Outgoing Public Defender: ‘We’re not into assembly line justice’

By , Daily Memphian Updated: January 17, 2026 4:00 AM CT | Published: January 17, 2026 4:00 AM CT

Phyllis Aluko said there’s been a shift in people’s attitudes toward crime, punishment and due process, but public defenders play a key role in upholding constitutional standards. 

Topics

Behind The Headlines Phyllis Aluko Memphis Safe Task Force Shelby County Public Defender's Office specialty courts due process

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Bill Dries

Bill Dries

Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for almost 50 years covering a wide variety of stories from the 1977 death of Elvis Presley and the 1978 police and fire strikes to numerous political campaigns, every county mayor and every Memphis Mayor starting with Wyeth Chandler.


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