The pro se Petitioner, Dexter Parker, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, arguing that he received the ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Based on our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Marina Kotova (“Plaintiff”) and Thomas Kevin True (“Defendant”), who were formerly married, entered into an agreement whereby Defendant would purchase certain real property owned by Plaintiff pursuant to an installment purchase agreement. The agreement provided that, in the event of a default by Defendant, Plaintiff could sue for monetary damages, specific performance, or both. Additionally, an addendum to the agreement allowed Plaintiff to evict Defendant from the property if he was in default for more than thirty days. Defendant defaulted, and Plaintiff sued him seeking possession of the property and monetary damages. The trial court instead awarded Plaintiff specific performance, which required Plaintiff to sell the property to Defendant upon Defendant curing his default. Plaintiff appeals the trial court’s award of specific performance. We find that the trial court erred by awarding Plaintiff a remedy other than what she requested, and we reverse the trial court.

In this case involving termination of a mother’s parental rights to her child, the trial court allowed the mother’s counsel to withdraw from representation at the beginning of trial when the mother did not appear. On appeal, the mother asserts that she did not have prior notice of the trial date and that her attorney did not provide her with notice of an intent to withdraw from representation. Based on the circumstances presented and applicable law, we vacate the trial court’s termination of the mother’s parental rights and remand for a new trial.

The employer avers the trial court erred in finding the employee was likely to prove at trial that he provided timely notice of an alleged gradual injury and in awarding medical benefits in this interlocutory appeal. The employee began having low back pain after being assigned additional work duties and sought medical care on his own, including physical therapy. Following his termination from the employer, the employee’s primary care physician referred him for an MRI. The employee filed a petition for benefit determination fifteen days after the referral, and the employer denied the claim for lack of timely notice. By the time of the expedited hearing, the employee had obtained a medical opinion from a neurosurgeon recommending surgery and opining that the injury and need for surgery were primarily caused by the employee’s gradual work injury. The employer obtained a records review from a pain management specialist, who opined the employee’s herniated discs were likely degenerative in nature. Following an expedited hearing, the trial court found the employee was likely to be successful at a trial in proving he gave timely notice of a work-related injury, credited the employee’s expert over the employer’s expert as to causation, and ordered the employer to provide a panel. The employer has appealed. Having carefully reviewed the record, we affirm the trial court’s order and remand the case.

Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) officials are seeking $1.7 million for drone detection technology to prevent contraband from being airdropped into state prisons, the Nashville Banner reports. TDOC Commissioner Frank Strada discussed the request Tuesday during a budget hearing with the Senate State and Local Committee. Strada said the technology would be part of a broader intelligence-gathering initiative. Keeping contraband out of prisons is complicated, in part because staff members are sometimes involved in smuggling schemes, the paper reports. For example, reports on criminal cases at the CoreCivic-operated Trousdale Turner Correctional Center include charges of employees bringing in drugs or cellphones, and a 2024 federal lawsuit highlighted the use of drones to deliver drugs to the prison yard.

A new Tennessee law allows facility dogs to assist victims and witnesses testifying in court with a judge’s approval. According to Chattanoogan.com, the trained dogs provide comfort to witnesses, including children, and offer an added sense of security for those discussing sensitive topics in often high-stress situations, such as jury trials. To use a facility dog in a case, a motion must first be filed with the court. The judge then will decide whether the circumstances warrant allowing the dog.

A Shelby County judge ruled Monday that only four Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) board seats will appear on the 2026 ballot, finding that county commissioners “exceeded their authority” by voting last fall to place all nine seats on the ballot, the Daily Memphian reports. Chancellor Melanie Taylor Jefferson said the commission added language not included in a new Tennessee law allowing alignment of school board terms with the county’s four-year election cycle, improperly cutting short the terms of five board members. As a result, only seats representing Districts 1, 6, 8 and 9 will be on the ballot, while Districts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 will not. The ruling, delivered from the bench ahead of upcoming election deadlines, follows a lawsuit filed by MSCS in December challenging the commission’s resolution. Prior to Monday's ruling, a temporary restraining order prevented candidates from pulling petitions for the seats in question.

Brentwood-based nonprofit Compassion Legal and the Nashville law firm of Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison have filed an amicus brief in a federal appellate case challenging Tennessee laws that limit speech about reproductive health care options in other states, the Nashville Banner reports. The brief urges the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals to affirm a district court ruling that speech about health care available in other states is constitutionally protected, even when the care is not legal in a person’s state of residence. “If states are allowed to criminalize speech about reproductive health care options available in other states, they could just as easily criminalize speech about end-of-life health care options, such as medical aid in dying, available in other states,” Veronica Darling, director of litigation at Compassion Legal, said in a news release. Sherrard Roe is representing Compassion Legal pro bono.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti joined a bipartisan coalition of 40 attorneys general in urging congressional leadership to pass the Kids Online Safety Act. In a letter sent to House and Senate leaders ahead of potential consideration of the House version of the bill, the attorneys general warned that the proposal could undermine existing and future state laws aimed at protecting children online and limit states’ ability to address emerging digital harms. The coalition expressed support for the Senate version of the legislation, which includes a duty-of-care requirement and preserves states’ authority to enforce and strengthen protections for minors. “Congress should not tie the hands of state lawmakers and law enforcement who are actively working to protect children from addictive and harmful online design features,” Skrmetti said in a news release.

Most criminal cases prosecuted by the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office in 2025 involved misdemeanor charges, according to the office’s annual report released Tuesday. Misdemeanor cases accounted for 65.2% of the office’s criminal caseload, compared with 34.8% for felony cases. The office handled 24,186 misdemeanor cases and 12,900 felony cases, the Daily Memphian reports. In total, the office handled 123,705 cases, including matters in county traffic, environmental and juvenile courts. Major violent crime — including murder, rape and aggravated assault — fell 27.6% in Memphis last year compared with 2024. Of the violent felony cases prosecuted by the office, 41.3% were aggravated assaults, followed by single-digit percentages for murders, rapes and robberies.