State v. Gutierrez

OPINION

BIRCH, J.

The defendant, Mario Gutierrez, was convicted by a jury of voluntary manslaughter for shooting a female friend with whom he resided. He was sentenced to six-years imprisonment. He now challenges his sentence, contending that the intermediate court erred in holding that by shooting his friend, he abused a position of private trust. Tenn.Code Ann. § 40-35-114(15)(1997). 1 Thus, the issue we address is: Whether the defendant’s “live-in” relationship with the adult victim justifies application of the “abuse of private trust” sentence enhancement factor?

Because we find error in the…