News
February 12, 2004
Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Cheryl Blackburn has been awarded a State Justice Institute (SJI) scholarship to attend a tw0 week course in General Jurisdiction at the National Judicial College in Nevada.SJI Executive Director David Tevelin said the award will cover tuition, transportation…
March 11, 2004
Circuit Court Judge Larry B. Stanley of the 31 st Judicial District, including Van Buren and Warren counties, will serve as a special judge on a workers compensation panel at the request of Supreme Court Justice Janice Holder."I am looking forward to this opportunity to serve with Justice Holder…
March 12, 2004
Tennessee Appellate Court Clerk Mike Catalano has qualified to compete April 19 in the 107 th annual Boston Marathon, the oldest and most prestigious 26.2 mile road race.To be eligible, participants must run qualifying times, based on their ages, at certified marathons. The number of participants…
March 16, 2004
Students from three public and private high schools in Dickson County will hear arguments in two actual Supreme Court cases as participants in a program designed to educate young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of government.The 223 students and their teachers will attend a special Supreme…
April 2, 2004
Circuit Court Judge J.S. “Steve” Daniel of Murfreesboro will step down from the 16 th Judicial District position he has held for 24 years to take senior judge status effective Sept. 1. Retired Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Jerry Scott also has been granted senior judge status effective July 1 and…
May 3, 2004
The state Judicial Selection Commission will meet May 16 in Knoxville to conduct a public hearing and interviews with applicants for a state Court of Appeals vacancy created by the April 2 death of Judge Houston Goddard.The public hearing will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Ballroom, Salons A & B,…
May 4, 2004
Students from four local high schools will participate May 6 in a state Supreme Court program designed to educate young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of government.The 420 students and their teachers will attend a special Supreme Court session at the Blount County Justice Center where…
May 5, 2004
Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Joe Riley will end a 25-year career as a member of the state judiciary July 15 to take on a new role as chief disciplinary counsel for the Court of the Judiciary.Riley, of Lake County, will investigate complaints of judicial misconduct filed against…
May 7, 2004
Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Monte D. Watkins was the recipient of a scholarship from the National Judicial College in Nevada to attend a week-long course in General Jurisdiction with judges from across the country.The jurists shared ideas on courtroom and case management, including cases…
May 21, 2004
In a 4-1 decision, the Tennessee Supreme Court has reversed a Court of Criminal Appeals opinion and ordered a new sentencing hearing for Richard Odom, convicted of the 1991 rape and murder of a Memphis woman, Mina Ethyl Johnson.The majority opinion, written by Justice E. Riley Anderson, said the…
May 24, 2004
American Legion Boys State delegates from high schools in all 95 counties will participate June 2 in the SCALES Program, an acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students. SCALES, a Tennessee Supreme Court initiative, educates young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of…
June 2, 2004
Nashville – Governor Phil Bredesen today announced that Monroe County native Sharon Gail Lee will fill a position on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern Section. Judge Lee“Sharon Lee brings tremendous experience in both the trial and appellate courts to her appointment on the Tennessee Court of…
June 17, 2004
NASHVILLE — Governor Phil Bredesen today named Mark Gwyn as the new director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.Gwyn, who currently serves as assistant director in charge of the TBI’s Forensic Services Division, will become the eighth director in the Bureau’s 53-year history. He succeeds…
June 21, 2004
Circuit Court Judge John McLellan, III, of Kingsport has assumed the top leadership role in the Tennessee Judicial Conference, which includes all of the state’s 185 trial, senior and appellate judges. He accepted the president’s gavel at the TJC Spring conference in Nashville, succeeding Circuit…
July 1, 2004
The Tennessee Supreme Court has appointed Circuit Court Judge Don Ash of Murfreesboro to the state Court of the Judiciary. The 15-member panel, created by the General Assembly, is charged by state law with receiving complaints against judges and imposing sanctions or recommending removal from…
July 7, 2004
Foreign language court interpreters from across the state will gather in Nashville Friday and Saturday for two days of training sponsored by the Administrative Office of the Courts.The first Tennessee Court Interpreter Conference, funded with a federal grant, will begin at 10 a.m. Friday at the…
July 16, 2004
Governor Phil Bredesen today announced that Murfreesboro attorney J. Mark Rogers will fill the Circuit Court vacancy in the 16th Judicial District, Part I, created by the retirement of Judge Steve Daniel. The 16th Judicial District covers Rutherford and Cannon counties.“I am pleased to appoint Mark…
July 26, 2004
Williamsburg, VA (July 26, 2004) – In response to ongoing uncertainty on how the recent Supreme Court sentencing decision, Blakely v. Washington, affects the state courts, the National Center for State Courts prepared a document that analyzes this decision’s impact. It is available at www.…
August 2, 2004
A ceremony honoring former Tennessee Court of Appeals Presiding Judge Houston M. Goddard, who died April 2 after nearly 30 years on the bench, will include the presentation of a resolution by the General Assembly recognizing his service to the state.
Court will convene Aug. 9 at 9:30 a.m. for the…
August 11, 2004
Retired judges will be designated by Chief Justice Frank F. Drowota to sit when necessary for Justice Adolpho A. Birch, Jr., while he undergoes chemotherapy and radiation treatments."This therapy will, no doubt, affect my ability to discharge all of the duties of my office," Birch said Wednesday. "…