According to a study published earlier in June, two Tennessee towns are ranked among the top 25 safest suburbs in America.
According to SmartAsset, Brentwood and Franklin rank are two of the safest suburbs in the country.
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Tennessee’s House Majority Whip Johnny Garrett (R-Goodlettsville) told The Tennessee Star Thursday that he has spoken directly to Gov. Bill Lee (R) and that he will not be supporting Lee’s agenda to implement red flag laws during the upcoming special session of the General Assembly.
“There is no red flag proposal from Gov. Lee to consider as our caucus will not support the destruction of our citizens’ constitutional rights,” said Garrett. “I have been in contact with the governor and have expressed the desire to address mental illness through treatment and resources for those who may be a threat to themselves and others. These conversations will continue, and we’ll determine the best ways we can help these individuals in crisis while improving public safety in communities across our state.”
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After a heated meeting that loosened the qualification guidelines for hiring the school district’s next superintendent, the vice chair of the Board for Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) resigned from her post.
The meeting was described as “heated and plagued with parliamentary issues,” and ultimately led to the resignation of Vice Chair Sheleah Harris.
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District Attorney General Chris Stanford of the 31st Judicial District cleared and commended a Warren County woman who Monday shot and killed a man he says was intent on harming her and her children.
Warren County Sheriff’s Department and McMinnville City Police Department responded to a shooting in McMinnville Monday, and found that a man called Maurice Malone had been shot in the chest one time. He died of his injuries.
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The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) said it is investigating the shooting of a suspect who fled during a traffic stop and ultimately ended up shooting and striking a police officer.
“Preliminary information indicates that just before midnight, an officer with the Selmer Police Department initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle observed speeding along Highway 64,” according to a TBI release.
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Researchers at Vanderbilt University have been granted $3.2 million from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to research children’s mental health, according to the university.
“A four-year, $3.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health will support the research of Carolyn Heinrich, University Distinguished Professor of Leadership, Policy and Organizations, and Melinda Buntin, University Distinguished Professor of Health Policy, into how school-based health interventions affect children’s mental health and education outcomes,” Vanderbilt announced last month. “Schools are serving children with ever-increasing mental health needs, which were amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic. U.S. public schools serve as the primary entry point to mental health services for children, and school-based health centers, or SBHCs, increasingly are a ‘medical home’ for vulnerable children.”
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A Knoxville postal worker was reportedly robbed at gunpoint on June 10, as violence against United States Postal Service (USPS) employees skyrocket.
The suspect, who is still at large, allegedly robbed the postman of his “arrow key,” the universal key for the USPS’ ubiquitous blue boxes.
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According to a Monday report, LGBT groups in Tennessee will be helping residents who believe their gender is different from their biological sex obtain new legal names.
The report comes as SB 1440, which defines “sex” as “biological sex” is set to take effect in the state.
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Gov. Bill Lee (R) Monday released a proclamation marking June as “Great Outdoors Month” in Tennessee.
“From Mountain City to Memphis, Tennessee is blessed with an abundance of beauty & rich natural resources. I’m proud to proclaim this June “Great Outdoors Month” & celebrate our commitment to preserving Tennessee’s outdoor heritage for future generations,” Lee said on Twitter.
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After employing an elaborate scheme to smuggle drugs into a Tennessee correctional facility, a man faces over seven years in prison after one of the recipients of his smuggled narcotics overdosed and died.
“On June 8, 2023, Michael Wayne Lee, 45 of Blaine, Tennessee, was sentenced to 87 months in prison by the Honorable Clifton Corker, United States District Judge, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville,” according to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee. “Following his imprisonment, Lee will be on supervised release for three years.”
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Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti’s office responded Thursday to a report from conservative Daily Wire commentator and filmmaker Matt Walsh, saying that companies operating in Tennessee are allegedly writing bogus diagnoses of gender dysphoria in order to help people obtain sex change surgeries via insurance.
Walsh noted that these alleged scammers are operating in Tennessee, prompting The Tennessee Star to ask the Attorney General’s office for a comment.
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A massive electric vehicle battery company broke ground in Clarksville earlier this week, prompting praise from officials statewide.
Korean company Dongwha officially began its construction Tuesday.
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The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) Wednesday announced that it identified human remains from a cold case murder from 1986.
