Knox County prosecutors have dismissed charges against a Starbucks shift manager injured by Knox County sheriff's deputies, reports Knox News. The sheriff's office has opened an internal investigation into the man's arrest. Nashon Bain-Greenidge, a recent college graduate who worked at Starbucks to put himself through school, suffered serious cuts to his head and face and injuries to his hand when deputies arrested him outside the shop after he asked them why they had blocked entry to the parking lot. Knox News reports the deputies filed sparse and contradictory statements about the event. A sheriff's office spokesperson declined to answer whether either of the deputies has previously been the subject of civilian complaints.

Members of the TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) participated in two clinics last week donating an estimated $10,000 in legal services. Board members Paige Barbeauld and Shelby Silvey organized an Essential Documents for Essential Workers clinic in Montgomery County serving 35 members of the Montgomery County Fire and Clarksville Police Departments. In addition, Belmont University College of Law joined forces with the YLD and Rutherford County Recovery Court’s Re-Entry Program to host an expungement clinic at the county's Adult Detention Center and Work Center. Board members Alix Rogers, Ross Smith and YLD attorney Ginny Blake worked alongside 10 students to assist 48 clients and complete paperwork to expunge 176 charges. See photos from the events.

The U.S. Justice Department is partnering with law enforcement agencies on a new initiative to target violent groups threatening communities in and around Memphis. Resources include federal prosecutors from the Violent Crime and Racketeering Section, as well as investigative agents, analysts and forensic experts from ATF, FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service. “The threat from organized criminal enterprises requires that we bring significant resources to bear,” said Kevin G. Ritz, U.S. attorney for the Western District. The initiative will include prevention and intervention as well as coordination with the Western District’s Reentry Court Program, which assists offenders in reintegrating into their communities.

David S. Kennedy, a retired chief U. S bankruptcy judge for the Western District of Tennessee, died Nov. 26 at age 79. Kennedy was born in Reagan, Tennessee, and earned a bachelors degree from the University of Memphis and a law degree from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law. After law school, Kennedy embarked on a distinguished career as a lawyer, ultimately serving as chief bankruptcy judge. He was a member of the Memphis and Shelby County Bar Association and the Tennessee Bar Association. A visitation with the Kennedy family will be held Wednesday from 5-7 p.m. CST at Memorial Park Funeral Home, 5668 Poplar Avenue, Memphis 38119.

A new survey of 390 pre-law students polled in September by test prep company Kaplan show 58% said it was important to go to a school where students hold the same political and social views as they do, reports Reuters. In 2020, only 46% of students told Kaplan that political and social views were important. The survey was conducted before escalating tensions on college campuses between Palestinian and Israeli supporters. The American Bar Association is preparing a requirement for law schools to develop and publish free speech policies.

Join your colleagues Dec. 12 for the webcast "Firearms Regulation in America and Emerging Legal Issues." ATF Special Agent Thomas Waggoner will discuss issues with legal gun ownership in America and federal regulation of firearms under the Gun Control Act of 1968 and the National Firearms Act of 1934. Waggoner also will discuss the types of cases ATF investigates in our community. Find out more and register for this online program.

The Memphis Bar Association will hold its Second Saturday Legal Clinic on Dec. 9 from 10 a.m. to noon CST at the Benjamin Hooks Central Library, 3030 Poplar Ave., Memphis 38111.  Volunteers should arrive by 9:30 a.m. for instructions. Learn more here.

Newspaper publisher Gannett has asked a federal judge in Virginia to dismiss a proposed class action that accuses it of discriminating against white employees in an effort to diversify its newsrooms, Reuters reports. The five named plaintiffs in the suit say they were fired or passed over for promotions to make room for less-qualified women or minorities. The suit comes amid a growing backlash to corporate diversity policies following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June that struck down race-conscious college admissions policies. Gannett says the plaintiffs failed to identify a discriminatory company-wide policy and cannot sue as a class because their claims involve isolated decisions by individual managers.

Memphis lawyer James Lewis Boren Jr. died Nov. 15 at the age of 95. A graduate of Christian Brothers High School, he attended Vanderbilt University for his undergraduate and law degrees. During law school, he was editor-in-chief of the law review and a member of the Dean's Council and Order of the Coif. In 1953, Boren joined Mid-South Title, which was co-founded by his father. He was CEO of the firm when it was acquired by Lawyer's Title in 1978. He retired in 1994 as senior vice president. Boren was a past president of the American Land Title Association and the Tennessee Land Title Association, and co-chair of the Tennessee Insurance Commissioner's Committee on Title Insurance. A private burial has been held. A celebration of life will take place Dec. 15 at 1 p.m. CST in the chapel at Second Presbyterian Church, 4055 Poplar Ave., Memphis 38111. Visitation will follow. Memorial gifts may be made to the church’s foundation, the Trezevant Foundation or JDRF International to support Type 1 Diabetes research (mail check to 3369 Pine Ridge Rd., Ste. 202 Naples, FL 34109 with Jim Boren in the memo).

Gov. Bill Lee has appointed Quantel Lindsey of Cleveland — a man he pardoned for a previous life of drugs, violence and jail time — as the East Tennessee member of a newly created Inmate Disciplinary Oversight Board. “This is a full-time job to be on this board and I look forward to serving the state of Tennessee,” Lindsey tells the Knoxville News Sentinel. The board, which is still being created, will grant or deny sentencing credits for good behavior and determine whether previously awarded credits should be removed for certain infractions.