Category: Tennessee

Metro City Council Votes Against Taser Upgrade for Metro Nashville Police Department

Tom Pappert

The Metro Nashville City Council voted against a new contract to purchase the latest model of Tasers for the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on Tuesday, declining what proponents claimed was the opportunity to save money on new technology that will be more expensive to taxpayers when its purchase is eventually required.

Council Member Courtney Johnston (District 26) sponsored the resolution to expand the city’s ongoing contract with Axon, the company that manufactures and supports Taser devices, to upgrade to the company’s latest model.

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Tennessee Secretary of State Certifies Presidential Candidates for 2024 Super Tuesday Ballot

Kaitlin Housler

The Tennessee Secretary of State’s Office announced it certified the names of nine Republicans and one Democratic presidential candidate for the Super Tuesday Presidential Preference Primary and County Primary Election.

The 2024 Tennessee presidential primary will be held on the same day as primaries in 14 other states on March 5, 2024, known as Super Tuesday.

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Tennessee Tech Receives Largest Grant in School History to Modernize Appalachian Region Electric Grid

Peter D'Abrosca

Tennessee Tech University announced this week that it has secured the largest grant in its 108 year history, which will be used to help bolster the electric grid in Appalachia. 

“The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) – an economic development partnership between the federal government and 13 states across Appalachia – awarded Tech a $10 million grant to lead a four-state consortium that will help rural electric utilities and energy supply companies deploy smart grid technologies to better serve their communities and address challenges such as the rolling blackouts that have impacted consumers across the country during times of peak energy usage,” according to the school.

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Libertarian Party Sues Tennessee over Ballot Access Issues

Peter D'Abrosca
Election Day

The Libertarian Party of Tennessee sued the state, claiming that a law requiring its candidates to get more than 40,000 signatures in order to be listed on general election ballots is “unduly burdensome.”

A lawsuit filed at the end of last week in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee names Secretary of State Tre Hargett and Elections Coordinator Mark Goins.

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Blackburn Grills FBI Director on Epstein Flight Logs

Peter D'Abrosca

During a Tuesday meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) grilled the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Christopher Wray, about what she said she believes is a lack of thorough investigation into an alleged high-profile sex trafficking ring run by billionaire Jeffrey Epstein.

“The last few weeks I’ve been demanding some answers on Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes, and trying to get these flight records,” said Blackburn. “I’ve offered amendments to the subpoena. I’ve kind of been stonewalled on it but I think having transparency around Jeffrey Epstein’s conduct and this massive sex trafficking ring is important. And of course you’ve had the Chairman, Sen. [Mazie] Hirono, Sen. [Jon] Ossoff, all who have mentioned our concerns with what is happening with sex trafficking.”

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Knoxville Judge Sanctioned for Holding Campaign Event Inside Courtroom in Failed Bid to Win Re-Election

Tom Pappert

The Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct issued a public reprimand of Knoxville Municipal Court Judge John R. Rosson, 75, which was published Monday. It reveals that he used a Knoxville courtroom for a campaign press conference before losing his recent re-election bid after more than three decades in office.

In the public reprimand, the board revealed Rosson “held a campaign event” in his courtroom, inviting the media to attend, in which he stood in front of the bench and “accepted an endorsement from a lawyer,” then announced a second endorsement before making what he specifically referred to as a “campaign speech.” Local media reported that both endorsements came from former opponents.

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Three Metro Nashville Police Officers Remain on Administrative Assignment over Leak of Covenant Killer Manifesto: Report

Tom Pappert

Three Metro Nashville Police (MNPD) officers remain on administrative assignment as the agency investigates the leak of three photographs showing manifesto pages written by Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, which were published by conservative comedian and commentator Steven Crowder in November, according to a Tuesday report.

The police department confirmed three officers remain on administrative assignment to Fox 17, which reported that an additional four officers returned to their normal duties in mid-November. MNPD confirmed seven officers were placed on administrative assignment on November 7.

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Man Pleads Guilty to 2018 Murder of Greater Memphis Chamber CEO After Years of Delays

Tom Pappert

McKinney Wright of Memphis pleaded guilty to second-degree murder charges in the 2018 shooting of businessman Phil Trenary on Monday, accepting the lower charge in a plea agreement that saw additional charges against him dropped.

