Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert held a press conference on Tuesday after her attorney filed a motion to dismiss the legal petition calling for her to be removed from office.
In her remarks, Halbert reasserted her stance that the Shelby County Clerk’s office should be given the majority of the money it collects for the betterment of the office and declared she will not apologize.
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Several Tennessee National Guard members headed to Bulgaria this week for joint training with NATO allies.
“Nearly 20 Soldiers from Athens’ 117th Military Police Battalion and Murfreesboro’s 269th Military Police Company joined more than 140 military policemen from five different allied nations today for the opening ceremony of Beyond Horizon 2024, a multi-national training exercise held at Bulgaria’s Novo Selo Training Site, May 14-22,” according to the Tennessee Department of Military.
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Tennessee U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) sent a letter to the mayors of Williamson County and Franklin as well as the top law enforcement officials of the area to offer his office’s support for the upcoming Israel Summit set to be held at the Ramsey Event Center on May 20-22.
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Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, said the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel’s decision to break its contractual obligation to host the 2024 Israel Summit not only appears to be antisemitic but also a “lack of moral leadership.”
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Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the Independent running for president, will hold a campaign event with big-name comedians on Wednesday night in Nashville.
“Laughter is the best medicine. Get a heaping dose and help heal America with humor at a ‘Night of Comedy’ with future President Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and future Vice President Nicole Shanahan,” said a flyer for the event.
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Ben Cunningham, founder of the Nashville Tea Party, said the Nashville Mayor’s $3.1 billion transit referendum is a “ripoff” of the taxpayers who are not given a proper voice in the media to express opposition to the transportation plan.
Mayor Freddie O’Connell unveiled his $3.1 billion transit plan, “Choose How You Move: An All-Access Pass to Sidewalks, Signals, Service, and Safety,” last month.
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First Liberty Institute, the legal counsel for the organizing groups of the 2024 Israel Summit, raised questions to the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel’s reasoning behind its decision to break its contractual obligation to host the event next week.
The Israel Summit was expected to be hosted next week at the Sonesta Hotel until hotel leadership contacted one of the summit’s sponsors, notifying the group that it was dropping its contract to host the event, citing “threatening” calls and messages.
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The Massachusetts-based asset management company which owns the Sonesta Nashville Airport hotel currently under threat of legal action over its decision to cancel the use of its venue for the 2024 Israel Summit did not respond to a Wednesday press inquiry by The Tennessee Star.
The hotel company’s silence comes amid conflicting claims by the Sonesta Nashville Airport hotel’s general manager, Troy Carver, and the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD).
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Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a bill to authorize the death penalty in child rape cases into law last week. The law now goes into effect on July 1.
The bill, SB 1834/HB 1663, authorizes the death penalty as a punishment for rape of a child, aggravated rape of a child, or especially aggravated rape of a child.
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Tennessee U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on Tuesday argued Syracuse University should lose its federal funding after a man convicted of manslaughter was arrested at an anti-Israel encampment constructed on the university campus.
Eural Warren was arrested by the Syracuse University of Public Safety on Friday, according to The National Desk, after the outlet previously confirmed the convicted killer was staying at the anti-Israel encampment constructed at the university despite officials declaring only students would be allowed access to the protest.
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Tennessee U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) introduced the companion legislation in the House of Representatives this week for Ohio U.S. Senator JD Vance’s (R-OH) bill that would restrict the Chinese government’s access to American capital markets and exchanges.
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Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, pointed out that McKenzie McClure, the biological female and former Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) student arrested by federal authorities on cyberstalking charges, may have been subject to a 30-day mental hold as she awaits a detention hearing scheduled for June 3.
McClure, who identifies as a transgender man and prefers the name “Kalvin,” was arrested on cyberstalking charges on April 29 after making a public threat against Governor Bill Lee and leaving a concerning voicemail to CPA in March, which caused two schools to shut down the following day.
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The Ramsey Event Center in Franklin will hold the 2024 Israel Summit next week after the event’s original venue, the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel, broke its contractual obligation to host the summit.
