MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WGNS News) - According to court documents filed by the Clerk of the Appellate Courts last Friday (July 31, 2026), a now 64-year-old man convicted of his ninth DUI has lost an appeal challenging an 11-year prison sentence handed down in Rutherford County.
Alexander Mhlanga appealed his sentence to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals after entering an open guilty plea to DUI, ninth offense; DUI per se, ninth offense; and driving on a revoked license, second offense or more. Following a sentencing hearing, the Rutherford County Circuit Court ordered Mhlanga to serve an effective 11-year sentence as a Range III, persistent offender, at a 100 percent service rate.
The case dates back to May 15, 2022. According to the appellate opinion, two concerned citizens flagged down then-Smyrna Police Officer Brandon Bains while he was traveling along Enon Springs Road West. The witnesses reportedly told Bains they had seen Mhlanga driving erratically before his vehicle struck a curb in front of 400 Enon Springs Road West, damaging tires on the passenger side.
When Bains located Mhlanga, he was reportedly sitting in the driver's seat of a running vehicle in the driveway of a residence that was not his. The officer reported smelling alcohol and seeing an unopened alcoholic beverage in the front passenger seat. Mhlanga subsequently performed unsatisfactorily on field sobriety testing, according to the court record.
At the sentencing hearing, Bains testified that a citizen told him Mhlanga had nearly struck a telephone pole, jumped a curb and pulled into a residence that did not belong to him. Bains said Mhlanga appeared disheveled, had red and watery eyes and smelled of alcohol. Three tires on the vehicle were damaged. Blood later tested by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation showed an alcohol concentration of 0.241 — approximately three times Tennessee's 0.08 legal threshold referenced in the opinion.
The court record details a lengthy history of previous DUI convictions stretching back more than two decades. Prior DUI pleas cited in the case included convictions in Davidson and Montgomery counties dating from August 2002 through November 2017. The 2022 Rutherford County case was identified as Mhlanga's ninth DUI offense.
Mhlanga pleaded guilty as charged on March 5, 2025, after having been indicted by a Rutherford County grand jury on April 3, 2023.
During his May 22, 2025 sentencing hearing, Mhlanga acknowledged that his relationship with alcohol was "not a good [one]" and admitted drinking before driving on the night of the Rutherford County offense. He testified that he had consumed one margarita, became lost on his return trip from Winchester and eventually found himself with three flat tires. He also acknowledged multiple prior DUI convictions and admitted he was on parole when the 2022 offense occurred.
Mhlanga told the court he had remained alcohol-free while on bond and had complied with an alcohol-monitoring requirement for approximately three years. He asked to be placed on probation with continued alcohol monitoring, saying he was remorseful and had begun relying on Uber, buses, friends and coworkers for transportation.
However, prosecutors argued Mhlanga was not a favorable candidate for an alternative sentence because of his prior felony history and repeated periods of incarceration or supervision. The State sought a Range III sentence of between 10 and 15 years at a 100 percent service rate. Mhlanga requested a 10-year split-confinement sentence followed by probation and electronic monitoring. The prosecution maintained probation was unavailable, although it conceded that community corrections could be considered.
The trial court ultimately imposed an effective 11-year prison sentence. In reaching that decision, the court cited Mhlanga's criminal history beyond what was necessary to establish his sentencing range and the fact that the Rutherford County DUI occurred while he was on parole. The court also considered his employment history and his age, which was 63 at the time of sentencing.
The judge expressed concerns about Mhlanga's credibility and prospects for rehabilitation, pointing to his insistence that he had consumed only one margarita despite a blood alcohol level of approximately 0.24. The trial court also noted that Mhlanga had accumulated eight previous DUI convictions and had already received numerous opportunities through incarceration and alternative sentencing.
On appeal, Mhlanga argued that the Rutherford County court abused its discretion by refusing alternative sentencing and by failing to properly consider his eligibility for community corrections, regardless of the total length of his prison sentence. The State argued the trial judge had acted within his discretion.
The Court of Criminal Appeals sided with the State.
The appellate judges found that the Rutherford County court had considered Mhlanga's eligibility and suitability for community corrections and other sentencing alternatives. The appellate court noted that the judge concluded confinement was necessary because of Mhlanga's lengthy criminal history, the seriousness of a ninth DUI offense and the fact that less-restrictive measures had repeatedly been unsuccessful.
The appellate opinion also emphasized Mhlanga's roughly 30-year criminal history, unsuccessful attempts at alternative sentencing and concerns about his credibility. The Court of Criminal Appeals concluded that Mhlanga failed to establish an abuse of discretion and was not entitled to relief. The Rutherford County judgments and 11-year sentence were affirmed.
The appeal, State of Tennessee v. Alexander Mhlanga, was heard by Judges Steven W. Sword, Robert L. Holloway Jr. and Timothy L. Easter. The case was assigned on briefs May 12, 2026, under appellate case number M2025-00958-CCA-R3-CD.
