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Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 29
RULE 29. MOTION FOR JUDGMENT OF ACQUITTAL
(a) Motion Before Submission to Jury. Motions for directed verdict are abolished and motions for judgment of acquittal shall be used in their place. The court on motion of a defendant or of its own motion shall order the entry of judgment of acquittal of one or more offenses charged in the indictment or information after the evidence on either side is closed if the evidence is insufficient to sustain a conviction of such offense or offenses. If a defendant's motion for judgment of acquittal at the close of the evidence offered by the State is not granted, the defendant may offer evidence without having reserved the right.
(b) Reservation of Decision on Motion. If a motion for judgment of acquittal is made at the close of all the evidence, the court may reserve decision on the motion, submit the case to the jury and decide the motion either before the jury returns a verdict or after it returns a verdict of guilty or is discharged without having returned a verdict.
(c) Motion After Discharge of Jury. If the jury returns a verdict of guilty or is discharged without having returned a verdict, a motion for judgment of acquittal may be made or renewed within 30 days of the date the order of sentence is entered or within such further time as the court may fix during the 30-day period. If the jury is discharged without having returned a verdict the 30-day period shall begin to run from the date the jury is discharged. If a verdict of guilty is returned the court may on such motion, set aside the verdict and after disposing of a motion for a new trial enter judgment of acquittal. The State shall have the right of appeal where the Court sets aside a verdict of guilty and enters a judgment of acquittal.
[Amended effective October 1, 1985.]
This rule replaces T.C.A. §40-2529 and is substantially the same as the federal rule.
Thirty days is allowed after a verdict of guilty or mistrial within which to move for a judgment of acquittal. This time period was selected to conform to that allowed for filing a motion for a new trial, and it is permissible to file the two together; indeed, the Commission anticipates that this will be the case. The same time period of thirty days applies to motions for judgment of acquittal, motions for new trials, and motions in arrest of judgment. They may be filed in any order or together, without any waiver, but all must come within the thirty days after verdict.
Comment to 1985 Amendment
The amendment to Rule 29(c) changes the time within which a motion for judgment of acquittal must be filed with the court. Under the prior rule the motion had to be filed within 30 days of the verdict. This period was selected to conform to similar periods for a motion in arrest of judgment and a motion for a new trial. Since the time for these motions has now been altered to thirty days from sentence a similar alteration is required for a motion for judgment of acquittal.