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Volu m e 16
| Number 15 | July 20 - August 3, 2022
Please Vote Nashville For the Aug. 4 Election, The Contributor teamed up with Please Vote Nashville to create a guide of offices and candidates. Since its inception, Please Vote Nashville’s goal has been to provide information on every candidate on the ballot. The ballot breakdown also gives a description of the office to give voters a sense of what exactly the candidate should do in the job.
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Some races were uncontested and do not appear in the printed version of this guide. They can be viewed in our digital issue at www.issuu.com/ the-contributor-live. Early voting begins July 15 and runs through July 30. Visit nashville.gov for more information on where to vote. EDITOR IN CHIEF: Tristen Gaspadarek ART DIRECTION + ILLUSTRATION: Kami Baergen EDITORS: Christina Norwood, Elizabeth Rein, Ellen Angelico, Marcus Lewis, Carter Barnett, Susan Steffenhagen Griffith, Anna Dufur, Cybelle Elena, Elizabeth Berry WRITERS: Mary Grace Donaldson, Susan Steffenhagen Griffith, Chloe Cooper, Shea Nolan, Ellen Angelico, Cybelle Elena, Megan Collier, Melena Gaspadarek, Katie Johns, Skyler Meadow Levine, Marcus Lewis, Alise Grysen, Nicki Bluhm, Kristina Vela Bisbee, Sophie Morehouse, Elizabeth Berry, Hayes Peebles, Safara Parrott, Carter Barnett, Davis Dyer, Donovan Bisbee, Chloe Stillwell, Sarah Morris
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Governor of the State of Tennessee The governor of the State of Tennessee is the head of the executive branch and the highest state office in Tennessee. Elected every four years by popular vote, governorship is limited to two consecutive terms. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the state’s military forces. He or she is
BILL LEE Republican Republican Bill Lee is the incumbent governor of Tennessee, elected in 2019. Lee received his Bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from Auburn University before taking over his family’s Franklin-based home maintenance business, Lee Company. Before he was elected governor, he served as a representative for the 7th Congressional District to the TN Higher Education Commission and as a member of the Board of Trustees at Belmont University. Economic development is a primary focus for Lee. During his tenure, the state created almost 40,000 jobs and $12.9 billion in capital investments, and was named the best business climate in the U.S. and best state for small business growth. Lee has boosted education funding,
CARNITA FAYE ATWATER Democrat Carnita Faye Atwater is a community activist in Memphis, Tenn. She holds a bachelor’s degree in community health education and nursing, a master’s degree in gerontology and public health administration, and a doctorate in public health administration. This is Atwater’s first run for office. However, she is a regular fixture at protests, strikes, and other political actions.
responsible for signing or vetoing bills and joint resolutions as a final check before they become laws. Tennessee governors are also responsible for appointing state department heads, and some members of boards and commissions, such as the Commissioner of Finance who oversees the state budget. He
with an additional $125 million going to teachers’ salaries. Lee supports and has funded school choice and is in favor of tax vouchers for parents to move their children to religious or private schools. Following the surge of mass shootings, he issued an executive order to enhance school safety. Lee supports teachers being armed, and does not support restricting firearms or strengthening gun control. Lee received criticism for his COVID-19 response during the 2022 State of the State address, as Tennessee struggled with high infection rates and one of the lowest vaccination rates. He opted out of requiring mask mandates for schools, didn’t allow districts to shift fully to online learning, and diverted $4 million of federal COVID-19 funding to charter schools. In 2022, a News Channel 5 investigation reported Lee received campaign donations from school privatization PACs. Last year, Lee supported a series of bills in the Tennessee legislature targeting LGBTQ+ people. These included a transgender athlete ban, bills criminalizing gender-affirming care, and restrictions on discussing LGBT+ issues in schools. A bill signed by Lee requiring trans-affirming businesses to post signs on restrooms was struck down in May 2022. He is a vocal pro-life advocate and has stated that he supports banning abortion, including in cases of rape and incest.
Owner of the Kukutana African-American History and Culture Museum of Memphis located in North Memphis, she has worked as a nurse and is the director of New Chicago Community Development Corporation, an organization that aims to fight gentrification in North Memphis. In 2021, Atwater was ordered to repay $2 million in checks she wrote to herself from the estate of a woman for whom Atwater was providing in-home care. Atwater believes it is time for Tennessee to have an African American governor. She is running to shine a light on injustice and political corruption. She is against the use of vouchers because she believes they take money away from public schools. She favors a “holistic” approach to education that addresses mental health and poverty. Among her many reasons for running for Governor, Atwater wants to combat homelessness, offer universal health care, transform the state’s prison system, ensure critical race theory is taught in higher education, and legalize marijuana.
July 20 - August 3, 2022
or she appoints justices to the state, local, and appellate courts, who interpret and decide the constitutionality of laws made by the General Assembly. The governor grants pardons, oversees executive departments, makes recommendations for legislation, and signs all commissions granted by the
JB SMILEY JR. Democrat JB Smiley Jr. was raised by a social worker and Bronze Star army soldier with his five siblings in Memphis, Tenn. After his collegiate and semi-professional basketball career, he earned his J.D. from the University of Arkansas. While studying, he served as a member of the Law Review, Moot Court Board, Vice President of the Black Law Students Association, and authored Born With It: Unleashing Your Greatness. Smiley’s professional experience includes working as a civil defense lawyer and owning Smiley & Associates. In 2018, Smiley was listed in the Memphis Flyer’s Top 20 Under 30 class. He served as judicial counsel for the Young Democrats of America, the vice chairman of the Black Caucus of the Young Democrats of America, the vice president of the Shelby County Young Democrats, and a policy advisor to the Shelby County clerk.
