Resentencing for 1987 killings hinges on conflicting views of Pervis Payne
The inmate’s 1988 death sentence was set aside because of questions about his mental competency. The resentencing hearing continues Tuesday, Dec. 14.
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Bill Dries covers city and county government and politics. He is a native Memphian and has been a reporter for more than 40 years.
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The inmate’s 1988 death sentence was set aside because of questions about his mental competency. The resentencing hearing continues Tuesday, Dec. 14.
The Tuesday afternoon meeting should be short with the labor contract impasse the only item on the agenda. The meeting technically continues last week’s meeting, which was recessed to allow for the special meeting.
The Monday, Dec. 13, resentencing in Shelby County Criminal Court comes after prosecutors took the death penalty off the table in a retrial for a 1987 double murder in Millington. At stake is whether the life sentences will run consecutively or concurrently. If concurrently, Payne would be eligible for parole.
The County Commission Scorecard looks at the second- reading vote on pay raises for some of the county’s top elected officials and the political perils of raising your own pay while preparing to run for re-election.
On “Behind The Headlines,” the bus transit system’s CEO and its new chief of staff say the ride-share service in the Whitehaven, Boxtown and Westwood areas is being used much more than the bus route system in the area was.
A Thursday, Dec. 9, joint session of Memphis City Council members and Shelby County commissioners drew sparse attendance from the two bodies.
The race for District Attorney General is taking shape as a key moment and a key office in the debate about criminal justice reform in a city where violent crime is rising.
Mulroy, a two-term Shelby County commissioner and 2014 candidate for Shelby County mayor, has invited several county elected officials for the Thursday, Dec. 9, announcement in Midtown.
Harris has had a campaign treasurer for his second term effort since 2019. But the Wednesday, Dec. 8 release of the video is the first sign of life in that re-election effort, which will come with challengers.
Tuesday before the City Council, MGLW management and labor couldn’t agree about what their final offers were and what was on the table. The result will be a special council meeting between now and Christmas week.
Council member Worth Morgan called for the delay Tuesday, citing Williams’ conviction and prison sentence for bribery and extortion. Meanwhile, another appointment to the airport authority is also on the council agenda in two weeks.Related story:
City Council members resurrect a project they killed three weeks ago on a tie vote for a January re-vote. And the debate was contentious.
City mulls major riverfront improvements with possible funding from the state.
City Court Clerk Myron Lowery is seeking to appoint former Shelby County Commission administrator Calvin Williams, once convicted on federal bribery charges while county commission administrator, as one of his deputy clerks.
Most council members abstained or didn’t vote Monday in a test vote on the new proposal to allow Memphis Police officers to live outside the county ,but within a 50-mile radius.
The commission, sheriff and mayor raises moved forward on the second of three votes Monday, with third and final vote in two weeks. Commission rejects Singleton Parkway convenience store with gas pumpsRelated story:
While punting on the gas station, the Shelby County Commission did approve an appeal for a gated community on Forest Hill Irene. Also, Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr. defended his father against criticism of his behavior at a Memphis City Council meeting last month.
The low-interest loan will finance infrastructure to protect parts of the city from flooding.
The commission could address pay raises for itself, the mayor and sheriff are on Monday’s agenda. A commission pay raise would trigger pay raises for city council members and possibly the Shelby County Schools board.
The federal government is funded into February with the votes among the city’s representatives in Washington falling along party lines with one exception — a senator who did not vote on the continuing resolution.
Memphis City Council members talk about a new bid to allow police officers and firefighters to live outside Shelby County at a special committee session Monday, Dec. 6.
Reaction from the city’s two Congressmen and the state’s two U.S. Senators fell along party lines on the long-running political issue of access to abortions.
Comcast’s grants are designed to help close the access gap for low-income households.
After a year off because of the pandemic, the marathon returns Saturday, Dec. 4, with some changes to street closures. The changes put a priority on reopening streets in the South Main area first.
State Representatives John Gillespie and Dwayne Thompson spoke on this week’s “Behind The Headlines.”