Edward Thomas Kendrick, Iii v. State of Tennessee

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court reversed the Court of Criminal Appeals' grant of a new trial to Edward Kendrick, who was convicted of first degree premeditated murder for fatally shooting his wife and whose defense was that his rifle fired accidentally. The Court held that trial counsel's decisions not to consult a firearms expert to rebut the State's expert and not to attempt to introduce Sergeant Miller's statements as excited utterances were reasonable tactical choices, not deficient performance under Strickland, and that neither decision prejudiced the defense. Because the intermediate court had pretermitted petitioner's remaining post-conviction claims, the case was remanded to that court for consideration of them.