JASON BRANTLEY MARTIN Democrat Jason Brantley Martin was born in Southern Alabama and currently lives in Nashville. Martin is a critical care physician and pulmonologist affiliated with multiple hospitals in the Nashville area. He holds a medical degree from the University of South Alabama College of Medicine and this is his first time running for office. Martin has been in practice for over two decades in various roles, including leading the
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state of Tennessee. Governors must be at least 30 years old and must have lived in the state for at least seven years before being elected to the office. Tennessee’s governor’s salary is set at $170,340 per year, the ninth highest gubernatorial salary in the United States.
In 2022, Smiley was elected to Memphis City Council. He holds several leadership positions including chairing the Public Works, Solid Waste and General Services Committee and vice chairing the Economic Development, Tourism & Technology Committee. He also serves as the City Council liaison for the Urban Art Commission and the Memphis and Shelby County Film and Television Commission. Smiley’s Council career has been marked by a desire to make his community a better place and foster progressive change. He plans to introduce a resolution urging local law enforcement not to prosecute women seeking aborations. He recently voted to increase government employee and firefighter pay. He authored resolutions to honor rapper and Memphis native Young Dolph and name a street in his honor. He has pushed for a formal review of the Tennessee Valley Authority’s plan to dump coal ash in the Memphis area, citing the disproportionate impact on Black communities. His term ends in 2024. The top policy priorities for Smiley are education, women’s rights, healthcare, and economic development and mobility. He aims to fully fund public education and overcome barriers to quality education that focuses on the whole child — physical, mental, and emotional well-being.If elected, he will advocate for affordable healthcare for all which includes Medicaid expansion, improving access to care, addressing dietary needs, and expanding mental health resources. He seeks to raise the minimum wage and invest in small businesses to address economic disparities in Tennessee.
residency program as Chief Resident at the Nashville Veteran Affairs Medical Center. In December 2020, Martin held a news conference with two other physicians calling for a statewide mask mandate. He has criticized Gov. Lee’s leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, stating “Rather than leading with policies to keep our kids in schools, our businesses open and thriving, our families safe, they (Republican leadership) put extremist ideology ahead of (the) people of Tennessee.” Martin considers himself a moderate Democrat. His many goals in running for governor include fully funding public education, decriminalizing marijuana, reforming the criminal justice system, protecting womens’ reproductive rights, and the civil rights of LGBTQIA+ Tennesseans. He is especially interested in expanding Medicaid and healthcare access for Tennessee’s rural communities. Martin wants to repeal permitless carry, and use existing regulation to make sure we don’t penalize responsible gun owners. He is endorsed by several elected officials in Tennessee including Senator Heidi Campbell, House Democratic Caucus Chair Vincent Dixie and Representative John Ray Clemmons.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
US House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, alongside the United States Senate, forms the legislative branch of our federal government. Representatives serve two-year terms. The 117th US House of Representatives holds 224 Democrats, including 4 Delegates, 212 Republicans, including 1 Delegate and the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico, and five vacant seats.
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals. Tennessee elects nine representatives to the House. On Jan 20th, 2022 the Tennessee Senate passed Senate Bill (SB) 0781 that redraws Tennessee’s historically Democratic leaning 5th congressional district of Davidson County, into three pieces absorbing
parts of it into the largely white, historically Republican 6th and 7th districts. The House of Representatives introduces bills and resolutions, offers amendments, and serves on committees. The House has the sole power to originate impeachment proceedings against public officials, who are then tried before the Senate. A representative’s job requires
them to address the concerns, problems, and goals of their constituents and utilize this information to research topics, identify issues, and propose laws that protect citizens, working in coordination with their political party’s policy-making agenda. They must also be informed on international matters as well as any pending legislative matters.
DISTRICT 5
GENI BATCHELOR Geni Batchelor, although born in Sacramento, has lived
JEFF BEIERLEIN
NATISHA BROOKS Natisha Brooks is a self-described “Constitutional Conservative” from Gimer, Texas. She received
in Lebanon, Tenn., since 2005. She has been retired since 2014, but she has worked as the owner-operator of a bakery, as a realtor, and from 1999 to 2012 as the COO of Miller Tanner Associates, a corporate event planning company. She has also worked in education as a principal’s secretary and assistant registrar. She graduated from Sir Francis Drake High School in 1966. She also holds a certificate for medical assisting from Northwest College for Medical Assistants.
This is Batchelor’s first run for public office. She was President of the Wilson County Community Help Center from 2010-2012 and has volunteered with Compassionate Hands Ministries in Wilson County. She describes herself as a “real, conservative, common sense choice” and she is pro-life and pro-Second Amendment. She is dismayed by the divisive nature of politics and pledges to use common sense to work together and resolve issues peacefully.