“God is doing amazing things in Tennessee, and we are even more excited about the upcoming Israel Summit,” two of the summit’s sponsors, HaYovel and The Israel Guys, announced Tuesday. “Dave Ramsey stepped in TODAY and offered his state-of-the-art event center for the Israel Summit!”
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Troy A. Miller, president and CEO of the National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) association, is demanding that the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel fulfill its contractual obligation to host the 2024 Israel Summit next week.
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Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti led a coalition of 17 other states in filing a lawsuit challenging the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) final guidance on harassment in the workplace which went into effect on April 29.
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Nashville will test some of its beer sellers by having someone attempt to purchase beer without presenting identification.
The Metro Beer Permit Board announced Monday it will conduct compliance checks by having an individual over 21 years old enter establishments with off-sale beer permits and try to purchase beer without an ID, according to a Nashville government news release. The board wants to enhance compliance with state law among sellers with off-sale permits.
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The University of Tennessee-Knoxville (UTK) has apparently not made any statements or actions as anti-Israel protesters continued to demonstrate past the school’s given deadline of May 11.
UTK allowed the People’s School for Gaza, which is not an official student organization at the university, to demonstrate on campus for about two weeks after starting on May 1, despite UTK’s rules for using its outdoor spaces. The school went so far as to reserve the space the protesters had been using, the Student Union Cumberland Plaza, on the group’s behalf.
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Americans for Prosperity Action (AFP Action) endorsed one Tennessee Senate candidate and six candidates for the Tennessee House of Representatives in the primary elections on August 1.
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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, described in the press as rising star within Democratic Party politics, is set to headline a Nashville abortion event and fundraiser in June, it was reported Monday.
A website advertising the Tennessee Freedom Circle event reveals Beshear will appear with “survivor and advocate, Hadley Duvall,” for the “Championing Reproductive Freedom” event on June 21.
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The Tennessee Department of Homeland Security, a state-level law enforcement agency, conducted interviews of transgender alleged cyberstalker McKenzie McClure while Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) did not take action.
According to the criminal complaint against McClure, who left a voicemail of a “threatening nature” for her former school Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) in Nashville, the Tennessee Department of Homeland Security became involved in the investigation of McClure. As of now, there are no publicly available details as to how the department became involved in the case.
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Tennessee saw $384.2 million in sports wagers in April with $7 million in taxes collected.
That was up from $318.4 million in wagers and $6.4 million of taxes collected in April 2023.
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Hirram Sasser, Executive General Counsel for First Liberty Institute, said the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel’s decision to break its contractual obligation to host the 2024 Israel Summit next week is an of discrimination.
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First Liberty Institute sent a letter to the general manager of the Sonesta Nashville Airport Hotel demanding that the hotel fulfill its contractual obligation to host the 2024 Israel Summit next week.
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An executive assistant attorney with the Middle District of Tennessee U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed to The Tennessee Star that McKenzie McClure, the biological female and former Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) student arrested by federal authorities on cyberstalking charges, will remain in custody leading up to a June 3 detention hearing.
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The 2024 Israel Summit originally set to be held at the Sonesta Hotel in Nashville will reportedly change venues amid threats by individuals encouraged by the local pro-Palestine group Palestine Hurra Collective Nashville.
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A law set to take effect before the 2024-2025 school year will require juvenile courts to revoke driver’s licenses from juvenile offenders who are convicted of threatening schools or school property.
SB 1664 by State Senator Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro) will mandate juvenile offenders who are found guilty of threatening mass violence on school property or during school activities must have their driving privileges suspended for one year.
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With his appeal to moderate voters, North Dakota GOP Gov. Doug Burgum is emerging as a potential vice presidential pick for presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump.
The latest signals came Saturday evening when Trump flew the 67-year-old Burgum on his jet to a rally in Wildwood, N.J., and put him front and center on stage, where he forcefully made the case for a second Trump term.
