Juvenile Court Judge Andy Myrick praises the work of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) in his Lincoln County court, but tells the Elk Valley Times that he needs more volunteers. Since starting this summer, CASA has trained a number of citizen volunteers to advocate for the best interest of children in the courtroom and the community. These volunteers meet with the children and the family, go to the homes and schools, investigate the case and work with the court and attorneys to insure the needs of the at-risk children are being met in the best way possible. "These volunteers can really make a difference in the life of a child,” Myrick said.

Rep. Rick Womick, R-Rockvale, has introduced legislation that would enact a mandatory ultrasound and waiting period for women seeking abortions, the first such formally proposed restriction on abortion after this month’s passage of Amendment 1. The bill would require an abortion provider to perform an ultrasound between 72 and 24 hours before the abortion. The provider must offer the woman the opportunity to view the ultrasound, or describe it to her if she chooses not to view it. It also requires that the heartbeat be made audible. Womick introduced the same bill in 2013, but it didn’t make it out of committee. The Commercial Appeal has more.

A Belmont University College of Law moot court team recently won the national championship at the National Health Law Moot Court Competition in Carbondale, Illinois. The  team defeated schools from all across the county in six rounds of arguments. The team was comprised of law students Courtney Lutz, Heath Henley and Ben Conrady and was led by College of Law faculty member Amy Moore.

Kingston lawyer Tom McFarland is appealing Senior Judge Jon Kerry Blackwood’s decision to throw out his lawsuit that sought to void Mike Pemberton’s win in the 9th Judicial District circuit court judge race. Pemberton and McFarland were the only candidates in the judge’s race, in which Pemberton received 343 more votes than McFarland. McFarland sued Pemberton, the Roane County Election Commission and Tennessee Coordinator of Elections Mark Goins in Roane County Chancery Court, alleging Pemberton shouldn’t have been on the Aug. 7 ballot because he didn’t meet the one-year residency requirement. Roane County News has the story.

Retired Judge Arden Hill’s portrait unveiling is set for Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. at the Washington County Courthouse. The Washington County Bar Association newsletter has more information. 

Gay and lesbian couples today filed a petition asking the Supreme Court to decide whether there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage, the New York Times reports. The petition arrived eight days after the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit upheld bans on same-sex marriage in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. A second petition focusing on recognition of already-married couples was later  filed from Tennessee. It raises an additional issue: whether the ban on recognition violates married couples’ right to travel between the states, SCOTUS blog reports.The fast pace of the filing was an effort to ensure that the justices be able to hear and decide a case before the current Supreme Court term ends in late June.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has denied a new murder trial to Clarence Nesbit, who has been on death row since 1995. At trial, the jury found Nesbit guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced him to death. Nesbit’s conviction and sentence both were upheld on appeal. In 1999, Nesbit filed a petition for post-conviction relief, asserting that his trial counsel did not provide effective assistance. In 2009, the post-conviction court ruled that Nesbit was not entitled to post-conviction relief as to his murder conviction, but awarded him a new sentencing hearing based on his attorney’s performance. The Court of Criminal Appeals agreed. On appeal from the Court of Criminal Appeals, the Supreme Court held that Nesbit did not prove that he was prejudiced in the guilt phase of his trial by any deficiency on the part of his attorney. The Administrative Office of the Courts has more.

The TBA is preparing its annual Pro Bono Honor Roll and is seeking names of lawyers and law students who volunteered with legal service organizations over the past year, anytime between Nov. 1, 2013, through Oct. 31, 2014. Please complete this form with the name and county of attorney and law student volunteers who gave time during the last year. The deadline for submission of information has been extended to next Friday, Nov. 21. Email completed forms to Access to Justice Coordinator  Liz Todaro.

Cities around the country seeking money to test old rape kits may apply for a pool of $35 million controlled by the district attorney’s office in Manhattan, the Commercial Appeal reports. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. mentioned Memphis during a Wednesday news conference as one of many cities that have built up a big backlog — it has more than 12,000 kits in various stages of processing. Mayor A C Wharton’s administration and the City Council in recent months dedicated more money and personnel to testing the kits and prosecuting old cases, but they’re still looking for more funds. A public forum on the rape kit backlog starts tonight at 6:30 p.m. in the chapel at First Baptist Church-Broad, 2835 Broad Ave. in Memphis.

The issue of affirmative action could be headed back to the U.S. Supreme Court after a federal appeals court yesterday refused to reconsider a ruling allowing use of race as a factor in University of Texas undergraduate admissions. Abigail Fisher, who is white, sued in 2008 after she was denied admission. The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, but justices told the appeals court to re-examine Fisher's arguments. Fisher's attorneys had asked the full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn a recent ruling that found barring the university from considering race would mean a less student diversity — in defiance of legal precedent promoting diversity as an important part of education. The Greeneville Sun has the story.