Jeff Beierlein grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. After attending the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, he was commissioned into Army Aviation. He served 11 years on active duty in the United States, Central America, and Korea. He came to middle Tennessee in 2000, stationed at Fort Campbell. He was a Unit Commander during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. Following his second tour
in Iraq, he left active duty and received a business degree from Vanderbilt. He currently lives in West Nashville and for the last 15 years he has been the regional Vice President of a dialysis company. This is Beierlein’s first run for public office. He is a proud conservative and he is running to restore accountability and confidence in politics. He is pro-life, pro-second-amendment, and focused on border security.
her formal education from Prairie A+M University and became a Home School and Tutoring Consultant in 2001. She currently resides in Nashville, and is the Owner and Director of The Brooks Academy, a Christian homeschool institution with a religious curriculum. She has stated that she would vote to abolish the U.S. Department of Education. The focus issues in Brooks’ campaign include mining, veteran affairs, and mental health. Brooks advocates for college tuition being determined by the current
annual cost-of-living, the funding of mental health services for Americans in certain circumstances, and the improvement of living and health benefits for Military Veterans. This contributes to the areas of public policy in which Brooks is most passionate about: “As a Small Business Owner, I am in favor of increased business insurance benefits and options for sole-proprietors, partnerships, and LLCs. I also believe in providing tax benefits and incentives to private sector healthcare practitioners who will serve our veterans.”
Beth Harwell moved to Tennessee at age 16 to attend Lipscomb University. She
earned her master’s degree from Peabody College and her Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University, both in social science education. Harwell has worked as a research analyst for the State Board of Regents; a trainer for University of Tennessee’s Center for Labor Management; and assistant professor of political science at Belmont University. Harwell served as chair of the state Republican Party from 2001 to 2004. Harwell was the longest-serving member of the House, until 2018 when she left for a gubernatorial run. She was also the first female speaker for
the Tennessee House of Representatives. Harwell ensured that Tennessee’s budget was balanced every year she served as speaker. In 2019, she was appointed by President Trump to serve on the Tennessee Valley Authority. Harwell’s stances support charter schools, cutting taxes, legalization of medical marijuana, pro-life legislation, tougher sexual abuse laws, and protecting Second Amendment rights. Her current focus is on securing the southern border, fighting inflation, and curtailing government spending.
TIMOTHY BRUCE LEE
Timothy Bruce Lee grew up in Nashville and studied Political Science at Middle Tennessee State University, and later obtained this degree from Tennessee State University. Lee also obtained his EMT certification and Paramedic license from Columbia State University. For two decades, Lee worked as a paramedic for 911 services in Sumner
and Dickson counties. He currently works for Nashville Fire Department as a HazMat Paramedic, volunteers as a mentor for new hires, and is part of a peer support group. Lee will work to lower taxes, fight for good jobs, and preserve the Second Amendment. He wants a leader that is not afraid to be bold, decisive and strong.
University. Ogles furthered his studies at Vanderbilt’s Owen Graduate School of Management, as well as Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business. He currently serves as Mayor of Maury County. Prior to holding this office, Ogles was president and owner of eNet Media. In 2011, he worked as COO for Abolition International, now called Hope for Justice, a company’s whose mission was to bring an end to sex trafficking & exploitation. In 2012, Ogles worked as the National Deputy Director for
Newt Gingrich’s presidential campaign and as Executive Director for TN PAC. Ogles became the executive director of Americans for Prosperity Tennessee in 2013. Ogles’ supports securing our borders and providing law enforcement with the necessary tools to enforce current immigration laws. He believes individual states should be in charge of education, not the federal government. He supports the Second amendment and protecting the rights of the unborn from the point of conception.
BETH HARWELL
ANDREW OGLES Native Tennessean, Andrew Ogles received his B.S. in International Relations from Middle Tennessee State
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
DISTRICT 5., CONT.
STEWART T. PARKS Stewart T. Parks was born and raised in Nashville and
KURT WINSTEAD Kurt Winstead has been a middle Tennessee resident for over 30 years. He graduated from Centre College before
holds an associate’s degree from Volunteer State Community College. He continued on to study Economics at Ole Miss. He loves Tennessee and Southern History, and has preserved several historic properties in Columbia and Cornersville. Parks calls himself a Tennessee Christian Conservative. He currently works in real estate. Parks was present at the Jan. 6 insurrection in the U.S. Capitol and was arrested and charged with trespassing. Parks has never previously held
public office and has promised to donate 100 percent of his pay to churches if elected. When asked for the three key components of his campaign, Parks answered: placing a ban on all abortion, overturning Obergefell v. Hodges which legalized same-sex marriage, and impeaching President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson. He also emphasized the importance of U.S. energy independence and is a strong supporter of gun ownership.
earning his law degree from the University of Richmond School of Law. He served in the Tennessee Army National Guard for three decades including service as a Brigadier General during Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has practiced law since 1988 and is a partner at Rudy Winstead Turner, PLLC with a focus on business and corporate law. Winstead is currently a member of the Nashville, Williamson County, Tennessee, and American Bar Associations. He also serves on numerous boards including the Battle Ground Academy
Board of Trustees and Leadership Middle Tennessee Board of Directors. Some of Winstead’s political priorities include defending America from overseas enemies, shutdown of the Southern border, controlling inflation, and fighting the “DC establishment” as a political outsider. He strongly believes in Second Amendment protections and believes there is no need for more gun laws or restrictions. After retiring from military service, he feels this is an opportunity to continue serving his community.
