Next steps unclear after Justice Department drops report on MPD
The Justice Department report on the Memphis Police Department is the major topic on a reporters roundtable edition of “Behind The Headlines.”
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 3672 articles by Bill Dries :
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December 2024
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Behind The Headlines -
Shelby County $34M in added Frayser school funding clears test vote
The County Commission votes Monday on shifting the funding for the construction of a new Frayser high school. In committees, County Mayor Lee Harris and some Frayser students pushed to get construction started.
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Shelby County Mayor explores adding $34M for Frayser school
Shelby County commissioners discuss a $34 million shift in capital funding Wednesday, Dec. 11, from a new Cordova high school to the new Frayser high school.
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ElectionsPolitical Roundup: Knox County turnout tops Shelby, and more
Meanwhile, Democrats have a race for leader of the state party. And the Republican sponsor of the state’s ban on transgender care takes a victory lap starting in Germantown after a Supreme Court hearing on the matter.
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Did Trump’s return prompt the release of DOJ report on MPD?
The last Justice Department review of the MPD began a month before Donald Trump was elected to his first presidential term. Trump ended the investigation, and others like it, 10 months into his term, and the Memphis report never saw the light of day.
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City of Memphis City Council shuffles money around as needs change in ‘tight’ budget
The Memphis City Council addressed changing fiscal needs, and approved funding shifts for a Downtown Police Command Center and annual property-tax payments by MLGW.
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City of Memphis Memphis may sue Hyundai over car thefts
The lawsuit would claim that “defects in the vehicles” have contributed to a “dramatic increase in car thefts locally” that have cost the city by way of increased law enforcement.
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Behind The Headlines Attorneys: Legal aid goes beyond the law, courts
Memphis attorneys talk about the need for free legal representation and the barriers to it on “Behind The Headlines.”
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November 2024
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ElectionsPolitical Roundup: Breaking down details of certified election results
Shifts in the absentee vote totals and provisional ballots that were due in some part to the uncertainty by voters that absentee ballots could reach the Shelby County Election Commission by mail in time.
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City of Memphis Memphis City Council delays state violence-intervention funding to ensure coordinated effort
Memphis City Council members expressed support for the violence-intervention funding but delayed a vote. The council also discussed ways to overcome the stalled fight against blight.
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City of Memphis New state crime grant for Memphis tops $39 million
The Memphis City Council is also expected to take up gates to the Chickasaw Gardens neighborhood and more at its next session.
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Elections It’s official: Certification puts 2024 Shelby County election results in record book
Some of the vote totals changed in the set of local, state and federal races because of the addition of 250 provisional ballots counted after the Nov. 5 election night. The additional votes didn’t change the outcome in any of the races.
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Shelby County Commission to consider agent for city, county collab
Shelby County Commissioners also vote on $300,000 in funding to a workforce development program that fired its director last week and discuss changes to the 6% pay raise for county employees approved in the previous budget season.
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ElectionsPolitical Roundup: The new election-returns layout, Hagerty defends Gaetz
After years of problems with the posting of election returns on its website, the Shelby County Election Commission has switched to a new system that also features precinct-by-precinct results and maps.
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Public Safety Local leaders announce new safety initiative — but it uses Biden funding
“No matter what happens with respect to the Trump administration, the city and county are prepared to make this office sustainable and continue the commitments,” Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said of the question of continued federal support in the Trump administration.
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Shelby County Latest Halbert hearing set
Circuit Court Judge Felicia Corbin-Johnson will hold a hearing on a motion by Wanda Halbert’s attorneys to dismiss attempt to remove her.
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City of Memphis City Council votes down permit for new Cordova high school
City Council members cited concerns about traffic safety around the site as well as hazardous materials and industrial uses at that location in the past.
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City Council discusses game plan after approval of gun referendums
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City of Memphis City Council discusses game plan after approval of gun referendums
Also, public art of a rat drew the ire of some council members. “We’ve got one guy who is sort of stepping in the poop, and we are all having to smell it,” Jeff Warren said.
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City of Memphis City’s deputy chief legal officer retiring
Mike Fletcher has represented the city in court and other legal matters for 33 years.
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City of Memphis City, county collab raises $100M to help Memphians in poverty
The Memphis City Council will dig into the “cross-governmental” More for Memphis plan, solar arrays to power the zoo and more at their meeting Tuesday, Nov. 12.
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State Government Bill Hagerty talks Ukraine aid cutoff in CBS interview
The Sunday appearance on the CBS news program “Face The Nation” fuels speculation U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty is being considered as Secretary of State or some other cabinet-level post in the second Trump Administration.
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ElectionsPolitical Roundup: What happened in the 2024 elections?
Local Democrats are examining their tactics in a low-turnout presidential general election. Meanwhile, fewer local Republicans voted for President-elect Donald Trump than four years ago even as U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn grew her countywide totals.
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Shelby County Final brief filed in Wanda Halbert ouster case
The question before Chancellor Felicia Corbin-Johnson is whether the county attorney’s office could hire a special counsel to pursue an ouster lawsuit that the county attorney could not pursue because of a conflict of interest.
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Shelby CountyLegal dispute ties up second Wanda Halbert ouster case
A motion to dismiss the ouster lawsuit against Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert is pending before Circuit Court Judge Felicia Corbin-Johnson. If dismissed, it would be the second ouster lawsuit against Halbert to be thrown out in less than a year.
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Elections Shelby County voter turnout lowest for presidential race since at least 1968
The unofficial election results released Nov. 6 show the presidential general election drew a majority of voters in Shelby County, but not by much. President-elect Donald Trump won fewer local votes this year than in 2020.
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