PDF: Attorney general response
The state attorney general’s office has said it has “no objection” to a man bypassing local jurisdiction and appealing straight to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals in a case involving allegations of “judge shopping” in Hamilton County General Sessions Court.
Getting face time in Tennessee’s higher courts for such “interlocutory appeals” is rare, legal experts say, because case precedent has established that legal matters in general should be fully litigated at the local level before the appeals process kicks in.
It’s why local defense attorney Jerry Summers, who represents defendant Gary Wayne McCullough, said the attorney general’s “unusual” response makes him more hopeful the Court of Criminal Appeals will agree to hear his arguments.
“I’ve probably handled hundreds of interlocutory appeals over the years, and most of the responses from (the attorney general’s office) have been that the application is frivolous and unfounded in the law and has no merit,” Mr. Summers said Thursday. “This was a pleasant surprise.”