Shelby County Commission Overrides Mayor Luttrell’s Veto of Opioid Lawsuit

The Shelby County Commission voted on Wednesday to override vetoes by Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell of two resolutions passed by the commission earlier this month. One resolution officially confirmed Commission chairwoman’ Heidi Shafer’s hiring of an out-of-state law firm to file an opioid abuse lawsuit against manufacturers and distributors on behalf of the county. The second resolution “instructed the mayor to stop suing the commission in Chancery Court for control of the lawsuit; and approved the use of taxpayer dollars to fund the commissioners’ legal defense against the mayor’s lawsuit,” the Commercial Appeal reported. “The Shelby County Commission and Shelby County sued several pharmaceutical companies in Shelby County Circuit Court on Thursday, alleging illegal abuse in their manufacture, sale, and distribution of opioids,” The Tennessee Star reported on November 6: “It’s not just the drug companies. It’s also the distributors, including pharmacies and the doctors writing the prescription that are being sued,” Heidi Shafer, chairman of the Shelby County Commission tells The Tennessee Star in an exclusive interview. “The lawsuit is very narrowly tailored only to go after those who are abusing,” Shafer adds. “About 80 counties around the country are already suing the companies involved in opioid abuse,” Shafer says.…

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Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell Now Suing All 13 Shelby County Commissioners to Stop the Opioid Abuse Lawsuit They Filed

Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell is now suing all thirteen Shelby County Commissioners to stop the opioid abuse lawsuit they filed earlier this month. But on Monday, the Shelby County Commission hit back, and voted “to direct Mayor Mark Luttrell to drop a lawsuit against its chairwoman over who controls an opioid lawsuit against Big Pharma,” the Commercial Appeal reported. “It’s a blatant bully tactic to try to scare commissioners into believing that they don’t have the right to vote and act as a check and balance on the executive branch,” Shelby County Commission Chairwoman Heidi Shafer told The Tennesssee Star in an exclusive interview late Monday. “I was proud of the commission for standing up to such bullying tactics,” Shafer told The Star. “The commission voted 8-5 to approve the resolution, which was added on to the agenda an hour into Monday’s meeting. The resolution also directs the administration not to file any lawsuits without prior approval from a majority of the commissioners,” as the Commercial Appeal reported, adding: Luttrell’s administration sued chairwoman Heidi Shafer and the commission on Nov. 6 for her decision to hire law firm New York-based Napoli Shkolnik, known for winning a huge class-action settlement for sick Ground Zero workers,…

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Shelby County Commission Slaps Down Mayor Mark Luttrell’s Attempt to Stop Opioid Abuse Lawsuit

On Wednesday the Shelby County Commission slapped down an attempt by Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell to stop the opioid abuse lawsuit it filed last week, voting 8 to 0 “to immediately move forward in suing opioid manufacturers and distributors.” “Why Mayor Luttrell would want to drag his feet for two years when Tennessee’s opioid prescription rate is the second highest in the United States is a mystery to me,” Shelby County Commission Chairwoman Heidi Shafer tells The Star in an exclusive interview. “We have more prescriptions for opioids than we have people. Who benefits from that?” Shafer asks, adding: Not the babies born addicted. Not the elderly who are routinely prescribed these addictive drugs and becoming hooked. Not the hospitals, schools, and law enforcment. Not the taxpayers! “It looks like the Swamp does not exist only in Washington, D.C. It looks like we have a Swamp right here in Memphis,” Shafer says. The commission’s vote “comes ahead of a Tuesday, Nov. 14, hearing in Chancery Court on county mayor Mark Luttrell’s lawsuit against Shafer. Luttrell claims Shafer violated the county charter by acting unilaterally to hire a law firm,” the Memphis Daily News reported: Commissioner Terry Roland said the commission’s ratification vote…

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Mark Luttrell, Mayor of Tennessee’s Largest County, Endorses Randy Boyd For Governor

  Republican Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell endorsed gubernatorial candidate and former state head of economic development (ECD) Randy Boyd Wednesday. Shelby County is Tennessee’s largest with a population of over 900,000. The connection between Luttrell and Boyd goes back not just to their small-town rural roots in West Tennessee, but to economic and community development projects like the joint state and local infrastructure investment project for the area surrounding St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital. Luttrell switched his support to Boyd from state Senator Mark Norris (R-Collierville), when Norris accepted the nomination from President Donald Trump to a federal judgeship, according to The Commercial Appeal. Boyd, after leaving his state ECD position in January, was the first to announce his intention to run for governor to replace term-limited Bill Haslam, but since then Franklin businessman Bill Lee, state Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) and House Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) have entered the race and the expectation is that U.S. Congresswoman Diane Black (TN-06) will be announcing shortly. Luttrell was one of 12 candidates to run in the 2016 Republican primary for Tennessee’s 8th Congressional District, a seat held at that time by Stephen Fincher, but lost to David Kustoff with 27.4…

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