Tag Archives: plea

Former Judge Gets 3 Years in Prison for Theft

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News release from Davidson County District Attorney’s office:
Former Hawkins County Judge James F. Taylor today pled guilty to stealing from the Administrative Office of the Courts, by creating forged documents to support false billings for legal work that he did not perform.
The AOC disburses payments from the indigent defense fund to private attorneys who are appointed to represent indigent defendants in criminal cases. Taylor entered guilty pleas under a plea agreement to six counts of felony theft.
As part of that plea, Taylor accepted a 13-year sentence. Three years of that is to be served with 30% parole eligibility at a CCA facility. The remaining 10 years will be on probation. He is also ordered to make restitution to the AOC in the amount of $32,757, to be paid in monthly installments. The plea also dictates that Taylor will enter an order of disbarment, and he cannot apply for reinstatement of his law license until October, 2025, at the earliest.

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Rep. Todd’s Attorney Enters Not Guilty Plea; Seeks Deal With Prosecutors

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — State Rep. Curry Todd is pleading not guilty to drunken driving and gun charges.
The Tennessean (http://tnne.ws/Ov70Ck ) reports that attorney Worrick Robinson entered the plea on behalf of Todd, who did not attend the hearing in Nashville on Friday.
The Collierville Republican was arrested in October after failing a roadside sobriety test. A loaded .38-caliber gun was found stuffed between the driver’s seat and center console. Todd faces charges of drunken driving, possession of a firearm while under the influence and violating the state’s implied consent law for refusing a breath alcohol test.
Todd was a main sponsor of a state law allowing handgun carry permit holders to bring firearms into bars and restaurants that serve alcohol. It’s unclear where Todd was coming from at the time of his arrest.
Further, from The Tennessean:
“I’ll be speaking with the district attorney’s office,” Robinson said. “We’ll be seeing if there’s any way we can find some common ground to see if we can settle this matter.”
…The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security has said that Todd can keep his handgun carry permit, though it could be suspended for a year if he is convicted of the DUI charge.
In April, Todd announced that he had been diagnosed with a form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

TN Man Pleads Guilty to Threatening Congressman (he’d been drinking)

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From the News Sentinel:
A Lenoir City man has struck a deal to plead guilty to telephoning threats to a Virginia congressman’s family.
According to court documents, Glendon Swift, 62, has admitted that he left two anonymous telephone messages at the office of U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va) in October, and said he was drunk when he did so. Swift was ordered detained Friday by U.S. Magistrate Judge Clifford Shirley pending a Dec. 20 hearing at which he is expected to plead guilty to one count of threatening a federal official’s family.
The plea deal calls for a 13-month prison term. But U.S. District Judge Tom Varlan must approve it at an April 4 sentencing.
When FBI agents from the Richmond, Va., field office first questioned Swift about the calls, he readily admitted he had made them, court documents state.
Swift “immediately responded that he was aware of why the agents were there and stated that he ‘got drunk the other night and started cussing people out,’ ” a court document states.
Swift, after consulting with an attorney, has signed a plea agreement. He has also agreed to have the case handled in Knoxville instead of Virginia.
The calls were made on Swift’s cellphone. They were “laden with the screaming and ranting of profanities,” and made derogatory references to the fact that Cantor is Jewish.
In one of the calls, Swift says: “How about if I rape your daughter? How about that, if I come into your house and kill your wife.”
Available court documents do not indicate Swift’s motive in making the call.

Rep. Todd Offered Plea Deal, Declines For Now

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By Erik Schelzig, Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Prosecutors on Tuesday offered a plea deal to Rep. Curry Todd on charges of drunken driving and carrying a loaded handgun while intoxicated.
The Collierville Republican’s attorney, Worrick Robinson, said “nothing’s been decided” about the unspecified deal after the initial meeting with prosecutors outside a Nashville courtroom.
“A five-minute conversation with the district attorney’s office is not going to be enough to gauge that,” said Robinson.
Todd’s lawyer and the district attorney’s office declined to divulge details of the plea offer.
Todd made a statement to assembled reporters after a brief court appearance to set the next hearing date for Jan. 10 — the same day the Legislature convenes for the second session of the 107th General Assembly.
“Everybody’s capable of making a mistake,” he said. “Those who know me know this is uncharacteristic of me.”
Todd apologized to his family, friends, constituents, legislative colleagues and the governor.
“And that’s it,” Todd said in wrapping up his brief remarks. “I will move on from this and make a better person of myself and my life.”

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