State of Tennessee v. Christopher Lee Davis

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court held that officers had reasonable suspicion, under the totality of the circumstances, to conduct a brief investigatory stop of a white Crown Victoria whose African-American male occupants matched the general description of carjacking suspects and behaved abruptly and evasively near the partially stripped stolen vehicle, so the trial court properly denied suppression. The court further held the evidence sufficient for attempted first degree murder: the jury could find premeditated intent to kill from the perpetrators' procurement of a pistol and duct tape, the defendant's insistence on taking the victim along, his statement that they would shoot the victim, and his pursuit of the fleeing victim, and that this conduct constituted a substantial step under the criminal attempt statute even though the gunman, not the defendant, held the weapon. The judgment of the Court of Criminal Appeals was affirmed, with the case remanded for a consecutive-sentencing determination.