The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications for the Court of Criminal Appeals, Western Section, vacancy created by the death of Judge John Everett Williams on Sept. 2. Applicants must be licensed attorneys who are at least 30 years old, a resident of the state for five years and a resident of Tennessee’s Western Grand Division. Applications must be submitted to the Administrative Office of the Courts by noon CDT on Oct. 24. Get full applications instructions here. Applicants will be interviewed on Nov. 22 at 9 a.m. CST in the courtroom of the Tennessee Supreme Court Building in Jackson.

Results from the July Tennessee Bar Exam are expected to be released Monday by the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Watch the TBA.org website for the results as they become available.

Former Knoxville prosecutor Hector Sanchez this week became Tennessee’s first Hispanic criminal court judge after he took the oath of office to serve the 6th Judicial District. “I’m excited to serve the citizens of Knox County,” Sanchez told Knoxville’s WATE 6. “I think inclusion is very important. I think diversity on the bench is important.” Sanchez is an honorably discharged Marine who earned his law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law. He believes the core values he learned while in the Marine Corps – “honor, courage and commitment” – will translate into his courtroom. “…those are things every day I try to apply to every situation that I’m involved in,” he said. Sanchez was with the district attorney’s office before Gov. Bill Lee appointed him as a 6th Judicial District Criminal Court judge. He succeeds Judge Kyle Hixson who was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals – Eastern Section.

Alex Friedmann, a Nashville criminal justice advocate, was today sentenced to 40 years in prison for hiding firearms and other weapons in the walls of the Downtown Detention Center while it was under construction, the Tennessean reports. Friedmann admitted to the crimes, but his attorneys argued the state was overcharging him. He has prior felony convictions elevating the minimum punishment to 25 years in prison. Prior to sentencing, Friedmann wrote to Judge Steve Dozier detailing two incidents of rape while he was being held in the old county jail when he was 18. He said he hid the weapons out of an irrational fear that he’d be jailed again and subject to another rape. Sheriff Daron Hall rejected that claim in court today, saying Friedmann’s plot was to incite violence inside the jail. Friedmann also pleaded guilty to a federal gun possession crime and will be sentenced for that charge in January.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday heard arguments in a voting rights case in which plaintiffs allege the state illegally blocked a man from voting over a felony conviction in Virginia, even though his voting rights had been restored there. Ernest Falls was granted clemency for a felony conviction in Virginia and had his voting rights restored before moving to Tennessee. When he tried to register to vote in Grainger County in 2020, state officials said Falls failed to prove he had paid all court costs and restitution required by the state of his conviction. Falls never owed court costs or restitution in his Virginia case and the clemency grant fully restored his right to vote in Virginia. A Davidson County judge previously sided with the state in the case, finding "Tennessee law does not require that Tennessee reach the same result" as other states' decisions on voter restoration. The Tennessean has the full story.

The White House today announced that President Joe Biden will pardon all those convicted of simple possession of marijuana under federal law, The Hill reports. “There are thousands of people who have prior federal convictions for marijuana possession, who may be denied employment, housing, or educational opportunities as a result,” Biden said in a statement. “My action will help relieve the collateral consequences arising from these convictions.” White House officials urged governors to take similar action and told reporters that the pardon could benefit around 6,500 individuals. They added that no one is currently in federal prison for simple possession charges.

A preliminary hearing has been set for Cleotha Henderson, the man charged with abducting and murdering Memphis jogger and school teacher Eliza Fletcher last month, the Daily Memphian reports. Henderson, who also goes by the surname Abston, will go before General Sessions Criminal Court Judge Louis Montesi on Nov. 16. He is represented by public defender Jennifer Case. Henderson is charged with first-degree murder, especially aggravated kidnapping and tampering with evidence. If convicted, he could receive life imprisonment, life without parole or the death penalty.  

Ronald Sandlin of Millington pleaded guilty on Friday to charges of conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding and assaulting and impeding police for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Federal prosecutors say in a plea agreement they intend to seek a penalty range of 63 to 78 months at a Dec. 2 sentencing hearing. Sandlin, who was arrested three weeks after the attack, remains jailed. Court records filed in connection with the plea show that Sandlin conspired with two others to take the Capitol building by force. The trio suited up for the attack with guns, a knife, bear mace, a stun gun, protective gear and gas masks and captured their crimes on video. Prosecutors also presented evidence that Sandlin smoked marijuana inside the Capitol, stole a book from a Senate office and made plans to sell footage of the attack, Tennessee Lookout reports.

Leading medical organizations are asking the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate a string of recent online attacks against hospitals and doctors that provide care to transgender minors. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association and the Children’s Hospital Association on Monday said the attacks have included allegations of child abuse as well as bomb threats and threats of personal violence, The Hill reports. The groups also are calling on social media companies to do more to prevent disinformation on their platforms and take “bolder action” when false information is shared.

A federal jury has found that Sullivan County teacher Jeremy McLaughlin was suspended for reasons other than his expletive-laced social media posts, rejecting McLaughlin’s claims he was targeted for the posts, Tennessee Lookout reports. McLaughlin was suspended for three days without pay in September 2020 after parents complained about posts made while off-duty. Before the trial, U.S. District Judge Clifton Corker ruled McLaughlin’s social media posts were protected speech under the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision upholding the rights of a coach who prayed on the field after football games. That ruling put the burden on the school to prove McLaughlin was suspended for other reasons. The school argued it took the action because McLaughlin was encouraging people outside the school system to vote in what was supposed to be a survey of district teachers. The jury agreed.