Tennessee schools can now more quickly remove some students with disabilities from their classrooms. According to The Commercial Appeal, the state Board of Education has approved an amended rule allowing schools to temporarily remove students before a formal behavioral assessment is completed or started. Under the policy, a student may be temporarily moved to a special education setting or alternative school, but the decision must be made by the student’s Individualized Education Program team rather than a single educator. Board members said the change clarifies a 2022 rule that some districts had interpreted to mean students could not be removed until an assessment was finished, a process that can take months.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody at an immigration appointment in Baltimore, Bloomberg Law reports. The arrest came less than 72 hours after a Tennessee federal judge overseeing his criminal case released him so he could return to his family in Maryland while awaiting trial. According to reports, Garcia’s legal team was not told where he is being sent, though the Trump administration has indicated it intends to deport him to Uganda. Today, a federal judge issued an order stating the administration is “absolutely forbidden” from removing him from the United States, The Hill reports. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis blocked deportation until she can hold a hearing to determine whether the administration will allow Abrego Garcia contest his removal to a third country. According to Bloomberg, Abrego Garcia's attorney Sean Hecker said his client is willing to be removed to Costa Rica, which has agreed to accept him as a refugee.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is being sued by Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner over the FY2026 budget. According to court records obtained by The Commercial Appeal, Bonner is seeking to restore $67 million to his office's budget, which he says was not included in the mayor's budget request or approved by the Shelby County Commission. Harris, in his response to the suit, denied that he did not include Bonner's $67 million in budgetary requests, stating the allegations are "inconsistent with the plain language" within the adopted budget.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Monday seeking to limit cashless bail and threatened to revoke federal funding for jurisdictions that use it, Reuters reports. He also signed a separate order directing police in the District of Columbia to charge suspects with federal crimes and hold them in federal custody to avoid cashless bail. Cashless bail allows defendants to be released from jail while awaiting trial based on their promise to appear in court rather than paying a set cash amount. Opposers of the policy argue cashless bail reduces the incentive for defendants to appear in court and puts public safety at risk, while supporters say the system prevents low-income people from being jailed simply because they cannot afford bond. The District of Columbia was one of the first U.S. cities to largely eliminate cash bail in the 1990s, with judges deciding pretrial release based on a defendant’s risk of not showing up for trial. Among states, Illinois has eliminated cash bail, while New York, California and New Jersey have scaled it back.

A Knoxville police officer has been suspended after he was captured on video knocking a woman to the ground with a punch, straddling her and swinging at her again, Knox News reports. The Knoxville Police Department released a statement Friday announcing preliminary steps in its investigation of the incident, which occurred around 10 p.m. EDT Thursday in the 2600 block of Woodbine Avenue. “The situation escalated and (the woman) was detained following a use of force by on-scene officers,” the KPD statement said. She was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center for treatment. KPD did not name the officer who was suspended. The video, recorded by a bystander from a front porch, was shared on Facebook and accumulated more than 57,000 views.

President Donald Trump’s administration has revoked more than 6,000 student visas for overstays and breaking the law, Reuters reports. Directives from the State Department this year have ordered U.S. diplomats abroad to be vigilant against applicants the administration could view as hostile to the United States or with a history of political activism. About 4,000 visas were canceled because visitors broke the law, and 200 to 300 were revoked for terrorism, a State Department official said Monday. In April, five students from the University of Memphis and nine from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville reportedly had their visas terminated.

The Hamilton County Attorney’s Office on Thursday announced the launch of a new online system for submitting public records requests. The system is designed to provide the public and members of the media with a more transparent and accessible way to request public records, The Chattanoogan reports. County Attorney Janie Parks Varnell said the system is part of a broader modernization effort to improve access to government information, efficiency and accountability by reducing reliance on paper-based processes.

Students at Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law (LMU Law) in Knoxville will be able to take high-level, specialized courses at three ABA-accredited schools for no cost starting in spring 2026, the ABA Journal reports. Through a course-sharing agreement, Tennessee students will have access to online courses at Suffolk University Law School in Boston, St. Mary’s University School of Law in San Antonio and Southwestern Law School in Los Angeles. Administrators say the agreement will expand access to niche courses, reduce administrative burdens and enrich learning by connecting students across institutions. The long-term goal is to balance participation among the schools and potentially expand the program to more law schools. “Even though our part-time hybrid students already attend law school with students from all over the country, the opportunity to actually be enrolled in classes with students enrolled in different law schools will enrich their law school experiences,” said LMU Law Dean Matthew Lyon.

Dickson County government has provided $15,000 to the 23rd District Recovery Court to purchase a pickup truck for the program. According to a press release, the money comes from settlements reached between pharmaceutical companies and state and local governments to address the opioid crisis. The program will use the truck to transport equipment and supplies for participants in the court’s sober living residences. The recovery court provides services to residents who have been ordered by the court to seek treatment and monitored recovery due to addiction. The 18-month program offers housing, employment, transportation and comprehensive treatment services. According to the court, about 50 recovering addicts are served each year.

President Donald Trump's order restricting birthright citizenship was blocked for a fourth time earlier this month, Reuters reports. The most recent decision comes from U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman in Maryland, who blocked implementation of the order for children anywhere in the United States who would be affected. Her decision came in a response to a class action suit filed by a number of advocacy groups. She previously had agreed to grant class action status to the case but put that decision on hold while the administration appealed her ruling to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The paper reports that the appeals court recently dismissed the administration's appeal. Boardman's action was consistent with a finding in February that the order likely was unconstitutional. In related news, Bloomberg Law reports that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is moving forward with plans to implement the order if allowed by the courts.