TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Apr 23, 2025

The winners of the seventh annual Chattanooga Civics Essay Contest will be honored at a ceremony May 1 at 5 p.m. EDT at the Joel W. Solomon U.S. Courthouse in Chattanooga. This year’s divisional winners are Emma Hornsby, first place; Eliza Perryman, second place; and Victoria Matthews, third place. Each will receive cash prizes. Open to public, private and homeschool students across 17 East Tennessee counties, the contest is co-sponsored by the court’s Civics and Outreach Subcommittee and the Chattanooga Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. The 2025 prompt asked students to explore what factors courts should consider when determining whether a police officer’s use of deadly force was reasonable under the 14th Amendment.