IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS OF TENNESSEE AT JACKSON AUGUST SESSION, 1997 FILED February 6, 1998 LEE C. HAMRICK, ) C.C.A. NO. 02C01-9609-CR-00294 ) Cecil Crowson, Jr. Appe llant, ) Appellate C ourt Clerk ) ) SHELBY COUNTY VS. ) ) HON . BERN IE WEIN MAN STATE OF TENNESSEE, ) JUDGE ) Appellee. ) (Post-Co nviction Re lief)

FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE: LEE C. HAMRICK JOHN KNOX WALKUP Pro Se Attorney General and Reporter 3735 Rivers ide Drive Knoxville, TN 37914 CLINTON J. MORGAN Assistant Attorney General James Robertson Parkway Nashville, TN 37243-0493 WILLIAM L. GIBBONS District Attorney General P. T. HOOVER Assistant District Attorney Poplar Street, Ste. 301 Memphis, TN 38103

OPINION FILED ________________________ AFFIRMED PURSU ANT TO RU LE 20 JERRY L. SMITH, JUDGE OPINION On April 18, 1994, in the Shelby County Criminal Court, Appellant, Lee C.

Hemrick, entered multiple guilty pleas to theft charges. He received an effective sentence of fifteen years. Appe llant filed no dire ct app eal. In th is app eal, Appellant presents the following issue for revie w: whe ther the trial cou rt erred in dismiss ing App ellant's pe tition for post-c onviction re lief.

After a review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court pursuant to Court of Criminal Appeals Rule 20.

On May 31, 1996, A ppellant filed his petition fo r post-co nviction relief. On June 18, 1996, the trial court dismissed Appellant's petition without conducting an evidentiary hearing, finding that it was barred by the statute of limitations.

Appellant filed a notice of appe al to this Court on July 29 , 1996, m ore than thirty days from the judgm ent of the tria l court.

Initially, we note that Appellant's appeal should be dismissed because it was untime ly filed on July 2 9, 1996 . T ENN. R. A PP. P. 4(a). In addition, the judgm ent of the tria l court is corre ct.

Prior to the adoption of the rece nt Post-C onviction P rocedu re Act, petitions like the pres ent one had to be filed within thre e years o f the date of the final action of the highest state appellate court to which an appeal was taken. Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-30-102 (1995, Repl.). Accordingly, the three-year statute of limitatio ns would have e xpired on April 18, 19 97. How ever, the n ew Po st-

-2- Conviction Procedu re Act, which took e ffect on May 1 0, 199 5, sub sequ ently reduced the three -year statu te of limitation s to one yea r. Tenn . Code Ann. § 40- 30-201 et seq. (Supp. 1996). Appellant's three-year filing period had not expired at the time the new act took e ffect.

This Court held in Kenn eth Cu lp v. State that "the new Post-Conviction Procedu re Act gove rns this pe tition and a ll petitions filed a fter May 1 0, 1995 ." C.C.A. No. 02 C01 -9608 -CC- 0026 8, Lau derda le Cou nty (Te nn. C rim. App., Jackson, July 24, 1997). This act provides in part: "Notwithstanding any other provisio n of this part to the contrary, any person having ground for relief recognized under this part shall have at least one (1) year from May 10 , 1995, to file a petition or a motion to reopen a petition unde r this part." Compiler's Notes to Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-30-201 (Supp. 1996) (referring to Acts 1995, ch. 207, § 3). Because the previous three-yea r statute of limitations had not expired for Appellant at the time the new Act took effect, his righ t to petition for p ost- conviction relief survived under th e new A ct.

Therefore, Appellant had one year from the effective date of the new Act, May 10, 199 5, to file for pos t-conviction relief. See C ulp, C.C.A. No. 02C01- 9608-CC-0268, slip op. He filed his petition for post-conviction relief on May 31, 1996, shortly after the expiration of the one-year statute of limitations.

According ly, we conclud e that the trial court prop erly dism issed Appe llant's petition as barred by the statute of limitations and affirm the judgment pursuant to Court of Criminal Appeals Rule 20.

____________________________________ JERRY L. SMITH, JUDGE

-3- CONCUR:

___________________________________ DAVID G. HAYES, JUDGE

___________________________________ THO MAS T. W OOD ALL,

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