A deputy clerk in the Maury County Clerk’s Office used her position to forge public documents, delete transactions, and keep more than $10,000 from taxes and fees for her own personal use, an investigation by the comptroller’s office has found. The investigative report was part of the audit the Maury County government released today. The deputy clerk confessed to taking the funds last July and was fired while the investigation was ongoing. The audit also noted that an employee in the Maury County Circuit and General Sessions Clerk’s Office was prosecuted for stealing $2,207. Details about that finding were outlined in a separate special investigative report from the comptroller’s office. The Chattanoogan has more.

Attorney Ricky Wilkins formally announced his candidacy for the 9th district Congressional seat yesterday, backed by a roomful of enthusiastic supporters. Wilkins faces four-term incumbent Rep. Steve Cohen in the Democratic primary. “I know what it’s like to live off food stamps,” he said. “Who better to represent the people of the 9th Congressional district than one who has walked a mile in their shoes?” The Memphis Flyer has the story.

Gov. Bill Haslam today signed the bill allowing wine to be sold in grocery stores, the Memphis Business Journal reports. Municipalities can now begin petitioning for referendums on allowing the sale of wine in grocery stores but it will be at least two years before wine could be on shelves. Because of a compromise to allow retailers to continue to compete with grocery stores, liquor stores will be able to sell beer and other items as soon as this summer without a referendum.

Dozens of murder victims’ loved ones packed Nashville’s Legislative Plaza yesterday, supporting a bill to allow a living picture of a victim to be shown during a murder trial — currently, the jury only sees autopsy photos and gruesome crime scenes. Critics of the bill argue it could jeopardize the entire outcome of the trial, along with current judicial rules that are already in place. Judges often rule that a living photo of the victim is not relevant when presenting the facts of the case. The House Civil Justice Committee decided to move the bill to a summer study session. WRCBTV has more.

Former Metro councilman David Briley announced he will run for vice mayor of Nashville next year. Incumbent Diane Neighbors will be stepping down in 2015 because of term limits. Vice mayor presides over the 40-member Metro Council and only votes when necessary to break a tie. "It's a hard job. It's thankless. It's not necessarily a stepping stone to anything else. This is something I want to do because I love Nashville,” Briley, an attorney with Bone McAllester Norton, told the Tennessean.

Judicial activists on the Supreme Court are eroding political equality by allowing corporations and other wealthy donors to spend unlimited sums of money on politics, former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank said Monday. In a speech at Vanderbilt University as part of the university’s 50th annual Impact Symposium, the Massachusetts Democrat pointed to the court’s 2010 Citizens United case as the prime culprit in what he called a “fundamental dilution of political equality.” “The decision to allow money freely to flow influencing elections subverts democracy,” Frank said. The Tennessean has more.

CASA Nashville will host its annual Red Shoe Party on April 12 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Rocketown. Held during National Child Abuse Prevention Month, the Red Shoe Party is CASA’s largest fundraiser of the year and will feature a silent auction and contest for the best red shoes. Click here for more information, tickets or to become a sponsor.

Judges vying for North Carolina’s State Supreme Court face difficult and expensive challenges on the campaign trail ever since the state did away with public financing for judicial candidates last year, Gavel Grab reports. Judicial candidates can’t make promises or use traditional campaign tactics when trying to define their candidacies, which leads to an "awkward world of judges stumping for votes and money." North Carolina Supreme Court justice Cheri Beasley says the $1.2 to $2 million her consultants say she needs to raise for her reelection bid is outrageous. “We want judges that are focusing on doing their jobs and not focusing on being politicians,” she said.

The Tennessee Lawyers' Association for Women will host “How I Put My Law Degree to Work — Finding Your Niche in the Law,” a panel discussion including the Hon. Holly Kirby who was recently appointed to the Tennessee Supreme Court. The event is Tuesday at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law, from noon to 1:30 p.m. It is co-sponsored by the Association for Women Attorneys and is open to practicing attorneys as well as law students. RSVP/register online at www.tlaw.org

Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Va., announced this week that it will downsize its incoming class of students and tighten its budget because of the national decline in law school applicants, TriCities.com reports. Law school dean Lucy McGough said yesterday that they will whittle down class sizes until they're more in line with the number accepted when the school opened about 16 years ago, which was about 150 to 200 students. The school also stated a desire to return to its local roots. "[We're] returning to a smaller school because that's probably closer to our mission in any event," McGough said.