CONNIE L. REGULI; WENDY HANCOCK v. TRACY HETZEL; LORI RUSS; DAVID O’NEIL; CITY OF BRENTWOOD, TENNESSEE; ESTATE OF KIMBERLY HELPER; MARY KATHERINE EVINS - Articles

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CONNIE L. REGULI; WENDY HANCOCK v. TRACY HETZEL; LORI RUSS; DAVID O’NEIL; CITY OF BRENTWOOD, TENNESSEE; ESTATE OF KIMBERLY HELPER; MARY KATHERINE EVINS

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Jun 16, 2026

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED: Larry L. Crain, CRAIN LAW GROUP, Brentwood, Tennessee, for Appellants. Amber L. Barker, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellee Tracy Hetzel.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED: Cassandra M. Crane, FARRAR BATES BEREXA, Brentwood, Tennessee, for Appellees Lori Russ, David O’Neil, and City of Brentwood, Tennessee.

Attorneys 3: ARGUED: Aaron Bernard, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellees Estate of Kimberly Helper and Mary Katherine Evins.

Attorneys 4: ON BRIEF: Larry L. Crain, CRAIN LAW GROUP, Brentwood, Tennessee, for Appellants.

Attorneys 5: ON BRIEF: Amber L. Barker, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellee Tracy Hetzel. Cassandra M. Crane, Grace Patton, FARRAR BATES BEREXA, Brentwood, Tennessee, for Appellees Lori Russ, David O’Neil, and City of Brentwood, Tennessee. Mary Elizabeth McCullohs, Jacobs M. Gilbert, OFFICE OF THE TENNESSEE ATTORNEY GENERAL, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellees Estate of Kimberly Helper and Mary Katherine Evins.

Judge(s): GRIFFIN, BUSH, and NALBANDIAN, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee at Nashville

NALBANDIAN, Circuit Judge. Connie Reguli, a lawyer and parents’ rights activist, helped her client, Wendy Hancock, evade a state-court order that sought to separate Hancock from her child. So the state prosecuted Reguli and Hancock. But after juries convicted them, a state appellate court held that the conviction statute didn’t cover their conduct. After the two women walked free, they sued the city, the prosecutors, the police officers, and a state official for conspiracy, malicious prosecution, and other violations in federal court. The district court dismissed every claim. Now, Reguli and Hancock appeal the district court’s dismissal, contending that it shouldn’t have dismissed five of their claims. We AFFIRM.

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