Joyce Peterson

Getting the wheels of justice to speed in Shelby County. A local lawmaker, criminal justice advocate and the district attorney all say it’s up to the judges to get the criminal courts in Memphis moving again.

The perception among many local lawmakers and citizens is that the revamped bail system puts too many bad guys back on the street.

The American Dream of homeownership is still far out of reach for many Black Americans. In Memphis, a city where 64% of the population is Black, the homeownership rate for Black families is 44% according to the U.S. Census Bureau. For white families, it’s 74%.

The VA Medical Center in Memphis provides life-saving medical treatment for Mid-South veterans, and a new doctor at the VA is getting top marks for the care he provides for our war heroes, in and out of the hospital.

More than 2100 students from 38 states competed recently in the National Elementary Chess tournament. Among the top teams who brought home trophies: Memphis’ own Idlewild Elementary.

Snow, rain, heat, and the gloom of night might not stop them. But a rise in robberies of letter carriers is a major problem for the U.S. Postal Service right now. Armed robberies of postal workers are through the roof, quadrupling in the last four years, according to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

After push-back from neighbors, activists, and stakeholders, the Greenlaw Community Center in Uptown Memphis will not be used as a holding facility for curfew breakers.

There are more unanswered questions about how the bail system operates in Shelby County criminal courts. Worried citizens aren’t the only ones keeping a close eye on the case of a teenage car theft and shooting suspect who keeps posting bail and getting out of jail.

After months, even years of anticipation, the Downtown Memphis Commission made a major announcement about a new business coming to Beale Street. The new shop will occupy an old space that holds a special place in many hearts: Tater Red’s Lucky Mojos, where you could find fun and funky gifts for 30 years.

The top two candidates running for Memphis mayor now have the green light to continue with their campaigns.

The charges against an Orange Mound McDonald’s employee accused of fatally shooting a customer in March have been dropped.

The Memphis VA Medical Center is the first hospital in the Mid-South to treat heart failure patients with a new technology that gives them a second chance at life.

Memphis leaders are at odds right now over how long someone should be required to live inside city limits before they are eligible to run for mayor.

The new Shelby County Youth Justice and Education Center is almost ready to open.

The vibes were high for Day 1 of the 2023 Beale Street Music Festival!

The biggest party in town returns to the river, and Beale Street Landing will be the command post for Memphis police and other law enforcement agencies responsible for protecting the citizens in Downtown Memphis this weekend.

Tom Lee Park is being transformed into a magical world that will offer great music all weekend. The gates open at 5 p.m. this Friday, May 5, for the start of the 2023 Beale Street Music Festival.

Action News 5 got a look at the newly remodeled Tom Lee Park and the setup for this year’s Memphis in May Beale Street Music Festival.

Get ready Tennessee shoppers! You’ll soon be able to buy groceries tax free for three months after the General Assembly passed one of the largest tax cuts in the history of the state.

There’s a new weapon in the war on crime in Downtown Memphis. The Downtown Memphis Commission (DMC) unveiled a new tool in the arsenal of the Blue Suede Brigade, the DMC’s team of state-certified security officers.

And as the University of Memphis Tigers football squad showed off new players, school officials talked about the new improvements coming to the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium at Liberty Park in Midtown Memphis.

The Memphis Police Department has a new group of spiritual servant leaders specially trained to support police officers and connect them to the community. This year’s Clergy Police Academy graduated its’ largest class in MPD history.

This year’s session of the Tennessee General Assembly dismisses at the end of the week, and the GOP supermajority shows no interest in passing any kind of gun control legislation, despite encouragement by Governor Bill Lee to do so.

The General Assembly has passed legislation that requires elected judges, not appointed judicial commissioners, to decide bail for the most serious crimes committed.

There’s an important change to tell you about with permitless carry in Tennessee. And it’s a change that some local leaders didn’t know about until Action News 5 reached out to them for comment.

For the first time, we are hearing from the Memphis-area teenager who is suing Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant. Joshua Holloway filed a lawsuit against Morant for assault after a dust-up on the basketball court at Morant’s house in Eads, Tennessee. Holloway announced his college choice and talked with the media on Friday, just days after Morant filed a countersuit against him.

Tennessee lawmakers took a tough stance on school security Thursday in Nashville. The full Senate passed Governor Bill Lee’s sweeping school safety plan.

Even as Governor Bill Lee calls for compromise on gun control reform, the Volunteer State is on track to lower the age for permitless carry from 21 to 18. The Tennessee Attorney General has already agreed to lower the age even though the bill to make it happen hasn’t passed yet.

Tuesday, Governor Lee signed an executive order that will make it harder for criminals to buy guns.

Shelby County commissioners have already made their decision two days ahead of Wednesday’s special meeting called for the reappointment of Justin J. Pearson, one of the two Democrats who was thrown out of the Tennessee House last Thursday.

Between expired leases, empty buildings and staff not yet hired, Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert has a lot of work to do. Luckily, help is on the way.

Shelby County Commissioner Mick Wright is calling for Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert to resign.

Memphis police arrested a man accused in a shooting at Eastgate Shopping Center on Saturday.

Tennessee lawmakers are considering an experimental program in Memphis to curb juvenile crime. The Shelby County delegation has been hard at work this legislative session looking for better ways to rehabilitate children who get into trouble while keeping the community safe.

There’s a new effort to increase the age of those served by the Shelby County Juvenile Court system to 24.

A new procedure at the Memphis VA provides relief to veterans with COPD without surgery.

Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant is talking for the first time since his eight-game suspension by the NBA.

There are now 66 troopers with the Tennessee Highway Patrol in the Memphis district. This comes nearly six months after Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Memphis City Council called on the state to send help to fight crime in the Bluff City.

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, outraged by what he calls the “revolving door” at the Shelby County Jail, fired off a letter to the major players in the local criminal justice system on Wednesday.

On Thursday, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris enlisted the help of the faith community to explain to their flocks his pricey plan to renovate the Mid-South’s only Level 1 trauma center.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris wants to build a new, state-of-the-art Regional One Health hospital in the Medical District of Memphis. The mayor’s ambitious plan would create a flagship public hospital that would partner with the University of Tennessee, similar to how Vanderbilt University Medical Center partners with Vanderbilt University in Nashville. But it’s going to cost taxpayers.

Ja Morant is the big draw for the Memphis Grizzlies, but right now, the superstar is drawing all the wrong kind of attention for his moves off the court.

Shelby County’s new juvenile court judge wants to modernize an old system with a history of failing children and their families.

A turn-around is happening at Tennessee’s Department of Children’s Services. People are applying to work there. Current employees are staying on the job. And children no longer live and sleep in DCS offices, except in Shelby County.

Action News 5 confirmed that a FedEx pilot was shot in the middle of the night while asleep in bed.

Memphis in May will release the lineup for Beale Street Music Festival on Monday.

On Tuesday, council members grilled leaders from Memphis in May and Memphis River Parks Partnership about how the $61 million redesigned Tom Lee Park is going to hold up during the Beale Street Music Festival and the World Championship Barbeque Cooking Contest.

A man charged with second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder was given a lowered bond of $25,000.

Funeral services are now set for Memphis Police Officer Geoffrey Redd. He passed away Saturday, February 18 after being shot in the line of duty two weeks ago.

The teenager charged with murdering a Memphis pastor during a carjacking in July of 2022 is out of jail now. The family of 16-year-old Miguel Andrade posted his bond, securing his release from the Shelby County Jail at 201 Poplar, where the young man was being held as an adult.