TRES WITTUM Tres Wittum was born in Cleveland, Tenn., and moved
HEIDI CAMPBELL Heidi Campbell is the only Democrat running for U.S. House of Representatives in District 5. Campbell is cur-
to Nashville in 2008. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication, Media Studies, and Political Science from the University of Chattanooga. He belonged to various College Republican organizations and is currently a member of Christians United for Israel. Wittum has served the Tennessee Senate since 2011, in the Senate Speaker Pro Tempore’s office as well as the Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee. He is currently an aide to Senator Bo Watson. In 2017, he was elected chair of
the Davidson County Republican Party but was removed following concerns about his eligibility. Wittum wants to bring Trump’s America First Agenda to Congress for Tennessee, and in interviews he is proud of his long-time support of President Donald Trump, believing in Trump’s accomplishments. He believes his work as an aide for Senator Watson will make him a great U.S. Representative in Tennessee, and that his experience has taught him what matters to people in Tennessee.
rently serving her first term in the Tennessee State Senate, where she sits on several committees, including the Government Operations and the Energy, Agriculture, and Natural Resources committees. She also is the chair of the Davidson County Legislative Delegation. Campbell’s campaign centers around “freedom for families first” and advocating for legislation supporting middle-class families. According to her campaign website, Campbell’s primary issues are fiscal accountability, business, the environment, education,
and social health. Campbell narrowly beat Republican incumbent Steve Dickerson during her 2020 State Senate campaign, and she sees herself as an underdog once again in her current race. Campbell previously served two terms as the Mayor of Oak Hill. As a Nashville native, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Sarah Lawrence College and her MBA from Vanderbilt University. Outside of her work, Campbell values being a mother and has professional experience as a music industry executive, songwriter and musician.
Randal Cooper is a senior project engineer at Nissan. Cooper holds a degree in mechanical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He moved to Nashville shortly after college and currently resides in East Nashville with his wife and son. Cooper has also acted in several local theater elections and published humor in McSweeney’s. Cooper entered the race in February of 2022, following the announcement that the 6th
District would be redrawn to include parts of Nashville. He says that he did not want to be represented by Congressman John Rose, whose views he does not share. Cooper lists his own views as pro-immigration, prochoice, pro-democracy, and pro-education. On Twitter, he has stated that “Tennesseans deserve someone who represents their interests, and who won’t be a party to Donald Trump’s corruption.”
DISTRICT 6
CLAY FAIRCLOTH
Clay Faircloth was raised in Middle Tennessee and currently lives in Donelson. He has a bachelor’s degree in leadership and ministry from Williamson Christian College, and a master’s degree in counseling from Trevecca Nazarene University. He has served as a pastor at various churches in Middle Tennessee. Faircloth’s campaign platforms include: address-
JOHN ROSE
ing illegal immigration and investing in the stability of migrant’s home countries; protecting women’s access to reproductive healthcare and their right to bodily autonomy; investing in public safety and violence reduction; expanding funding for Medicare/Medicaid; establishing a living wage; increasing funding to public schools; and prioritizing agriculture and agribuisness.
John Rose was born and still lives in Cookeville, Tenn. He received a bachelor’s degree in Agribusiness Economics from Tennessee Technological University and a master’s degree in AgricultuXral Economics at Purdue University. He received his Juris Doctorate from Vanderbilt University. In 1992 he founded Transcender Corp, an Internet Technology (IT)
July 20 - August 3, 2022
RANDAL COOPER
company that was sold in 2000 for $60 million. He currently owns and is the president of a professional IT training company called Boson Software. He also owns a family farm in Temperance Hall, Tenn. His lifelong passion for farming led him to serve the Tennessee State Fair Association as a volunteer for 12 years. One of the most conservative members of Congress, Rose is fo-
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cused on reducing government spending, regulation, and the national debt. He is a lifetime member of the NRA and views Second Amendment rights as one of his primary campaign issues, along with continuing to build a wall on the southern border and repealing the Affordable Care Act. He voted against the certification of the 2020 presidential election results.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
DISTRICT 7
MARK E. GREEN Mark E. Green is running for re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives Ten-
nessee’s 7th district seat, which he has held since 2019. Born in Florida in 1964, Dr. Green graduated from United States Military Academy with a B.S. in Business Management. After receiving his M.D. from Wright State University, he served as a flight surgeon in the Army during the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars. Representing the 22nd district, Green served as a member of the Tennessee Senate from 2013-2018, where his legislation ended the Hall Income tax for those receiving interest from stocks and bonds.
In 2017, following concerns about his comments regarding transgender people, Green withdrew his nomination for the United States Secretary of the Army under President Donald Trump. In February 2022, he sponsored the Keep Schools Open Act, which proposed to withhold federal funding from schools that did not return to in-person instruction due to COVID-19. His platform focuses on lowering taxes, deterring illegal immigration, and advocating for small businesses and veterans.
