Montro Taylor, Appellant v. State of Tennessee, Appellee; and Robert Irwin Gwin, Appellee, v. State of Tennessee…

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court held that a sentence imposed under a statute that was later declared unconstitutional is voidable, not void, and therefore must be challenged within the post-conviction statute of limitations rather than corrected at any time. Applying the three-year limitations period that expired July 1, 1989 for judgments final before July 1, 1986, the Court reinstated the dismissal of Robert Gwin's petition (reversing the intermediate court's modification of his 100-year sentence to life) and affirmed the dismissal of Montro Taylor's petition challenging his 199-year sentences. The Court further rejected Gwin's argument that the Governor's revocation of his commutation was a later-arising ground for relief or tolled the limitations period.