Nashville News Outlet Loses Bid to Unseal Court Documents - Articles

All Content


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Aug 22, 2024

The Nashville Banner recently lost its bid to unseal court filings related to Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Cheryl Blackburn’s competence. In a narrow decision, the Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that Blackburn’s colleague Judge Angelita Dalton did not err when she sealed affidavits made by attorneys that allegedly detailed problems with Blackburn’s performance. The court did not rule on the merits of the affidavits. The Banner notes that neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys had asked for the affidavits to be sealed and Judge Blackburn herself had not sealed the filings. It says it will appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court. The Banner reported the news in its Aug. 19 newsletter.