The owner of Paula & Raiford’s Disco in Downtown Memphis was charged with misdemeanor assault Thursday, Sept. 15, according to Shelby County Criminal Justice records.

As information emerges linking Eliza Fletcher’s alleged killer to a 2021 rape, the rape victim and two retired detectives are questioning what more could have been done to solve the case.

Exclusive: A woman who said she was sexually assaulted by Cleotha Henderson, aka Cleotha Abston, the same man accused of killing Eliza Fletcher, says Memphis Police Department didn’t make solving her case a priority.

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Report poses fresh questions about 2021 Cleotha Henderson rape inquiry

It now takes the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation about 49 weeks to test the state’s rape kits, but some lawmakers hope to cut that time to 30 to 60 days. 

The chairman of the local crime commission and a Memphis City Council member talk on “Behind The Headlines” about the reaction to weeks of violence. 

Kelly’s attorney, Jennifer Case, also asked to subpoena juvenile records for the suspect in the shooting rampage last week that left six people shot, including three who died.

During a campaign stop Thursday, Sept. 15, in Memphis, Dr. Jason Martin pointed to low funding levels for the TBI crime lab despite a state surplus of $2 billion

The man accused in the death of Eliza Fletcher has also been charged with especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape and illegal possession of a firearm after results from a rape kit submitted in 2021 linked him to that crime.

The proposed “Restoring Law and Order Act” would include federal grant programs for more police and detectives focused on violent crime as well as a General Accounting Office examination of delays in processing rape kits.

In wide-ranging discussion about violent crime, the Memphis City Council voted to ask the state for at least 50 more state troopers for at least six months and a digital messaging system similar to Amber Alert.

Greater Community Temple COGIC will host the fourth “Better Community Summit” Saturday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in an effort to curb local violence. 

Between February 2017 and October 2020, Glenda Adams, a former Shelby County Assistant District Attorney, sold Aaron Neglia, a personal injury lawyer, traffic accident report information.

“Correct and accurate test results of discharges into rivers and stream and the honest reporting of those results to regulatory authorities are important parts of the Clean Water Act’s regulatory framework,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph C. Murphy Jr.

Friends and family support help a former felon go from prison to running restaurants.

A gag order has been placed on the case of Ezekiel Kelly, accused of shooting six people and killing three during a rampage last week. 

A preliminary hearing was set for 20-year-old Eduard Tabora, one of three suspects accused in the carjacking and slaying of Rev. Autura Eason-Williams. 

“Love thy neighbor” is what attendees at an interfaith gathering at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church were reminded of Monday, Sept. 12.

The council’s monthly crime update from Memphis Police brass could be more than a regular check-in. Last week’s violence has renewed a long-running civic discussion. And it has moved swiftly to questions about the criminal justice system.

ShotSpotter was installed as part of test in Memphis last year, but a lawsuit out of Chicago claims the gunshot detection system isn’t as effective as advertised.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says MPD should have acted more aggressively to solve the 2021 assault; DNA analysis was completed a few days after the disappearance of Eliza Fletcher.

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Eliza Fletcher’s alleged killer investigated in 2021 for rape

In September 2021, a woman told police Cleotha Abston abducted and raped her at gunpoint, yet Abston remained free until he was arrested earlier this week for Eliza Fletcher’s murder.

Corteria Wright, who died in a shooting Wednesday night, was not killed by Ezekiel Kelly, the 19-year-old accused of going on a city-wide shooting spree.

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Shooting victim remembered as ‘sweet little girl'

Former Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich talked to The Daily Memphian about the 2020 plea deal for Ezekiel Kelly that Gov. Bill Lee called an example of “soft-on-crime plea deals.”

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Gov. Lee calls for changes in plea deals during Memphis visit

Carlson characterized Lee as soft on crime in a monologue against criminal justice reform, which, he claimed, “means letting violent people out of prison early.”

Corteria Wright, 17, was killed Wednesday during the shooting rampage, but at the hands of a different killer.