University and earned a Master’s degree in Public Service at Cumberland University. Kelly led the Napier Community Center for over a decade, and co-founded the nonprofit Stand Up Nashville. Following the 2020 tornado and pandemic, Kelly petitioned for an economic recovery plan to protect local Black communities and organized around the CARES Act. When Nashville funded the soccer stadium, Kelly negotiated an agreement returning some of that investment to those impacted by the stadium’s
ODESSA KELLY Odessa Kelly is an East Nashville natives who graduated from Tennessee State
creation. Kelly has received several awards nationally and locally, including the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Award and Nashville Scene’s 2018 Activist of the Year. Kelly supports economic justice for all people; affordable housing; protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; a $15/hour federal minimum wage; and progressive tax rates that require corporations to pay their fair share. She is an advocate of justice and gun reform, LGBTQ+ equality, humane immigration policies, and the Green New Deal.
TN State Senator Office The Tennessee legislative branch consists of both a Senate and House of Representatives. Called the Tennessee General Assembly, the legislative branch enacts laws, proposes legislation, establishes a state budget, and can allow for a forum for debate. Tennessee is divided into 33 districts with relatively equal populations, giving it 33 seats and 12 committees are formed to oversee the
state’s functions: Commerce and Labor; Education; Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources; Finance, Ways and Means; Government Operations; Health and Welfare; Judiciary; State and Local Government; and Transportation and Safety. A senator’s role is to answer to their constituents and pass bills on public policy matters. The Tennessee Senate has the power to hold a
trial for a state official who has committed a crime against the state, like an impeachment trial. The Senate also has the power to vote to uphold or override vetoes made by the governor. Senators are elected to a term of four years, and there is no limit on the number of terms a Tennessee legislator may serve. In order to serve, candidates must be at least 30 years of age and have been a US citizen for at least
DISTRICT 17
MARK PODY Mark Pody is currently a Republican member of the Tennessee Senate from the
17th District and he lives in Lebanon, Tenn. He was born in Spokane, Wash., and moved to Wilson County in 1985. He is the owner of an insurance sales company called Educator Resource Association, which specializes in financial planning and insurance solutions. He is the Chairman of the Tennessee Legislative Prayer Caucus and a member of the Tennessee Firearms Association. He is also a private pilot and a member of the Civil Air Patrol. During a meeting at Woodmont Bible Church in
three years, as well as having established residency in their district for one year. Women, African-Americans and Latinos are underrepresented in the Tennessee State Legislature compared to the Tennessee state population. The Tennessee Senate is currently held by a Republican supermajority, with 27 Republicans and six Democrats, contributing to the state’s Republican trifecta.
DISTRICT 19 2015, Pody stated he believes he’s on a mission from God to stamp out same sex marriage. Pody supported the “Stop the Steal” movement that endorsed Donald Trump’s contesting of the 2020 election results. While in office, Pody has supported bills to nullify the Affordable Care Act, permit religious objections to vaccinations, and ban samesex marriage. He has signed letters with other state legislators disputing the results of the 2022 election. He is prosmall business and supports term limits.
BARRY BARLOW Reverend Barry Barlow studied Pastoral Care and
Counseling at American Baptist College and obtained a B.S. in Sociology from Tennessee State University after 20 years in the military. Barlow ran for Metro Council District 3 unsuccessfully in 2019. He is wellknown to Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools and ran for the school board in 2020. Barlow was the first African-American male president of the Metro Schools Parent Advisory Council. He also served on
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the School Choice Committee for Superintendent Shawn Joseph’s Transition Team. An advocate for improving education in his district, Barlow is in favor of addressing racial inequality in schools by identifying children from early ages for gifted prog ra m s a nd promot i ng MNPS’s collaboration with Nashville State Community College. He supports social and emotional learning to address suspension rates.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
DISTRICT 19, CONT.
JERRY MAYNARD A renowned Nashville leader, Jerry Maynard serves as the junior pastor of Cathedral of Praise Church of God in Christ and heads
ROSSI TURNER Rossi Turner was born in Nashville. After completing his high school education at Vermont Academy, he re-
up the largest Black-owned government relations firm in Tennessee. He spearheaded 3,000 pastors in a national ministerial alliance to activate more minority millennial voters and has led statewide efforts to register over 40,000 voters. Maynard served as the Deputy Chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party from 2005 to 2007. He was the first African American to serve as Chairman of the TNDP finance committee for four years. His efforts led him to become a delegate for President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.
As a council member, Maynard demonstrated his passion for accessible healthcare by co-sponsoring the Metro Employee Healthcare Incentive Plan. His initiatives on the Metro Small Business Growth Act, the Diversity and Inclusion Act, and the Metro Workforce Development Program led to $300 million in contracts awarded to women and minority-owned businesses. In addition, Maynard is passionate about gun control and supports red-flag legislation and banning assault rifles.
turned to Middle Tennessee to get a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and a master’s degree in Health Education. Turner has worked as an organizer and an advocate, volunteering with the Boys & Girls Club of Vine Hill and working as a visiting artist. He is an accomplished dancer and has choreographed for the Miss Black Tennessee Pageant and the Dove Awards. He has also taught dance and kinesiology at Fisk University and is a member of the International Association of
Blacks in Dance. This is Turner’s first run for public office. Driven by conversations with his neighbors, he plans to focus on safe and affordable housing, increasing public transportation, investing in public education, and affordable healthcare. His economic platform, An Economy for All of Us, aims to combat the negative impacts of the pandemic and build a strong economy for Tennesseans of every socioeconomic status through policies such as paid leave and childcare subsidies.