“On August 24, 1986, skeletal remains were discovered by hunters along an isolated and abandoned trail in the Caney Valley area of Claiborne County. TBI agents began working alongside the Claiborne County Sheriff’s Office in investigating the death,” TBI said. “Forensic anthropologists determined that the skeletal remains were those of a white male, likely between the age of 30 and 40. The victim had been shot, and his death was ruled a homicide.”
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According to a poll published by co/efficient, the vast majority of Tennesseans would prefer that dangerous people are removed from society, rather than removing guns from the hands of potentially dangerous people.
“In the poll, Tennessee voters dramatically retreat from their soft support of proposed Red Flag Laws and do not see this as the solution to their safety concerns when informed that Red Flag Laws merely take guns away from dangerous individuals but do nothing to prevent them from causing harm by some other means. Red Flag Law support erodes even further when informed that there are existing laws to take threatening individuals out of the community right now,” the poll said. “Tennesseans largely support recently passed legislation that puts police officers in schools and believe enforcing the current laws on the books is an effective solution to keeping their families, communities, and state safe.”
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The Tennessee National Guard is launching a new fitness initiative to help guardsmen achieve their fitness goals, according to a Tuesday release.
“The Tennessee National Guard launched the pilot program of GRIT, Guard Readiness Improvement Training, at the Volunteer Training Site in Smyrna in May,” according to the release.
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A Christian group organized with the far-left anti-gun group “March for Our Lives” last week to advocate for gun control in Franklin.
The Southern Christian Coalition partnered with the David Hogg founded group to host the rally, which was dubbed “Protect Kids Not Guns,” according to The Williamson Herald.
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The Memphis Police Department (MPD) shared a post on its Facebook Page celebrating its involvement with LGBT organizers during “pride month.”
“The Memphis Police Department joined community leaders, visitors, and participants for the 2023 Mid-South Pride Parade on Beale Street,” MPD said on Facebook. “Officers ensured the safety of everyone and provided traffic control around today’s events. The weather was perfect, and the food was excellent.”
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United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) confirmed for The Tennessee Star that the man arrested for a litany of crimes in Memphis last week was an illegal alien.
“ICE issued an immigration detainer on May 31 for Honduran national Jairo Ponce, 29, following his arrest by the Memphis Police Department on charges of aggravated robbery, carjacking, aggravated assault on a first responder, employment of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony and evading arrest,” an ICE spokesperson told The Star Friday. “On an unknown date and location, Ponce entered the United States without being admitted or paroled by an immigration official.”
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A new LGBT organization being highlighted in Nashville news is a project of an incubator run by a local Christian organization.
NewsChannel5 ran a story on Inclusion Tennessee, a radically pro-LGBT group.
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According to a memo from Republican Governor Bill Lee’s office on the subject of gun control, those in Lee’s camp believe that attempting it is not possible to contain mental illness, and thus his proposal for red flag laws should be implemented.
One of the memos, obtained via public records request by The Associated Press, claims that Lee accused the National Rifle Association (NRA) of wanting to use involuntary commitment laws “to round up mentally ill people and deprive them of other liberties.”
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The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) broke ground on the city’s ninth precinct this week, which will be located in Southeast Nashville.
“We need a police station here and this is going to help a lot,” said MNPD Police Chief John Drake reportedly said.
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As “pride month” kicks off across the country, Tennessee’s Democrats took to social media to show their support for the gay pride agenda.
State Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari (D-District 29) retweeted a tweet by Sesame Street – a supposed children’s show – celebrating gay pride.
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Nashville Pride, which has several events upcoming during the month of June, is sponsored by big name brands including the Tennessee Titans, Vanderbilt Health and others, according to its website.
Both Bridgestone and Nissan, who have huge presences in Tennessee, are listed on the site as “presenting partners” of this year’s pride activities. Nissan also sponsors the Tennessee Titans football stadium.
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A Memphis man was sentenced to nine years in federal prison in connection with armed robberies of several postal workers.
“Sidney Poitier Pilcher, Jr., a/k/a Slimey Sidd, 21, has been sentenced to over nine years in federal prison for aiding and abetting in the robbery of postal carriers while brandishing a firearm,” according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of Tennessee.
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In the wake of The Covenant School shooting, a far-left reverend from Seattle has been working in Nashville to teach students how to protest.
“Reverend Osagyefo Sekou came to Nashville to work with the Dores Worker Solidarity Network [DWSN] on April 13,” according to Vanderbilt University’s website.
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The Beacon Center of Tennessee announced Thursday that it has hired Wen Fa, a nationally renowned attorney, as its Director of Legal Affairs.
