Tennessee Code Annotated

Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (2026)

Felonies and misdemeanors distinguished

✓ current as of May 2026
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section JustiaTenn. Code CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

All violations of law that may be punished by one (1) year or more of confinement or by the infliction of the death penalty are denominated felonies, and all violations of law punishable by fine or confinement for less than one (1) year, or both, are denominated misdemeanors.

Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 1.


Notes of Decisions
Cited in 19 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1991–2025 · leading case: State of Tennessee v. Anthony R. Smith, Jr., 495 S.W.3d 271 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2016).
State of Tennessee v. Anthony R. Smith, Jr., 495 S.W.3d 271 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2016). · cites it 10× “” T.C.A. § 39-11-110 (emphasis added). Regardless of whether Defendant was sentenced in Indiana for a Class D felony or a Class A misdemeanor, Defendant could have received a punishment of imprisonment for one year or more.”
Lisa E. Burris v. James Morton Burris, 512 S.W.3d 239 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 2× “The penalty imposed, imprisonment for a period of time not to exceed six months, conforms with the definition of a misdemeanor stated in Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (1991), which provides, “.”
In re Sneed, 302 S.W.3d 825 (Tenn. 2010). · cites it 2× “See Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (2006); but see State v.”
Robinson v. Fulliton, 140 S.W.3d 304 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2003). · cites it 3× “She points out that Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-11-110 provides for the definition of “misdemeanor,” stating that “[a]ll violations of the law punishable by fine or confinement for less than one (1) year, or both, are denominated misdemeanors.”
State v. Tait, 114 S.W.3d 518 (Tenn. 2003). · cites it 2× “” Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (1997). Aside from a few statutory exceptions, all prosecutions for misdemeanors must be commenced within twelve months of the commission of the offense.”
State v. Moya, 161 P.3d 862 (N.M. 2007). · cites it 2× “2006); NMSA 1978, § 30-1-6(A) (1963); Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (1997). Therefore, in these states, and in Puerto Rico, it is possible to have a crime classified as a felony that does not satisfy Section 31-18-17(D)(2)(b) because the maximum punishment for conviction of such…”
Edith Wenczl Simpkins v. Otto Kent Simpkins, 374 S.W.3d 413 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 2× “2002) (holding inapplicable to a criminal contempt conviction arising from a civil matter that portion of the misdemeanor sentencing provision requiring the trial court to fix a percentage of the sentence to serve, and that statutory provision allowing a misdemeanant to earn…”
State v. Sowder, 826 S.W.2d 924 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1991). · cites it 2× “T.C.A. § 39-11-110 (at the time of this offense, codified at T.”
Brown v. Latham, 914 S.W.2d 887 (Tenn. 1996). · cites it 2× “2 The penalty imposed, imprisonment for a period of time not to exceed six months, conforms with the definition of a misdemeanor stated in Tenn.Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (1991), which provides, “.”
Jones v. State, 23 A.3d 880 (Md. 2011). “Laws § 11-1-2 (2002); Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (2010); Wash.”
Kisha Dean Trezevant v. Stanley H. Trezevant, III (Tenn. Ct. App. 2024). · cites it 9× “” Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 . The crux of Husband’s argument is that, because criminal contempt is punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both, not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.”
State of Tennessee v. Adrian Hill (Tenn. Crim. App. 2012). · cites it 4× “The penalty imposed, imprisonment for a period of time not to exceed six months, conforms with the definition of a misdemeanor stated in Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-11-110 (1991), which provides, “.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.