The Tennessee General Assembly passed a law in 2023 taking the power away from local DAs in collateral review of death penalty convictions and instead putting the authority in the hands of the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. 

Gene Dewayne Saulsberry was arrested by Shelby County Sheriff’s Office’s Fugitive Apprehension Team around 2 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 5, in Hickory Hill.

Last year, the Tennessee General Assembly gave a 20% raise to most of state prosecutors and state public defenders. But the raise for Shelby County is capped at 5%. 

Despite a rise in violent crime, the overall crime rate fell 6.4% in the city and 7.2% in the county compared to the previous year, according to the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission.

During her Jan. 9 reappointment presentation to the Memphis City Council, Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis noted that crime in the city had been slashed in half over a six-month period.

The trial for Justin Johnson and Cornelius Smith initially was scheduled for March 11 in Shelby County Criminal Court Division 10 Judge Jennifer Mitchell’s courtroom.

“You took my best friend, my soulmate, the one person that understood me,” the victim’s husband told the defendant. “I will never forgive you.”

Ramon McGhee was found unresponsive in his cell on Jan. 10, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which is investigating McGhee’s death.

Charges against Marious Ward, the alleged shooter in the case, were not dismissed Wednesday, although concerns were raised about how he was developed as a suspect.

Before being chosen for the top law enforcement position, Brent Vickers acted as Southaven’s deputy chief of police. 

In the new footage, other MPD officers are heard describing those in the SCORPION unit as “adrenaline junkies” who are too “hands-on.” One officer is also heard saying, “It’ll be justified.”

The top federal prosecutor in Memphis, U.S. attorney for Western Tennessee Kevin Ritz, says the Department of Justice inquiry affects the relationship his office has with the law enforcement body.

A federal civil rights lawsuit has been filed on behalf of the parents of Deion Byrd, a Shelby County Jail inmate who was assaulted while awaiting a court appearance at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center.

Four people, two suspects and two civilians, were noncritically injured Friday, Jan. 26, after officers shot at alleged car thieves before the suspects fled and crashed into a civilian’s car.

The Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct has recommended Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Melissa Boyd be removed from office, according to a letter sent to Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally. 

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton said the amendment would increase judicial discretion regarding bail and would require judges to say why or why not they granted bail. 

The affidavit says the inmate told the jailer that he “had something for him,” and “I’m going to kill you.”

Gerald Skahan allegedly sent three text messages where he threatened “bodily harm” or to kill Paula Skahan, according to the complaint.

An attorney for one of the former officers previously argued that federal prosecutors in the criminal case should not be allowed to have expert witnesses speak on two key points during the trial.

“To say that that first year was a challenging one would be an understatement,” Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy said.

At least 15 city employees traveled to the Caribbean island for a recruiting fair last July. The event, designed to attract police officers and employees for other hard-to-fill jobs, failed to attract a single candidate.

Some of the 120 prosecutors working in the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office make as much as $70,000 more than their colleagues who work next to them.

Demetrius Haley asked Thursday, Jan. 18, for the trial to be moved outside of the city due to excessive media coverage of the case, according to court documents filed electronically.