Tennessee appeals court hears post-conviction claim over counsel’s choice not to retain expert, objections in 2015 murder conviction

The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, sitting in Jackson during its September docket, heard argument in the post‑conviction appeal of Quadarius Bufford, who was convicted in 2015 of first‑degree murder and related child‑abuse counts. Petitioner’s counsel told the court the main grounds are ineffective assistance of counsel: failure to retain a medical expert, failure to object to references at trial that defense counsel says suggested sexual abuse, and failure to raise alleged prosecutorial misconduct on direct appeal.

The issues matter because they bear on whether Bufford is entitled to a new evidentiary review of his claims and on practical questions about funding experts in noncapital post‑conviction proceedings. “My name is Cynthia Chandler with Chandler Law Firm over in Medina, Tennessee. I am the court appointed counsel for Quadarius Bufford,” Chandler told the panel, arguing that trial counsel’s decisions deprived the defendant of a full and fair post‑conviction hearing.

Chandler told the court trial counsel consulted Dr. Lisa Piercy, a locally known medical expert, who preliminarily told counsel the medical records supported an accidental explanation for the child’s injuries.…