Ernest Withers aimed his camera through a bramble of twisting oak limbs, sharpening his focus on a home atop a small hill.

The Shelby County Commission delayed a vote Monday on allocating $1.3 million for a new Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center after several commissioners raised concerns they were moving too fast on the project.

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says his bid for a second term as mayor seeks to go beyond the "brilliant at the basics" mantra of his 2015 campaign to get into the stubborn issues of crime and poverty.

Gov.-elect Bill Lee makes three key appointments, including Jackson County's David Salyers as commissioner of the Department of Environment and Conservation.

Gov.-elect says he won't change Haslam's policy prohibiting weapons in the state Capitol, but conceal-carry holders are likely to be allowed to continue bringing guns into the Cordell Hull building.

Germantown Municipal School District is further revising its transfer policy for nonresidents. The new policy would enforce tuition for students who wish to attend GMSD and live outside Germantown.

Shelby County Elections Administrator Linda Phillips discusses new voting machines and paper audit trails and metro reporter Omer Yusuf talks about the county’s stand on the state’s immigration law and minority business growth.

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. 

Republican voters in Tipton County make up most of the first week early voting turnout in the special primary elections for state Senate District 32.

The medical cannabis advocacy group Safe Access Tennessee is greenlighting Senate candidate Steve McManus in the District 32 race, even though Tipton County candidate Paul Rose says he also would support medical marijuana legislation.

The University of Memphis has named Dr. Damon M. Fleming the new dean of the Fogelman College of Business and Economics. Fleming will be replacing former dean Rajiv Grover, who announced he was stepping down in May 2018 to devote more time to research.

Alan Curtis, president of the Eisenhower Foundation, was in Memphis last week to talk about an update of the landmark Kerner Commission report on 1968 riots.

The three newest Memphis City Council members may be a good indication of a change in who runs for the council in the 2019 city elections.

Even mentors in the Peer Power program are better defining their futures, discovering their passion for helping younger students could turn into a career.

House Minority Leader Karen Camper's former assistant stole $12,500 from the House Democratic Caucus over three years, according to a forensic audit.

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander wants to ditch border wall talks between the president and Democratic leaders and instead start moving toward a Senate vote with amendments. That's provided President Donald Trump agrees to reopen the federal government for three weeks while such a bill would be amended and discussed.

State Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris became federal judge Mark Norris at a formal ceremony Friday Downtown -- part of a larger season of transition in politics.

Republican state Rep. Mark White of Memphis will serve as House Education Committee chairman during the 111th General Assembly, and two other members of the Shelby County delegation, Reps. Jim Coley and Kevin Vaughan, will chair subcommittees.

The state Legislature could take action in 2019 to penalize pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies for failing to comply with Tennessee's new "partial-fill" law designed to cut opioid abuse.

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. 

A new Juvenile Detention Center is a top priority for Mayor Lee Harris in 2019.

Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn is reviewing the idea of an expungement court docket to speed the process of wiping clean the criminal records of offenders who have stayed out of trouble for five years. 

Aspire is spinning off its four Memphis schools into a new, independent charter school organization. The 1,600 students would officially transition at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year if the plan comes to fruition.

Shelby County Commissioners Tami Sawyer and Mark Billingsley appeared on The Daily Memphian Politics Podcast to talk about juvenile justice reform. 

The federal government is shutdown but plans continue by local transportation agencies for new federal funding starting in 2020. The projects range from repaving the roads most used by the city's heaviest truck traffic to better pedestrian crossings.