The Tennessee Bar Association will be open on a limited basis next week on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and closed on Thursday and Friday in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Visit the TBA website to access CLE offerings and contact information for individual staff members. The office will reopen Nov. 27 at 8 a.m. CST. Happy Thanksgiving!

The East Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women (ETLAW) is hosting its annual toiletry drive to benefit the Knoxville YWCA. The YWCA's housing project relies on toiletry packages every year to distribute to women in need. Items can be dropped off at or shipped to the LMU Duncan School of Law, 601 W. Summit Hill Dr., Knoxville 37902, by 9 a.m. EST on Dec. 13 or brought to The Foundry, 747 Worlds Fair Park Dr., Knoxville 37902, on Dec. 13, prior to the ETLAW Annual Meeting at noon. Visit the ETLAW website for links to an Amazon Wishlist, a toiletry drive sign up sheet and information on making monetary donations. Email Community Outreach Chair Bianca White with questions.

Former Fayette County Public Schools board member Civil Miller-Watkins has filed a statement of candidacy with the Federal Election Commission, adding her name to a list of Democrats seeking to challenge Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn for her seat in Congress next year. The Tennessee Lookout reports that Miller-Watkins says her experience in a rural county and its lack of resources, along with concerns about “kitchen table issues,” prompted her candidacy. She joins state Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, on the ballot. Democrat Marquita Bradshaw of Memphis also announced she would seek the 2024 nomination but has not yet filed a statement of candidacy.

An investigation by ProPublica and Nashville Public Radio has found that the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center in Knoxville has been using seclusion as a punishment for years. It reports that the Department of Children's Services (DCS), the licensing agency for the facility, has documented the improper use of seclusion and has put the Bean Center on corrective action plans, though it has continued to renew its license. In 2017, DCS changed the standards for using seclusion, adding guidelines and a reporting requirement, which were then codified into law. The Bean Center, the report found, continues to use seclusion as punishment, rather than as a last resort as the law requires. Richard Bean, the facility's superintendent and namesake, says of his operation: “What we do is treat everybody like they’re in here for murder. You don’t have a problem if you do that.” A similar investigation into juvenile detention practices in Rutherford County ended with the resignation of the presiding juvenile court judge.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) has selected members for its 2024 Diversity Leadership Institute (DLI) class. This year's invited participants represent all six law schools across the state.

Congratulations to Abbie Dierbeck from Belmont University College of Law; Amanda Reyes and Jasmine Steele from Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law; Imani Bruce, Christina Mulliford, Ian Reddick and Anthony Self from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law; Charlena Fuqua, Jasmine Patton, Amanda Harrington Sargent, Zaia Thombre and Diane Tress from Nashville School of Law; Ashley Fox from Vanderbilt University Law School; and Daniel Mendoza and Trinity Sandifer from the University of Tennessee College of Law.

Class members will embark on a six-month leadership and mentoring program designed to develop skills to succeed as a law student and attorney, empower students to contribute more to the legal community, match students to mentors in a diverse variety of practice areas, and build relationships among students of diverse backgrounds. Thanks to DLI co-chairs Brande Boyd and Rod Watson for their work selecting the new class.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands (LAS) today announced that it has launched a fundraising campaign devoted to funding reentry services provided to residents of Middle Tennessee. The campaign, running through the end of 2023, has a fundraising goal of $200,000. Having a criminal record can create a barrier to employment, housing, public benefits and other necessities, the group says. “Reentering society after incarceration is much more difficult than many people realize, with countless legal hurdles that can make it an uphill battle to simply find a job and a place to live,” says Executive Director DarKenya W. Waller. LAS’s reentry program assists residents trying to reacclimate to society and return to the workforce after a period of incarceration. Read the full press release.

The YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee will hold its next “Stand Against Injustice” webinar on Nov. 29 from noon to 1 p.m. CST. This month’s installment of the monthly series will focus on the state’s decision not to accept federal funds for health care. Panelists will discuss statistics related to maternal mortality, hospital closures and medical bankruptcies. Learn more or register online.

Shelby County chief jailer Kirk Fields filed a motion Friday asking that he be dismissed from the civil suit filed against him, Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. and Shelby County government by the family of Gershun Freeman. Freeman died while in police custody in October 2022. Nine Shelby corrections officers have been indicted for their alleged roles in his death. The Daily Memphian reports that Fields asked the court to dismiss him from the suit primarily because it fails to show he was directly involved in Freeman’s death. Fields also alleged he has qualified immunity, which affords him immunity from civil suit.

Tennessee’s delegation to Europe in June to promote the state cost taxpayers over $117,000, the Tennessean reports. Gov. Bill Lee, two of his staffers, two members of the Department of Economic and Community Development, two of their wives and two members of Lee’s security detail were in attendance for the six-day trip. According to the Tennessean, state policies governing travel related spending for most state employees require strict economy ― but there are exceptions for anyone traveling with the governor, and for economic development officials traveling to promote the state. “Creating jobs and greater opportunity for Tennesseans is one of Gov. Lee's top priorities, and strategic international trade missions have provided a significant return on investment,” spokesperson Elizabeth Johnson said in a statement.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) says its turnaround time for processing rape kits has been cut in half since August 2022, from 45.4 weeks to 18 weeks on average. The Associated Press reports that the state’s turnaround times for sexual assault kits drew heavy scrutiny after the high-profile killing of Memphis teacher Eliza Fletcher in September 2022. The man charged with killing Fletcher was charged in a 2021 rape of a different woman shortly afterward, when the rape kit from that case was finally processed.