CHARLANE OLIVER Charlane Oliver is the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of the Equity Alliance (TEA), a Tennessee based non-profit, nonparti-
LUDYE N. WALLACE Ludye N. Wallace lives in Nashville. He has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Tennessee State
san organization focused on increasing civic engagement, leadership development, and organizing in Black communities. Her work with TEA has earned her numerous awards, including recognition in the Tennessean’s 2020 People of the Year. Oliver grew up in Arkansas, raised in a family characterized by Christian and working class values. She moved to Nashville to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Human & Organizational Development at Vanderbilt University, and later a Master of Public Administration from UT Knoxville. She now lives
in Bordeaux with her partner Leshaun and their three children. Oliver has extensive experience in policy, advocacy, and community engagement. She served as a congressional aide and communications strategist for U.S. Congressman Jim Cooper, where she focused on voting rights and criminal justice reform and was selected to lead Project Register, a bipartisan voter registration initiative. Additionally she has spoken about addressing the rising cost of living, economic development and infrastructure, supporting older adults, and healthcare access.
University and is a member of their Alumni Association. He is a former Nashville Metro Councilman, serving for 28 years. He is also a former president of the Nashville NAACP. During his long tenure on Metro Council he was known for his mastery of the parliamentary process and his advocacy for minorities, as well as his votes against the Metro budget and for increased Council pay. In 2018, he challenged the mayoral election date in Nashville and succeeded in getting it scheduled in May instead of
April. He was a candidate in the mayoral race. Wallace wants to focus on helping all Nashville communities thrive as the city continues to grow. Issues that are important to him include fighting for affordable housing, adopting legislation to combat discrimination against minority and LGBTQ+ communities, increasing the age requirement to purchase firearms, and reforming the criminal justice system. Wallace believes that his experience as Metro Councilman gives him an advantage.
DISTRICT 21
JEFF YARBRO
Jeff Yarbro grew up in Dyersburg, Tenn. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and after college worked on Al Gore’s Presidential campaign. He then received a law degree from the University of Virginia and moved to Nashville. After a clerkship with a federal judge, he practiced law with Bass, Berry, & Sims, focusing on civil and appellate litigation, consumer financial services, constitutional law,
July 20 - August 3, 2022
and public contracts. In 2014, Yarbro won election to the Tennessee Senate, representing District 21. He was selected as the Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus in his first term and appointed Senate minority leader in 2018. While in office he has served on the health and welfare, rules, transportation, and safety committees. In addition to his political service, he has served as Casa Azafran’s Capital Campaign Co-
Chair, and sat on the board of directors for East End Preparatory School. Yarbro has spearheaded efforts to expand local health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. His campaign also focuses on increasing affordable housing to decrease homelesssness, reducing recidivism, and providing resources to new mothers.
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
TN House of Representatives The Tennessee House of Representatives, alongside the Tennessee State Senate, forms the legislative branch of the Tennessee state government and works alongside the Governor of Tennessee to create laws and establish a state budget. The state is divided into 99 House districts. One representative is elected from each district
and represents about 64,102 citizens. All 99 House seats are up for election in 2020.The political makeup of the 112th General Assembly is 73 Republicans, 24 Democrats and one Independent. Women, African-Americans, and Latinos are underrepresented in the Tennessee State Legislature compared to the Tennessee state population.
Legislative authority and responsibilities of the Tennessee House of Representatives includes passing bills on public policy matters, setting state budgets, raising and lowering taxes, and voting to uphold or override gubernatorial vetoes. The House has the sole power to originate impeachment proceedings against public officials, who are then brought before the
DISTRICT 50
BO MITCHELL Bo Mitchell is running for reelection to the TN House of Representatives for District
50, a position he has held since 2012. He is a native of middle Tennessee and graduated from David Lipscomb University with a BA in Political Science. Mitchell has two sons. Mitchell has served as a member of both the Bellevue and Goodlettsville Chambers of Commerce, and is also a member of the Joelton Civitan Club, Harpeth River Watershed Association, FiftyForward J.L. Turner Center, the Bellevue YMCA, Tennessee Conservation Voters, and Tennessee Farm Bureau. Mitchell believes in in-
Senate for trial. Tennessee is one of six states that requires a majority vote from both of its legislative chambers to override a veto. To qualify for election to the House, one must be 21 years old, a U.S. citizen, a state resident for three or more years, and a resident of the county in which they are running for at least one year immediately prior to the election.
DISTRICT 51 creased healthcare coverage for Tennesseans, more public school funding, road improvements, and increased medicare for senior citizens. Recently, Mitchell has voted against the prohibition of abortion and against increasing criminal penalties for protesting on public property. Mitchell is endorsed by the AFL-CIO and the Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood. He was highly critical of Governor Bill Lee’s school voucher program and called for an investigation into the constitutionality of the law.
