There are 33 article(s) tagged Josh Spickler:

• April 2025

  • Just City leader says criminal cases moving too slowly

    A recent report from the state comptroller’s office noted inefficiencies in the local criminal justice system. Fixing them could have implications for the Shelby County Jail.

    By Aarron Fleming April 26, 2025

• July 2024

  • Two very different views of bail from Spickler and Taylor

    At the center of the debate between Taylor and Spickler is how bail should be implemented, a topic of sometimes fierce disagreement between elected leaders, government officials and the general public.

    By The Daily Memphian Staff July 12, 2024

• May 2024

  • New law barring bail affordability calculator is on the books — and in use

    A new law bars judicial commissioners from using an ability-to-pay calculator when setting initial bail, but it does not prevent the consideration of defendants’ financial conditions. Critics say the law is confusing and ultimately unconstitutional.

    By Aarron Fleming May 10, 2024

• March 2023

  • Behind the Headlines: Local advocates discuss crime and reform

    Representatives from the Memphis-Shelby Justice & Safety Alliance, a group of various local organizations, discuss crime and criminal justice reform during a discussion on “Behind the Headlines,” which first aired on WKNO at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 24.

    By Julia Baker March 25, 2023

  • Criminal justice reform group offers Strickland help with data

    Just City, a criminal justice reform organization that has often drawn Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland’s ire, has offered to help the City of Memphis publish more criminal justice data. 

    By Samuel Hardiman March 20, 2023

• February 2023

  • Ex-SCORPION officers transferred to MPD’s Organized Crime Unit

    Though SCORPION already was affiliated with MPD’s larger Organized Crime Unit, all 35 of those officers were transferred to other parts of OCU.

    By Marc Perrusquia February 17, 2023

• January 2023

  • ‘Revolving door': Why are some defendants in — and right back out — of jail?

    “The challenge we have is that the city government does not control the courts,” Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said. “We don’t control the state laws. We don’t control, we can’t control, gun regulations and gun access.”

    By Julia Baker January 20, 2023

• May 2022

  • Opinion: Despite Strickland’s accusations, ‘truth in sentencing’ won’t make Memphis safer

    “This new law is not about ‘truth;’ it is about severity,” writes Just City’s executive director. 

    By Josh Spickler May 17, 2022

  • Strickland calls ‘BS’ on critics of ‘truth in sentencing’ state law

    Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland went after critics of his backing of the state truth in sentencing law and his description of 201 Poplar as a “revolving door” for criminals during a lively interview on “Behind The Headlines.”

    By Bill Dries May 17, 2022

• January 2022

  • Nashville Conviction Review Unit could be a model for Shelby County

    Sunny Eaton, who runs Nashville’s Conviction Review Unit, said, “These wins are the kind that are absolutely changing lives for people who never deserved to be in that position.”

    By Ian Round January 17, 2022

  • WATCH: Conversation about violent crime about to heat up

    Josh Spickler, of the criminal justice reform group Just City, said on WKNO’s Behind The Headlines that there is another side to allegations the county’s criminal justice system is a ‘revolving door.’

    By Bill Dries January 15, 2022

• December 2021

  • Criminal justice groups demand bail reform, threaten lawsuit against county

    Just City and the ACLU gave county officials until the end of December to respond to their letter and until the end of January to hold a “mediated discussion.” 

    By Ian Round December 01, 2021

• October 2021

  • Complex judicial races and issues bloom ahead of 2022 elections

    A veteran Public Defender is seeking to become the first Indian-American to serve as a judge in Shelby County. But Sanjeev Memula is considering which of the nine criminal divisions of General Sessions Court he will seek.

    By Bill Dries October 11, 2021

• September 2021

  • County’s legal bills more than $341,000 as reported COVID conditions strain 201 Poplar

    The county is paying an average of $34,000 per month to a Jackson, Tennessee, law firm to represent Sheriff Floyd Bonner in a federal lawsuit. 

    By Matt Stroud September 30, 2021

• August 2021

  • Juvenile court transfers decrease but concerning trends remain

    Virtually all the youths whose cases were transferred to adult court in Shelby County the past two years were Black.

    By Yolanda Jones August 31, 2021

  • Shelby County Jail inspections find issues of ‘great concern’

    Attorneys representing the inmates, including lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union and Memphis’ Just City, claim conditions at the jail are ill-equipped to deal with safety regarding COVID-19.

    By Rob Moore August 17, 2021

• April 2021

  • County Commission approves $2.45M settlement in jail tracking glitch lawsuit

    The federal class action lawsuit was filed in 2016, a month after a new computer system was installed by the county to track the movement of pre-trial detainees through the criminal justice system. 

    By Bill Dries April 27, 2021

• January 2021

  • Calkins: Times they are a-changin', as the NFL throws its support behind Just City

    The NFL has granted $200,000 to Just City as part of the league’s social justice initiative. The money is important – but so is the message the money sends.

    By Geoff Calkins January 08, 2021

• October 2020

  • Police reform discussion focuses on questions of what is real change

    Former Memphis City Council member Harold Collins and Just City Director Josh Spickler said on “Behind The Headlines” that for all of the talk of changing police, MPD is still policing the way it has for decades. 

    By Bill Dries October 16, 2020

• March 2020

  • Exclusive: COVID threat triggers jail bailouts

    As the number of COVID-19 cases in Shelby County continue to rise, Just City, a nonprofit criminal justice reform organization, is armed with $50,000 from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization and another $25,000 from an anonymous donor with the intention of bailing out several Shelby County Jail inmates this week who are believed to be vulnerable to the virus.

    By Marc Perrusquia March 24, 2020

  • Coronavirus threatens vulnerable jail population

    Reform advocates say more efforts need to be made to ensure the poor aren't being put at undue risk in jail during the coronavirus threat. Judges say it can be complicated. 

    By Marc Perrusquia March 20, 2020

  • Criminal justice advocate urges release of juvenile detainees

    A criminal justice reform advocate is calling for all youngsters detained in Shelby County’s juvenile detention center to be released immediately to reduce the impact of the coronavirus.

    By Yolanda Jones March 19, 2020

• January 2020

  • Behind the Headlines Podcast: Juvenile justice

    Executive Director of Just City Josh Spickler discusses juvenile justice in Shelby County with host Eric Barnes and Daily Memphian reporter Bill Dries.

    By The Daily Memphian Staff January 17, 2020

  • Question of new or renovated juvenile detention center could renew debate over size

    Just City executive director Josh Spickler said on the WKNO program “Behind The Headlines” that Juvenile Court needs more resources for children in detention. But he said the question of which children and how many wind up in detention or tried as adults should take priority over the details of the bricks and mortar.

    By Bill Dries January 17, 2020

  • Records show increase, racial disparity in juvenile transfers to adult court

    Children transferred from juvenile court to adult court is on the rise. Last year, 90 children were charged as adults and almost all are African American.

    By Yolanda Jones January 13, 2020