This is the start of a new weekly series bringing readers public safety information from around the Mid-South including updates on prominent court cases and details from inside law enforcement agencies. This column is being offered free for the first few weeks before it becomes available to subscribers only. If you'd like to subscribe now, you can do so by clicking here.
Nearly three years after being hired, the second-in-command at the Memphis Police Department's primary residence is not listed as being in Memphis or Shelby County. Nor is it in a surrounding county, or even in Tennessee, according to voting and property records.
As news about the assistant chief's residency broke, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a former Shelby County Health Department employee who oversaw the county's COVID-19 vaccine rollout.
In other court news, West Tennessee Legal Services is now taking clients in Memphis and Shelby County who cannot afford legal representation in civil matters. The nonprofit, which is based in Jackson, is also hiring Memphis-area attorneys to increase the number of cases it can take on.
Fired Shelby County COVID vaccine supervisor's appeal denied
The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against a former Shelby County Health Department vaccine supervisor's appeal in which she argued the county mayor violated her constitutional rights when he said she allowed thousands of COVID-19 vaccines to expire.
Dr. Judy Martin, who was the county's chief of nursing and head of immunizations for 18 years before resigning, sued Shelby County in February 2022 over a tweet posted by Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris. According to the lawsuit, Martin was "forced to resign or face termination" during a state investigation that found 2,400 vaccines went to waste.
"I learned that the information regarding the level of vaccine that expired in Shelby County was not accurate," he said in a post on Twitter, now known as X. "The state will announce findings and reforms, and we are absolutely supportive, as we have always been supportive of any effort, anywhere to get more shots in arms."
Martin sued in federal court, and the county was ultimately granted summary judgment to end the case. She appealed to the Sixth Circuit, asking for the summary judgment to be overturned.
According to the ruling from the Sixth Circuit, Martin "landed on her feet. After the tweet, she received multiple uplifting phone calls from others. She didn't receive any threats, angry phone calls, or personal attacks after the tweet. And, without applying, Martin was approached and offered a job with a local nonprofit, which she accepted."
The ruling goes on to recount that Martin requested a "name-clearing hearing," but the county denied her one, so she filed a lawsuit alleging that her Fourteenth Amendment rights were violated. A lawsuit of this nature, the Sixth Circuit ruled, required Martin prove that Harris' statement was "stigmatizing" or show that it "seriously" damaged Martin's standing in the community.
Reporting from the time:Shelby County's poor record-keeping, lack of urgency about wasted doses shown in documents
The court ruled neither to have happened in this case.
"Getting fired is unpleasant," the ruling read. "And having that termination broadcast is even more so. But the Constitution of the United States says little about lost jobs, and nothing about this one. Because Martin can't show the mayor's tweet exposed her to moral stigma, we affirm."
MPD assistant chief still has Georgia residency
MPD Assistant Chief Shawn Jones, who joined the department in September 2021, is not a Memphis or Shelby County resident, according to voting records.
Jones, in fact, is not a Tennessee resident. His current residence is listed as Fulton County, Georgia — where he worked prior to joining MPD — on Georgia voter rolls. He most recently voted there in late May, the second time he has voted in 2024, the Georgia voter registration website indicated.
The Fulton County home is approximately six hours from Downtown Memphis. Department policy does not require Memphis police officers to be Shelby County residents, but does require them to live in a place that allows them "to report to work within two hours of notification."
A 2022 state law barred Memphis from having a residency requirement.
West Tennessee Legal Services starts offering free representation to Shelby County
West Tennessee Legal Services, a nonprofit that offers free legal help for civil cases, officially began offering its services to Shelby County residents Monday.
The nonprofit is based in Jackson and has served a number of counties surrounding Jackson. The expansion, which includes Shelby County, will also include Tipton, Fayette and Lauderdale counties.
West Tennessee Legal Services focuses on cases such as healthcare access, securing and retaining income, securing and retaining shelter, personal freedoms and winning protective orders for abuse victims.
"Our team is eager to get to work providing these crucial services to individuals and families across this region," Ashley Holliday, executive director of West Tennessee Legal Services, said in a press release. "As we grow, our focus will remain constant: to ensure that people in need have access to justice and the support they deserve."
West Tennessee Legal Services will prioritize low-income families and will be funded by a $940,000 grant from the Legal Services Corporation.
The nonprofit is also actively hiring attorneys and paralegals to expand its reach.
"Initially, our case volume will be limited as we grow our staff," Holliday said. "We will increase capacity as we hire and train new team members for our Memphis office. We'll be adding a pro bono staff attorney to build relationships with the private bar, and we anticipate seeing a significant increase in our pro bono unit's case volume by 2025."
Those seeing legal assistance, and potential applicants, can reach the nonprofit at (901) 471-8006 or online at WTLS.org.
Top Commercial Appeal courts, public safety stories readers have viewed
- From June 27, 2024: 'Positional asphyxia' may have contributed to teen's death after Memphis Youth Villages incident
- From June 25, 2024: Youth Villages: Teen who died after altercation died from restraint, asthma complications
- From July 3, 2024: Woman fatally mauled by 2 dogs in Tennessee neighborhood; police shoot 1 dog
- From June 28, 2024: Judge denies injunction against Brooks Museum, allowing Downtown construction to continue
- From February 14, 2024: Newly-released Tyre Nichols documents show discrepancies between statements, bodycam footage
- From June 28, 2024: Crime on Memphis' college campuses, across state rose in 2023, TBI report says
The latest in Memphis' biggest cases
The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art will move forward in its construction of a new Downtown museum after a Shelby County Chancery Court judge declined to turn a temporary restraining order into a temporary injunction on June 28. The ruling followed months of litigation over the museum's decision to build along Front Street, which opponents say deprives the public of using "the promenade."
Other cases, such as the one against alleged spree shooter Ezekiel Kelly, are still waiting for a trial to be set. Kelly is scheduled for a report date on July 8.
The civil case against Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, and Shelby County government, in relation to the death of Gershun Freeman, who was an inmate at the Shelby County Jail when he died, is slowly moving forward. A subpoena was filed Tuesday requesting communications between Bonner's personal attorney, Allan Wade, and the Shelby County District Attorney's office, the Davidson County District Attorney's office, the Tennessee Attorney General's office, the nine corrections officers criminally charged with Freeman's death and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
Wade is also the Memphis City Council attorney.
It is unclear from the subpoena what the attorneys representing Freeman's family are seeking from the subpoenaed documents.
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