Metro Council last week voted unanimously to eliminate a monthly $35 probation supervision fee billed to those on probation, the Tennessean reports. The vote is part of a series of reform measures Metro Nashville is implementing to relieve financial burden on criminal defendants and to reduce recidivism. Councilman Brandon Taylor says the Council wanted to help those “already down on their luck” and “give people a chance to get back to society without being financially burdened.” Taylor chairs Metro’s 37208 special committee, which was created in 2019 to tackle the high incarceration rate in the neighborhood. The committee has recommended reducing fines and fees, a strategy that a 2020 study from the PFM’s Center for Justice and Safety Finance says is vital to reform. The probation supervision fee was established in 1991 at $20 a month before being increased to $25 in 2006 and to $35 in 2008. Revenue collected from the fee went into the city’s general fund. Metro has set aside $662,500 in the fiscal 2022 budget to make up for the revenue.

The TBA's Summer Business Education Webinar Series continues Thursday with a one-hour session on Using Core Financial & Productivity Reports. Attendees will learn how balance sheets, trust accounts, profit & loss statements, chart of accounts and more can be used to manage and improve their practices on a day-to-day basis. The virtual program will run from noon to 1 p.m. CDT and offer one hour of dual CLE credit.

Davidson County attorney Terry Renease Clayton yesterday received a public censure from the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Clayton discovered that he had accidentally overpaid a client after issuing a check to himself for fees, resulting in an overdraft of the account. The client returned the overpaid funds, but Clayton delayed in removing his earned fee from trust, doing so in multiple payments over three months. He did not have a client ledger on this matter and his conduct resulted in the commingling of his funds with client funds for three months. In addition to the public censure, Clayton must also attend a Trust Account Workshop from the BPR.

Tony Parker, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC), today announced that he is retiring, the Tennessean reports. Parker began his career with the state 38 years ago as a prison guard in West Tennessee. A native of Union City, Parker was originally appointed to lead TDOC in 2016 by former Gov. Bill Haslam and was reappointed in 2019 by Gov. Bill Lee. The state comptroller last year found that TDOC leadership failed to ensure data on inmate deaths, assaults, medical treatment and day-to-day operations was accurate. Another audit also found that prison officials misclassified the deaths of eight inmates and improperly investigated allegations of sexual abuse. Parker advocated for prison employee pay raises and earlier this year supported legislation making it a felony for inmates to possess a cellphone inside a prison.

The U.S. Justice Department will not seek to try former Pilot Company President Mark Hazelwood for a second time on charges of wire fraud and witness tampering, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. A motion was filed today with the U.S. District Court in Knoxville by acting U.S. Attorney Trey Hamilton asking for “the court’s leave” to dismiss all charges against Hazelwood and two Pilot Company subordinates. All three were convicted in 2018 of trying to defraud Pilot’s trucking customers, but the convictions were overturned by a federal appellate court, which ruled a judge was wrong to allow jurors to hear recordings of Hazelwood making racist and sexist remarks. Hamilton gave three reasons for the unexpected move: “personal circumstances” of the Pilot staffers who pleaded guilty, many of whom spent time in prison; the “challenge” of everything involved in a retrial; and “limited government resources.”  

Volunteer attorneys are needed for the Shelby County Expungement & Court Costs Clinic on Aug. 7. The clinic will offer help with dismissal, diversion and conviction expungements, voter restoration and court cost waivers and covers charges filed in Shelby County only. Attendees must schedule an appointment with volunteer attorneys to reduce wait time and mass gatherings at the clinic. To volunteer for the clinic, contact Amber Floyd.

Organize Tennessee, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to voter protection and education, will host a series of virtual poll observer trainings throughout the year. The trainings will provide information on up-to-date election laws, common poll-watching incidents and details on how to protect the vote on election day. The next training will take place on July 27 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. CDT. Find a list of all training dates and register for the program here.

The Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday issued a public censure of Blount County attorney Jacob Edward Erwin. Erwin utilized trust account funds for fulfillment of a personal financial obligation. While no clients or third parties were harmed, Erwin’s conduct constitutes a breach of his fiduciary obligation regarding client funds and property. A public censure is a rebuke and warning to the attorney, but it does not affect the attorney’s ability to practice law.

The organization that ran a Chattanooga-based facility for unaccompanied immigrant youth is suing the state after the facility’s license was suspended following the arrest of an employee on child abuse allegations, the Associated Press reports. Baptiste Group filed the complaint in Davidson County Chancery Court yesterday against the Department of Children’s Services and its commissioner. The lawsuit claims the state violated due process protections and was “improperly motivated by “bias, racial prejudice and the like.” The complaint says the suspension “demonstrates bias and prejudice towards TBG” because the state has not taken similar actions for other agencies facing similar accusations. The suspension came amid outrage from some Republican lawmakers over what they say is a lack of transparency from the federal government about immigrant children moving through the state. 

The bust of Confederate general and early KKK leader Nathan Bedford Forrest is expected to be removed from the State Capitol this week, dependant upon a successful vote tomorrow morning by the State Building Commission, the Tennessean reports. Gov. Bill Lee’s office has not given information about the removal procedure, but multiple sources told the newspaper that Lee intends to have the bust moved to the Tennessee State Museum by the weekend. Lee has called a news conference ahead of tomorrow’s vote and will make a rare appearance at the meeting. State law required Lee’s office to wait 120 to take action after the Historical Commission’s March vote to relocate the bust. That waiting period ended July 9. The meeting is scheduled to begin tomorrow at 11 a.m. CDT.