Wright entered his guilty plea on Monday morning, with local media reporting his agreement saw prosecutors drop drug charges against him. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison, but already spent five years in a Memphis jail that will count toward his sentence.

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Tennessee Violent Crime Rate Dropped as State Put More Criminals in Prison

Tom Pappert

The number of Tennessee citizens behind bars increased in 2022, coinciding with a drop in violent crime, according to data released this week by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and numbers tracked by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).

Tennessee saw a 7.9 percent increase in the state’s prison population in 2023, according to the report. The new prisoners include 1,615 men and 125 women. Additionally, the DOJ data release notes that Tennessee is one of only four states that saw more than 1,500 new prisoners during 2022, joined by Texas, Florida, Mississippi.

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University of Memphis Silent on Whether it Will Allow Player Who Plead Down Nine Gun Charges Back on Basketball Team

Peter D'Abrosca
Mikey Williams Basketball

The University of Memphis (UM) would not say Saturday whether it plans to allow Mikey Williams, a star basketball player, to return to the team after he pleaded guilty Thursday to a felony gun charge in order to avoid prison time. 

According to several reports, Williams pleaded guilty to one felony count of making a criminal threat stemming from am April shooting outside his California home. 

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DOJ Joins ACLU In Attacking Tennessee over Law Meant to Stop Spread of HIV

Peter D'Abrosca
Gay Couple

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday that the enforcement of a Tennessee law meant to prevent the knowing spread of HIV violates the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

“Tennessee’s aggravated prostitution law is outdated, has no basis in science, discourages testing and further marginalizes people living with HIV,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, according to a DOJ press release. “People living with HIV should not be treated as violent sex offenders for the rest of their lives solely because of their HIV status. The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities are protected from discrimination.”

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Report: Tennessee Transit Lacks Dedicated Funding Sources

The Center Square
Music City Star

Tennessee has two of the four among the largest 50 metro cities that doesn’t have set tax funding for transit agencies, according to a new report.

ThinkTennessee found Nashville and Memphis join Orlando and Hartford as the only four that don’t have dedicated transit funding. The report showed that 39 of those cities collect sales tax to fund transit with those taxes ranging from 0.375% to 2% bringing in an average $394 million annually.

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Shelby County Judge Behind Zero Bond Release of Teen Murder Suspect Asks Defendants to Write Essays About Guns

Tom Pappert
Judge Bill Anderson

Shelby County General Sessions Court Judge Bill Anderson responded to criticism over his decision to release alleged murder Edio White, 18, with zero bond, in a media appearance on Thursday. During the interview, Anderson held a stack of notebook papers toward the camera and called them “essays” about gun ownership that he requires defendants to write before they are granted bond.

“These are my essays that I get from every single defendant,” said Anderson. The judge requires defendants to write essays explaining why a young person in Memphis would desire to carry a weapon, the outlet reported.

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Jackson Mayor Questions How School Choice Helps Students, but Majority of His Students Fail to Meet Tennessee Standards

Tom Pappert
Mayor Scott Conger

Jackson Mayor Scott Conger questioned the utility of the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which would offer universal school choice in Tennessee, in a post on social media, even as Tennessee state data reveals the vast majority of students in his city are failing to meet the state’s education standards.

Conger wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that “average annual tuition for private schools” in Jackson “is $9,227,” and questioned, “How is a $7,000 voucher going to help economically disadvantaged student?” Conger claimed lawmakers instead should “[f]und early childhood education” to “change educational outcomes.”

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After Recent Trip to Israel TN State Rep. Gino Bulso Says Biggest Need for Communities Attacked by Hamas Is a Freestanding Emergency Room

Kaitlin Housler

Tennessee State Representative Gino Bulso (R-Brentwood) sat down with the Editor-in-Chief and CEO of The Tennessee Star Michael Patrick Leahy in the latest episode of The Tennessee Star Extra to discuss his recent overseas trip to Israel following the terrorist group Hamas’ October 7 attack on the country that left around 1,200 Israelis dead.

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Tennessee State Senator Says Crime Is ‘Out of Control’ in Memphis

Peter D'Abrosca
State Senator Brent Taylor Fox News

A Tennessee State Senator joined “Fox & Friends First” Friday morning to discuss violent crime in Memphis, which has been the subject of national news and viral videos in recent weeks. 

