The Tennessee Department of Correction yesterday announced it has received a $200,000 grant that will help temporarily house indigent people who are leaving prison, the Associated Press reports. In partnership with the Tennessee Housing Development Agency, the grant will pay for up to 60 days of housing for those who qualify for the program. TDOC Commissioner Lisa Helton says the program will give those leaving prison “time to focus on securing employment and saving for permanent housing when they first leave incarceration.” She also says affordable housing “helps to reduce the likelihood of re-offending.”

The law license of Sumner County lawyer John T. Harding was transferred to disability inactive status on Friday. Harding may not practice law while on inactive status and must comply with Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 9, Section 28. He may return to the practice of law after reinstatement by showing that his disability has been removed in accordance with Rule 9, Section 27.7.

The Knox County Chancery Court and Chancellor John F. Weaver will hold an informal reception honoring the retirement of Judicial Assistant Pamela Jennings on Aug. 30 from 2-4 p.m. EDT in the Chancery Part I courtroom. Light refreshments will be served. For any questions or additional information, please contact Lisa Sharp at (865) 215-2448 or Jennifer White at (865) 215-2560.

The Knox County Juvenile Court is changing its local rule this fall to require specific training for lawyers interested in taking delinquency appointments. A training will be held in Knoxville at the end of the month. For more information, email Chris Kleiser at the Knox County Public Defender's Community Law Office.

Fountain City lawyer Michael L. DeBusk died on Aug. 11 at the age of 75. He served as an attorney for almost 40 years, first earning his law license in 1973. Visitation and a celebration of life were held today. . A graveside service will be held on Aug. 26 at 12:30 p.m. at East Tennessee State Veterans Cemetery, 2200 E. Gov. John Sevier Hwy., Knoxville 37920. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be sent to the American Diabetes Association. Online condolences can be left for the family on the Mynatt Funeral Home website.

In an email to members, the Nashville Bar Association announced it has hired Abby Sparks as its new executive director. Sparks replaces Monica Mackie, who will assist with the transition. Sparks most recently was assistant commissioner of people operations for the Tennessee Department of Human Services. She earned her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2006. Before her first state job, Sparks was as an attorney with the Law Office of Donald D. Zuccarello in Nashville. NBA President Martesha L. Johnson wrote to colleagues that “Abby is an experienced and authentic executive with a passion for providing creative solutions and leading successful teams. She brings with her a host of leadership experience.” Read more in a release from the association.

Maury County officials will move forward with plans to use American Rescue Act funds, rather than tax dollars, for a new justice center estimated to cost $30 million. The county budget committee looking at the project voted unanimously to use federal funding made available to localities in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Daily Herald reports. Some of the funding also will come from litigation and court fees and county adequate facilities taxes. The new center will be built on the site of the former Daily Herald building and will provide additional courtrooms and more space to conduct judicial operations.

Tennessee-based CoreCivic and the family of a man who died at the Trousdale Turner Correctional Center have settled a federal lawsuit, Associated Press reports. The suit was brought on behalf of G. Marie Newby, who died in February 2021 after his cellmate assaulted him, court records show. The lawsuit blamed low staffing levels and a failure by correctional officers to make timely rounds, and sought $10 million. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Nashville attorney Daniel Horwitz, who represented the family, called CoreCivic a “death factory.” In July, Magistrate Judge Jeffery Frensley ordered him to stop commenting on the case. State officials previously fined CoreCivic $2 million for problems at Trousdale.

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) said Friday that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the Nashville-based Christian denomination related to alleged sexual abuse. The organization said the investigation “will include multiple SBC entities” and that the SBC will “fully and completely cooperate,” Nashville Public Radio reports. A third-party report released in May alleged that denomination leaders downplayed and ignored sexual abuse within its churches for decades. The SBC also last week named a nine-person task force to reform how the church will respond to sex abuse in the future.

DarKenya W. Waller, executive director of the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, has been elected president of the African American Project Directors Association, which represents project directors and deputy directors of color who work in legal services. The mission of the group is to promote recruitment, support, development and retention of racial and ethnic minorities in leadership positions in the equal justice community. The group recently convened with African American chief public defenders from across the country to begin conversations on how to break down the silos between criminal and civil legal work. Read more in a LinkedIn post from Waller.