Hopson’s tenure at SCS defined by changes in map of schools
The Shelby County Schools board is facing some important decisions as it mulls outgoing superintendent Dorsey Hopson's latest school consolidation plan and welcomes an interim leader.
Bill Dries
Reporter
Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for more than 40 years.
There are 3660 articles by Bill Dries :
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December 2018
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Shelby County -
Public Safety Stanton appointed monitor in MPD surveillance court case
Former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton is the independent monitor who will report to U.S. District Judge Jon P. McCalla on steps the Memphis Police Department is taking to end surveillance of protesters after violating a 1978 consent decree barring such surveillance. -
Shelby County Detention center funding decision taps larger criminal justice system concerns
County commissioner Tami Sawyer and activist Josh Spickler discuss flaws in the juvenile justice system and the roles a new assessment center and new juvenile detention center might play in reforming the system.
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City of Memphis 2018 elections offer surprises, confirmations and plenty of litigation
There were more than votes to count in the 2018 local elections. There were voters, early voting locations and lawsuits – six of them – against the Shelby County Election Commission.
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City of Memphis City’s wish list from Nashville includes sports book on Beale, more THP
City Hall is looking for mandatory jail time for road-rage convictions in the 2019 session of the Tennessee Legislature and a sports book on Beale Street as well as making it easier to get title to tax-delinquent property for tax sales.
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City of Memphis Strickland stuck to basics in 2018, touted momentum
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland stuck to the basics in 2018 – the “brilliant at the basics” four-word slogan of his 2015 campaign for mayor and the motto of his three-year-old administration.
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January 2019
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City of Memphis Strickland cites gains, challenges at year’s end
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said on New Year's Eve the city is making progress on poverty, but there are remaining challenges as he called for the improving local economy to include all Memphians.
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Metro Reality and Jeremiah dominate political prayer breakfast
At the city's longest running New Year's Day prayer breakfast, U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen talks about a new Democratic majority in Congress, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris discusses the new juvenile detention center and religious leaders talk about reality and the Biblical prophet Jeremiah.
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State Government Ballot Basics: The special election for state Senate District 32
The first election of 2019 is for an open state Senate seat in the suburbs and early voting begins Friday.
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Shelby County Path to new voting machines gets longer with special elections
There are still issues that must be addressed before instant-runoff voting can be implemented for city elections in October, even with voters overwhleming supporting the process in November.
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City of Memphis Jones nominated for city court judge vacancy
Chief city prosecutor Teresa Jones is Mayor Jim Strickland's nominee for a vacant city court judge's position.
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Education Kirby High School comeback begins Monday
Almost four months after it closed because of a rat infestation, Kirby High School reopens Monday to students who spent most of their first semester spread across three other campuses. The school returns with some new features and technology it didn't have before.
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City of Memphis MLGW tries again on rejected rate hikes
The first Memphis City Council meeting of the new year could see a second look and some revisions to proposed rate hikes from MLGW the council rejected at year's end.
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City of Memphis City Council tries again to fill three vacancies
After a break for the holidays, Memphis City Council members try again Tuesday to fill three vacancies. If the council is still gridlocked, the next move could be to put the three council seats to voters in a special election.
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City of Memphis Tire redemption program learns rules of the road
For the third time in seven years, Memphis and Shelby County are mounting a tire redemption and recycling drive that has some strict rules of the road based on the first two tries.
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City of Memphis Greer, Johnson and Currie appointed to City Council
Sherman Greer, an administrator at Southwest Tennessee Community College, is the new District 1 member of the Memphis City Council.
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City of Memphis Council ponders fine print of sports betting bills
Memphis City Council members back the general plan for sports betting on Beale Street, but they want to see what kind of split of revenue is proposed when it comes down to a specific bill in Nashville.
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City of Memphis Transportation planning cycles endure even in federal government shutdown
The federal government is shutdown but plans continue by local transportation agencies for new federal funding starting in 2020. The projects range from repaving the roads most used by the city's heaviest truck traffic to better pedestrian crossings.
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Public Safety Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn explores expungement court docket
Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn is reviewing the idea of an expungement court docket to speed the process of wiping clean the criminal records of offenders who have stayed out of trouble for five years.
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City of Memphis Union Avenue block to get median, bike lanes, landscaping
The city has plans to add a median strip, bike lanes and landscaping on the block of Union Avenue between Marshall and Manassas streets. The changes will connect with a longer stretch of road on Manassas that is something of a proving ground for lots of similar features.
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Metro Alexander calls for Senate action on wall
U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander wants to ditch border wall talks between the president and Democratic leaders and instead start moving toward a Senate vote with amendments. That's provided President Donald Trump agrees to reopen the federal government for three weeks while such a bill would be amended and discussed.
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State Government Norris takes oath as federal judge
State Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris became federal judge Mark Norris at a formal ceremony Friday Downtown -- part of a larger season of transition in politics.
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Metro Council changes signal start of city election year
The three newest Memphis City Council members may be a good indication of a change in who runs for the council in the 2019 city elections.
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Metro Kerner Commission update confronts questions of time, change and familiar issues
Alan Curtis, president of the Eisenhower Foundation, was in Memphis last week to talk about an update of the landmark Kerner Commission report on 1968 riots.
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Shelby County Early voter turnout in state Sen. Dist. 32 dominated by Tipton Republicans
Republican voters in Tipton County make up most of the first week early voting turnout in the special primary elections for state Senate District 32.
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