tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post116637162457134454..comments2024-03-01T07:43:16.529-06:00Comments on Smart City Memphis: No Holiday Truce In Shelby County Political WarsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1167202819589303672006-12-27T01:00:00.000-06:002006-12-27T01:00:00.000-06:00Smart City, some of the comments here have defined...Smart City, some of the comments here have defined quite well some of the reasons there should be another juvenile court judge. Winchester proposed that maybe the County Commission could do something to encourage Juvenile Court to be more responsive and forward thinking by holding up funding. This has not been the case with other county offices. When the county commission has denied funding for other offices, they have been known to sue the commission to get the funding they think they deserve. While the Commission's motives may not be so pure in creating the second Juvenile Court judgeship, it appears that may be the only way to break up the feifdom created by Judge Turner. Judge Person campaigned that he would continue the fine tradition of Judge Turner's court that he has been a part of for so long, so there is not much hope that he would change the inner workings of the court unprovoked. As you stated, Judge Person has not shown any leadership so far. As far as I know, he has not shown up to the hearings to learn of the very real issues that people face in dealing with Juvenile Court. Whether realizing that it is a political rally or not, people have come out to state what their experiences have been with the Court, and a Judge who really cares about the people and not about the politics would come out to learn what he may not be passed up through the layers upon layers of bureaucracy. Maybe a second judge could help to balance the scales and encourage a court that has a more progressive view of juvenile case management.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166909406642298702006-12-23T15:30:00.000-06:002006-12-23T15:30:00.000-06:00Anyone which half a brain would'nt listen to anyth...Anyone which half a brain would'nt listen to anything Henri Brooks says. She is there for her own agenda; she made a spectacle of herself at the first Commission Meeting she attended. Her main objective since taking office has been to get the BEST parking spot in the Shelby County Administration garage, and spent a lot of time having people walk thru the garage until she got the spot she wanted. She was merely feet from the door, but that wasn't good enough. She then started in on the minorty vendor situation and hasn't stopped talking about it yet. She has been a thorn in the side of many a County employee since she took office, and has earned the title of troublemaker in a very short time. She is also having new cabinets made for her office, along with some other Commissioners, but she has everyone so scared that they won't release the other Commissioner's cabinets until hers are ready so they don't "cause trouble". Give me a break!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166566665045779232006-12-19T16:17:00.000-06:002006-12-19T16:17:00.000-06:00William: It seems clear from the article in today'...William: It seems clear from the article in today's newspaper that there's a definite lack of courage on this issue. If we read it right, Judge Person is proud that he ended the diversion programs in Bartlett and Germantown before they became a political liability for him. This isn't exactly Shelby County's proudest moment. Every one is willing to make those suburbs pay for their humane programs. As you well know, there are programs all over the country that are working, and as Geoff Calkins' poignant column over the weekend about Kareem Cooper showed, it's often about exercising some positive influence in the lives of children whose lives teeter on the brink with too many falling into the chasm of corrections, welfare, etc. <BR/><BR/>We hope you can get some attention to the problem, and more importantly, to the possibilities for progress that exist if county government exercises its ultimate control over Juvenile Court.Smart City Consultinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13985783340016474051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166507996727122992006-12-18T23:59:00.000-06:002006-12-18T23:59:00.000-06:00Smart City,That is a good question. That is where...Smart City,<BR/><BR/>That is a good question. That is where politics comes into play, and apparently, as the last election shows, I am not very good at politics.<BR/><BR/>Before I go further, as another slap in the face to the citizens of Shelby County, back in the late nineties Judge Turner turned down a $250,000.00 grant to fund attorneys for indigent parents because Turner did not think, as an internal memo stated, that "those derelict parents" needed representation, and that more attorneys would just clog the juvenile court.<BR/><BR/>Since the County Commission provides the funding for juvenile court, I am sure they could force some of the programs to be utilized, or else the juvenile court could risk losing some funding. That would be a politically risky proposition, but given the current political underpinnings, as well as the call for a federal investigation, some commissioners might jump at the chance to get the ball rolling.