TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Mar 8, 2024

The Tennessee House yesterday passed a bill that would block local governments from reforming their traffic stop policies, the Commercial Appeal reports. HB1931/SB2572, sponsored by Memphis Republican Rep. John Gillespie, has faced opposition from Memphis' local elected officials, activists and the family of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who was fatally beaten by Memphis police officers following a traffic stop in January 2023. Gillespie amended the bill on the floor in an attempt to narrow its focus so it would not apply to the "pretextual" stop ordinance passed by the Memphis City Council last year, but opponents say the change will not have the intended effect. That ordinance directed police to not make traffic stops solely for low-level offenses like improperly placed license plates or a single broken brake light.