Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301 (2026)
Fixing of fine by court or jury
✓ current as of May 2026
- (a) Where the offense is punishable by a fine of fifty dollars ($50.00) or less, the court shall fix the fine in accordance with § 40-35-111.
- (b) In a case where the range of punishment includes a fine in excess of fifty dollars ($50.00), the jury finding the defendant guilty shall also fix the fine, if any, in excess of fifty dollars ($50.00). The jury shall report such fine with a verdict of guilty. When imposing sentence, after the sentencing hearing, the court shall impose a fine, if any, not to exceed the fine fixed by the jury. The defendant may waive the right to have a jury fix the fine and agree that the court fix it, in which case the court may lawfully fix the fine at any amount that the jury could have. If a plea agreement imposing a fine in excess of fifty dollars ($50.00) and the defendant's written waiver of the constitutional right to have a jury fix the fine are accepted by the court, the court may pronounce sentence, including the fine, without a jury. If the conviction is upon a guilty plea and there is no jury waiver as provided in this subsection (b), a jury shall be impaneled to fix the fine, if any, to be imposed by the court in an amount not to exceed the fine fixed by the jury.
Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 6.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 63
cases (14 in the last 5 years), 1983–2026 · leading case: State v. Bryant, 805 S.W.2d 762 (Tenn. 1991).
State v. Bryant, 805 S.W.2d 762 (Tenn. 1991). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301 (1982) (emphasis added).”
State v. Alvarado, 961 S.W.2d 136 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1996). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301 ; State v. Mahoney, 874 S.”
State v. Green, 995 S.W.2d 591 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1998). “1041, an amendment to § 40-35-201, which deletes subsection (b) in its entirety and substitutes the following: In all contested criminal cases, except for capital crimes which are governed by the procedures contained in TCÁ §§ 39-13-204 and 39-13-205, and as necessary to comply…”
State v. Blevins, 968 S.W.2d 888 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1997). “See T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b). The trial court’s imposition of a fine, if any, is to be based upon the factors and principles of the 1989 Sentencing Act, such as, prior history, potential for rehabilitation, financial means, and mitigating and enhancing factors, that are relevant to…”
State v. King, 973 S.W.2d 586 (Tenn. 1998). “1041, an amendment to § 40-35-201 which deletes subsection (b) in its entirety and substitutes the following: In all contested criminal cases, except for capital crimes which are governed by the procedures contained in TCA §§ 39-13-204 and 39-13-205, and as necessary to comply…”
State v. Durso, 645 S.W.2d 753 (Tenn. 1983). “See especially T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b), providing that upon waiver of a jury, the trial judge may lawfully “fix the fine at any amount which the jury could have.”
State v. Sanders, 735 S.W.2d 856 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1987). “Absent one of these ex ceptions a trial judge must follow the procedure mandated by T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b). Since neither of these exceptions appears in the record presented to us for review, we are of the opinion the trial judge exceeded his jurisdiction in fining the defendant…”
State v. Godsey, 165 S.W.3d 667 (Tenn. Crim. App. 2004). “The Tennessee constitution requires that a jury fix the fíne where the fine is assessed as punishment for an offense and is in excess of fifty dollars.”
State v. Thomas, 691 S.W.2d 571 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1985). “T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b) provides that in the absence of a waiver of the right to have a jury fix the fine, the trial court may not impose a fine which exceeds that fixed by the jury.”
Anthony Perry v. Tennessee Dep't of Corr. (Tenn. Ct. App. 2022). “]” Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301 (a) (“Except as provided in subsection (c) and with respect to fines as provided in § 40-35-301, sentences in felony and misdemeanor cases shall be imposed by the court.”
State of Tennessee v. Eric D. Crenshaw (Tenn. Crim. App. 2016). “VI, § 14; see T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b) (2014). A “defendant may waive the right to have a jury fix the fine and agree that the court fix it, in which case the court may lawfully fix the fine at any amount that the jury could have.”
State of Tennessee v. Parnell Quinn Short (Tenn. Crim. App. 2026). “T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b) (2019). Our supreme court has said that fines imposed as part of a criminal sentence are to be reviewed in the same manner as other aspects of the sentence.”
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301(b) — 22 cases
State v. Bryant, 805 S.W.2d 762 (Tenn. 1991). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-301 (1982) (emphasis added).”
State v. Blevins, 968 S.W.2d 888 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1997). “See T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b). The trial court’s imposition of a fine, if any, is to be based upon the factors and principles of the 1989 Sentencing Act, such as, prior history, potential for rehabilitation, financial means, and mitigating and enhancing factors, that are relevant to…”
State v. Durso, 645 S.W.2d 753 (Tenn. 1983). “See especially T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b), providing that upon waiver of a jury, the trial judge may lawfully “fix the fine at any amount which the jury could have.”
State v. Sanders, 735 S.W.2d 856 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1987). “Absent one of these ex ceptions a trial judge must follow the procedure mandated by T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b). Since neither of these exceptions appears in the record presented to us for review, we are of the opinion the trial judge exceeded his jurisdiction in fining the defendant…”
State v. Thomas, 691 S.W.2d 571 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1985). “T.C.A. § 40-35-301(b) provides that in the absence of a waiver of the right to have a jury fix the fine, the trial court may not impose a fine which exceeds that fixed by the jury.”
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