Drug Dealer with Twenty-One Prior Felonies Convicted Again

Prosecutors in DA Charme Allen’s Felony Drug Unit obtained convictions against a drug dealer with twenty-one prior felony convictions. Randall Ledon Tate, 58, was convicted of Possession with Intent to Sell Heroin and Alprazolam in a Drug Free School Zone. Judge Steve Sword set the case for sentencing on March 27 where Tate faces at least fifteen years in prison without the possibility of parole.

In a two-day trial, Assistant District Attorneys Phil Morton and Larry Dillon explained to the jury that on November 26, 2016, Knoxville Police Department Officer David Lee stopped a vehicle driven by Tate on Linden Avenue for a broken taillight and a cracked windshield. Tate could not provide any identification and gave Ofc. Lee two fake social security numbers and dates of birth. Officers found a Xanax(alprazolam) pill in Tate’s pocket and text messages in his phone related to selling Xanax. When Tate was taken to the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Detention Facility, he was found to be in possession of 4.38 grams of heroin and twelve additional Xanax pills. KPD Organized Crime Investigator Phil Jinks obtained a search warrant for Tate’s phone which revealed text messages about the distribution of both heroin and Xanax.

Tate has twenty-one prior felony convictions accumulated over the past thirty-five years. His convictions out of Knox County, Blount County, and Queens County, New York, are for property offenses and drug distribution offenses. At sentencing, Tate faces a minimum of fifteen years in prison without the possibility of parole.

If you have any questions, please contact Sean McDermott at 865-215-2515 or Sean.McDermott@knoxcounty.org. For more information about the District Attorney’s Office, visit our website at dag.knoxcountytn.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.