The Shelby County Board of Commissioners earlier this week passed a resolution urging the U.S. Department of Justice to oversee its juvenile detention centers after reports of racial disparities, Tennessee Lookout reports. The board took the action after hearing from Countywide Juvenile Justice Consortium (CJJC) — a citizen-led board created to hold the juvenile justice court accountable — that the court has not met Justice Department recommendations to improve conditions. Specifically, CJJC said the court has not explained why Black children are transferred to adult facilities at higher rates.

The TBA Family Law Section will host its annual forum Oct. 8 from 9 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. CDT. The program will include a legislative update and sessions on courtroom "dos" and "don'ts," the importance of marital balance sheets, surrogacy education and well-being for family law practitioners. The forum will provide 2.75 general and 2 dual hours of CLE credit. Register now!

The Murfreesboro branch of the Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims will be closed for renovations beginning in October. All hearings set in Judge Dale Tipps’ courtroom will be heard at the Rutherford County Courthouse, 116 West Lytle St. Contact Patsy Bumbalough with questions about those hearings. In-person court cases before Judge Robert Durham will have their claims heard on the second floor of the Murfreesboro City Courtroom, 111 West Vine St. Questions for that courtroom can be directed to Chris Hudson.

State Sen. Katrina Robinson, D-Memphis, took the stand in her own defense yesterday as the final witness during the federal wire fraud and embezzlement case against her, the Daily Memphian reports. Federal authorities claim Robinson misspent about $600,000 in federal grant funding intended to help students at her business, The Healthcare Institute. “I have been dragged through the mud by the federal government when the federal government knew good and well that I did not do that,” Robinson testified. U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman last week dismissed 15 of the 20 charges against Robinson, saying the government had failed to prove its case on those counts. Prosecutors will begin cross-examination of Robinson on Wednesday.

Joseph P. Day this week announced that he is running for Davidson County Circuit Court Clerk. Day is currently the chief deputy of public relations and employee development at the clerk’s office, where he has served in various roles since 2001. A Nashville native, Day graduated from Tennessee State University and began work in the clerk’s office as a deputy clerk in the Traffic Warrant Division. Longtime Circuit Court Clerk Richard Rooker recently announced he will not seek another term. “I am extremely excited for Joseph to bring his vision, leadership skills and years of experience to this position,” Rooker said. Read the full press release.

A lawsuit has been filed against the Roman Catholic Diocese of Nashville and a Murfreesboro parish for allegedly ignoring reports of child abuse by the former religious education director, the Tennessean reports. The abuse allegedly came at the hands of Michael Lewis at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church. Lewis was indicted by a grand jury in June 2020 on 14 felony charges, including statutory rape and sexual battery. His trial is set for February 2022. The 40-page complaint filed in Davidson County on Monday by a Baltimore-based firm claims the diocese “concealed Lewis’s abuse, sexual misconduct, and sexual harassment of plaintiff and others.”

Should U.S. Congress fail to pass a bill that extends government funding by midnight on Thursday, federal courts should be able to operate for another two weeks, the ABA Journal reports. A spokesperson for the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts confirmed that federal courts can keep operating until Oct. 15. Filing fees and other funding sources not dependent on congressional appropriation would allow the federal courts to remain afloat. During the last shutdown, which ended in January 2019, the federal court system estimated they could remain open for three weeks, but by delaying new hires and cutting travel, were able to operate longer than expected.

Investment banker and lawyer Forrest Shoaf has died. He was 71. Shoaf was a West Point graduate who went on to earn his law degree from Harvard Law School. He joined Bass, Berry & Sims in Nashville and left in 1995 to serve as general counsel on Lamar Alexander’s presidential campaign. He ran for the 7th Congressional District seat in 2002, coming in fifth in the Republican primary won by Marsha Blackburn. He would later refer to his campaign as a “cure for narcissism.” Shoaf later moved on to J.C. Bradford & Co. as managing director for corporate finance. Read more from the Tennessee Journal.

Memphis attorney Henri Lynne Smith died Saturday. She was 65. Smith earned her law degree from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and for more than three decades was a successful civil lawyer. During a bid for city court judge in 1996, Smith's campaign slogan read, “Justice is blind, except for respect.” Visitation for Smith will be held tomorrow from 5 to 7 p.m. CDT at Memphis Funeral Home, 5599 Poplar Ave.

Harold “Bud” Rohen, former Criminal Court Clerk for Hamilton County, passed away on Saturday. He was 84. Rohen was a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and served as court clerk until his retirement. A graveside service will be on Oct. 4 at 2 p.m. EDT at the Chattanooga National Cemetery. There will be no visitation. In lieu of flowers, the family request donations to Hospice of Chattanooga in memory of Rohen. Those interested can leave a message or condolences for the family here.