STATE OF TENNESSEE v. LEIGH KATHERINE LITTLETON - Articles

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STATE OF TENNESSEE v. LEIGH KATHERINE LITTLETON

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Apr 4, 2025

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys 1: Cameron L. Hyder (on appeal); Lawrence Scott Shults and Steven R. Finney (at trial), Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellant, Leigh Katherine Littleton.

Attorneys 2: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; Abigail H. Hornsby, Assistant Attorney General; Steven R. Finney, District Attorney General; and Dennis Brooks and Robin Ray, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): MCMULLEN

The Johnson County Grand Jury charged the Defendant, Leigh Katherine Littleton, and two codefendants by presentment with first degree felony murder, especially aggravated kidnapping, conspiracy to commit especially aggravated kidnapping, extortion, conspiracy to commit extortion, and aggravated assault. Following trial, a jury convicted the Defendant of first degree felony murder, especially aggravated kidnapping, conspiracy to commit especially aggravated kidnapping, extortion, and conspiracy to commit extortion, and the trial court imposed an effective life sentence. On appeal, the Defendant argues (1) the evidence is insufficient to sustain her convictions; (2) the trial court erred in denying the motion to suppress her first statement; (3) the trial court erred in allowing her character to be defamed; (4) the trial court improperly excluded a pre-trial plea offer; and (5) the trial court imposed an unconstitutional condition on her right to present a defense by not allowing her to present proof of her codefendants’ criminal histories. After review, we affirm the trial court’s judgments.

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