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The recent arrest of McKenzie McClure, the biological female and former Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) student federal authorities accused of cyberstalking following alleged threats to CPA in Nashville, shares concerning similarities with the circumstances which preceded the tragic Covenant School shootings by Audrey Elizabeth Hale last year in which the former Covenant School student killed 3 students and 3 staff members before she, in turn, was killed by Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) officers.
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The Tennessee Court of Appeals released a decision in Terry Rainwaters, et al. v. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, et al. on Thursday, holding a previous ruling that found a state statute that allows TWRA to patrol private properties without warrants or consent to be unconstitutional.
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State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis) warned that Memphis will be ‘hollowed out’ if its crime problem is not addressed.
Taylor, who sponsored several crime-related bills in the recently-adjourned legislative session of the General Assembly, said the response he has received from the community in Memphis for his work to crackdown on crime has been positive.
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A transgender alleged cyberstalker who caused a Nashville Christian school to close for a day in March after sending a disconcerting message was previously charged with domestic assault, according to court records.
McKenzie McClure, also known as Kalvin McClure, was charged twice with domestic assault according to Williamson County public court records. The records list the “violation date” on each charge as August 21, 2022.
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Chris Spencer, a Republican candidate challenging incumbent Tennessee State Senator Ferrell Haile (R-Gallatin) in the August 1 TN-18 GOP primary, refused to answer whether he’d vote for or against Governor Bill Lee’s universal school choice bill during the next legislative session of the General Assembly if elected.
The governor’s school choice bill, called the Education Freedom Scholarship Act, failed to pass the General Assembly during the most recently convened session of the General Assembly.
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The property portion of Tennessee’s franchise tax has been repealed and businesses will be eligible for a rebate of up to three years of those taxes.
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed the bill into law Friday. The rebate could cost the state up to $1.6 billion.
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Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray criticized Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon’s veto of a proposed amendment to the state’s voter registration rules that would have required Wyoming residents to provide proof of residency when registering to vote, calling the veto move “horrifying.”
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A former Memphis Police officer who was charged in 2021 with kidnapping and murdering a man has now been charged at the federal level.
“A federal grand jury in Memphis, Tennessee, returned an eight-count indictment today charging former Memphis Police Officer Patric J. Ferguson with federal civil rights, kidnapping and weapons offenses in connection with the fatal shooting of a victim identified as R.H.,” according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). “The indictment also charges Ferguson and a civilian, Joshua M. Rogers, with federal offenses for conspiring to cover up the fatal shooting and destroying evidence of the crimes. The indictment further charges Rogers with accessory after the fact for helping Ferguson cover up his crimes.”
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Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry will serve as the keynote speaker at the Tennessee Republican Party’s (TNGOP) annual Statesmen’s Dinner, which will be held next month in Nashville.
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The Maury County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) in conjunction with a nonprofit identified the remains of a woman murdered nearly 50 years ago.
On February 14, 1975, hunters found the remains of a woman near Highway 99 East in Maury County, according to DNA Doe Project.
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Wanda Halbert, the embattled Shelby County Clerk currently facing a legal petition for her removal from office, confirmed in Tuesday remarks to a Memphis media personality that she will not resign amid court proceedings.
Halbert currently awaits a court date following a 49-page petition submitted by Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp which alleged the clerk demonstrated “willful neglect to perform” duties associated with her office.
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After about one week of protests and refusal to comply with the University of Tennessee-Knoxville’s (UTK) rules and flouting warnings of violating state law, an anti-Israel protest group on campus has had the Student Union Cumberland Plaza designated for it by the school itself.
On Wednesday, May 1, a group of protesters called the “People’s School for Gaza,” which is not a student organization registered with UTK, began demonstrating on campus after an official event held by the school’s official chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, The Tennessee Star previously reported.
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The late Coffee County Mayor Judd Matheny’s April 2 death was caused by drugs present in his system, compounded by heart conditions, according to an autopsy report conducted by the Center for Forensic Medicine in Nashville.