“It’s really bad here, Todd,” State Sen. Brent Taylor (R-Memphis) told Fox News’ Todd Piro. “The crime is really out of control here in Memphis. Matter of fact, just last week I sent a letter to the governor asking him to send in additional state troopers to Shelby County. Just in a weekend, Todd, we had 21 shootings, five murders, four smash-and-grabs, we had a FedEx truck stopped in traffic by a group of people that then opened up the back of the truck and looted the back of the FedEx truck.”

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Anti-Israel, Pro-Palestine Rally Planned for After Dark in Nashville on Saturday

Kaitlin Housler

Another pro-Palestine, anti-Israel rally will be held in downtown Nashville this Saturday after the sun goes down, according to the new self-described “abolitionist” group Palestine Hurra Collective Nashville.

The “Shut It Down For Palestine” march will be held at 5:00 p.m. at the Fred D. Thompson U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building in Nashville, according to the group, which said the demonstration will be part of a “global mobilization for Palestine.”

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Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty Joins Colleagues in Demanding Biden Release Records on Federalized Voter Initiatives

M.D. Kittle

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) joined 22 of his colleagues this week in penning a letter to President Joe Biden demanding his administration come clean on his executive order instructing federal agencies to roll out voter mobilization plans.

The White House has refused to respond to the senators’ previous demands for transparency on Executive Order 14019, which appears to violate federal law prohibiting agencies from expending federal funds without congressional authorization.

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Alleged Murderer of Memphis Pastor Remains Out on Bond After Hiring New Lawyer Week Before Anticipated Plea Deal Acceptance

Tom Pappert
Miguel Andrade

The Memphis teenager who allegedly murdered a pastor during an attempted carjacking will remain out on bond after his family retained a new lawyer last week, just days before prosecutors expected him to accept a plea agreement.

Miguel Andrade, 16, who allegedly murdered a popular pastor Rev. Dr. Autura Eason-Williams during an attempted carjacking, will remain out on bond until January 30 after Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Paula L. Skahan granted a delay following the Andrade family’s decision to hire a new lawyer, according to Daily Memphian.

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Metro Nashville Police to Host Toy Drive at the Nashville Zoo This Weekend

Kaitlin Housler
Nashville Zoo

The Metro Nashville Police Department’s (MNPD) Horse Mounted Patrol Division will hold a toy drive this weekend at the Nashville Zoo as part of the department’s annual Christmas Basket Program.

“We need your help!!! This weekend we will be hosting our annual toy drive at the Nashville Zoo! These toys will be delivered by our fellow MNPD Officers to families and children across Nashville on Christmas Eve. Please help us fill our horse trailers for the kids,” MNPD’s Horse Mounted Patrol Division wrote in a Facebook post.

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Tennessee Attorney General Skrmetti Files Appeal over Who Appoints Metro Nashville Airport Authority Board

Tom Pappert
Skrmetti Nashville Airport

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti filed a notice of appeal to the injunction issued by a three-judge panel in October which determined the Tennessee General Assembly violated the state Constitution with its new law changing how the Metro Nashville Airport Authority board is selected.

Under the new law, two board members would be selected by the Nashville mayor, Tennessee governor, and top two lawmakers in the Tennessee General Assembly, respectively. When the injunction was filed, the board went back to its previous selection process, by which members are picked by Nashville’s mayor and approved by the Metro Nashville Council.

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Lawsuit Challenges Legality of New Tennessee Election Integrity Law

Peter D'Abrosca
Voting Booths

The League of Women Voters – Tennessee (LWVTN) filed a federal lawsuit challenging the legality of a new law that requires Tennessee primary voters to be affiliated with the political party whose primary elections they plan to vote in, according to a Wednesday news release. 

“The League of Women Voters of Tennessee and Tennessee voters Victor Ashe and Phil Lawson filed a federal lawsuit today challenging state laws that require voters to be ‘bona fide’ members of a political party to vote in the state’s open primary elections,” the release says. 

