While past votes on County Clerk Wanda Halbert’s office and its problems have been unanimous, Monday’s vote may not be. The commission also tries to take a final vote on changes to Shelby County Land Bank after delays.
Despite a prior statement suggesting otherwise, a prosecutor with the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office did not “strongly oppose” lowering the bond for a now-deceased suspect involved in a shootout last week with Memphis Police officers.
Shelby County Juvenile Court Judge Tarik Sugarmon anticipates the transition process will not be completed this year due to the “intricate nature of the transition process,” according to an emailed statement.
Even as the Tennessee Legislature inches closer to eliminating the seat, four candidates have applied to run for the Shelby County Criminal Court Division 9 judgeship formerly held by Melissa Boyd.
SCSO also struggles with providing recreation and educational opportunities for detained youths. Shelby County Commissioner Mick Wright aims to address those issues with a resolution to also hold Shelby County Juvenile Court and other county departments responsible.
County commissioners approved $18.6 million in funding to plan and build the diversion center. The jail study was an easier call at $250,000. The separate votes on the two projects came with very different timelines and expectations.
The trial was paused in December to determine if Morant would be immune under the state’s self-defense immunity statute, also known as the “stand your ground” law.
The study would cost $250,000, and the new center $18.6 million. County Mayor Lee Harris meanwhile has said the diversion center is a more immediate priority that could help with conditions in the current jail.
County elections administrator Linda Phillips said in a release that all petitioners should be aware of pending legislation that could remove Melissa Boyd’s former seat, making any petitions null and void.
Juvenile Court Judge Tarik Sugarmon said only about 50%-60% of children in the facility attend classes. He also said the court mandated Feb. 28 parent visitation, which has been suspended for four years, be reinstated.
A group of organizations allege the youth detention facility’s leadership and staff deny visitation and do not provide sufficient education or time outdoors.
Six women in the Shelby County Department of Corrections and three dogs are participating in a program to improve the women’s emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills while giving dogs training to make them more adoptable.
The move stops a planned vote Thursday, April 4, that would’ve likely seen Shelby County Criminal Court Division 9 Judge Melissa Boyd removed from the bench.
Days before a vote that could see her removed from the bench, a criminal court judge wants to resign from her post, according to a letter obtained by The Daily Memphian. But the vote should move forward, regardless.
The first County Commission Scorecard of 2024 also includes commission votes on large utility-scale solar farms along with pay raises in the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office.
Passenger counts were up 19.2% in 2023, a record year at Memphis International Airport, and there’s talk of possible new flights (think Raleigh-Durham, perhaps San Francisco).
The vote coincides with Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Melissa Boyd’s pending criminal case, a conviction that could put her law license at stake.
After a recent joint recommendation from legislators, it seems likely that Judge Melissa Boyd will be removed from office. Her seat would normally be temporarily filled and then an election would follow. But new legislation could change that.
“We were able to remedy the problem,” said former Shelby County Sheriff and former county mayor Mark Luttrell. “Why did the remedy not stay in place?”
Hamilton County District Attorney General Coty Wamp and her investigators finished their two-day visit to look at problems within the Shelby County Clerk’s office.
The local government audit unit of the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office issued its report Thursday, March 21, on incorrect revenue figures from the Shelby County Clerk’s office after a three-week investigation that included a week in Memphis.
“This 24-hour ballistics lab can also provide us with expanded ability to retrieve serial numbers that have been obliterated from guns, which is also something that is important,” Mulroy said.
Wayne Tabor said Memphis Tourism had offered the city and county $30 million on Monday but “they keep wanting more and more.”
The County Commission took three votes on the county Land Bank Monday, which touched on larger issues that showed lingering differences across two other unrelated items.
The commission first voted against sending the statistics to the state. But then it approved the report after attorneys said it would violate state law not to send it to state officials.