Fred Auston Wortman, III v. State of Tennessee

Syllabus

The petitioner, Fred Auston Wortman, III, pled guilty to two counts of attemptedfirst-degree murder and solicitation of first-degree murder, stemming from his repeatedattempts to kill his wife. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the trial court imposed an effectiveRange II sentence of thirty years with a Range I release eligibility of thirty percent. TheBoard of Probation and Parole denied the petitioner release, and after challenging the denialvia other avenues, the petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief in which heclaimed entitlement to relief on grounds of breach of contact. In his petition, the petitionerclaimed that the State violated the terms of his plea agreement by opposing his release atthe parole hearing. The post-conviction court denied the petition, finding it was timebarred.However, this Court reversed and remanded with instructions for the postconvictioncourt to make findings relative to whether due process considerations tolled thestatute of limitations. See Wortman v. State, No. W2023-00017-CCA-R3-PC, 2023 WL6318088, at 1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Sept. 28, 2023). On remand, the post-conviction court-found the petitioner was not guaranteed release, that the State did not attempt to thwartthe petitioner's ability to have a parole hearing, and rejected the petitioner's claim that theState \acted in bad faith by attending and opposing his parole\ because the petitionerreceived the benefit of everything to which he bargained. Following a thorough review ofthe record, the briefs, and oral arguments of the parties, we affirm the judgment of the postconvictioncourt denying the petitioner post-conviction relief.