Cartwright Appeal Denied By Court

The Tennessee Court of Appeals denied the appeal of William Floyd Cartwright on his 2005 conviction for premeditated murder.

A Putnam County jury convicted Cartwright for the death of Marvin Martin Jr. in 2004. Cartwright had challenged the conviction arguing he received ineffective assistance during the trial from his counsel.

Specifically, Cartwright argued his trial counsel “failed to sufficiently develop the victim’s cause of death and “evidence that the fatal blow was not indicative of an intent to kill.” The appeal also argued Cartwright’s co-defendant should have been called to the stand. Further, the appeal said counsel should have sought a new preliminary hearing once counsel found the prior hearing had not been recorded in total. The appeal also claimed counsel failed to provide proof during the trial that victim was on house arrest at the time of the murder.

Cartwright’s appeal said the accumulation of these alleged issues by the counsel deprived him of a fair trial. The Court of Appeals found “that counsel was not deficient in any respect.”