<BR/><BR/>I will email some of the members of the ad hoc committee investigating juvenile court and suggest some things, as can anyone else.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166504853131350292006-12-18T23:07:00.000-06:002006-12-18T23:07:00.000-06:00William Winchester: It sounds like we have options...William Winchester: It sounds like we have options under the law, and Juvenile Court isn't pursuing them. What could Shelby County do to get its attention? I remember the days when no Criminal Court judge would release defendants on their own recognizance or set ridiculously high bonds for minor charges, and Shelby County set up pretrial services. Could county government do something to encourage these kinds of much-needed diversion programs?Smart City Consultinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13985783340016474051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166503006221619992006-12-18T22:36:00.000-06:002006-12-18T22:36:00.000-06:00Like Smart City I assume that these diversionary p...Like Smart City I assume that these diversionary programs are a good thing. If what Mr. Winchester says is true, and the Court has had at its disposal similar such state initiated programs but has chosen not to utilize them for benefit Memphis' youthful offenders, I would be very interested in finding out why. I am beginning to suspect that there may be more to this issue of a second judgeship than mere political power plays. The one thing that seems certain at this point is that Judge Turner was one heck of a politician (and that is not necessarily a good thing).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166495773490240552006-12-18T20:36:00.000-06:002006-12-18T20:36:00.000-06:00Smart City,Again, the issue is "subject matter jur...Smart City,<BR/><BR/>Again, the issue is "subject matter jurisdiction". The juvenile court is the ONLY court with jurisdiction of these types of cases.<BR/><BR/>There are many, many good programs that could be utilized by the juvenile court regarding diversion and rehabilitation; however, the court chooses to ignore those programs. Instead, far too often, the juvenile court would rather place juveniles in detention facilities, or far worse, transfer them to the adult courts. See, for example, the case of Braxton Moore at braxtonandfriends.org .<BR/><BR/>During the recent campaign, I advocated the use of some of the programs the state legislature has already created, which the juvenile court chooses not to use. One program is the Teen Court Program. This is where the juvenile court judge selects 12 teens from the area middle and high schools to hear certain types of non-violent cases, and the teens decide the cases and the punishment, if any. Of course, the offender must agree to participate. This would replace negative peer pressure from the gangs, etc., with the positive peer pressure from the Teen Court.<BR/><BR/>Another program that has been created by the legislature, but not used here in Shelby County, is to allow the juvenile court judge to hold sessions of court at area schools. This allows the children to see the court in action, and not be afraid of it.<BR/><BR/>There are also many types of diversion programs that are, or could be, created, to address these issues. Maybe now that the issue of the municipal courts is being forced to be addressed, and more of the suburban children being "herded" through the juvenile court, some of these programs will be utilized. If so, in reality, we will also know the reason they have not been utilized thus far.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166492741714461782006-12-18T19:45:00.000-06:002006-12-18T19:45:00.000-06:00William: The suburban programs were initiated by s...William: The suburban programs were initiated by some elightened leaders there. Where are the enlightened leaders in city government who are advocates for the same kinds of programs? As we have said before, state laws on Juvenile Court encourage criminalization of juvenile behavior that would be better handled in a nonjudicial setting. In today's overly criminalized world, are there any of us who should not have ended up in Juvenile Court while we were in our teens?Smart City Consultinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13985783340016474051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166492571074884712006-12-18T19:42:00.000-06:002006-12-18T19:42:00.000-06:00Anonymous: We agree that the diversion programs n...Anonymous: We agree that the diversion programs need to be spread far and wide. The problem now is that we're into the power and control behaviors of the public sector that only inhibit youth diversion programs that could work. As a result, it appears that the current judge issued his letter to get a jump on the complaints from the Democrats that he had to know were coming.Smart City Consultinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13985783340016474051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166492442855873122006-12-18T19:40:00.000-06:002006-12-18T19:40:00.000-06:00Anonymous: What would be the three things that wou...Anonymous: What would be the three things that would have to happen to keep you here? We hate to lose the very people that we need here not just to compete economically, but to generate new thinking and reform of our public systems.Smart City Consultinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13985783340016474051noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166486657515681332006-12-18T18:04:00.000-06:002006-12-18T18:04:00.000-06:00From my perspective, all of the issues involving j...From my perspective, all of the issues involving juvenile court are not about race, politics, or anything else (even though some of the motives for the current and past policies may be so related).