BILL BECK Raised in Madison and Whites Creek, Bill Beck is the incumbent candidate
who holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Belmont University and a law degree from Nashville School of Law. Beck has served in the Tennessee Air National Guard and since 1998, he has worked at Beck & Beck Attorneys at Law with his mother, Martha Cone Beck. He has been a member of the Madison Chamber of Commerce, the American Legion Post 82, the Nashville Bar Association and more. In 2015, Beck was arrested on suspicion of DUI. The case was dismissed by a
Cheatham County Judge on the basis that there was not reasonable suspicion for Beck to have been pulled over. As a legislator, he has sponsored bills to increase funding for public transportation. He supports universal Pre-K, expanding Medicaid, increasing the minimum wage, fair pay for women, mass transit in Nashville, and investing in renewable energy. He is a member of several committees including the Criminal Justice Committee, the Select Ethics Committee, and the State Government Committee.
master’s degree in education from Tennessee State University. She is a special education coach and became a member of Nashville’s Metro Council in a special election in 2019, representing District 29. Later that year, she was elected to a full four-year term. She sits on the Budget and Finance Committee; Health, Hospitals, and Social Services Committee; and is the chair of the Education Committee. Porterfield serves on multiple boards of directors, including Ignite Her Pursuit, the Destiny Theatre Experience,
and eMpowerment. She is a former state co-chair of Bernie Sanders’s presidential bid. She is also a licensed minister. Porterfield has been endorsed by the Tennessee Education Association Fund for Children and Public Education, and issues that are important to her include public education, labor, and healthcare access. Although Porterfield describes her focus on pushing back against “extreme right-wing policies,” she hopes to set partisan politics aside and “work on issues that affect everyone regardless of their party.”
the Democratic primary in District 52 and since being elected in 2012, Powell has sat on multiple committees, such as the Commerce and State Government committees. He has served as the Democratic Whip since 2019. After growing up in Nashville, Powell earned his B.A. from the University of Colorado Boulder. He holds a Master of Public Administration from Tennessee State University and an M.B.A. from the University of Memphis. Powell’s work experience is
in real estate and nonprofit management, and he is part of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Greater Nashville Realtors. In his current term, Powell has sponsored several new laws: One ensures confidentiality of license plate reader system data, and another establishes a voluntary unemployment workshare program. Other policy interests he discusses on social media are expanding access to medical marijuana and establishing interstate rail travel.
DISTRICT 52
JUSTIN JONES Justin Jones was born in Oakland, Calif. He credits his grandmothers with teaching him the importance of com-
munity, spirituality, and protecting the environment. He moved to Tennessee in 2013 and quickly became involved in social activism. As a college student studying Political Science at Fisk University, he organized for healthcare access and against restrictive voter ID laws. Jones is a local activist, organizer, and divinity graduate student at Vanderbilt University. In 2020, Jones acted as an organizer and strategist for the People Plaza’s 62-day sit-in at the Tennessee Capitol for racial justice. He has been arrest-
ed at protests multiple times. He walked 273 miles from North Carolina to Nashville in order to bring awareness to rural hospital closures during the pandemic. For his work, Jones has been recognized by organizations such as the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, the ACLU of Tennessee, and the Nashville NAACP. Jones has characterized his campaign as being about communities, families, and the future. His campaign is focused on healthcare as a human right, student loan relief, and ending mass incarceration.
DELISHIA PORTERFIELD Delishia Porterfield was born and raised in Tennessee. She holds a bachelor’s and
DISTRICT 53
DIA HART Dia Hart is originally from Chicago, Ill. She earned her bachelor’s degree in comput-
er information systems from Clark Atlanta University in Atlanta, Ga., and her master’s degree in public service management from DePaul University in Chicago, Ill. Hart worked for the Peace Corps for two years in Haiti before working for Rotary International in Evanston, IL where she completed a variety of water and toilet projects as well as projects to eradicate polio. Hart has volunteered with United Way and is certified in financial literacy through Neighborworks Financial Training. This is Hart’s first run for
public office. If elected, she wants to help families and communities have their voices heard. She plans to promote ELS and STEM in schools and advocate for laws that reduce and ultimately eliminate human trafficking. Hart also plans to prioritize supporting the First and Second Amendments, patient’s rights, law enforcement, free markets, and fiscal responsibility. Hart believes that “we need voices among our elected officials and decision makers that stand with families and communities to find ways of helping us all thrive.”
JASON POWELL Jason Powell is the incumbent and unopposed in
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
DISTRICT 54
VINCENT DIXIE Vincent Dixie is the Democratic incumbent for the TN House of Representatives in
DISTRICT 55
District 54, where he grew up. He assumed office in 2018 and serves on the Health Committee and Education Committee. Dixie earned a Bachelor’s of Business Administration degree in Accounting and a Master of Business Administration from Tennessee State University. He is married to a Metro Nashville Public Schools educator. Dixie worked as an Internal Auditor for HCA and Ardent Health Services before starting his own businesses, Bail U Out Bonding and A Way Out Bonding. He serves
DISTRICT 56
BOB FREEMAN Bob Freeman is running for reelection for the Tennessee House of Representatives in District 56. He has served
MICHELLE FOREMAN Michelle Foreman is a Republican running for Tennessee House District 29. Foreman is a native of the Nashville area, who graduated from
WYATT RAMPY Originally from Warrenton, Va., Wyatt Rampy studied
on the Finance Committee at St. Vincent DePaul Catholic Church, is a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., and a member of the Tennessee Black Caucus. Dixie plans to sponsor a bill in 2023 requiring handgun buyers to register with the state. He maintains that Republican-led leadership failed the State of Tennessee in the fight against COVID-19. He advocates for Medicaid expansion and adequate funding for public schools and teachers. Dixie believes that all children have the right to a quality education.
