Court of Criminal Appeals hears post-conviction challenge in Christopher Bassett case over counsel's handling of prescription and expert evidence

The Knoxville panel of the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals heard oral argument in Christopher Bassett v. State of Tennessee on claims that trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by failing to introduce a prescription and by not consulting expert witnesses, appellant counsel Daniel Bell said.

The argument, held before Presiding Judge Robert Montgomery, Judge Tom Greenholtz and Judge Kyle Hickson, focused on two narrow issues in a larger murder case that included multiple co-defendants and an extended trial: whether counsel should have developed evidence that Bassett was under the influence of prescription medication when he gave a statement, and whether counsel should have retained experts — including a false-confession expert and a crime-scene/forensic expert — to challenge the State's case.

The question matters because, Bell told the court, the defendant’s own recorded statement was a central piece of evidence at trial. Bell said he was appointed to the post-conviction matter on Oct. 4, 2023; the petition to move forward was due Nov. 7, and an extension request was denied, leaving limited time and resources to obtain experts…