There are 593 articles by Aarron Fleming :
Shelby County Criminal Court 9 Judge Melissa Boyd said she reached an agreement with the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct to temporarily step down after complaints and an order of protection were filed against her.
Federal prosecutors want to block the use of references to Tyre Nichols’ alleged “bad” character and conduct by defense counsel for the officers accused of beating him to death in pretrial motions and during trial.
Several groups, including the local nonprofit, filed a federal lawsuit over Tennessee’s aggravated prostitution statute, alleging the law is unconstitutional and violates the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Although some judges were commended for their courtroom etiquette, a local nonprofit says some judges in Shelby County struggle with sensitivity and when to appoint public defenders for indigent defendants.
The trial for a former Kroger security guard accused of killing an unarmed Black man in 2021 has been reset for the second time.
Gregory Livingston had his bail lowered to $750,000 by Criminal Court Division 8 Judge Chris Craft.
Courtney Anderson was sentenced to 163 years in prison, but a local judge amended his sentence to time served. The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals overturned the ruling that freed him.
The suit’s amended complaint also alleges that some of the officers allegedly involved and indicted for their role in Freeman’s death are still working there, even as an ongoing criminal case plays out against them.
The nine Shelby County corrections officers indicted for their alleged roles in the death of an inmate last year made their first court appearances Friday, Oct. 27.
A man has been charged in the fatal stabbing of inmate behind a courtroom at 201 Poplar Thursday morning.Related story:
According to a certified forensic litigation expert on jail issues, “there are all kinds of methods of hiding things on a person’s body and in a person’s clothing.”
The board issued Shelby County Criminal Court Division 9 Judge Melissa Boyd a public reprimand Tuesday, Oct. 31, for failing to abide by the terms of her suspension order. The board said it was referring her to the Tennessee General Assembly “for further action.”
Desmond Mills, who is represented by attorney Blake Ballin, plans to enter a change of plea during a hearing.
“I’m hoping that for Mr. Mills it was his conscience that allowed him to make this plea agreement and not because of his lawyers telling him it was the right thing to do,” RowVaughn Wells said.
Shelby County Juvenile Court is auditing its Detention Assessment Tool, which it uses to determine if youth accused of crimes will be kept in custody or sent home.
Michael Stengel argued that prosecutors in the federal criminal case against the officers should not be allowed to call upon experts as witnesses to speak about the alleged use of excessive force against Nichols.
The state trial is set to take place after the federal case the former Memphis Police Department officers are also facing. Attorney for former officer accused of killing Tyre Nichols moves to block expert testimonyRelated story:
Former NAACP Memphis President Van Turner stressed the nonviolent nature of Courtney Anderson’s charges as the reason why he should be released. “A 163-year sentence for a nonviolent crime is excessive,” Turner said.
“Blight, litter, dilapidated housing, and poor air quality pose problems for public safety. Public safety extends far beyond crime. Litter and trash indicate community apathy and gives license to potential criminals,” the survey’s results read.
Two police reform experts talked Tuesday, Nov. 7, during a forum hosted by a local nonprofit about the Department of Justice’s pattern-or-practice investigation of MPD and their own work in implementing reforms.
That information was revealed in documents officially referring Shelby County Criminal Court Division 9 Judge Melissa Boyd to the Tennessee General Assembly for “further action,” including potential removal.
One of the defendants in the civil wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of an inmate who died last year at the Shelby County Jail has filed to dismiss himself from the suit.
Shortly after the chief jailer filed to be dismissed from the $100 million lawsuit filed by the widow of Gershun Freeman who died last year at 201 Poplar, Shelby County also moved to be dismissed as a defendant.
The Shelby County Public Defender’s Office is struggling to handle first-degree murder cases, according to an email sent out to Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court judges in July and a recent filing in a first-degree murder case.
Bonner’s request follows previous ones from Shelby County Chief Jailer Kirk Fields and Shelby County government to do the same.