<BR/><BR/>What it boils down to is the Rule of Law. If one system, or one aspect of it, departs from the Rule of Law and the Constitution, everybody in the long run suffers. <BR/><BR/>Tennessee law vests the juvenile court with the "exclusive original jurisdiction" over delinquency and unruly cases; no other court, municipal or otherwise, has that authority. The outer municipalities with their unwritten agreements with the juvenile court violated the law by diverting teens from the juvenile court.<BR/><BR/>Below is a letter to the editor I submitted to the Commercial Appeal on the matter; however, I doubt they will publish it - they have not published any other of my letters which are critical of the juvenile court, which cited facts and law showing the problems.<BR/><BR/>Of course, I ran for juvenile court judge as a reform candidate. All during my campaign, I pointed out the problems, and possible solutions, with juvenile court. The issue of the municipal courts was one such issue.<BR/><BR/>I am white; race is not a factor.<BR/><BR/>I am not interested in the second judgeship; politics is not a factor.<BR/><BR/>I am a strict constructionist with the Constitution; the Rule of Law is THE factor.<BR/><BR/>To the editor:<BR/><BR/>Several County Commissioners are calling for a federal investigation regarding the practice of the outlying municipalities of handling certain juvenile offenses in their municipal courts instead of sending the offenders to the juvenile court. Judge Person has stated that he has called a halt to it now that he has learned of it. Let the investigation begin.<BR/> <BR/>During the recent campaign for juvenile court judge, I raised that very issue. And it appears everyone forgets that Judge Person has been a part of the juvenile court as a referee or chief legal adviser for many, many years. This is nothing new.<BR/> <BR/>By statute, the juvenile court has "exclusive original jurisdiction" over certain classes of cases, including delinquent and unruly acts (criminal acts if committed by an adult) by minors. This is a matter of "subject matter jurisdiction". Everyone in the legal community should know that subject matter jurisdiction either exists or it does not exist, it can never be waived, and it can never be conferred upon another court.<BR/> <BR/>This practice by the outlying municipalities with the full knowledge of the people at the juvenile court that has been allowed to happen for years is repugnant to our system of justice. Once again, the rich suburbanites get the prize and the inner city people get the shaft.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166453864251216312006-12-18T08:57:00.000-06:002006-12-18T08:57:00.000-06:00Any chance the second juvenile judge may force a d...Any chance the second juvenile judge may force a discussion of the crimianlization of adolescent behavior that the current judge, and others, seem intent on creating witht the elimination of diversion programs? Rather than eliminate diversion programs in the suburbs, because of the civil rights concerns, why not extend the diversion programs to other areas? This would eliminate the civil rights concerns AND reduce the criminalization of juvenile behavior. Why is it that some seem willing to accept the current President's statement that when he was "young and stupid, he did young and stupid things"? However we seem incapable of understanding that this is true for most adolescents. Since he had the right parents he never went to juvenile court or jail for his acitons while others do. GeorgeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12509286.post-1166415473828609642006-12-17T22:17:00.000-06:002006-12-17T22:17:00.000-06:00Smart City, (and I know you guys personally) I adm...Smart City, (and I know you guys personally) I admire your desire and optimism to make Memphis and Shelby County a better place to live. I think you are among the best urban thinkers in the world.<BR/><BR/>The problem is, this place has become a sewer of political and racial vendetta that I and my employees can no longer tolerate. It is not that we don’t want to stay here. Memphis could and should be positioned to embrace the future. Maybe someday, with the good work of people who “get it” that will happen. But our company no longer has time to wait.<BR/><BR/>We have made the strategic decision to move, because Memphis will never catch up with some of its peer cities that offer a better quality of life and opportunity. Our distribution operation will remain for a few years, thanks to FedEx. But our headquarters and R&D along with several hundred jobs will be leaving early next year.<BR/><BR/>We just cannot see the future from Memphis, and we’re not aloneAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com