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AFP-TN State Director Scorches Opponents of Gov. Lee’s School Choice Proposal: Keeping Kids in Failing Schools is ‘Morally Reprehensible’

Kaitlin Housler
Michael Patrick Leahy and AFP-TN Tori Venable

Americans for Prosperity – Tennessee (AFP-TN) State Director Tori Venable sat down with the Editor-in-chief and CEO of The Tennessee Star Michael Patrick Leahy in the latest episode of the Tennessee Star Extra to discuss Governor Bill Lee’s legislative push for universal school choice.

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Tennessee Appeals Court Rules Covenant Parents May Intervene in Lawsuit Seeking Audrey Hale Manifesto

Tom Pappert

The Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled in Nashville on Thursday that a group of parents can intervene in the lawsuit seeking to compel the release of the manifesto written by Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, affirming a lower court’s ruling. The parents wish to prevent the manifesto’s release.

In a 17-page order released Thursday afternoon, the appeals court ruled to “affirm the trial court’s judgement allowing intervention,” and sent the case back to the Davidson County Chancery Court for further proceedings. That court’s previous decision to allow the parents to intervene prompted the appeal.

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U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann ‘All In’ for Trump, Promises to Do ‘Everything Possible’ for 2024 Re-Election

Tom Pappert

U.S. Representative Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03) reportedly told the Hamilton County Pachyderm Club in Chattanooga on Monday that he is “all in” for former President Donald Trump in 2024, and pledged to support his 2024 campaign for re-election.

Fleischmann told Republicans on Monday that he is “all in for Donald Trump,” according to The Chattanoogan, which reported that the congressman told attendees he recently visited Mar-a-Lago and told the former president he will do “everything possible” to aid his re-election.

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Knoxville City Council Rejects Far-Left Councilwoman’s Anti-Israel Resolution

Kaitlin Housler

Knoxville City Council did not pass a resolution condemning Israel and calling for a ceasefire between Israeli and Hamas forces during its Tuesday council meeting.

The resolution, according to its broad text, “calls on the U.S. Federal Government to urge an immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Israel and occupied Palestine and to express the Council of the City of Knoxville’s support and solidarity with the people of Palestine facing genocidal levels of violence at the hands of the state of Israel.”

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DOJ Announces New Resources to Help Memphis Fight Violent Crime

Peter D'Abrosca

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it will provide more resources for Memphis, which is battling a wave of violent crime and has already broken its annual homicide record. 

“Violent crime deprives communities of a fundamental sense of security in their own homes and neighborhoods,” said Acting Assistant Attorney Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division in a DOJ press release. “This violent crime initiative will bring additional tools and resources used to investigate and prosecute violent crime and apply those tools to gangs and groups who are harming and disrupting communities here in Memphis.”

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Tennessee Rep. Kustoff Introduces Resolution Condemning Rising Antisemitism

M.D. Kittle

U.S. Representative David Kustoff (R-TN-08) joined Representative Max Miller (R-OH-07) this week in introducing a resolution condemning and denouncing antisemitism in the United States and around the world.

Kustoff and Miller, the only Republican Jewish members of the House, said it’s time to stand up to surging antisemitism infecting communities and institutions, including Congress.

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Gov. Bill Lee Unveils ‘Education Freedom Scholarship’ Bill for Universal School Choice in Tennessee at Event with Gov. Sarah Sanders

Tom Pappert

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee (R) unveiled the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, which will offer education savings accounts (ESAs) for students in all 95 counties in the state, in a Tuesday event that featured Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) and included state lawmakers and school choice advocates.

Lee said the legislative proposal will establish statewide universal school choice, stressing at his Tuesday press conference that “a high quality education has the power to change a trajectory of a child’s life forever.”

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Shelby County Judge Who Released Alleged Thanksgiving Murderer with Zero Bail Recently Railed Against Bond System in Tennessee

Tom Pappert

Shelby County General Sessions Court Judge Bill Anderson released alleged Thanksgiving Day murderer Edio White with zero bond, even after police said White admitted to driving the getaway car after the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old. In a newly resurfaced video, Anderson is seen railing against the “bond system” in Shelby County and Tennessee.

Anderson critiqued cash bail in Tennessee during a September 18 meeting of the Shelby County Commission, extending his condemnation to bail bonding companies, claiming “they don’t do anything but collect money from poor people.”

