The Early Word: Court case delayed 60 times; Cooper’s bad time with Tigers
Are you ready to kick, push into the weekend, friends? It’s Friday, June 21 — Go Skateboarding Day. And you can celebrate with LaterSkaters Memphis at the Raleigh Springs Skate Park. This local nonprofit helps underprivileged kids access skateboarding equipment, and they’re pushing for more public skate parks across the city. Also today, former MUS standout Harrison Williams will compete in the Olympic decathlon trials. (Go Harrison!)
Tonight, the stage adaptation of 1980s working-woman revenge comedy “9 to 5” opens at the Harrell Theatre in Collierville. Or you can celebrate Swedish Midsommar with a buffet at Ikea. (As far as we know, there will be no May Queen Dance, as depicted in the 2019 “Midsommar” horror film.)
Saturday brings dogs in drag at Moxy’s annual Puppy Pride event, and Cohen Brothers classics (yes, man, even “The Big Lebowski”) will screen at the Time Warp Drive-in. And on Sunday, you can sample your way around the city’s tastiest bites at the Craft Food & Wine Festival. For more weekend fun, check out The To-Do List.
The family of Lisa Sloan will have to wait, yet again, for justice in her 2017 death. Sloan was critically injured in February 2017 after Cordero Ragland allegedly struck her car on Poplar Avenue while drag racing. Sloan died a few months later, and Ragland was indicted for her death that December. But his court case has been postponed 60 times now. The latest delay came on Thursday when an apparent clerical error led Judge Lee Coffee to reset that day’s hearing to July 30. And such delays are all too common in the local criminal justice system.
Memphis Tigers walk-on Joe Cooper won’t be returning to the basketball team next season, which he said wasn’t “really my choice.” Cooper only appeared in six games last season, and he describes his time as a Tiger as “kinda heartbreaking” and “the worst experience I’ve ever experienced.” In an exclusive interview with our own Parth Upadhyaya, Cooper recounted a season where he felt alienated by other teammates and Coach Penny Hardaway. Despite that, Memphis native Cooper felt a loyalty to the Tigers and missed this year’s transfer portal deadline while he awaited news that never came.
Plus, the DeSoto County district attorney says inmate escape video was deleted, a Downtown gift shop is closing and chicken fingers are coming to Memphis.
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Bianca Phillips
Bianca Phillips is a Northeast Arkansas native and longtime Memphian who’s worked in local journalism and PR for more than 20 years. In her days as a reporter, she covered everything from local government and crime to LGBTQ issues and the arts. She’s the author of “Cookin Crunk: Eatin’ Vegan in the Dirty South,” a cookbook of vegan Southern recipes.
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