Sugarmon was part of political vanguard, legal challenge to segregation
Russell Sugarmon, civil rights icon, political strategist and retired judge who fought racial injustice in his hometown of Memphis, dies at 89.
Yolanda Jones
Reporter
49 recent articles by Yolanda Jones:
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February 2019
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Shelby County expungement practices questioned by Tennessee Supreme Court
The state Supreme Court agreed to give the Shelby County General Sessions Court Clerk's office 30 days to draft a policy on how it handles expungement filings after his staff failed to handle a case properly.
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Authorities seeking Memphis rapper Blocboy JB on gun, drug charges
The Shelby County Sheriff's Department is searching for Blocboy JB, a Memphis rapper scheduled to appear at the Beale Street Music Festival in May. -
Just City program trains volunteers to be eyes and ears in court
Just City's Court Watch wants to have 100 volunteers trained by the end of year to observe court proceedings, from arraignments to trials, at 201 Poplar.
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Judge dismisses Connor Schilling from Darrius Stewart civil suit
A federal judge has dismissed former Memphis police officer Connor Schilling from the civil lawsuit brought by the family of Darrius Stewart, meaning the trial slated to start later this month in the case will not move forward.
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Former U of M basketball player Robert Dozier charged with domestic assault
Robert Dozier, a former University of Memphis basketball player, will be in court Wednesday to face charges of domestic assault.
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TBI releases name of man killed in officer-involved shooting involving Shelby County Sheriff Office
TBI release name of man fatally shot by Sheriff's deputies outside a Shelby County hotel.
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Judge tells Sherra Wright attorneys not to sell Shelby jurors short in setting May 28 court date
Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee Friday told attorneys for Sherra Wright and Billy Ray Turner not to sell Shelby County jurors short in requesting a jury from another county to hear the murder case against them in the death of Wright's ex-husband, Lorenzen Wright Jr.
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Journalists sue Memphis Shelby Crime Commission over public records access
Marshall Project and MLK50 journalists file lawsuit against the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission after they were denied access to records they say should be open to the public.
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Memphis police oversight board calls bill to limit power of groups 'over reaching'
Memphis' civilian review board wants to challenge proposed state legislation that would restrict the power of police oversight boards.
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Personnel files show history of Memphis police officers involved in fatal Whitehaven shooting
Personnel files of three Memphis police officers involved in a fatal Whitehaven shooting Jan. 2 shed light on their work history with the department.
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Officers identified in fatal shooting of 20-year-old man in Whitehaven
Brandon Jones, Carlos Donaldson and Timothy Hamilton have been identified by authorities as the three Memphis police officers in the deadly shooting of a 20-year-old man in Whitehaven on Jan. 2.
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Darrius Stewart case: Judge denies motion for appeal, trial set for Feb. 25
Federal judge on Friday denied a motion by Darrius Stewart’s attorneys to file an appeal on the ruling that dismissed the city of Memphis from civil lawsuit. The Feb. 25 trial is set to proceed in the case, and Stewart’s attorneys said they may then file appeals in the case.
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January 2019
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Attorneys for Darrius Stewart's family to appeal ruling dismissing city from lawsuit
Attorneys representing the family of Darrius Stewart plan to appeal the ruling dismissing the city of Memphis from the federal civil lawsuit.
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Activists outraged after man in paper jumpsuit released into frigid temperatures
A man in a paper jumpsuit outside 201 Poplar is raising questions in the minds of social justice advocates.
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Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner discusses department at Memphis Rotary
Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner highlights successes, issues faced since taking office.
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Judge in Darrius Stewart civil rights lawsuit: Officer's use of deadly force was 'not reasonable'
The federal judge in the civil rights lawsuit brought by Darrius Stewart's parents says former Memphis Police officer Connor Schilling was not in “serious danger” the night of the shooting and his use of deadly force was “not reasonable.”
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Violent crimes down in Memphis, Shelby County
Violent crimes – murders, rapes, aggravated assaults and robberies – dropped in Memphis and Shelby County in 2018, according to data released by the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission Friday.
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Shelby County sued over minority contractor program
A Memphis mechanical contractors association has filed a federal lawsuit seeking $500,000 in compensatory damages from Shelby County, claiming reverse discrimination.
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Attorneys ask for change of venue in Lorenzen Wright murder case
Attorneys for Sherra Wright have asked the court to bring in a jury from Davidson County to hear the murder case, fearing their client can not get a fair jury in Memphis.
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More than 400 Shelby County deputies, jailers will have to retake psychological tests
More than 400 Shelby County deputies and jailers will have to retake psychological testing after officials learned the psychologist who did earlier testing had not been licensed by the state for 18 years.
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Shelby County officials hire data expert to examine inequality issues at juvenile court
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and Juvenile Court Judge Dan Michael agreed to hire one of the nation's leading juvenile justice statistician to dissect data at the court and find issues involving minority children.
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Psychologist who gave sheriff's deputies exam is unlicensed in Tennessee
About 200 Shelby County sheriff's deputies are having to retake their psych exams because the Memphis psychologist who tested them in 2013 and 2014 has not been licensed in the state since 2001.
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A look inside the Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center shows the human side of controversy
A look inside the Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center shows the human side of a facility at the center of a funding controversy.