“Fa joins Beacon from the Pacific Legal Foundation, where he served as a senior attorney in PLF’s equality and opportunity program,” according to a press release. “Fa led the expansion of PLF’s equality project by litigating numerous cases and securing important victories for farmers and entrepreneurs fighting for economic opportunity and against racial discrimination.”
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According to State Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville), also a candidate for mayor of Nashville, Gov. Bill Lee (R) met with Campbell before he announced his August special session of the General Assembly, which will focus on gun control.
“I met with the Governor prior to his announcement of the special session but have not heard from him about this bill package,” Campbell told The Tennessee Star Friday. “My office would welcome the opportunity.”
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According to multiple Thursday reports, the Clarksville-Montgomery County School System (CMCSs) is filing a lawsuit against several Silicon Valley titans of industry, claiming that social media is having a debilitating effect on its students.
The Frantz Law Group of California, working with the Tennessee law firm Lewis Thomason, filed the lawsuit the week of May 8, according to ClarksvilleNow.com. The defendants in the suit include Facebook, Google, Instagram, Meta, Snapchat, TikTok, WhatsApp and YouTube.
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After President Joe Biden said he would invoke the 14th Amendment if Congress did not agree to raise the debt ceiling, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti led other state attorneys general from across the country in telling Biden that such an action would be unlawful.
“We, the undersigned chief legal officers of 19 states, write in response to your recent assertion that you have the authority to ignore federal law and raise the debt ceiling without congressional approval,” Skrmetti wrote in letter signed by 19 other state attorneys general. “You do not. Our constitutional system may be frustrating at times, but it is the fundamental guarantor of American liberty, and we must all abide by the oaths we swore to defend it.”
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After The Tennessee Star exposed the far-left’s plan to disrupt and commit acts of violence during the August special session of the Tennessee General Assembly, Gov. Bill Lee’s office could not even be reached for comment.
The Star followed up with Lee’s office on its series of exclusive reporting of audio obtained from inside a far-left gathering hosted by Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood, but the phone number for Lee’s spokesperson goes directly to a voicemail box that is full, and cannot take new messages.
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United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said it is committed to maintaining peace ahead of August’s special session of the Tennessee General Assembly after far-left agitators said they plan to wreak havoc at ICE’s Nashville office.
Last week, The Tennessee Star reported that left-wing activists plan to protest outside ICE, and that one of their tactics is to disable ICE vehicles.
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After The Tennessee Star last week reported that far-left agitators plan to disable U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) vehicles while violently rioting during August’s special session of the legislature, The Star reached out to ICE to see if the law enforcement entity had any plans to quell the potential rioters.
After multiple comment requests and a promise to provide a statement, the agency did not respond to The Star’s inquiry.
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According to the Tennessee Department of Military, a Tennessee National Guard Unit, the 267th Military Police Company, will soon deploy to the Middle East.
“The 267th, headquartered in Dickson and with a detachment in Waverly, is a military police unit comprised of National Guardsmen trained in various security, policing, detention, and combat functions which enables the Army to maneuver freely, provide protection to the force, and promote the rule of law,” the Tennessee Department of Military said in a release. “The unit is initially deploying to Kuwait and then sending teams to countries throughout the Middle East to support other forward deployed military units.”
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A lawyer from the conservative Heritage Foundation says that she is “floored” after a Tennessee man who returned fire on multiple assailants was charged with reckless endangerment.
“I’m floored that the home owner here is being charged with ‘reckless endangerment.’ The arguments from police seem absurd on their face to me. The only people he endangered were…the ones shooting at him. And he’s 100% entitled to ‘endanger’ them,” said Heritage Senior Legal Fellow Amy Swearer.
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Gov. Bill Lee (R) has earned high praise from Democrats in the state after announcing his August special session that will be dedicated to gun control.
According to NBC, the governor has some new allies, including Democrat elected officials and members of anti-Second Amendment groups.
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In secretly obtained recordings of a training session for far-left activists held Saturday in Nashville, participants said communities would be safer without any police at all.
During a part of the training hosted by Katia Carillo, who runs a small upstart community group called Conmigo, Carillo asked the trainees what their perfect utopian communities would look like.
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A former Nashville Public Radio reporter spoke at a far-left activist planning session as left-wing agitators plan to disrupt August’s special session of the Tennessee General Assembly.
The Tennessee Star received secret audio recordings of the meeting, and has reported extensively on the contents of those recordings.
