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 2893 articles by Bill Dries :
An ad hoc group is expected to recommend several maps to the council with a first council vote scheduled for an April 5 special session. There is no guarantee the council will change the current district lines ahead of October city elections. And the ad hoc group isn’t of one mind on how to redraw the lines.
As the People’s Convention begins this weekend, local Republicans will decide if they’ll stick with the party’s current leader. Plus, two contenders for the local Democratic party head, more on the mayoral residency issue and who could be waiting in the wings.
If Wanda Halbert does not move the Poplar Plaza office location, Mayor Harris could make the case that she is derelict in her duty.
The “Memphis Alerts” program was launched a month ago and is still building its base of users. It’s designed for emergencies and can go citywide or just to specific areas.
A charter amendment that would require candidates for Memphis mayor and City Council to live in the city at least a year before election day could be headed to voters in 2024.
Memphis City Council members advance an ordinance for party buses. Supporters of the ordinance cite a lack of regulations and public disturbance problems for Downtown patrons.
A $350 million Regional One financing plan can move forward, but the county will need to get a committed funding match from either Tennessee, Mississippi or Arkansas.
The ordinance would require a permit for the drivers of the “entertainment transportation vehicles.”
The proposed ordinance comes up for council consideration as two contenders in the 2023 race for mayor have filed lawsuits over the current residency requirement.
County commissioners approved the “Tyre Nichols Transparency in Policing Policy” resolution, delayed votes on two other police-reform ordinances, and approved TikTok use limits for county employees.
In this installment of “Minor Offenders, Major Offenses,” we answer some of the basic questions about Juvenile Court and its basic responsibilities. Because, despite it being a court of record, “there is little standardization in juvenile court size, case management procedures and court administrative practices” across the state.
Much of the current framework of the Memphis and Shelby County Juvenile Court is the result of a 2012 agreement between Shelby County elected leaders and the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Justice Department.
A majority of the commission could greenlight a restructuring of the proposed capital budget County Mayor Lee Harris takes to the commission in April.
The Council Scorecard tracks final votes on a set of five ordinances with a vote one other one delayed.
A discussion about juvenile justice reform on “Behind The Headlines,” months after reform candidates were elected district attorney general and juvenile court judge, finds a gap between juvenile detention and releasing juveniles to keep them out of the system.
Turner’s lawsuit is likely to be combined with a similar challenge of the five-year residency requirement filed Monday by Sheriff Floyd Bonner.
Two contenders for Memphis mayor say they have already decided they will not keep Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis as Memphis Police director if they are elected.
The call comes as Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland has called for a $52-million, 10,000-seat soccer stadium to be built on the city-owned land where the Coliseum now stands.
Bonner is seeking to stop enforcement of the city charter’s residency provision for candidates running for Memphis mayor.
The Daily Memphian’s County Commission Scorecard looks at the Feb. 22 commission meeting that was moved and covered two controversial topics, racial reparations and a special adviser for County Clerk Wanda Halbert.
Strickland says his call Friday for more public data about court decisions on bail and sentencing would be part of existing websites outside of the city government’s data hub.
A line added to a page on the Shelby County Election Commission’s website the last day of February has turned this year’s race for Memphis mayor upside down.
The special election to fill the vacancy for the state House seat held by the late Barbara Cooper was decided with the January primary. Democrat Justin J. Pearson is running unopposed on the Tuesday, March 14, ballot. He’s already serving in Nashville by appointment.
As a final Shelby County Commission vote nears on a move toward a “greener” fleet of government vehicles, there are a lot of questions about the county administration’s timeline for meeting its goals.
During its committee sessions, the Shelby County Commission sent the resolution to come up with a $350 million county funding plan for a Regional One campus rebuild to a March 20 vote without a recommendation.