Jeffery D. Parrish of Scotts Hill died Feb. 18 at the age of 61. A graduate of the University of Memphis School of Law, Parrish began his legal career in private practice, later handling corporate health care matters. He practiced with Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP for many years. Most recently, he was state counsel and field director for U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn. In addition to his professional career, Parrish enjoyed travel, music, food and boating. Visitation will be held tomorrow from 3-7 p.m. CST at St. Regina Catholic Church, 108 Skyline Ln., Parsons 38363. A funeral mass will be held at the church on Friday at noon.

Make plans now to join colleagues from across the state at the TBA’s Annual Convention, set for June 12-15 in Memphis. The event will return to the Peabody Hotel, located in the heart of downtown Memphis with easy access to restaurants and entertainment. Programming is still being planned, but perennial favorites such as the Bench Bar program, Lawyers Lunch and joint event with the Tennessee Judicial Conference will be on the agenda. The Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women, Tennessee Alliance for Black Lawyers and Tennessee Trial Lawyers' Association also will hold meetings and events that week at the Peabody. This year’s theme — “A Bridge to the Future” — will bring compelling CLE programs focused on artificial intelligence and how this rapidly expanding technology will impact the practice of law. Watch for more information coming soon to the event webpage.

Two bills proposed by the TBA passed in legislative committees this week. Today, the House Civil Justice Committee passed a bill drafted by the Tennessee Probate Study Group and sponsored by Rep. Johnny Garrett, R-Goodlettsville, in the House and Sen. John Stevens, R- Huntingdon, in the Senate. HB2710/SB2254 allows a medical or psychological report, required by the court to appoint a conservator, to be either notarized or declared under penalty of perjury as set forth in Rule 72 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure. The reasoning behind the bill is that doctors’ offices do not always have access to a notary public. This bill would make the process of setting up a conservatorship faster and less expensive.

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed a bill drafted by TBA adoption law attorneys and sponsored by Sen. Ferrell Hail, R- Gallatin, in the Senate and Rep. Tom Leatherwood, R-Arlington, in the House. HB2644/SB2633 was amended by the TBA and those changes passed as the new bill. The TBA Adoption Law Section’s Executive Council drafted HB2644/SB2633 to ensure that changes made to the adoption code last session work better in practice and to clean up sections of the code addressing putative fathers and child witnesses. These changes will result in expediting adoptions, saving court resources, creating uniformity across the state in courts that hear adoption cases and avoiding delays in permanency.

Committees in both the state House and Senate have advanced a proposed constitutional amendment to the state’s bail law, setting up floor votes in both chambers, the Tennessean reports. In the Senate, SJR919 passed the Judiciary Committee by a vote of 6-3 despite opposition from Chair Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga. He argued the change — which would expand the list of crimes for which a judge could deny bail — would pack county jails and put local governments in a financial bind to expand or build new facilities. In the House, the Criminal Justice Committee passed HJR859 on a voice vote. If approved by both chambers, the resolution still would have to pass in the 114th General Assembly before being placed on the next ballot involving a gubernatorial race. It would then have to receive a majority vote of those participating in the governor’s election.

Tennessee House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, has filed a resolution to condemn neo-Nazism after a march in downtown Nashville that included swastika flags, WKRN reports. The proposed resolution states that “racism and hatred in any form are repugnant and sinful.” It also calls for rejecting those who promote “anti-Semitism, xenophobia, discrimination and racial intolerance in all forms.” The group that marched is believed to have been comprised of members of the extremist groups Blood Tribe and the Vinland Rebels. In a statement about the resolution, Lamberth said, “Tennesseans will never accept or normalize evil, and we denounce any ideology or group motivated by sick hatred and racial intolerance of any human being.”

The American Bar Association (ABA) will offer a special Black History Month program on Feb. 29 at 2 p.m. CST. "The Business of Democracy" will feature special advisors to the ABA Task Force for American Democracy, former Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier, former American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault and past ABA President Paulette Brown, the first women of color to serve in that role. Topics will include corporate and social activism, the impact of the Supreme Court’s affirmative action decision on the business community, how lawyers can pursue a career path in the corporate sector, and more. Login to watch the program here.

A Marshall County jury convicted the Petitioner, Michael White, of five counts of rape in 2005, and the trial court sentenced him to an effective sentence of fifty-five years. Thereafter, the Petitioner filed an application for a writ of habeas corpus. He alleged that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to hear his case because, among other things, the original affidavit of complaint was invalid and that his charges were not supported by probable cause. The habeas corpus court summarily denied the application, finding that the Petitioner failed to state a colorable claim for relief and that he failed to comply with the statutory requirements for requesting the writ. Upon our review, we respectfully affirm the judgment of the habeas corpus court.

In 2005, the Defendant, Ruben D. Pimentel, pled guilty to the offense of first degree murder and accepted a negotiated sentence of imprisonment for life without possibility of parole. Thereafter, he filed a motion to correct an illegal sentence pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1. He alleged that his sentence was illegal because it violates Tennessee Code Annotated section 40-35-501(h)(2), as amended in 2020, which provides that a defendant may be released from a life sentence after sixty years. The trial court summarily denied the motion, finding that the Defendant’s sentence was not illegal. Upon our review, we respectfully disagree with the Defendant and affirm the trial court’s judgment.

Petitioner, Farris Lamont Kidd, pleaded guilty to five separate charges, and received an effective fourteen-year sentence. Thereafter, Petitioner filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief, which the post-conviction court denied after a hearing. On appeal, Petitioner argues he received ineffective assistance of counsel. After review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

A Henry County jury found Defendant, Justin Daniel Barker, guilty of two counts of rape (under alternate theories) and one count of aggravated statutory rape. The trial court imposed an effective sentence of eight and a half years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, Defendant argues the trial court erred in admitting testimony related to Defendant’s pending criminal proceedings in another jurisdiction, and he contends the evidence was insufficient to sustain the jury’s verdicts. After review, we conclude the trial court erred in admitting evidence related to the pending criminal proceedings, but such error was harmless. We also conclude the evidence was sufficient to support Defendant’s convictions. Accordingly, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.