Kevin G. Ritz, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, has appointed four assistant U.S. attorneys for the district. They are Jermal Blanchard, Courtney Lewis, Mary Morris and Bryce Phillips. All four will work in the Memphis office. Blanchard and Phillips join the office from the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office, where they were prosecutors. Lewis comes from the U.S. Navy, where she was a judge advocate for 16 years and a military judge. Morris joins the office from the University of Memphis School of Law, where she was a professor for several years. Read more about the new hires in a release.

A Knoxville family who sought to ban gum-chewing and eating in their daughter’s classes can proceed with an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) lawsuit, Knox News reports. The suit had been languishing in the appeals process after a federal judge ruled it was not properly filed. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit found that the complaint was properly filed and sent the case back to the district court. “Jane Doe” suffers from misophonia, a rare disorder characterized by an extreme reaction — similar to a panic attack — to hearing sounds such as chewing. The family has since moved the girl to another school. The attorney for the family said they will amend the suit to seek reimbursement for the costs associated with that move.

President Joe Biden announced yesterday that immigrants from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela will be expelled to Mexico if they enter the U.S. illegally, effective immediately. At the same time, he offered humanitarian parole for up to 30,000 people a month from those four countries if they apply online, pay for their airfare and find a financial sponsor. “Do not, do not just show up at the border,” Biden said as he announced the changes. “Stay where you are and apply legally from there.” Biden made the announcement just days before a planned visit to the southern border. The Tennessee Ledger has the story from the Associated Press.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee today announced the theme and schedule of events for the 2023 inaugural celebration. Lee will take the oath of office for his second term at a ceremony on Jan. 21 at 11 a.m. CST on Legislative Plaza in Nashville. The oath will be administered by Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Page. This year’s theme “Tennessee: Leading the Nation” was chosen to reflect the state’s role in “leading the nation as a guiding light for opportunity, security and freedom.” Other inaugural events include free tours of the state capitol and Tennessee State Museum, reception at the Wildhorse Saloon, a worship service at the Ryman Auditorium, and the first couple’s inaugural dinner and ball. Details for all events are available online.

The U.S. government today launched a website for victims of alleged fraud by FTX cryptocurrency exchange founder Sam Bankman-Fried, Reuters reportss. Federal prosecutors are seeking permission to use a website to notify victims, rather than contacting each individually. FTX could owe money to more than one million people, making it "impracticable" to contact each, the government says. While awaiting approval, the website went live with instructions for those who believe they may have been victims. Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of wire fraud and conspiracy.

On the second anniversary of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, the Tennessean looks at the 26 Tennesseans who have been charged in connection with the event. Most face trespassing charges, but some have been accused of serious assaults, including on law enforcement officers. Others have already been adjudicated and received punishment in the form of fines, jail time and probation. See the full list. At a White House ceremony marking the day, President Joe Biden awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal to 12 individuals who "demonstrated courage and selflessness" in the events surrounding the attack, Reuters reports.

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has identified three sites as potential locations for Chattanooga’s new federal courthouse. Chattanoogan.com reports they are: the TVA Office Building, Hawk Hill Lookouts Field and property at Lindsey and Houston streets. The new courthouse will replace the historic courthouse on Georgia Avenue across from Miller Park. Earlier this year, GSA received congressional authorization to spend $218,381,000 for site acquisition, design and construction. For more information and updates visit the GSA’s website for the project.

South Carolina's Supreme Court ruled today that a 2021 state law banning abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy is unconstitutional because it violates a right to privacy. The state law took effect after the U.S. Supreme Court eliminated the right to abortion that had been established by the 1973 Roe v. Wade case. Planned Parenthood challenged the law and today, the court ruled 3-2 in its favor. "We hold that our state constitutional right to privacy extends to a woman's decision to have an abortion," Justice Kaye Hearn wrote in the majority opinion. Hearn went on to say that the state can set some limits on abortion, but any regulation should give a woman "sufficient time to determine she is pregnant and to take reasonable steps to terminate that pregnancy." Six weeks was "not a reasonable period of time," Hearn concluded. Reuters reports on the decision.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has proposed a rule that would ban companies from requiring workers to sign non-compete provisions as well as some training repayment agreements, Reuters reports. The move is designed to support workers who leave their employers to seek better jobs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has indicated that it will oppose the proposal. Legal challenges are likely to focus on whether Congress clearly authorized the FTC to adopt nationwide bans on what the agency deems anti-competitive practices.

Davidson County Chancellor Patricia Head Moskal this week ordered Gov. Bill Lee’s office to release certain documents pertaining to a no-bid contract, the Nashville Scene reports. The move was forced through a lawsuit by the Scene’s parent company FW Publishing, and reporter Stephen Elliott. The news source was seeking access to reports by consulting firm McKinsey & Co., which received a $3 million no-bid contract to evaluate the state’s post-COVID 19 reopening, its operations and “support to the Unified Command Group.” The Lee administration had claimed “deliberative process privilege” to keep the reports secret. Moskal ruled that the reports are public records under the Tennessee Public Records Act and that the act does not provide an exemption for such a privilege. Read more about the deliberative process privilege from the Tennessean.