A trial in the civil rights lawsuit RowVaughn Wells has filed against the City of Memphis is still months away, but filings from both sides over the weekend point to a bitter battle ahead. Attorneys for the city lobbed several accusations in a filing late Friday, including that the mother of Tyre Nichols’ young son received $400,000 from Well’s attorneys for relinquishing her right to administer his estate. Wells’ attorneys condemned the move in multiple public statements and filings, calling the city’s claims “a calculated effort by the City to poison the jury pool in Memphis.” 

The city also faces new litigation from two firearm advocacy groups, which are seeking a temporary restraining order to stop the city from enforcing nonbinding gun control measures voters overwhelmingly approved during a Nov. 5 referendum. While the ordinance that set the vote included an effective date of Jan. 5, 2025, a Memphis City Council attorney acknowledged in a September court hearing that the measures are preempted by the Tennessee Constitution and that the referendums have no enforceable effect. A named plaintiff in the suit, Ty Timmermann, argues to the contrary and claims that the referendum would infringe upon his rights as a gun owner.

And the City Council took an overwhelming vote of its own last week that made waves for Memphis-Shelby County Schools. Council members voted 1-7 to deny the district’s request to build the school in a cove off of North Germantown Parkway just north of Shelby Farms Park. In blocking that location, they also made another decision: Frayser residents are again poised to get the next new high school building, said Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris. 

— Metro editor Jane Donahoe

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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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