TBA Law Blog

TBA Law Blog

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Georgia Congressman John Lewis to receive ABA Thurgood Marshall Award

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 13, 2019
News Type: Legal News
The American Bar Association Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice will honor Georgia Congressman and Civil Rights leader John Lewis with its 2019 Thurgood Marshall Award. The award will be presented at the Thurgood Marshall Award Dinner on Saturday, Aug. 10, at 8 p.m. at the Westin St. Francis Hotel during the ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. The award honors U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, who epitomized individual commitment, in word and action, to the cause of civil rights in this country. The award recognizes similar long-term contributions by other members of the legal profession to the advancement of civil rights, civil liberties and human rights in the United States.

UTK Law Honors 5 During Diversity Education Fundraiser

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 13, 2019
News Type: Legal News
The University of Tennessee College of Law honored two of its alumni and three current students during the 19th Annual Julian Blackshear Jr. Gala on Feb. 8. Alumna Danielle Whitworth Barnes, commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Human Services, served as keynote speaker. Adjunct professor and attorney Brooklyn Sawyers Belk was recognized with the RBJ Campbelle Award for her “courageous, selfless, and ongoing commitment to fairness and equality for all people.” Students Shannador McClain, Daniel Zydel and Chidimma Nwaneri were recognized by the Black Leadership Student Association for their commitment to leadership and diversity at the College of Law. The Blackshear Gala, named for one of the college’s first African American graduates, serves as a fundraiser for diversity education.

UT Law Alum Named North Carolina Chief Justice

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 12, 2019
News Type: Legal News
University of Tennessee College of Law alumna Cheri Beasley has been named Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper announced today. Beasley, a 1991 alumna of the UT Law, has served as a justice in the North Carolina Supreme Court since 2012, following her work as an associate judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals, and as a district court judge in the 12th Judicial District of Cumberland County. She will serve as the state’s first African American female Chief Justice. Beasley addressed UT Law graduates last year during commencement ceremonies in Knoxville.

Report: Principal Waited to Call Police, Allowed Teacher Accused of Misconduct to Leave with Evidence

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 12, 2019
News Type: Legal News
A Pigeon Forge Middle School principal waited nearly five hours before notifying police of a teacher’s alleged crime against a student, allowing the suspect to walk away with evidence, Knoxnews reports. Principal Scott Hensley knew physical education teacher Daniel Allen Turner was being accused of sexual misconduct and that another teacher was aware of the situation, but Turner was allowed to resign and leave school property with evidence before Hensley contacted the police. Turner was indicted by a Sevier County grand jury in December on a charge of attempted soliciting sexual exploitation of a minor for allegedly trying to lure a 13-year-old student to his office to view nude photos on his phone.

Tennessee Supreme Court Oral Argument Videos Available Online

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 12, 2019
News Type: Legal News
Video recordings from oral argument held before the Tennessee Supreme Court in February are available online. This is the second time oral arguments have been video recorded and made available to the public. The cases listed are available to view on the Oral Argument Video webpage.

Court Seeking Comments on Amendments to Rule 21

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 11, 2019
The Tennessee Supreme Court is seeking comments from judges, lawyers, bar associations and members of the public on proposed changes to Rule 21, which governs the rule for mandatory continuing legal education. The deadline for submitting written comments is April 12. Written comments should be emailed to appellatecourtclerk@tncourts.gov or mailed to James Hivner, Clerk, Re: Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 21 Tennessee Appellate Courts, 100 Supreme Court Building, 401 7th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219-1407.

Federal Prosecutor Halts Nation's First Safe Injection Facility

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 11, 2019
News Type: Legal News
Plans to open the nation’s first safe injection facility were thwarted for the time being after a Pennsylvania federal prosecutor filed a complaint, the ABA Journal reports. U.S. Attorney William McSwain argued in a Feb. 5 complaint that providing spaces for users to inject street-purchased opioids would violate federal law. Safehouse, a nonprofit organization that provides overdose prevention services, planned to raise $1.8 million to cover the first year of operations for the Philadelphia safe injection facility.

Bill Filed to Enhance Punishment for Indecent Exposure, Draws Concern from LGBTQ Advocates

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 11, 2019
News Type: Legal News
A new bill in the Tennessee General Assembly that seeks to enhance punishment for any person who commits indecent exposure in bathrooms is drawing concern from LGBTQ advocates, the Tennessean reports. The bill, introduced by Rep. John Ragan, R-Oak Ridge, would expand the "offense of indecent exposure to include incidents occurring in a restroom, locker room, dressing room, or shower, designated for single-sex, multi-person use, if the offender is a member of the opposite sex than the sex designated for use." Ragan said it was designed to "protect members of the opposite sex from having their privacy invaded" and includes no exception for "gender dysphoria" or "gender confusion."  Chris Sanders, executive director of the Tennessee Equality Project, said the bill could be used to criminalize transgender individuals.

Chattanooga Considers Police Oversight

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 11, 2019
News Type: Legal News
Chattanooga city council members last week met with the police chief to consider adding a police oversight referendum to the ballot this year, the Times Free Press reports. If passed, Chattanooga would follow the path taken last year in Nashville. The review board created in Nashville is now under scrutiny at the Tennessee legislature. The discussion in Chattanooga comes as the city grapples with a handful of alleged police brutality videos.

DOJ Shutters 2 Cumberland Plateau Pharmacies in Opioid Crackdown

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Feb 11, 2019
News Type: Legal News
A federal judge has temporarily shuttered a pair of problem pharmacies on the Cumberland Plateau, WPLN reports. The two pharmacies in Celina, Dale Hollow Pharmacy and Xpress Pharmacy, are some of the top dispensers of opioids per capita in the country. Federal prosecutors, who announced the "first of its kind" action Friday, say in court documents that on Saturdays, nearly 90 percent of the prescriptions were filled for opioids, with many patients driving long distances to pick them up. Along with shutting down the pharmacies, federal authorities are also seeking monetary penalties for improper distribution of controlled substances and making false claims under Medicare.
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