STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JAMES LEE DENNIS - Articles

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Posted by: Azya Thornton on Mar 25, 2026

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys 1: Jason R. Creasy, Dyersburg, Tennessee, for the appellant, James Lee Dennis.

Attorneys 2: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; Benjamin L. Barker, Assistant Attorney General; Danny Goodman, Jr., District Attorney General; and Matthew A. Beaird, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): SWORD

The Defendant, James Lee Dennis, pled guilty to vehicular homicide by intoxication. After a sentencing hearing, the trial court entered judgment ordering the Defendant to serve ten years’ incarceration at one hundred percent service. The trial court also ordered the Defendant to pay $113,700 in the form of child maintenance restitution pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-13-219. On appeal, the Defendant argues that the trial court erred by ordering excessive restitution and by imposing a sentence above the minimum required by law. Following our review, we affirm the trial court’s judgment.

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