Memphis Police Department Lt. Dewayne Smith, a 25-year veteran, has been identified as the officer who retired before an administrative hearing into his involvement in the death of Tyre Nichols, reports the Daily Memphian. Smith served as a supervisor on the disbanded SCORPION unit that was responsible for the traffic stop of Nichols. The retirement before possible termination will allow Smith to retain his pension. Smith had been charged with neglect of duty, making unauthorized public statements and violating policy on the use of body cameras.

The Tennessean reports that just days before he was set to be sentenced in federal court, former Tennessee state Sen. Brian Kelsey has filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea in what prosecutors describe as a campaign finance conspiracy to benefit a failed U.S. Congress bid. Kelsey pleaded guilty to two federal corruption charges in November, but the former lawmaker now says through court filings that personal stress compounded with a 48-hour deadline to accept a plea agreement led him to take the deal with an "unsure heart and confused mind." Kelsey is also seeking court permission to file a motion to dismiss the charges he previously pleaded guilty to "because he pleaded guilty to something that is not a crime," his legal team argues in court documents.

A new Legislative Updates podcast was released today with TBA Director of Public Policy & Government Affairs Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorneys and TBA lobbyists Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin. This week they discuss HB854/SB919 and HB855/SB921, TBA's adoption bills; HB647/SB1313, medical records legislation; HB1162/SB775, the Tennessee Revised Uniform Arbitration Act; and HB1177/SB710, the Tennessee Domestic Relations Arbitration Act. Legislative Updates airs each week the legislature is in session on TBA’s Facebook page. It is also released as a podcast on the same day and can be found on the TBA’s website or wherever you listen to podcasts.

The Energy, Environment and Land Use Program (EELU) at Vanderbilt Law School invites the public to attend the inaugural State of the Environment Conference, March 27 from 12:30 to 6:30 p.m. CDT. The conference will bring together faculty, policy makers and other experts in the Nashville community and surrounding areas for a lunch-time roundtable discussion on the state of the environment, followed by four additional panels, each one led by different EELU faculty members. The panelists will have an opportunity to discuss current work and research, but will also be open to audience questions. The conference will conclude with a cocktail hour that will allow students, faculty and attendees to have further conversation with each other and with the participating panelists. Click here for more information and to register for this free event.

The Tennessee Lookout reports that the RAND Corporation has released a 600-page report on America’s response to the national opioid crisis. The report states that lawmakers should view the crisis through an “ecosystems” approach, meaning that they should examine the gaps and interconnections among emergency response, data collection, education, treatment, housing and law enforcement. The report encourages federal, state and local lawmakers to think “beyond traditional silos” and innovate ways to stem adverse effects of addiction and increasing drug overdose deaths among Americans.

An amendment added to HB1029/SB1159 is making its way through the state legislature that would send 17-year-olds to adult criminal court first, rather than juvenile court. The bill’s primary sponsors are Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, and House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville. The proposed amendment requires juvenile petitions to be filed in the appropriate criminal court for all children who are 17 at the time of the alleged conduct. It requires the same for children ages 14 to 16 at the time of the alleged conduct who are charged with specific offenses. 10News in Knoxville has the story.

Mayors of Shelby County, Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga are calling on the legislature to pass a bill (HB1233/SB1029) that would impose penalties on gun owners who leave firearms in cars irresponsibly. It also would require owners to report the theft — which has resulted in a decrease in illegal gun movement in other states that require it. The bill makes it a misdemeanor criminal penalty for failing to safely store a gun or for failing to report a stolen gun to law enforcement.

The American Bar Association (ABA) announced today that it has begun a nationwide search for a new executive director. The ABA executive director oversees a staff of more than 1,000 and a consolidated budget of approximately $220 million. The executive director is responsible for membership and non-dues revenues programs, directs implementation of the ABA’s strategic goals and has responsibility for programs and activities adopted by the ABA’s governing and policymaking bodies, the Board of Governors and the House of Delegates. The ABA Executive Director Search Committee is seeking candidates with at least 10 to 15 years of relevant executive leadership experience and a successful track record of effective organizational leadership for a large, complex organization. An advanced degree (J.D., MBA or other relevant degree) is preferred. The ABA is headquartered in Chicago, with another office in Washington, D.C., and significant operations in Texas and California. 

The Tennessean reports that former longtime courthouse reporter William Kirk Loggins died Thursday morning from post-stroke dementia at a memory care facility. He was 76. A lifelong Middle Tennessee journalist, Loggins covered Nashville's courts for The Tennessean for 26 years starting in 1976 before he retired in 2002. "A good day at the courthouse," Loggins told a Lipscomb University interviewer in 2012, "was like going to the movies." Among hundreds of criminal trials, Loggins covered 15 death penalty cases and witnessed the first Tennessee execution in 40 years in April 2000.

A number of lawyers have been reinstated after being suspended for various administrative violations. They include 15 who were reinstated after being suspended for CLE violations — 13 in 2022, two in 2021 and one in 2015 — and 28 who were reinstated after being suspended for non-payment of the professional privilege tax — 24 in 2023, one in 2022, one in 2020, one in 2018 and one in 2009/2010. The TBA has records of all administrative suspensions and reinstatements going back to 2005. See all lists here.