STATE OF TENNESSEE v. EVELYN D. KENNEDY and CHRISTOPHER L. KENNEDY - Articles

All Content

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. EVELYN D. KENNEDY and CHRISTOPHER L. KENNEDY

Posted by: Azya Thornton on May 18, 2026

Head Comment: CORRECTION: The names of the District Attorney General and the Assistant Attorney General have been updated

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys 1: Alan R. Moore, Kingston, Tennessee, for the appellant, Evelyn D. Kennedy.

Attorneys 2: Kim Nelson, District Public Defender; William W. Gill (on appeal), Assistant Public Defender – Appellate Division; Ethan L. DeVoe (on appeal), Qualified Law Student; Mart Cizek (at trial), Assistant Public Defender, for the appellant, Christopher L. Kennedy.

Attorneys 3: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; William C. Lundy, Assistant Attorney General; Russell Johnson, District Attorney General; and Robert Edwards and Jonathan Edwards, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): MONTGOMERY

The Defendants, Evelyn D. Kennedy1 and Christoper L. Kennedy, bring this consolidated appeal from their convictions for first degree felony murder and aggravated neglect of an elderly or vulnerable adult resulting in serious bodily injury, a Class B felony. See T.C.A. §§ 39-13-202(a)(2) (2018) (subsequently amended) (felony murder), 39-15-508 (2025) (aggravated neglect of an elderly or vulnerable adult resulting in serious bodily injury). The trial court sentenced both Defendants to concurrent terms of life for their felony murder convictions and twelve years for their aggravated neglect convictions. On appeal, the Defendants contend that: (1) their convictions violate the ex post facto protections of the State and federal constitutions and (2) the trial court abused its discretion in admitting graphic autopsy photographs. We affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Attachments: