What’s up, morning people? It’s Tuesday, May 14, and beginning today, the Shelby County Juvenile Court will be operating out of temporary spaces, including 201 Poplar and the county courthouse, while lead and other hazards are abated in the Adams Avenue building.

THE NEED TO KNOW

“He will never be released from jail,” said Deputy District Attorney Paul Hagerman of Enoch Turner, who received two life sentences for two 2019 murders. (Jim Weber/The Daily Memphian file)

Man convicted of killing woman, child: Memphis man Enoch Turner, 29, will serve two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole for the 2019 murder of Heather Cook, 32, and her four-month-old son, Bentley. Turner was the child’s father, and prosecutors argued that he was motivated by a desire to avoid his paternal responsibilities when he stabbed the mother and son and set their house on fire. 

Ex-cops indicted over fatal pursuit: Marquavius Williams and Ontarian Malone, both former Memphis police officers, were recently indicted over an alleged unauthorized vehicle pursuit last year that left 17-year-old Jasmine Kinds dead. According to decertification records, Williams and Malone pursued a suspicious vehicle at a gas station, but there was no evidence of a crime. Williams, who was operating the patrol car, allegedly pursued the car without activating his lights or siren and failed to turn on his body camera or in-car video. 

Collierville resident Woodrow Brown addressed the suburb’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen on Monday night. (Abigail Warren/The Daily Memphian)

Racism in Collierville’s fire department? Collierville resident Woodrow Brown brought up concerns of alleged racism within the town’s fire department at the Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen Monday night. He alleged that one Black employee was called racial slurs in February, and though he’d already brought the issue up with town leaders, Brown wasn’t pleased with their response. The accusation against the fire department comes as Collierville Schools deal with their own allegations of racism in both high-school girls basketball and at a middle-school track and field meet.

A rendering shows the landscaping Principle Toyota had planned if its move to Collierville was approved. (Courtesy Principle Toyota)

In more Collierville news ... Principle Toyota won’t be relocating to the suburb after the Board of Mayor and Aldermen shut down the dealership’s rezoning request on Monday. Principle has been trying to move to the Gallina Centro shopping center for months, and general manager Todd Lochner told the board he felt like his dealership had addressed the board’s concerns by altering their plans for the proposed new location. Several residents — all Toyota owners — showed up Monday to speak in favor of the move.

MEET MEMPHIS

“I suppose it has to be my biggest achievement,” Cary Fowler said of the seed vault in an interview with The Daily Memphian in 2022. (Courtesy Cary Fowler)

In 2008, Memphian Cary Fowler and his scientific partner Geoffrey Hawtin opened an underground seed storage facility in Norway, near the North Pole. The facility acts as a “doomsday vault” that protects crop varieties from the effects of war, like radiation and bombs. Last week, Fowler and Hawtin were chosen by the World Food Prize Laureate Selection Committee for their long-term contribution to seed conservation and crop biodiversity. The vault has become the backbone of a growing network of plant gene banks around the world. 

THE NICE TO KNOW

Richard Shadyac, president and CEO of ALSAC said, “This record-setting commitment is yet another step in the longstanding partnership from Domino’s.” (Brad Vest/The Daily Memphian file)

Domino’s delivers: Domino’s Pizza may be known for admitting to bad pizza, but at least they’re doing good things. The pizza chain recently pledged $300 million to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, marking the hospital’s largest-ever financial commitment. St. Jude has been a national charity partner of Domino’s since 2004, and the hospital named its newest housing facility in honor of a past pledge from the pizza chain. 

Buddy Chapman, former Memphis Police director (middle), discussed his new memoir, which he co-wrote with CrimeStoppers director David Wayne Brown (right). Otis Sanford, columnist for The Daily Memphian, moderated the discussion. (Julia Baker/The Daily Memphian)

Call him director: Buddy Chapman served as the Memphis police director from 1976 to 1983, and he’s just released a new memoir, “Call Me Director: Memoir of a Police Reformer.” At a book signing on Monday at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Chapman reflected on leading the Memphis Police Department through three consent decrees over excessive force, promotion of Black employees and the handling of inmates at then-MPD-led jail. He also talked of how he fought against the department’s “us against them” culture.

Local leaders attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the South Cypress Creek Stream & Wetland Restoration project on Monday, May 13. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Out of troubled waters: Remember when Diane Sawyer did a broadcast in waders from the foot of a flooded Beale Street in 2011? Yes, that was ridiculous. But in all seriousness, the West Junction neighborhood, as well as parts of North Memphis and Millington, were legitimately impacted by the “great flood of 2011.” And now, more than a decade later, work is being done to prevent future flooding in those areas. On Monday, the city and county broke ground on the $13 million South Cypress Creek Stream and Wetland Restoration Project, thanks to funding from HUD’s $1 billion National Disaster Resilience Competition.

Olive Branch-ing out — a bit: Olive Branch will soon grow by 180 acres to the east after a DeSoto County Chancery Court judge ruled in favor of the annexation of undeveloped land southwest of Goodman and Center Hill roads. But in the same court ruling, the annexation of about 450 additional acres to the southwest of Olive Branch was rejected. Owners of the two tracts requested annexation, and the suburb’s Board of Aldermen gave previous approvals. But there was a good deal of community opposition, including some concern from neighbors that one tract could be developed into a truck stop. 

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Unless you were living under a rock last weekend, you know that the Northern Lights were visible in Memphis due to a rare geomagnetic storm.

Or, well, they were visible through your phone camera anyway. I snapped some decent pics in northeast Arkansas, and there were plenty of images shared on social media — some, no doubt, heavily filtered. But this image of a different kind of lights — the kind you can see in all directions on any given night — takes the cake.

Love it when you’ve got jokes! Have an awesome day.

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