Gov. Bill Lee has signed HB1376/SB1413, introducing strict new regulations on Tennessee’s hemp industry effective Jan. 1, 2026. The law bans THCA and synthetic cannabinoids, prohibits direct-to-consumer sales, and limits all hemp-derived cannabinoids — other than Delta-9 THC — to a maximum concentration of 0.3%. The Commercial Appeal reports that oversight of these products will shift from the Department of Agriculture to the Alcoholic Beverage Commission, which will enforce new packaging, age, licensing, taxation and marketing rules. Sen. Richard Briggs, R-Knoxville, who sponsored the bill, said during debate, “We have a situation here in Tennessee where we are essentially dealing with unregulated recreational marijuana ... It’s the wild west out there.” Critics have warned that the law could hurt small business and local farmers, like this business in Clarksville, which spoke to News Channel 5.

Knox County prosecutors on Monday dropped all attempted murder charges against Ahmad Gatlin after recently discovered cell phone data corroborated his claim that he was across town when the crime was committed. Gatlin was convicted in 2023 after police and prosecutors argued he was in a car when shots were fired into another car near Austin-East Magnet High School in 2021. Knox News reports that Gatlin's defense team had argued for a new trial on the grounds that the prosecutors initially withheld evidence, including metadata from Snapchat that would have proven Gatlin's location. Prosecutors said the data was withheld in error. In a press conference after Gatlin's release, defense attorney Stephen Johnson stated, “[Ahmad] saw justice today for the first time in over four years ... We are honored to have helped bring him home.” WBIR has the story.

Events marking this year's Juneteenth celebration are being planned across the state this month. In Memphis, the 32nd Annual Memphis Juneteenth Festival will take place June 6 and 7 in Medical District Park while the 5th Annual Juneteenth Freedom Ride will occur on June 14. In Nashville, the Music City Freedom Fest will take place June 14 and 15 in Historic Hadley Park while the National African American Music Museum will celebrate with a block party at Assembly Food Hall's Sky Deck on June 19. The Tennessee State Museum also will offer Juneteenth programming on June 19, including a curator talk on antebellum and Civil War photography and an African American highlight tour of the galleries. Rounding out celebrations in Nashville will be Juneteenth 615 on June 19 with living history tours and fireworks at Fort Negley. In Chattanooga, the Juneteenth Unity Run and Walk and the Southside Juneteenth Jubilee at the Bethlehem Center will take place on June 14, while other events are planned throughout the month. In Knoxville, the Annual MLK Jr. Parade/March will take place in Chilhowee Park, followed by the Juneteenth Celebration in Dr. Walter Hardy Park on June 19.

Judge Larry Potter established the Shelby County Environmental Court in 1983 and was appointed as its first judge, holding the position for 35 years before his retiring in 2018. Last Wednesday, current Environmental Court Judge Patrick Dandridge unveiled a portrait of Potter at 201 Poplar in a celebration of Potter's legacy as the "father of environmental court in Memphis." The court was one of the first of its kind in the country and helped set the standard in addressing environmental cases, the Commercial Appeal reports.

The Nashville Bar Association YLD will host the 27th Annual Carbolic Smoke Ball on Aug. 22 at Emerson Hall, located at 2512 Gallatin Ave., Nashville 37206. All proceeds from the event will benefit Nashville Children's Alliance and Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). Black tie is optional. Information on the event and how to purchase tickets can be found at NashvilleBar.org/Carbolic.

Nashville kicked off a series of ceremonies across the state for new admittees to the practice of law. Candidates who passed the February bar exam, along with others, were sworn in during a ceremony in Nashville. Tennessee Bar Association President Ed Lanquist Jr. delivered remarks at the event, while representatives from the TBA and its Young Lawyers Division were on hand to welcome the new lawyers to the profession. Tennessee Supreme Court Justices Sarah K. Campbell and Jeff Bivins presided over the ceremony. See photos from the event. The Tennessee Supreme Court held additional events in Memphis, Jackson and Knoxville. 

DAVIS, Circuit Judge. Eszter Pryor brings this Title IX action against The Ohio State University (“OSU”) for allegedly failing to protect her from the sexual abuse and sexual assault committed by her diving coach when she was a minor competing for the Ohio State Diving Club. The district court dismissed her claim as time barred. But Pryor contends that the court applied the wrong statute of limitations and that her claim should not have been dismissed. Because the district court applied the correct limitations period, and Pryor filed her complaint beyond the applicable two-year window for such actions, we affirm.

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. Jurisdiction is power. The power of the federal courts is not unlimited: we are courts of limited jurisdiction. But when we do have jurisdiction over both the subject matter of the case and the parties before us, we must exercise that jurisdiction, except in certain limited circumstances. After all, within the bounds set by the Constitution, it’s Congress’s call just how powerful we should be. Drawing the boundaries of federal courts’ jurisdiction is a policy choice—a choice that the Constitution vests in the political branches. As judges, we respect that choice by exercising jurisdiction that we have and not exercising jurisdiction that we lack. But there are exceptions to the normal rule of mandatory jurisdiction. This case asks us how broad some of those exceptions are and how they interact with one another. Our sister circuits have provided different answers to this question. We have yet to weigh in until now.

A Williamson County trial court, over objection from the State of Tennessee, granted the defendant’s motion to depose a witness for discovery purposes. This Court granted the State’s application for an extraordinary appeal under Rule 10 of the Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure. Upon our review, we conclude the trial court erred in its decision to grant the defendant’s motion and remand the case to the trial court for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

The Petitioner, Eddie Harris, appeals the denial of his petition for post-conviction relief from his 2016 convictions of two counts of first degree premeditated murder, two counts of first degree murder in the perpetration of a robbery, and one count of possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. On appeal, the Petitioner argues the post-conviction court erred by failing to find that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel due to trial counsel’s failure to (1) present a witness in support of his defense, (2) cite favorable law during an evidentiary hearing or make an offer of proof following the trial court’s adverse ruling, and (3) object to alleged inconsistencies in the grand jury process. Discerning no error, we affirm.