The Commercial Appeal today offered an early look at what Shelby County voters will see on their ballots in the Nov. 7 general election. There are 11 competitive state and federal races, including the gubernatorial race between Democrat Charlie Brown and Republican incumbent Bill Halsam. Voters will also decide on Amendments 1, 2, 3 and 4.

The Governor’s Commission for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications for the chancellor vacancy in the 30th Judicial District Chancery Court in Shelby County. The vacancy has been created by the appointment of Chancellor Kenny Armstrong to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, effective Sept. 1. For more information and the application, contact the Administrative Office of the Courts.

In a wide-ranging interview with the National Law Journal, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg criticized the court’s “biggest mistake” in the area of its campaign finance jurisprudence, adding, “It should be increasingly clear how [money] is corrupting our system, and it is spreading in states that elect their judges.” In replies to other questions, Ginsburg discussed recent court rulings including the Hobby Lobby case, restrictions on affirmative action and voting rights and the “real race problem” in America.

The Judicial Conference of the United States has issued a public notice accepting applications for a fulltime U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee in Greeneville. This position is created by the upcoming retirement of Magistrate Judge Dennis H. Inman. The term of office is eight years. More information may be obtained from the Chairperson of the Merit Selection Panel, Charles T. Herndon IV, 104 East Main Street, Johnson City, TN 37604. Application deadline is Sept. 12.

U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee William C. Killian hosted  a reentry summit this week at Chattanooga State Community College, the Chattanoogan reports. At the direction of the attorney general in early 2013, the Justice Department launched a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system in order to identify reforms that would ensure federal laws are enforced more fairly and — in an era of reduced budgets — more efficiently. “The goal of reentry is reduction of crime and recidivism,” Killian said.

There are a number of ceremonies planned across the state next week to recognize retiring court and judicial officials and install new judges and other court officers in their positions. The events involve candidates elected for the first time, as well as those set to begin new terms. Find out information on times and locations.

State Sen. Jim Tracy will wait until Monday to announce whether he'll challenge the Fourth Congressional District Republican primary results or concede to U.S. Rep. Scott DesJarlais, his campaign said today. The counties in the district finished certifying their results Thursday, and DesJarlais, the two-term incumbent, maintained his 38-vote lead over Tracy, who declared victory at one point on election night two weeks ago. The Republican winner will face Democrat Lenda Sherrell in the November general election. The Tennessean has more.

A group of 10 death row inmates suing over lethal injection in Tennessee today argued that the state’s backup plan — the electric chair — is an unconstitutional “torture device,” the Tennessean reports. Their lawsuit stems from a 2013 law that makes nearly all information about lethal injection secret. The inmates are locked in a battle with the state over whether they have a right to know how they will be killed and who will do the killing. In 2014, Gov. Bill Haslam signed a law that makes the electric chair the state’s official backup if lethal injection is declared unconstitutional or if the necessary drugs are unavailable. Attorneys for the inmates say that no other state, or any government in the world, imposes electrocution on the condemned.

Nashville Mayor Karl Dean took another step in his support for same-sex marriage yesterday by officially joining the group Mayors for the Freedom to Marry — the first mayor in Tennessee to do so. Dean signed a marriage equality statement that says allowing same-sex couples to marry is good for everyone. Nearly 500 mayors around the country have signed the statement so far, according to the groups spokeswoman. In a press release, Dean said he wants Nashville to respect “individual dignity.” “Embracing and celebrating our growing diversity makes our city stronger,” he wrote. “Nashville needs to continue in that direction, and it’s my hope that joining this effort will help us do that.” Nashville Public Radio has more.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today ruled that a post-conviction petitioner may be entitled to subpoena his co-defendants as witnesses, but only if he can first demonstrate that the co-defendants are competent witnesses whose testimony is relevant to his claims. In 2009, Quantel Taylor pled guilty to charges of attempted first degree murder, second degree murder and especially aggravated robbery. The next year, Taylor filed a petition for post-conviction relief, claiming that he should be allowed to withdraw his guilty pleas because his trial attorney had provided inadequate representation. The trial court refused his request to issue subpoenas for Taylor’s co-defendants to testify at his post-conviction hearing. The Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that the trial court had erred, but found that the error was harmless because Taylor’s petition would fail regardless of his co-defendants’ testimony. The Supreme Court held that in this instance, the trial court applied the wrong legal standard and did not properly consider the relevance of the co-defendants’ testimony, and sent the case back to the court to reconsider the subpoenas under the correct standard. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts or view the opinion.