The report, first obtained by The Tullahoma News, concluded that Matheny’s death was accidental, with the cause of death “ascribed to mixed cocaine, ethanol, mitragynine toxicity with hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease as a significant contributing factor.”
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All eight Republicans representing Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives voted with the majority of members to pass a bill requiring the U.S. Census to include a question asking if the person is a United States citizen.
The Census determines how many congressional districts and electoral college votes each state gets to help ensure American votes are equally represented in Congress.
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The Metro Nashville Police Department told The Tennessee Star it did not interview an alleged cyberstalker now in federal custody who left a concerning message for Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) in March that caused the school to close for one day.
McKenzie McClure, a self-identified “trans man” also known as Kalvin McClure or Kalvin Mikoledes, was arrested on suspicion of cyberstalking by federal agents on April 29 for the message she left for CPA and her social media activity where she made several concerning posts about CPA and threatened Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and his wife Maria Lee. McClure is still in federal custody.
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Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti led a coalition of 17 state attorneys general in a comment letter opposing the Department of Energy’s direct final rule regulating consumer refrigerators, refrigerator-freezers, and freezers.
The DOE’s rule, scheduled to be implemented on May 16, imposes new energy conservation standards for these consumer items.
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Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell described his “Choose How You Move” transportation referendum as “very progressive” in a Wednesday interview, highlighting the endeavor as one of the most progressive acts of his administration.
O’Connell was asked by The Guardian, which describes itself as “the world’s leading liberal voice,” to what level he views himself “as a progressive leader in a state that is not politically progressive” following the 2022 redistricting process that split Nashville between multiple congressional districts.
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Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden said he is confident in the security measures being taken for attendees of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.
Milwaukee will host the Republican National Convention from July 15-18, during which tens of thousands of delegates, guests, and press members will gather to officially nominate Donald Trump for president and his yet-to-be-announced running mate for vice president.
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Michael Patrick Leahy, CEO and editor-in-chief of The Tennessee Star, said he believes an Ohio court case, Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury, may succeed in rolling back federal overreach regarding Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce under the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause.
The Buckeye Institute, an Ohio think tank, filed Ream v. U.S. Department of Treasury in January on behalf of John Ream of Licking County, Ohio.
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Ben Cunningham, founder of the Nashville Tea Party, said not only does Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s $3.1 billion transit referendum, which is expected to be presented to Davidson County voters on the November ballot, appear illegal under the 2017 IMPROVE Act, but its implementation would inevitably raise property taxes for residents.
O’Connell unveiled his transit plan, “Choose How You Move: An All-Access Pass to Sidewalks, Signals, Service, and Safety,” last month.
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Ben Cunningham, founder of the Nashville Tea Party, continues to scrutinize the legality of the Nashville mayor’s $3.1 billion transit referendum expected to be presented in front of Davidson County voters on the November ballot.
Mayor Freddie O’Connell unveiled his $3.1 billion transit plan, “Choose How You Move: An All-Access Pass to Sidewalks, Signals, Service, and Safety,” last month. The plan would be funded through a half-cent increase in the city’s sales tax to construct miles of new sidewalks, bus stops, transit centers, parking facilities, and upgraded traffic signals.
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A former student of Christ Presbyterian Academy (CPA) in Nashville was arrested on suspicion of cyberstalking days after possibly making a public threat toward Governor Bill Lee and his wife Maria Lee.
McKenzie McClure, also known as Kalvin McClure, was arrested by federal agents after they observed troubling social media activity and McClure left a concerning voicemail to CPA on March 24, 2024, that caused two schools to shut down the following day.
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A Memphis man out on bond for his alleged involvement in a shooting earlier this year is behind bars once again after being accused of hunting down and shooting a witness who testified at trial for the earlier shooting case.
On Monday, ABC24 News reported that it had obtained an affidavit from Shelby County court records showing that officers with the Memphis Police Department (MPD) responded to an aggravated assault on May 2 in the area of James Road and Raleigh-Millington Road.
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