TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Jan 18, 2022

State lawmakers have introduced a bill that would start the process of removing Rutherford County Juvenile Court Judge Donna Scott Davenport following reports that revealed the county’s juvenile justice system, under Davenport’s direction, has been illegally arresting and jailing children. Senate Joint Resolution 0788, sponsored by state Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, and co-sponsor Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, would allow for the creation of House and Senate committees to consider Davenport’s removal. Rep. Tim Rudd, R-Murfreesboro, sponsored similar legislation in 2020 that sought to remove Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle after she ordered increased access to absentee ballots during the August primary elections. That measure failed. Davenport has said she does plan to run for re-election, but for the first time, is being challenged by the county’s senior judicial commissioner Jacob Flatt and former Legal Aid Society attorney Andrae Crismon. Read more on the story from WPLN