Chattanooga solo practioner Melody Shekari has announced her intention to run for city court judge. With seven years of experience as a lawyer, Shekari says she is ready to take on a new leadership role. She also cites her experience sitting as a special judge in Hamilton County. Shekari earned a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Washington and a law degree from the University of Southern California. She is an active member of the Tennessee Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, serving this year as co-chair of the YLD Member Services Committee. Read her full statement.

Opponents of Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk are seeking someone to challenge him in 2022, the Nashville Scene reports. Activists are unhappy with Funk’s handling of the case of former Metro Nashville Police Officer Andrew Delke, who was given a plea agreement for the killing of Daniel Hambrick. Among the group is former public defender and onetime congressional candidate Keeda Haynes. “We’re calling on anyone who wants to run against Glenn Funk, come holler at us,” she recently said. While Haynes is often mentioned as a possible candidate, she tells the paper she is not running. Another name mentioned is Assistant U.S. Attorney Sara Beth Myers, who declined to comment when asked.

Chattanooga Judge Russell Bean announced yesterday that he will not seek re-election next year after serving 22 years with Chattanooga City Court, Division II, the Chattanoogan reports. Bean was appointed to the bench by former Mayor Jon Kinsey in 2000. "My heart has been with City Court and I will miss it but it is time for another chapter in my life,” Bean said in a statement.

Hamilton County General Sessions Court Judge Lila Statom today announced her decision to seek re‐election. Statom was appointed to the court in 2012 by then Gov. Bill Haslam to complete the term of Judge Ronald Durby. She was elected to serve a full term in 2014. In addition to handling a criminal, civil and mental health hospital docket, Statom presides over the Hamilton County General Sessions Mental Health Court. Prior to joining the bench she was a Hamilton County assistant district attorney for 14 years and a Davidson County assistant district attorney for 10 years. She earned her law degree from the University of Memphis and an LL.M. in litigation from Emory University School of Law. Read the full release.

Chattanooga attorney Mike Dumitru yesterday announced his campaign to be the next circuit court judge in Hamilton County, Chattanooga.com reports. He will seek the Republican Party nomination to replace Circuit Court Judge Jeff Hollingsworth, who recently announced his retirement. Dumitru currently is a partner at Miller & Martin, where he focuses on state and federal litigation. He earned his law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law. Since joining the profession he has served as a bar examiner, board member of the Federal Bar Association Chattanooga Chapter and a member of the TBA’s Leadership Law program. Dumitru says his status as first generation American has given him a unique perspective on the importance of a strong judiciary that strives to properly apply the law for the benefit of the community.

Coty Wamp, general counsel to the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, says she will run for county district attorney general. In her current position, Wamp provides in-house legal counsel and advice on investigations, daily operations, policy matters and public media inquiries at the sheriff's office. She previously worked as an assistant public defender in Hamilton County and an assistant district attorney in Bradley County. She earned her law degree in 2014 from the University of Tennessee College of Law. Chattanoogan.com has more.

Former Gov. Bill Haslam has announced he will serve as treasurer of the Yes on 1 Committee, a campaign promoting the right to work amendment that will appear on the November 2022 ballot, the Associated Press reports. The amendment would place the state law that prohibits a company and a union from requiring workers to pay union dues or fees into the state Constitution. The law was enacted in 1947, but Republican lawmakers have completed the lengthy process to place it on the ballot as a constitutional amendment. The Yes on 1 Committee says the law would be harder to repeal if it were a constitutional amendment, but opponents say the measure discourages workers from joining unions in a state where unions already have very little foothold. 

Jasper attorney John Harvey “Cam” Cameron Jr. has announced he will run for 12th Judicial District Circuit Court judge. According to a press release from his campaign, Cameron currently serves as the municipal judge for the City of South Pittsburg and sits as a special judge for the Marion County General Sessions Court. He was appointed to Legal Aid of East Tennessee’s board of governors in 2012 and currently serves as the board’s president-elect. Cameron also practices at Cameron & Cameron PC where he handles both civil and criminal matters.

Boyd Patterson of the Hamilton County Public Defender's Office said today he plans to run for the county’s open criminal court post, seeking to replace Judge Don W. Poole who has announced his retirement. Patterson worked as a prosecutor for 15 years and as a Gang Task Force coordinator before moving to the public defender’s office. His campaign says that his undergraduate and master’s degrees in psychology, plus two years counseling delinquent youth, make him the best candidate for the court, which also supervises the county’s Mental Health Court. Patterson, who helped establish the mental health court, says if elected he would create a new separate component to serve military veterans, Chattanoogan.com reports.

Hamilton County Criminal Court Judge Don W. Poole announced today that he will retire at the end of his current term. By then, he will have served two eight-year terms. In a letter detailing his decision, Poole said, "In my mind, a lawyer can receive no greater honor than to be elected to serve as a judge. For almost 16 years the people of Hamilton County have entrusted me with that position and I am eternally grateful for that.” Among those said to be interested in the post are former Criminal Court Judge Rebecca Stern, attorney Amanda Dunn and Boyd Patterson of the Public Defender's Office, Chattanoogan.com reports.