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After obtaining a secret audio recording from a far-left Saturday activist planning session in Nashville, The Tennessee Star can reveal locations wherein left-wing agitators plan to wreak havoc during August’s special session of the Tennessee General Assembly.
Those locations include Amazon’s Nashville office, the Lee Company, owned by Gov. Bill Lee (R), and the Metro Council.
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After obtaining secret recordings from an activism planning session held by Planned Parenthood’s political advocacy arm in Tennessee, The Tennessee Star learned that far-left agitators are planning to disable U.S. Customs and Immigration (ICE) vehicles during August’s special session of the General Assembly.
During the day-long training, which was held Saturday at 50 Vantage Way in Nashville, where Planned Parenthood has an office, the will-be protestors surveyed the danger levels of protesting at various places in the city.
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In secretly recorded audio files from a Saturday planning session among far-leftists in Nashville obtained by The Tennessee Star, left-wing agitators say they plan to “bird dog” Republican lawmakers during August’s special session of the General Assembly.
Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood held a training session for activists in Nashville, which was run by Julie Edwards, the organization’s advocacy & organizing manager, along with the organization’s Executive Director Francie Hunt.
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The Tennessee Star has obtained audio of a group of far-left agitators who met over the weekend to discuss plans to disrupt the Tennessee legislature’s August special session on gun control.
The recording, which is nearly two hours in length, provides insight into what the political left is planning, from legitimate protesting up to and including possible acts of domestic terrorism.
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In secret audio obtained by The Tennessee Star, radical leftists who plan to “protest” the upcoming August special session of the General Assembly say they have armed security at the ready.
“Also, like there are groups in Nashville who do this – keep in mind – who like, if at any point you need armed security at a protest, there are people who we trust as a community to show up and do that,” said an organizer of the Saturday meeting.
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Gov. Bill Lee’s office did not respond to The Tennessee Star’s Monday inquiries seeking clarification on whether Lee met with Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and a group of students to discuss gun control last week.
Friday, the far-left Tennessee Holler posted a video to Twitter claiming that he was marching to Lee’s office with students to stress the urgency of implementing gun control measures during the upcoming August special legislative session.
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In what has become commonplace for the American far-left, one of its top lawyers hosted a “Democracy Summit” wherein speakers and panelists insisted that Republicans are “fascists” and that anything the political right says is “misinformation.”
David Becker, founder of the lobbying group Center for Election Innovation and Research (CEIR) which is funded by Facebook tycoon Mark Zuckerberg, organized the conference.
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In his first time speaking with reporters after his controversial calls for “order of protection” (red flag) laws, Gov. Bill Lee (R) defended his position, as well as the upcoming special legislative session that will be focused on gun control.
“It is a very important conversation that I think Tennesseans want us to have,” said Lee, according to WTVF. “We oughta find a way to separate those who are a threat to others and a threat to themselves from having access to weapons.”
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Five people who owned eight restaurants in middle Tennessee have pleaded guilty to federal crimes related to employing illegal aliens at those restaurants.
The five criminals pleaded guilty to charges of defrauding the United States via failure to pay employment taxes, among other charges.
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Ahead of August’s special session wherein Gov. Bill Lee (R) is expect to push for “Order of Protection” (red flag) laws, the governor has signed into law a bill that provides financial resources for school security measures.
Namely, HB 0322 allocates $30 million for the state to hire homeland security agents in each county to serve both public and private schools. The new law also provides $140 million for one full-time, armed School Resource Officer (SRO) for every public school in the state.
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Governor Bill Lee signed a slew of legislation into law last week, including SB0269/HB0317, which makes June 19, or “Juneteenth,” a statewide paid holiday.
The law was sponsored by State Representative William Lamberth (R-Portland) and State Senator Jack Johnson (R-Franklin) and passed through the General Assembly in mid-April.
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Police in Murfreesboro say they will not charge a homeowner shot and killed an intruder after that intruder, along with a second suspect broke into the home, used a taser on the homeowner’s dog and held a gun to one of the homeowner’s children.
“MPD Criminal Investigations Division detectives are investigating a home invasion where the homeowner shoots two intruders, killing one and injuring the other on Friday night. 52-year-old Kevin Ford was pronounced dead at the scene,” according to the police department’s Twitter account.
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A trio of Tennesseans who applied to work at the Tennessee Aquarium were turned down because they were white, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court.
Timothy Shawn Gunn and Marni Renee Pearce, both of Hamilton County along with Zachary Chance Taylor of Catoosa County, are suing the aquarium for discrimination.
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