Differences emerge in police reform
Two conversations about police reform show the more detailed the proposed reforms become, the more differences they reveal.
Bill Dries
Reporter
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.
There are 4211 articles by Bill Dries :
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November 2020
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City of Memphis -
City of Memphis Fixing neighborhoods: Old lending practices fueled today’s problems
Memphis is ahead of the curve in reversing the results of old rules and regulations that encouraged segregation and created pockets of poverty. So changes in the federal fair housing policy have had little impact.
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State Government Parkinson renews call to change marijuana laws
The chairman of the Shelby County legislative delegation to the Tennessee General Assembly talked about the issue on The Daily Memphian Politics Podcast.
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Podcast
City of MemphisHarris pushes statewide mask rule, works on ways around refusal by state
The effort short of a statewide mask mandate includes a coalition of local leaders across West Tennessee. Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said he is also working on a long-term plan for the county to continue to deal with the pandemic through 2021 and after federal CARES Act funding runs out at the end of December.
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Shelby County Legislation could strip health department autonomy amid COVID surge
Health department director Alisa Haushalter and Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris react to the wave of confirmed COVID-19 cases, and a bill that could usurp local authority.
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Shelby County Commission seeks to stem flow of county budget ‘surprises’
The latest hiccup is a higher-than-expected contract for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center to run the county’s forensic center for the region, with the county dipping into its reserves for the difference.
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Metro County settles minority contracting lawsuit, agrees to end program
Shelby County government has settled a lawsuit by mechanical contractors with a payment of $331,950 and an agreement to end the program that gives a preference to minority businesses in awarding county government contracts. -
Shelby County County Commission to look at budget season deadlines
A resolution by Edmund Ford Jr. on setting deadlines and milestones for the county budget season is on the County Commission’s agenda for Monday, Nov. 9.
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Elections Local reaction falls along party lines
The response reflects Memphis’ Democratic majority that supported Biden, as well as statewide totals that gave Trump Tennessee.
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Podcast
ElectionsVote count continues in Shelby County without fanfare
While presidential battleground states continue to count votes, the count in Shelby County is quietly moving toward completion with a large number of provisional ballots.
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Video
City of MemphisLocal GOP, Democratic chairmen differ on needs in Nashville
On Behind The Headlines, Republican Party Chairman Chris Tutor says “don’t vote Democrat” if you want to see Memphis have more power in the state capitol. Democratic Party Chairman Michael Harris says Republicans in state government are explicitly ignoring Memphis.
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City of Memphis Street renaming group settles on specific focus
The City Council-appointed citizens panel decided Thursday its priority will be eliminating Confederacy-related names from city street and finding problematic street names for first responders. The group is to make recommendations to the Memphis City Council.
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Elections Harris win highlights local Election Day that saw maneuvering within
A record early vote total in Shelby County was the high point as voter turnout lagged on Election Day. In the aftermath of Tuesday’s election, there were other indications of deep fissures behind both of the front lines that define the county’s partisan divide.
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Elections Harris defeats DeBerry in state House District 90 race
Torrey Harris, who lost to John DeBerry by 21 percentage points in the 2018 Democratic primary, upset the 26-year incumbent in Tuesday’s voting.
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City of Memphis MLGW talks of need to ‘reframe’ question of whether to leave TVA
MLGW president and CEO J.T. Young said the utility should put more emphasis on electric rate savings for customers as it pursues the question of leaving or staying with the Tennessee Valley Authority.
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Elections Record early turnout, a few glitches define Election Day locally
Overall, election officials were happy with the day’s process. “It was well-organized. We had a good plan and a lot of people,” Shelby County Elections Administrator Linda Phillips said.
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Elections In a year of uncertainty, presidential outcome fits the pattern
Millions of voters put aside worries about the virus — and some long lines — to turn out in person, joining 102 million fellow Americans who voted days or weeks earlier, a record number that represented 73% of the total vote in the 2016 presidential election.
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Polls are open in Shelby County and we’re watching all day and evening
It’s election day and polls opened at 7 a.m. this morning in 166 Shelby County precincts. -
City of Memphis City Council delays votes on most major items in brief Election Day session
Memphis City Council members met briefly Tuesday, Nov. 3, in their regularly schedule online session.
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Counting panels begin at FedExForum
Absentee counting boards are underway at FedExForum. -
Elections Senate contenders Bradshaw, Hagerty campaign in Memphis on election eve
Republican Bill Hagerty was in Cordova Monday morning and Democrat Marquita Bradshaw ended her campaign Monday evening in Orange Mound. The two have waged very different campaigns for the seat Lamar Alexander leaves at the end of the year.
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Elections Election Day comes with lots of votes already cast
With a majority of the county’s voters casting ballots during early voting, the 2020 presidential general Election Day is unique. And it’s being defined by politicos on both sides as the “last day to vote.”
Related Story: Here’s what you need to know for Election Day
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City of Memphis City Council to have short Election Day session
Lots of items are pushed to the Nov. 17 council session, including changes to the city pension system to start carrying out the intent of a half-cent sales tax approved by Memphis voters in 2019.
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Elections Here’s what to know for Tuesday’s election
Here is what you need to know for in-person or absentee voting Tuesday, from how to do some election homework to what to expect at the polls or the drop-off for your absentee ballot.
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Elections Democrats seek court order to access names of absentee voters
The lawsuit filed Sunday seeks an expedited court hearing and injunction so U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Marquita Bradshaw’s campaign can contact voters ahead of Election Day and urge them to submit their absentee ballots.
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