State and federal sentencing laws for child pornography has "gone overboard," the editorial staff of the Times News Net writes. “The notion that consumers of child pornography should be treated as harshly as the deviants who produce it, who rape children, seems a gross injustice,” the publication states. “Nor does downloading child pornography from the Internet merit a more severe punishment than first-degree murder.”

In the wake of the shooting deaths of four Marines in Chattanooga yesterday, U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais is offering federal legislation to allow military personnel to carry firearms on military installations and other military properties. The Republican congressman plans to introduce the bill Monday formally called the "Enhancing Safety at Military Installations Act." The language of the proposed act clarifies that "firearms" only applies to handguns. The Tennessean has more.

Need a few CLE hours fast? Join us for the Summer CLE Blast July 23 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. for live programming with dual credit. No registration is needed.

The Nashville Area Chamber yesterday released its full 2015 legislative scorecard, including issues before Metro and the General Assembly. The report outlines how elected official voted on issues in the chamber’s four key policy baskets: Business-friendly environment, workforce development, quality of life and regional efforts to encourage economic prosperity. The Nashville Business Journal has more.

The Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers has filed a complaint with the Board of Judicial Conduct seeking sanctions against Nashville General Sessions Judge Allegra Walker, News Channel 5 reports. The issue arises from an e-mail Walker sent in June in which she told prosecutors what she won’t accept in her court pertaining to plea negotiations, such as agreed orders on domestics or multiple probation offers. TACDL argues the email reflects Walker’s bias against certain defendants, claiming the judge's actions could amount to "judicial interference."

Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Karen Nelson Moore wrote a scathing dissent filed Monday in the case of Felix Booker, who was subjected to forced paralyzation and an anal probe in the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office’s quest for crack cocaine. Moore is taking to task fellow Sixth Circuit Judges Ralph B. Guy Jr. and David McKeague for their decision Monday to send Booker’s civil-rights lawsuit back to U.S. District Court in Knoxville for a bit more investigating of why Anderson County Deputy Jerry Shelton should not be granted immunity. U.S. District Judge Pamela Reeves had ruled that Shelton, Oak Ridge Police Officer Daniel Steakley, their respective bosses and Dr. Michael Lapaglia could not cloak themselves in immunity in the July 2010 cavity search at the Oak Ridge Methodist Medical Center. Knoxnews has more.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has affirmed convictions in two separate cases in which the defendants were charged with the kidnapping and robbery of different victims. In an opinion authored by Chief Justice Sharon G. Lee, the Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Criminal Appeals, holding that a State v. White jury instruction is not required when a defendant is charged with the offenses of kidnapping and robbery of different victims. Justice Gary R. Wade filed dissenting opinions in both cases, maintaining that the White jury instruction was required by long-standing principles of due process. The AOC has more.

A federal judge in Manhattan has dismissed a suit challenging New York’s ban on outside equity ownership in law firms, deeming arguments by Jacoby & Meyers to be “frivolous” and lacking “logical coherence.” Jacoby’s arguments — that the ban violated the First and 14th amendments and the dormant commerce clause — are “entirely without merit,” U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said in a decision on Wednesday. The ABA Journal has the story.

The University of Tennessee College of Law has selected five first-year students to become Tennessee Law Scholars as part of the college’s most prestigious scholarship program. This year’s scholars are Amanda Fick, Zach Ganzberg, Elizabeth B. Holland, Sloane Lynch and Machen E. Picard. Tennessee Law Scholars are selected for their academic and professional promise and work directly with law school faculty to advance faculty scholarship and service. Scholars receive a full-tuition scholarship and a stipend for their three years of legal study at UT.

Tennessee's executioner will not testify in a trial challenging the constitutionality of lethal injection, at least for the time being, the New York Times reports. The state Court of Appeals issued the order Wednesday afternoon in response to an emergency request filed earlier in the day by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery. In his motion, Slatery echoed an earlier ruling by the state's Supreme Court that the executioner's testimony is irrelevant because the case challenges the written lethal injection protocols, not how they are carried out by a specific person.