Two female inmates at the Shelby County women’s jail say they were assaulted by a male inmate who was being housed with them last year due to overcrowding at the men’s jail. The federal lawsuit, filed Nov. 10, alleges the male inmate gained access to the women’s cells through a broken door. It also claims that a staff member opened the door, another staff member witnessed the assault but did not intervene or alert others, and that staff failed to report the incident or follow up afterward. The suit names the Shelby County government, Sheriff Floyd Bonner and several jail staffers. The women are seeking a jury trial and an unspecified amount in damages, according to the Daily Memphian,

The Tennessee Department of Human Services has announced it would begin processing partial Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments, which could be available as soon as today, according to a news release. The U.S. Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service has directed states to issue 65% of benefits this month, Knox News reports. Remaining benefits for the month will be issued after the federal government reopens. SNAP customers who were originally scheduled to receive their benefits Nov. 1–12 will begin to see payments on Nov. 12, the release said. Tennessee SNAP recipients can use the One DHS Customer Portal to view the latest case details.

Immigrant rights advocates and the ACLU of Tennessee are raising concerns over a new Knoxville Police Department (KPD) policy that directs officers to detain individuals flagged by federal immigration databases for up to 20 minutes while waiting for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to respond. The change follows a 2024 state law requiring local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration agencies, but critics say the mandate is vague, risks constitutional violations and erodes trust between police and immigrant communities, Knox News reports. KPD says the policy complies with state law and limits detentions to a “reasonable amount of time.” City officials also argue that the 20-minute window prevents people from being held for hours as seen in other jurisdictions.

Tennessee death row inmate Harold Wayne Nichols on Monday declined to choose between the electric chair and lethal injection for his Dec. 11 execution, meaning the state will default to lethal injection, according to the Associated Press. Nichols was sentenced to death in 1990 after he was convicted of raping and murdering Karen Pulley, a 21-year-old student at Chattanooga State University, two years earlier. In 2024, Tennessee announced a new lethal injection protocol to administer a single drug, pentobarbital. The move was challenged in a March lawsuit brought by nine death row inmates, one of whom has since been executed. Soon after, Nichols sued the state to delay his execution until litigation over the execution drug is resolved. His attorneys also have filed suit seeking access to state records on execution procedures.

In Tennessee, the rate of women killed by men is among the nation’s highest, according to a 2023 report from the Violence Policy Center. Now, new reporting from Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica highlights what they say is a dangerous gap in the state’s probation system that leaves domestic violence victims at risk. As the news sources explain, once a judge issues a probation violation warrant, officers halt all in-person supervision — including visits and home checks — even for high-risk offenders, sometimes for months or longer. Between 2019 and 2022, at least six young Black mothers were killed during these supervision lapses, often by armed men who should have been closely monitored. The Tennessee Department of Correction acknowledges the pause in face-to-face oversight but says officers shift their focus to helping law enforcement locate violators. Critics of that approach say it undermines public safety.

Christopher Steele, an inmate at the Shelby County Jail, died on Friday, marking at least the 10th such fatality and the third in 10 days. The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and no cause of death has been given yet. Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. announced last week that hundreds of inmates at the overcrowded facility would be moved to other nearby jails in an effort to combat that overcrowding. The Daily Memphian has more on the developments.

Judge Raymond Lepone was appointed to the 30th Judicial District Criminal Court, which covers Shelby County, by Gov. Bill Lee on Aug. 29, filling a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Paula Skahan. Although he has a new title, Lepone is no stranger to the criminal court. Prior to taking the bench, he was a juvenile court magistrate, presiding over delinquency, custody, visitation, and dependency and neglect dockets. Lepone pursued a legal career later than most and said his uncle, a police officer in Philadelphia, inspire him to serve. “He would always be in his uniform and tell me Batman and Robin stories because I was young. He always explained his job as trying to keep people safe and help people. When I went to law school, I knew I wanted to be a prosecutor and that’s exactly what I did.” Lepone is a graduate of the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and Kennesaw State University. Read more in a profile from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications to fill a vacancy on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, which will occur with the retirement of Judge D. Michael Swiney on Jan. 12, 2026. Qualified applicants must be licensed attorneys who are at least 30 years of age, have been residents of the state for five years and reside in the Eastern Grand Division of the state. Applicants must complete the application and submit it to the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) by noon CST on Dec. 3. The council will meet on Jan. 7, 2026, at 10 a.m. EST, in the courtroom of the Knoxville Supreme Court Building, 505 Main St., Knoxville 37902. Any member of the public may attend the public hearing to express, orally or in writing, their objections concerning applicant(s) for the vacancy. Questions about the application process should be submitted to AOC Assistant General Counsel Laura Blount at (615) 741-2687 or laura.blount@tncourts.gov.

The interim superintendent of the Knox County Juvenile Detention Center resigned over the weekend, Knox News reports. Brian Bivens submitted his resignation Nov. 9, effective immediately. Leadership struggles at the facility began in May when longtime superintendent Richard Bean was forced out of the job. According to the paper, Bivens had been working to address several issues at the center, including empowering shift supervisors and updating policies and procedures.

A newly formed Nashville Homeland Security Task Force has announced several criminal cases, including a federal indictment exposing a drug-smuggling operation inside CoreCivic’s Trousdale Turner Correctional Center, the Nashville Banner reports. The task force — a coalition of local, state and federal law enforcement agencies — was announced earlier this month and will work on cases involving violence and drug trafficking with ties to transnational criminal organizations. It also will focus on complex cases that expose systemic corruption and criminal networks operating within the state’s correctional system. In the Trousdale case, officials allege that an incarcerated man, his girlfriend and three correctional officers conspired to bring fentanyl, heroin and cocaine into the facility using contraband cell phones and Cash App transfers.