Tony Charles Davenport, during a short motion hearing for a new trial in connection with a March 2022 fatal shooting in Fairfield Glade, was denied his motion for a new trial, setting the stage for an appeal of his conviction to the Tennessee Criminal Court of Appeals.
Davenport, 60, King Arthur Court, was convicted of reckless homicide, second-degree attempted homicide and attempted voluntary homicide by a Cumberland County jury last year.
Criminal Court Judge Gary McKenzie sentenced Davenport to 17 years in prison for the reckless homicide conviction and eight years for the second-degree attempted homicide to be served consecutively for a 25-year sentence.
In addition, Davenport was found to be a Range II offender and will serve the 25 years at 35%.
During the brief hearing earlier this month, defense attorney Joe Wyatt argued the jury’s findings were unreasonable because the verdicts reflected “multiple states of mind in the same crime.” Wyatt also argued his client took exception to the dangerous offender tag placed as a reason for consecutive sentencing.
Assistant District Attorney Philip Hatch countered prosecutors found the jury verdicts “reasonable.” Hatch also argued evidence during trial events leading to the fatal shooting of Jacob Conrad Lewis, 24, and wounding of Florence Easterly, 52, and Corey James Hillsman, 57, at a residence on Grouse Court was actually the culmination of violent confrontation spanning two days.
McKenzie recognized the jury’s verdict appeared to be one of compromise and also noted with that in mind, a maximum sentence on each conviction was not given during the sentencing hearing.
McKenzie denied the new trial motion and appointed Wyatt to represent Davenport for the purpose of deciding whether the convictions should be appealed to a higher court.