The American Bar Association is expected on Friday to vote on new free speech rules for law schools as campus clashes between Israeli and Palestinian supporters have intensified in recent weeks, reports Reuters. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has placed a focus on campus free speech rights, an issue prominent law schools have been grappling with over the past two years. Under the proposed change, law schools would be required to develop their own free speech policies protecting the exchange of ideas. Those policies must protect the rights of faculty, staff and students to communicate controversial or unpopular ideas and safeguard robust debate, demonstrations or protests. The Council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar first took up the issue last August.

A federal judge has rejected efforts by the major social media companies to dismiss nationwide litigation accusing them of illegally enticing and then addicting millions of children to their platforms, Reuters reports. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in California ruled against the operators of Google, YouTube, Facebook and others in a decision that covers hundreds of lawsuits filed on behalf of children who allegedly suffered anxiety, depression and emotional health effects from social media. More than 140 school districts have filed similar lawsuits against the industry. In her 52-page ruling, Rogers rejected arguments the companies were immune under the First Amendment and said the defendants did not address why they should not be liable for providing effective parental controls.

Legal battles over redistricting could lead to new congressional maps in nearly a dozen U.S. states for the 2024 election, potentially flipping control of the U.S. House of Representatives. Reuters reports on several cases including Tennessee, New York, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and Louisiana that could result in seat gains for both Democrats and Republicans. The two political parties are fighting over maps redrawn after the 2020 U.S. Census. In Tennessee, civil rights groups have sued over the state's congressional map, claiming Republican lawmakers illegally hurt voters of color by splitting up Nashville's Davidson County, home to a sizable Black community into three districts. The 2022 map dismantled a heavily Democratic seat, prompting former Rep. Jim Cooper to retire.

The Shelby County Board of Commissioners is seeking a status update from Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp on the current investigation of County Clerk Wanda Halbert, the Commercial Appeal reports. Wamp was appointed to investigate Halbert's office in June following numerous complaints that could indicate a willful neglect to perform the duties of office. The resolution sites the closure of the satellite office in East Memphis in addition to public complaints of the clerk's office operations. The Commercial Appeal reports that according to documents from the Shelby County Trustee's Office, Halbert has not submitted a completed revenue report on time since July 2021.

In a landmark acknowledgement of past racism, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records on Monday announced it had overturned the court-martial convictions of 110 African American soldiers, including 19 who were executed, reports Reuters. The board found the court-martial cases were so fundamentally unfair that all the convictions should be set aside. The order restores their service records as having concluded honorably and will make their descendants eligible for military benefits, the Army said in a statement. The Army convictions arose out of the Houston Riots of Aug. 23, 1917, a violent outbreak that followed months of racist taunts against Black soldiers of the 3rd Battalion, 24th Infantry Regiment.

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.

Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk wants Tennessee’s criteria for involuntary commitment to a mental health facility to be changed. WPLN reports that Funk says Tennessee’s standards for involuntary commitment are nearly impossible to meet. Shaquille Taylor, accused of fatally shooting Belmont University freshman Jillian Ludwig last week, was tried earlier this year for aggravated assault and found incompetent to stand trial, but he did not meet the state’s criteria for involuntary commitment. The DA’s office told WPLN that it does not yet know how Taylor was able to procure a gun.

The Shelby County Public Defender’s Office is struggling to handle first-degree murder cases, citing staff shortages and an excessive workload. A July email from Chief Public Defender Phyllis Aluko asked all Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court judges to stop appointing her office on first-degree murder cases. The Daily Memphian reports that most cases, including first-degree murders, start in Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court, and judges typically only appoint private attorneys instead of public defenders if there is a conflict of interest.