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Five officers suspended after disturbance at juvenile detention center
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office said a disturbance that resulted in $3,500 to $5,000 in damages at the juvenile detention center led to five corrections officers being suspended last week.
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Police, fire unions want sales tax hike to fund restoring their benefits
Memphis police and fire unions are again seeking to increase the sales tax rate by half a cent to restore their benefits and pensions, but also to help pay for road repairs and pre-K programs.
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Civil trial in Darrius Stewart fatal shooting set to start Feb. 25
The family of Darrius Stewart filed a civil rights lawsuit against the City of Memphis, the officer who killed the 19-year-old and the former head of the Memphis Police Department. The trial is set to start next month in federal court.
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Charges dismissed in hoodie incident at Wolfchase Galleria
Charges have been dropped in a "hoodie arrest" incident at Wolfchase Galleria last year, with the two men charged ordered to pay court costs.
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Monitoring team overseeing MPD surveillance court case to launch website
A new website will give the public a chance to weigh in on the city's progress in meeting court-ordered reforms resulting from its violation of the 1978 consent decree over political surveillance.
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Memphis homicides up 5 percent in 2018
Memphis reported 184 homicides in 2018, eight more than in 2017. The 5 percent increase is less than the record number of homicides in 2016, but authorities said one homicide is too many.
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Shelby County will not enforce new immigration law
A new Tennessee immigration law on the books for two days is already facing a challenge from Shelby County officials, who say the new measure is “unenforceable and unconstitutional” because of its “vagueness” and would not be applied locally. -
TBI: 20-year-old man killed in Memphis officer-involved shooting
A 20-year-old man is dead after he was shot by Memphis police officers Wednesday night in Whitehaven during a domestic violence incident, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and Memphis Police Department said. -
Appeals court rules Tennessee punitive damages cap unconstitutional
The 6th Circuit Appeals Court has struck down a Tennessee cap on punitive damages related to a lawsuit filed in Memphis.
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Federal government shutdown impacts Tennessee immigration court in Memphis
The partial government shutdown is impacting Tennessee's only immigration court – located in Memphis – and some immigrants may have to wait a year or two for their cases to be rescheduled.
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December 2018
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Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn calls for forensic audit of her office
After finding checks stuffed in desks, no payments to agencies since 2016 and other issues, Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn calls for an audit of her office.
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City, ACLU try to work out changes on surveillance consent decree
Both sides in federal lawsuit over Memphis police surveillance request a year to work out differences outside of court ruling.
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4 killed when local businessman Wei Chen's aircraft crashes in Atlanta
A twin-engine jet registered to company owned by a Memphis businessman crashed Thursday in Atlanta, killing all four aboard.
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Prisoners in Shelby County jails can make free holiday phone calls
For 10 days during the holiday season, prisoners in Shelby County jails will get free five-minute phone calls to family and friends.
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Wilbourn gets 38 years added to life sentence in police killing
Tremaine Wilbourn, convicted last month of killing Memphis police officer Sean Bolton in 2015 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, had 38 years added to his sentence Monday, Dec. 17, for other charges in the case. -
Pilot program aims to keep kids out of juvenile justice system
When the Shelby County Youth Assessment Center launches next year, it will be part of a cultural shift aimed at changing the way authorities respond to juvenile offenders. -
TBI: Man's gun in fatal officer-involved shooting was BB gun
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has determined the gun a man allegedly brandished before a Memphis police officer shot and killed him Thursday, Dec. 13, was a BB gun. -
DOJ report says Shelby County Juvenile Court still has problems
After six years of monitoring Shelby County Juvenile Court, a recently released U.S. Department of Justice report states that oversight at the court should have not ended because the agency is “deeply flawed,” enabling a “culture of intimidation” undermining due process for African-American children in the system. -
Sheriff's Office hires consultant for juvenile detention center
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has hired a former U.S. Department of Justice monitor as a consultant to help ensure the detention center at Shelby County Juvenile Court stays on track even though the facility is no longer under federal oversight, said Sheriff Floyd Bonner. -
Teen charged in Trenary homicide to be released from custody
Rinisha Wright, the 16-year-old girl charged in connection with the death of former Greater Memphis Chamber CEO Phil Trenary, will be released from custody, but details surrounding her situation are unknown because a hearing Tuesday at Shelby County Juvenile Court was closed to the public. -
Shelby County Sheriff's Office rolling out body cameras, dashcams
In January, deputies with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office are slated to be equipped with 300 body cameras the department purchased earlier this year. -
January court date set for men charged in Wolfchase Galleria 'hoodie arrests'
The two men charged in the Nov. 3 “hoodie arrests” at Wolfchase Galleria Mall will have their cases heard in January. -
Memphis boy, 9, killed in crash of bus carrying Orange Mound youth football team
An early morning bus accident in Arkansas claimed the life of a 9-year-old Memphis boy and injured at least 45 others on Monday, Dec. 3, Arkansas State Police said. -
'Focused deterrence' crime-fighting strategy offers hope to ex-offenders
On a recent weeknight when most people were just getting home from work, nine men sat side-by-side staring into the faces of law enforcement and community leaders.
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November 2018
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Sherra Wright gets September trial date for Lorenzen Wright's murder
Sherra Wright, accused of fatally shooting her ex-husband, NBA player Lorenzen Wright, and dumping his body in a field in southeast Memphis in 2010, will stand trial for his murder in September.
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