TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Nov 26, 2025

Federal officials traveled to Memphis on Monday to tout the city’s falling crime rate, attributing a 48% decline in murders to the 56-day existence of the Memphis Safe Task Force. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi was joined by U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty, Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner and U.S. Marshals Service Director Gadyaces Serralta. The group announced that the task force has made 3,000 arrests and seized more than 500 guns. The Daily Memphian has more on the press conference.

In related news, nine Shelby County Criminal Court judges addressed jail overcrowding in an order that includes recommendations for the Shelby County General Sessions Court Clerk’s Office and the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office designed to help alleviate current problems. The recommendations center on staffing issues, records management, charging errors and transportation delays according to Action News 5. The clerk’s office has responded, saying it shares many of the same concerns, especially with regard to funding and staffing shortages. Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, also recently addressed the issue, saying that funding for any plan to replace the aging Shelby County Jail at 201 Poplar would be "upon the locals," not the state, the Commercial Appeal reports. Sexton was asked specifically about overcrowding at the Criminal Justice Center, reports WREG. He reiterated his stance for tougher sentencing laws and expansion of state prison capacity, adding that Shelby County could borrow the money needed for its own jail, or pursue other options, including relying on federal detention facilities.