The Nashville Tennessean reported yesterday that Metro Nashville Police Department will not be getting funding for body cams. This news is shocking. Why ? Metro Nashville Police Department has for years resisted a department wide implementation of body cams. Police s have for years hid behind the cost of the body cams as the reason
Want 30 Days Jail Credit ? Get a Vasectomy.
Nashville’s News Chanel Five reported yesterday of one Tennessee judge’s unusual method to reduce one’s jail sentence. White County Tennessee General Sessions Judge Sam Benningfield entered a standing court order granting 30 days of jail credit to those serving jail sentences. The catch to getting the jail credit is to agree to have a vasectomy
Major Issues in Nashville’s Criminal Justice System
Last night, I attended a panel discussion on criminal justice issues in Nashville, TN. The panel was hosted by the Davidson County Democratic Party. Judge Steve Dozier, District Attorney Glenn Funk, Sheriff Daron Hall, and Davidson County Juvenile Court Magistrate Carlton Lewis were a few of the panelists. Here is a few of the
Ramifications of Jeff Session’s Untruthful Testimony
It appears from the news accounts that U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions may have given untruthful testimony under oath before the U.S. Senate. What are the ramifications ? Let’s look what could happen to Mr. Sessions under Tennessee law.
First, Mr. Sessions committed aggravated perjury under Tennessee’s criminal laws. Perjury is defined in Tennessee as
Are Nashville Public Defenders Overworked ?
Steven Hale wrote an article in last week’s Nashville Scene on the Nashville Public Defenders Office overwhelming caseload. One visit to any of the criminal courtrooms in Nashville supports that conclusion. The article does a great job setting out the facts and the money issues. A hearing was held last year arguing a case should be dismissed based upon
The Sorry State of Wages for an Appointed Counsel
Henry Martin is the federal public defender for the Middle District of Tennessee. In today’s Tennessean, Mr. Martin wrote a very thoughtful letter to the editor about the duty of a public defender. One of his comments was about the pay of new lawyers. One New York law firm recently announced that new hires
Durham’s Trespassing Complaint
The Tennessean’s follow up story to the Nashville Scene reporter being arrested for trespass had an interesting side story. The Tennessean complained in the story about not getting a copy of the complaint after multiple requests by the paper. It is standard procedure that no information is released in Nashville Davidson County until the warrant
Questions About the Criminal Justice System We Can’t Answer
The Marshall Project provides excellent commentary regarding the criminal justice system. A recent post was titled 13 Important Questions About Criminal Justice We Can’t Answer. Today’s post focuses on one question. How many criminal cases are referred to prosecutors and how do they decide which to pursue.
I have never been a prosecutor so
Willaimson County Public defenders Take a Hiatus
I was in the Circuit Court for Williamson County , Tennessee recently. The court announced that the public defenders had requested not to be appointed to any new cases for a short period of time. The judges agreed and started to appoint local attorneys to represent indigent defendants. The District attorney objected and requested to
Tennessee Alcohol Beverage Commission Citations
The Tennessee Alcohol Beverage Commission regulates the sale of wine and liquor in Tennessee. It also has an enforcement division. The Tennessee Alcohol Beverage Commission (ABC) has over thirty investigators. Besides granting licenses, they also look for violations of the law. Underage drinking and the sale of alcohol to those that are already intoxicated are the