State v. Doyle Hart

• Court: Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee
• Decided: February 18, 1998
• Docket: 02C01-9703-CC-00102
• Status: Published

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE

AT JACKSON

JANUARY 1998 SESSION FILED DOYLE HART, ) February 18, 1998 ) NO. 02C01-9703-CC-00102 Appellant, ) Cecil Crowson, Jr. Appellate C ourt Clerk ) LAKE COUNTY VS. ) ) HON. J. STEVEN STAFFORD, BILLY COMPTON, WARDEN, ) JUDGE ) Appellee. ) (Writ of Habeas Corpus)

FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE:

DOYLE HART, Pro Se JOHN KNOX WALKUP Register Number 201666 Attorney General and Reporter Route 1, Box 330 Tiptonville, TN 38079-9775 ELIZABETH T. RYAN Assistant Attorney General Cordell Hull Building, 2nd Floor 425 Fifth Avenue North Nashville, TN 37243-0493

C. PHILLIP BIVENS District Attorney General P.O. Drawer E Dyersburg, TN 38025-2005

OPINION FILED:

AFFIRMED - RULE 20

JOE G. RILEY, JUDGE ORDER

The petitioner, Doyle Hart, appeals the order of the Lake County Circuit Court

dismissing his petition for writ of habeas corpus. He brought this petition claiming

that the indictment charging him with aggravated rape and incest did not allege the

appropriate mens rea. We affirm the judgment of the trial court pursuant to Rule 20,

Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals.

Petitioner asserts that the indictment charging him with aggravated rape and

incest was fatally defective in that it did not allege the specific mens rea. The

indictment reads, in pertinent part, “that [petitioner] . . . unlawfully and feloniously

did have unlawful sexual penetration of another,” in Count One; and petitioner “did

unlawfully and feloniously have carnal knowledge of [victim],” in Count Two. He

argues that the failure to allege the specific mens rea in the indictment constituted

the failure to allege an offense. Therefore, he claims that the judgment is void on

its face.

We find that the language of this indictment provided adequate notice to both

the defendant and the trial court and is not deficient. See State v. Hill, 954 S.W.2d

725 (Tenn. 1997).

Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is affirmed pursuant to Rule 20,

JOE G. RILEY, JUDGE

CONCUR:

JOE B. JONES, PRESIDING JUDGE

PAUL G. SUMMERS, JUDGE