Memphis looks to add more officers, new police branch Downtown
The City of Memphis plans to invest additional resources Downtown — including almost 200 more cameras — to make the area safer.
Samuel Hardiman
Reporter
Samuel Hardiman is an enterprise and investigative reporter who focuses on local government and politics. A native Rhode Islander who lives Downtown, he enjoys tennis, golf and reading.
There are 378 articles by Samuel Hardiman :
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November 2024
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Public Safety -
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DowntownMemphis eyes new tax for Downtown security and beautification
The City of Memphis is eyeing a single-item tax on food and other items sold Downtown to fund the district’s security, beautification and assistance for the area’s unhoused population.
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Public Safety Former state senator resentenced for wire fraud conviction
The new sentence includes no prison time. Robinson received a sentence of time served in 2022. Instead, U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman imposed a fine of $48,600.
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City of MemphisMemphis’ claims against Nichols, family meant to ‘poison’ jury pool
Attorneys for RowVaughn Wells, Tyre Nichols’ mother, said that the city “misused” the court docket and is attempting “to poison the jury pool” in a case set for trial next year.
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Public SafetyCity makes claims about Nichols, family in new court filing
The claims add a new twist to the $550 million civil rights lawsuit that Tyre Nichols’ mother, RowVaughn Wells, and his estate have filed against the City of Memphis following Nichols’ 2023 beating and death at the hands of five now-former Memphis Police Department officers.
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City of MemphisCity council members split on making C.J. Davis permanent chief
It is unclear whether MPD Interim Chief C.J. Davis has the council votes to become the full-time chief again, but she appears to have gained at least one vote since January.
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City of Memphis Gun-rights groups sue City of Memphis
Two groups want to stop the city from enforcing the nonbinding gun-control measures voters approved during a referendum last week.
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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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South MemphisTVA board votes to serve xAI, but not without questions
Multiple TVA board members asked questions about the impact xAI has had on surrounding neighborhoods in Westwood and Boxtown.
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Elections How runoffs would change Memphis politics
On Tuesday, Memphis voters also approved giving the City Council the ability to set its own salaries. Previously, the council’s salaries were indexed to the Shelby County Board of Commissioners.
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Elections Gillespie outperforms Trump and other takeaways from election night
“I think that he’s made a name for himself in the Legislature in a way that voters are fairly excited about some of the issues, particularly about crime,” a political consultant said.
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Elections Johnson, Blackburn campaign in Shelby County for U.S. Senate seat
The two U.S. Senate candidates didn’t cross paths. They each told supporters turnout is important in an election each believes has high stakes.
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Elections 3 ballot questions could change Memphis politics
Voters could bring back mayoral runoffs, approve a residency requirement for city candidates for office and give the City Council more control over salaries.
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Elections In two purple districts, blue challengers hope to unseat red incumbents
If Democrats are going to dent the Republican supermajority in the Tennessee General Assembly, Districts 83 and 97 will be key.
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Elections In Orange Mound, voters hopeful for change
Some say they’re excited about the prospect of the nation’s first woman president. But wording of the gun control referendums may have led to ballots cast against the measure they intended to support.
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Elections How did Memphians vote on the non-gun referendums?
Memphians remade how future mayors are elected Tuesday night, where they must live and how salaries are set for key members of city government.
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Elections Who won the state race for Memphis’ District 97?
The Tennessee Republican supermajority did not crack in Memphis on Tuesday with Rep. John Gillespie beating Democratic challenger Jesse Huseth and retaining the state House of Representatives District 97 seat.
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Elections Abortion access, civil rights on minds of voters at Glenview Community Center
One voter said he voted for Kamala Harris because he saw her as strong and “borderline cocky,” which is what he felt she needed to deal with Trump.
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City of Memphis New ‘Green Bank’ hopes to make Memphis more climate resilient
“We see green banks as a critical player in creating lasting change,” the U.S. Department of Energy’s Yasmin Yacoby said Tuesday.
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October 2024
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City of Memphis TVA board to vote on powering xAI
A person familiar with the company’s thinking has said xAI plans on being fully interruptible, meaning it will cut its electric load down to nothing if the TVA grid is stressed.
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City of MemphisLiberty Park tourism zone collected zero dollars last year
The district’s growth is intended to pay off the Memphis Sports and Event Center’s $100 million debt.
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MetroElon Musk’s AI chatbot doesn’t share his views about the 2024 election
Musk has said he wants xAI to be the most “truth-seeking” artificial intelligence, its training not swayed by ideology. At present, its training appears to not be swayed by anyone, including Musk.
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Public SafetyTrauma center workers see increase in gun violence first-hand
What people don’t see is the blood on the floor. Bag after bag that’s used to save lives. They don’t see the doctors and nurses with soaked scrubs. They don’t see the gore left for janitors to clean up.
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City of MemphisDowntown tourism tax dollars back after pandemic
The sales-tax growth captured Downtown showed city taxpayers will not bail out Bass Pro Shops at The Pyramid, the Renasant Convention Center and other Downtown projects for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
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City of Memphis New MATA board stops planned cuts; Mayor Young pledges money
The newly confirmed board voted unanimously to suspend the cuts the previous board had approved on Sept. 24.
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