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This rural, red Tennessee county was a vaccine success story. Not anymore.
MEIGS COUNTY, Tenn. — At a glance, it seemed like a Southern pandemic success story in a most unlikely place. A small county northeast of Chattanooga, along the twisting banks of Chickamauga Lake, for much of the past year has reported the highest covid-19 vaccination rate in Tennessee and one of the highest in the […]
Appeals court revives girls’ videoed sexual abuse lawsuits against Nashville schools
A divided federal appellate court on Thursday resurrected a lawsuit filed against Metro Nashville Public Schools by the parents of two students who were sexually assaulted and videos of their attacks posted online in two different incidents at two different high schools. A two-judge panel of the 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals struck down […]
Registry of Election Finance declines to investigate Rep. Sherrell’s fire-hall checks
The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance claimed Wednesday it had been “weaponized” in the state House District 43 race and refused to investigate a complaint that Rep. Paul Sherrell wrote checks to volunteer fire halls and asked for cash back. “What we’re being asked here is to assume that Mr. Sherrell is a crook, bottom […]
With 21 public defender vacancies in Shelby County, chief pleads for more funding
Shelby County’s Public Defender’s Office struggles to hire and retain staff because experienced attorneys working as public defenders make far less than most attorneys in the state, said Chief Public Defender Phyllis Aluko on Wednesday. During the Shelby County Budget and Finance Committee, Aluko requested $138,000 to hire an investigator and to cover other costs […]
State Supreme Court overturns lower courts, approves governor’s education savings account program
The Tennessee Supreme Court overturned lower court rulings and paved the way for Gov. Bill Lee’s education savings account program to provide state funds for students to enroll in private schools. In a ruling released Wednesday, the high court found Lee’s voucher program, which will provide funds to low-income students in Davidson and Shelby County […]
6th Circuit shoots down immunity for TVA coal ash spill contractor Jacobs Engineering
A federal appellate court on Wednesday struck down a last-ditch appeal by a Tennessee Valley Authority contractor accused in the mass poisoning by radioactive coal ash waste of the utility’s Kingston disaster workforce. The 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Jacobs Engineering Inc. cannot ride the coattails of TVA governmental immunity because TVA itself […]
Tyson Foods wrote draft of Trump order keeping meatpacking plants open during pandemic
This story was originally published by Investigate Midwest. Lawyers for Tyson Foods, one of America’s largest meatpacking companies, drafted an early version of a 2020 executive order that allowed plants to continue operating during the COVID-19 pandemic, a new Congressional report based on company emails shows. It’s been reported that the meatpacking industry wrote a draft version […]
Battle over ethics reform bill rages as group calls for veto
More than two weeks after the legislative session’s end, lawmakers continue warding off the efforts of advocacy groups to kill increased reporting requirements for “dark money” campaign spending. Lt. Gov. Randy McNally this week characterized those who oppose the legislation as either “wildly misinformed or willfully obtuse.” And state Rep. Sam Whitson, a Franklin Republican […]
Federal judge rejects Tennessee’s transgender bathroom law
A federal judge overturned a state law requiring businesses to post a government-prescribed sign if they allow transgender people to use their restrooms. In a ruling issued Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Aleta Trauger determined that transgender Tennesseans and the businesses that welcome them “are real,” in spite of the viewpoints of lawmakers and government […]
Food City seeks to spread blame in opioid lawsuit brought by Tennessee Attorney General
When a Bearden homeowners association blew the whistle on the high levels of opiates a Food City grocery store pharmacy was shelling out to pill mill patients, the company’s chief executive officer called it a lie. When a Knoxville weekly newsmagazine reported the Westwood Homeowners Association’s claims and exposed a slew of opiate-related crimes in […]
Leaked Supreme Court abortion draft raises fears for future of gay marriage, LGBTQ rights
Standing at the top of Clingmans Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains, Mario Oranday waited until his partner, Andrew Baumgarten, surveyed the endless tree-lined hills before kneeling down and reaching for the ring he had been carefully carrying. He had asked a nearby couple to film his proposal, and Baumgarten’s resounding “Yes” was forever captured […]
Registry delves into fire-hall check-cashing complaint against state Rep. Paul Sherrell
The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance is looking into a complaint that state Rep. Paul Sherrell wrote checks from his campaign account to local fire halls and asked for cash back, potentially pocketing it while campaigning this year. Sparta resident Dale Walker, director of the Tennessee Pastors Network, filed the sworn complaint asking for an […]