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With Homicides on the Rise, Tennessee to Honor Victims in ‘Season to Remember’

Peter D'Abrosca

The Tennessee Board of Parole announced Tuesday that it will honor homicide victims with a “Season to Remember” event that is scheduled for December 7.

“For more than two decades, state and local public safety officials, along with families of homicide victims, have gathered to honor and remember victims and survivors of homicide during the holiday season,” said a press release. “This year will mark the state’s 21st annual ‘Tennessee Season to Remember’, which will be held at 5:30 p.m. (CST) on Thursday, December 7 at First Baptist Church in downtown Nashville.”

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Tennessee Court Advisory Commission to Hold Open Meeting due to Injunction

The Center Square

The Tennessee Advisory Commission on Rules of Practice and Procedure will hold a Dec. 5 meeting in Nashville that the group plans to live stream after The Center Square received an injunction earlier this year to open the meetings to the public.

The Center Square Vice President of News and Content Dan McCaleb received a May injunction from a U.S. District Court judge against the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts to open the meetings.

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Logistics Company Expanding Knoxville Headquarters, Adding 650 Jobs

Peter D'Abrosca

A logistics company will located in Knoxville plans to expand and add 650 employment opportunities, a news release from the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNEDC) says. 

According to the release, Axle Logistics will invest $37.9 million to expand logistics operations at its Knoxville headquarters. It will reportedly construct an 85,000-square-foot facility adjacent to its existing facility in order to “better meet the ongoing growth it has experienced since its founding in 2012.”

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Star News Challenges FBI’s Assumptions in Covenant Killer Manifesto Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

Attorneys for Star News Digital Media Inc., the parent company of The Tennessee Star, asked a federal judge to order the Federal Bureau of Investigation to respond to a motion for limited discovery as part of a nationally watched public records lawsuit.

Star News Digital Media Inc. filed the lawsuit in May, demanding the FBI release the manifesto and related writings of Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer.

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Illinois Sheriff Says Trans Woman Who Threatened to Shoot School Children Repeatedly Referenced Covenant Killer

M.D. Kittle

The 47-year-old transgender woman charged with multiple felony counts of threatening to shoot and rape school children seemed to draw inspiration from Nashville’s Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, according to the Illinois sheriff involved in the arrest.

An earlier report suggests the school shooting threats were a call to action to the transgender community.

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State Senator Heidi Campbell’s Private School Past, Recent Support Unveiled After She Accused School Choice Activist Corey DeAngelis of ‘Dumbing Down’ Voters

Tom Pappert

Tennessee State Senator Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville) condemned school choice initiatives for “dumbing down” voters, but previously admitted to attending a private school, and was on the board of a private Montessori early childhood school that boasts a waiting list.

Campbell made the remarks on social media following an interaction with school choice advocate Corey DeAngelis, who questioned the lawmaker’s claim that the school choice legislation reportedly promoted by Governor Bill Lee “will destroy public [education] and raise your taxes.” Lee’s plan will reportedly allow some students whose families are 200 percent below the poverty line in Tennessee to attend a school of their choice, redirecting tax dollars in the process.

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Memphis Judge Releases Suspect in Thanksgiving Murder of 15-Year-Old with Zero Bond

Tom Pappert

An 18-year-old man accused of first-degree murder for the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old on Thanksgiving was released from a Shelby County jail on his own recognizance Monday, forfeiting zero bond despite allegedly confessing to his role in the crime.

Police said Edio White admitted to driving his co-defendant Conner Tucker, 15, to the Binghampton home of Anthony Mason on November 23, under the guise of Tucker trading firearms with Mason, News Channel 3 reported. When the two teens arrived at Mason’s home, police said Tucker exited the vehicle and shot Mason once in the head, killing him.

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Attorneys: Threats of School Shootings by Alleged Covenant Killer Wannabe Heighten Need for Release of Manifesto

M.D. Kittle
Dan Lennington, Deputy Counsel WILL

Recently filed charges against a transgender woman who threatened mass school shootings a la the Covenant Killer only heightens the urgency of releasing Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s manifesto, according to attorneys in nationally watched public records battles.

“In school shootings in the past, an enormous amount of information has been released in order to help first responders and teachers and school officials protect themselves,” said Dan Lennington, deputy counsel for the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL)

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