The Knoxville News Sentinel reports a new trial date has been set for Aug. 2 for former Knox County Schools security officer Kevin Waggoner, who is accused in a 2013 deadly shooting. Attorneys Tommy Hindman and Scott Lanzon will represent Waggoner; the pair previously represented Waggoner when a judge last year declared a mistrial due to a deadlocked jury. Waggoner is accused of shooting his neighbor in Union County following a three-year feud.

Knoxville attorney Hoyt Gene Bell died Monday (March 21) at age 78, according to the Knoxville Bar Association. Following his graduation from the Tennessee School for the Blind in Donelson and the University of Tennessee College of Law, Bell practiced law for 53 years. He was chairman of the Knox County Election Commission from 1979 to 1991. The family will receive friends tomorrow from 5-7 p.m. at Dante Baptist Church, 314 Brown Dr. SW in Knoxville. Funeral services will follow at 7 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Dante Baptist Church building fund, American Cancer Society or Young-Williams Animal Shelter.

The first tie vote in the U.S. Supreme Court since the death of Justice Antonin Scalia came yesterday during a complicated loan dispute case. Spouses of two Missouri developers say they were improperly required to guarantee their husbands’ business loans. The 4-4 split leaves intact a lower court decision against the spouses, The Kansas City Star reports.

A New York judge refused to dismiss claims against Donald Trump for fraud and illegal business practices in relation to Trump University, The Expert Institute reports. Former students are seeking up to $40 million in damages alleging that they were scammed by the program intended to teach students about real estate investing. Trump denies the allegations of fraud. A trial date has not been set in the case.

“If you are female and a lawyer, getting a seat on a corporate board is even more complicated.” Law Practice Today explains the “glacial pace” of transition to diverse boards, and offers advice for women fighting misconceptions about putting a lawyer on a board. “At the board level, the lawyer is not there to be a nay-sayer, but a creative problem solver,” said Bobbi Liebenberg, who chairs DirectWomen, an organization founded to advocate for women lawyers to serve on corporate boards.

A state law that criminalizes women who give birth to drug-dependent babies will sunset later this year after a House committee failed yesterday to pass a bill (HB 1660 / SB 1629) that would extend the law. The Tennessean reports the legislation, sponsored by Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver, R-Lancaster, failed to receive the necessary approval from the Criminal Justice subcommittee as a result of a tie vote on the six-member committee.

Law Technology Today shares how law firms are using technology for exposure and efficiency. Blogging about topics and launching law firm apps are included in the list. “Firms should be continually researching and investing in IT assistance, site/app development, social media and other forms of online outreach and optimization,” the author writes.

Nashville Academy for Kidz and Cherry Tree Food Program in Clarksville, two agencies under the oversight of the Department of Human Services, are under a criminal probe following investigations by the Tennessee Comptroller. The two agencies are accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars in public funds intended to provide food to low-income children. Read more from The Tennessean.

The Senate Judiciary Committee today passed a bill (SB 2342 / HB 2377) that would require biologic evidence collected in cases involving a death sentence to be preserved for the duration of defendant's life or incarceration, Nashville Scene reports. Senate committee members previously heard testimony from a man who was sentenced to death and spent more than 10 years in an Arizona prison for murder before biological evidence proved his innocence. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Steve Dickerson, R-Nashville, and Rep. Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, is scheduled for a vote in a House subcommittee today.

The Chattanooga City Council voted unanimously today to subpoena Hamilton County District Attorney General Neal Pinkston to appear before them to explain his reluctance to enforce the city's anti-gang violence program. The Times Free Press reports Pinkston today failed to attend a panel discussion with officials on the program and announced he will launch his own anti-gang efforts. He called the city’s initiative a “failure.”