercising his legs in a bicycle motion on the bed, and keeping him away from (in R.B.’s view) his overly excitable mother. She eventually went to the pediatrician, then to the ER at Vanderbilt, where the internal injuries were discovered.

The mother’s testimony was, at best, erratic. She contradicted herself within mere seconds on cross examination and could remember very few details vividly. She stated she reported a bruise on Alexander’s arm to the pediatrician on May 12, but there was no indication of that in the medical records. The pediatrician said that when bruises are discovered on immobile infants (like a 10 week old), they ask the primary caregiver to follow up with their office. Y.R. never followed up.

Prior to this incident, she had fully informed R.B. of the medical status of their son (the pediatrician confirmed that even for first time mothers, her interactions with the pediatric practice were “in the upper quadrant” – and, nothing abnormal was ever discovered). This time, however, despite knowing the truth, she refused to tell R.B. what was wrong. Instead, she told him the doctors were running tests and they didn’t know anything. She also told him that Vanderbilt wasn’t allowing visitors to see Alexander. This was told to him again the next day. Finally, he went to the hospital himself on Friday and learned the real situation. At no time had Y.R., the mother, told him his son was in intensive care. On cross examination, she explained she wanted the doctors to tell him what happened, but could give no explanation as to why. She said she tried to repeatedly call R.B., but he wouldn’t come see his son – this was contradicted by the testimony of the social worker and her mother, who both said they asked her to call the child’s mother, but neither one ever saw her do so. I was getting frustrated, so naturally the state’s objection that I was being argumentative was rightly sustained.

R.B.’s roommate at the time noted she called him frantic and unstable a week or two before the injuries were discovered. He, along with even the state’s witnesses, testified they had never seen R.B. lose his temper and he generally had a calm demeanor.

R.B. immediately went to see the Detective who was investigating the case and the Department of Children’s Services investigator. Y.R. and her mother waited nearly a month to cooperate with the investigation, and then only went with their attorney.

The medical proof showed that the rib fractures could have occurred no sooner than five days before they were discovered, and potentially up to two months before. The lung bruise was a separate injury. It would have been acute (inflicted within hours of discovery), and no later than 3 days prior. The Vanderbilt pediatrician, Dr. Christopher Greeley, testified that it likely occurred the same day. The child’s pediatrician, Dr. Kris Rehm, testified to the same time frame. She also noted that if sufficient force was inflicted on a child of Alexander’s age, the baby would be exhausted from the pain and would likely sleep for hours and refuse to eat. This was exactly the behavior of Alexander while in his father’s care on that Wednesday after being dropped of by his mother.

After a very short deliberation, the jury returned a Not Guilty verdict on behalf of R.B.

If you or a loved one is charged with a crime, we can help. You can contact us at (615) 346-2213 or by using the form below. We will respond to you promptly.

Instead, due to our plea negotiations, he starts 2 years of unsupervised probation today.

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Client was arrested for driving slowly and straddling the line of two lanes on I-65 near Hendersonville, Tennessee. The officer noted in the arrest warrant that his speech was slurred and his eyes appeared blood shot. As I always advise, my client refused the breath alcohol test, but did perform somewhat poorly on the field sobriety tests.

At court, negotiations began, and it was agreed that a plea deal could be in order if my client would submit to a drug screen. He did, and the results came back negative. Client pleaded guilty to the amended charge of Reckless Driving.

If you have been charged with a DUI in Sumner County or elsewhere in Tennessee, please contact me immediately. Your rights can only be defended with a competent and experienced lawyer by your side.

My client was accusing of facilitating the sale of crack cocaine, which constitutes a Class C felony, carrying up to 15 years of prison time. At the preliminary hearing, testimony was offered by the undercover detective that he had picked up a known prostitute, who then pointed to my client who got into the car. The undercover detective said he wanted a “20″, which is street slang for $20 worth of crack. My client made several phone calls, but never talked to anyone. Instead. the detective pulled into a known drug infested motel and bought a 20 from another individual.

The signal was given, and police took down all three individuals. However, my client never made contact with the individual who sold the crack to the undercover detective. I argued successfully that no crime was committed – that the concept of an “attempted facilitation”, as argued by the state, was an uncognizable crime (one cannot attempt to substantially assist in something that did not happen), and that my client could not have substantially assisted if he never talked to the buyer or pointed the detective in the direction of the motel, which he did not.

After argument, the judge dismissed the charge against my client. He was freed later that afternoon.

If you have been charged with a drug crime in Davidson County / Metropolitan Nashville, or elsewhere in Tennessee, please contact me immediately. Your rights can only be defended with a competent and experienced lawyer by your side.

Charges: DUI 2nd, Driving on a Suspended License, Failure to Submit to Breath Test

On December 15, 2008, M.M. was pulled over for speeding – going 110 mph in a 70 mph zone. Officers reported he was unsteady on his feet, smelled of an alcoholic beverage, and could not perform any FSTs (field sobriety tests).

After intense negotiations with the prosecution, a plea agreement was reached that allowed M.M. to plead guilty to reckless driving and violation of the implied consent law. He is to serve 6 months on probation and do 24 hours community service. The DUI 2nd was dropped, as well was the Driving on a Suspended License charge.

Needless to say, M.M. was pleased with the outcome.

October 14, 2008

C.G. was stopped on Hermitage Avenue in Nashville by an officer who said he saw C.G. swerve over the dividing yellow line. Upon seizure, the officer noted he detected a smell of alcohol on C.G.’s breath.  No blood tests were performed.

Negotiations with the state resulted in a reduced charge, only 6 months probation, and a small fine, but most importantly, no DUI on C.G.’s record.

If you are charged with a crime, it is vital to get a good criminal defense lawyer on your side. If you or someone you know has been charged with a crime, contact us today.

B.D. was charged with Aggravated Burglary, Possession of Burglary Tools, Vandalism Over $1,000, and misdemeanor harassment. He was accused of breaking into his estranged girlfriend’s home, damaging property, and stealing her wallet, along with a few other items.

Intensive negotiation, coupled with the good behavior of B.D. while out on bond, resulted in a plea agreement to only the misdemeanor Harassment charge, for which he will serve 11 months and 29 days on supervised probation. All other charges have been permanently dismissed.

If you are charged with a crime, it is vital to get a good criminal defense lawyer on your side. If you or someone you know has been charged with a crime, contact us today.

If you are charged with a crime, it is vital to get a good criminal defense lawyer on your side. If you or someone you know has been charged with a crime, contact us today.

August 21, 2008

W.C. was charged with selling marijuana within 1,000 feet of a school or daycare. He was facing a potential sentence of 4 years at 100%, which meant he would never be elgible for parole.

After negotiating with the state, a plea deal was reached that reduced the charge to a Class E felony, and W.C. would be on probation for only 1 year.  Today, W.C. is home with his family.

August 12, 2008

Client was sideswiped by an illegal immigrant, who was never found. Upon doing field sobriety tests, client was arrested for DUI. In negotiations with the assistant DA, the charged was maintained as a DUI 1st, saving J.B. 119 days in jail.