The Nashville airport board appointed by Mayor John Cooper met at the Metro Courthouse Tuesday and voted to seek outside counsel in its lawsuit against the state over who controls the Nashville International Airport and the smaller John Tune Airport, the Nashville Post reports. The board also approved a resolution authorizing Metro Legal Director Wally Dietz to choose the counsel. Metro has sued the state seeking to overturn the new airport board which took effect June 30. A three-judge state court panel will meet July 28 in Davidson County Chancery Court and is expected to rule on which version of the board is in charge until the full lawsuit is resolved. The Federal Aviation Authority has said it will recognize the old board until a court rules on Nashville’s lawsuit against the state.

A news item in yesterday’s issue of TBA Today had the incorrect RSVP deadline to attend the investiture ceremony for incoming Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Dwight E. Tarwater. Responses will be accepted through Aug. 25. The event will take place Sept. 5 at 3 p.m. EDT at the Tennessee Theatre, located at 604 S. Gay St., Knoxville 37902. View the invitation. RSVP to tscrsvp@painetarwater.com to attend.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti recently announced a partnership with the Federal Trade Commission and other law enforcement agencies nationwide to crackdown on illegal telemarketing operations responsible for billions of calls to U.S. consumers. The joint state and federal “Operation Stop Scam Calls” initiative targets telemarketers, the companies that hire them, lead generators and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service providers, who facilitate illegal robocalls, which often originate from overseas. The effort includes law enforcement actions as well as an educational campaign.

This is the employer’s appeal of a compensation order finding the employee’s claim compensable and awarding benefits. The employee alleged an injury to his right shoulder while unloading pallets and stocking two-liter soda bottles. The employer provided a panel of orthopedic specialists, which it asserted complied with Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-204(a)(3)(B), and it authorized certain medical treatment. The employer then declined to pay further benefits based on the opinion of the physician selected from that panel. The employee sought medical treatment on his own, including surgery, and that physician opined the injury was primarily caused by the work accident. The employer obtained an employer’s examination, and that physician agreed with the panel physician regarding medical causation. At trial, the court determined that none of the physicians’ causation opinions were entitled to a presumption of correctness and that the employee met his burden of proving that his injury and need for surgery arose primarily from the work accident. The court awarded temporary and permanent disability benefits and future medical care made reasonably necessary by the work accident. However, the court declined to award the employee his expenses for the unauthorized medical treatment, finding that no proof had been presented that those expenses were reasonable and necessary. The employer appealed. After careful consideration of the entire record and the arguments of counsel, we affirm the court’s determination that the injury was compensable and its award of temporary and permanent disability benefits and reasonable and necessary future medical care. We reverse the court’s denial of the stipulated medical expenses and modify the compensation order accordingly. We certify as final the modified compensation order.

An investiture ceremony for incoming Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Dwight E. Tarwater will take place Sept. 5 at 3 p.m. EDT at the Tennessee Theatre in Knoxville. The oath will be administered by Gov. Bill Lee and a reception will follow. The theatre is located at 604 S. Gay St., Knoxville 37902. View the invitation. RSVP by Aug. 25 to tscrsvp@painetarwater.com to attend.

The Defendant, Marterrius Hite, was convicted in the Shelby County Criminal Court of two counts of first degree felony murder, aggravated child abuse, and aggravated child neglect and received an effective sentence of life plus eighty years in confinement. On appeal, the Defendant claims that (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions, (2) the trial court erred by allowing the State to introduce his belt into evidence without establishing a proper chain of custody, (3) the trial court committed plain error by ruling he “opened the door” to a police officer testifying that he was arrested on prior warrants, (4) the trial court committed plain error by commenting on his expert witness’s PowerPoint presentation, (5) the trial court erred by allowing the jury to deliberate late at night, and (6) his effective sentence is excessive. Upon review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Petitioner, Tony Thomas, appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court’s denial of post-conviction relief. On appeal, Petitioner argues that the post-conviction court erred in denying relief. Finding that the issues presented for our review are without merit, waived, previously determined, or a combination thereof, we affirm the judgment of the postconviction court.

The Petitioner, Said Laghrab, pled guilty in the Fayette County Circuit Court to aggravated assault and received a four-year sentence. Seven years later, he filed a petition for postconviction relief, and the post-conviction court summarily dismissed the petition as untimely. Based upon the oral arguments, the record, and the parties’ briefs, we conclude that the Petitioner has not shown he is entitled to due process tolling of the statute of limitations and affirm the post-conviction court’s dismissal of the petition.

Defendant, Clifton Weathers Horn, II, pleaded guilty to eight counts of unlawful photography in violation of privacy (with dissemination), one count of attempted tampering with evidence, and fourteen counts of facilitation of sexual exploitation of a minor. Following a sentencing hearing, the trial court sentenced him to a term of four years in the Department of Correction, followed by one year of supervised probation. On appeal, Defendant argues the trial court erred in denying judicial diversion or other forms of full alternative sentencing. After review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

The Petitioner, Deshun Hampton, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, arguing that he received ineffective assistance of counsel and that his guilty plea was not knowingly and voluntarily entered. Based on our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.