The Tennessean reported Governor Bill Haslam, in one of his final acts as Governor, granted clemency to 30-year-old Cyntoia Brown. Ms. Brown was sentenced to life in jail for killing a Nashville real estate agent. She was sentenced when she was 16 years old. The agent, whom she didn’t know, picked her up “at an [...]
The US Supreme Court recently ruled that limits must be placed on the practice known as civil forfeiture. Civil forfeiture is the taking of private property, including homes, cars, and cash, that were used to commit a crime. While the aim of civil forfeiture laws was to prevent the properties from being used for other [...]
Tennessee, much like the federal government, has been working towards criminal justice reform. The state has changed some laws when it comes to clearing your record, such as allowing people to clear up to two convictions, and reducing the costs associated with expungement. Despite these changes, however, laws regarding driving under the influence were never [...]
One of the most frustrating things for many healthcare patients is understanding how much hospital procedures will cost. Even when patients have insurance, it’s helpful to have an estimate of how much a non-emergency procedure will be, how much your insurance company will pay, how much the hospital will accept in payment, and how much [...]
Punitive damages are meant to punish wrongdoers for reckless and purposely deceitful conduct. They are designed to send a message that some conduct will not be tolerated under any circumstances. Punitive damages can be awarded both in a wide array of cases, from injury case to business litigation. Many states do not place a cap [...]
With the start of the new calendar year and a new administration, lawmakers are ready with a variety of new bills they hope will become eventually become state laws. A few notable criminal laws were reported by the Tennessean this month. We’ve broken them down here, so you will know what to expect if they [...]
Many people suspected of a DUI think that simple things like chewing on a mint can help defeat a breath test. People also think they know more about impaired driving than they really do. If you are convicted of a DUI, you could be sentenced to jail, lose your license, be ordered to pay substantial [...]
Changes were recently instituted in the ways pharmacies can handle opioid medications. The new law was enacted in response to growing concerns that opioid drugs are addictive and can cause death and suicide. Pharmacies and doctors who fail to comply with these laws may face civil and criminal charges. Anyone in possession of illegal drugs [...]
In Tennessee, any driver who is convicted of a driving under the influence of alcohol charge will be ordered to surrender his/her license for at least one year. Any driver who refuses to submit to a chemical test such as breathalyzer test will also lose driving privileges for at least one year. All Tennessee drivers [...]
A CNN report cited data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that confirm how deadly the synthetic opioid fentanyl is. The rate of drug overdoses due to fentanyl increased 113% from 2013 to 2016. The percentage of drug overdose fatalities of any kind has increased 54% from 2011 to 2016; 63,632 [...]