two terms and sponsored over 60 successful bills. He was born and raised in the district, where he still lives with his wife and their three children. Freeman holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Construction Management and Land Development from Middle Tennessee State University, and a Master of Science in Sustainability from Lipscomb University. Freeman serves on the Health and Select Ethics General Assembly Committees. His focus is on improving the health of Nashvillians through innovation and investment, building an educated work-
force, improving early education and after-school programs, and allying with rural health providers to combat the opioid epidemic. In 2019, Bob became Executive Vice President at Freeman Webb, a private real estate investment firm. In addition to his time in the legislature, Freeman has served on the boards of the Nashville Homelessness Commission, Tennessee Environmental Council, Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, Metro Sustainability Advisory Committee, and the U.S. Green Building Council’s Tennessee Market Leadership Advisory Board.
Brentwood Academy and David Lipscomb University. She is a registered nurse and has worked as a psychiatric nurse and clinical risk manager. Foreman supports empowering parents in their child’s education, placing a check on wasteful government spending and overreach, improving access to affordable healthcare insurance, a government that is, “smaller, smarter, and more efficient”, and the local police. In 2018, she was elected to the office of GOP State Executive Committeewoman for the 20th Senatorial District. She chairs the Permanent Elections sub-
committee of the SEC, which was formed after the 2020 election, and has led efforts to draft resolutions focused on election integrity for the Tennessee General Assembly. Michelle Foreman is a member or volunteer of several organizations, including Bellevue Exchange Club, Daughters of the American Revolution, American Nurses Association, Tennessee Nurses Association, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Tennessee Federation of Republican Women, Nashville Republican Women, The Federalist Society, and The Heritage Foundation.
marketing at Lipscomb University and now resides in West Nashville. He is the president of Poplar Hill Realty, Bellevue’s residential brokerage and property manager serving the Middle Tennessee market since 2004. Prior to this, he worked in the consumer finance department of Sovran Bank and later with Bankers Trust where he dealt with research and reporting on corporate, municipal and mortgage-backed securities. Rampy is also very active
in the Bellevue community as a deacon at Bellevue Church of Christ. He is on the boards of World Christian Broadcasting, Bellevue YMCA, and Nashville Christian School. His policy priorities include improved education for upward mobility and parent directed school choice, safe communities through fully staffed police and mental health professionals, and a thriving economy with expansionist job opportunities and maintaining a stable local economy.
JOHN RAY CLEMMONS John Ray Clemmons was raised on a farm near Watertown, Tenn. He holds a bachelor’s degree from Columbia
DISTRICT 58
HAROLD LOVE Harold Love, Jr. is a lifelong Nashvillian, with a doctorate in public policy from
DISTRICT 59
July 20 - August 3, 2022
University and a law degree from the University of Memphis School of Law. An advocate for human rights and womens’ rights, Clemmons comments often on local and national political issues on his Twitter account. Clemmons worked for two years in Washington D.C. as a legislative aide in the U.S. House of Representatives then returned home for the U.S. Senate campaign before becoming the statewide Political Director for the Tennessee Democratic Party. He practices law at Clemmons & Clemmons, PLLC, a firm he founded in 2013, and focuses
Tennessee State University (TSU), and a master’s degree in theological studies from Vanderbilt University. Love has served in the Tennessee House of Representatives, 58th District, since 2012. Notably, he is a pastor and Life Member of the NAACP. As a Tennessee House Representative, Love has helped secure $300 million in funding for TSU structural repairs; passed legislation to create a maternal mortality review board; passed a bill to reduce the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences
(ACEs); and worked on legislation supporting computer science for all; among other initiatives. Love is also the Vice President of The National Black Caucus of State Legislators. His platform focuses on improving resources for K-12 education in public schools; promoting accessible healthcare; supporting small businesses; and supporting criminal justice reform. Love hopes voters will look at his record of “getting good legislation passed” and keeping “bad legislation from passing.”
bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and an M.B.A. from Tennessee Technological University. He currently lives in Forrest Hills and works in corporate development at American Health Partners. A member of the West End Methodist Church, a husband, and a father of two, he also served in several leadership roles in former Gov. Phil Bredesen’s administration and executive roles in the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. Hemmer served on the Fair
Commissioners Board for nearly eight years and recently resigned to focus on his campaign. As a result of his extensive work and volunteer experience in the field, Hemmer’s political priorities center around the right to healthcare. He has served as an Ambassador for the Vanderbilt Ingram Cancer Center, and on the Member Engagement Committee of Leadership Health. Other focal points include funding for public education, economic expansion, science backed COVID protocols, voting rights, and affordable housing.
1979, Jernigan holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Public Relations from Austin Peay State University, as well as a Master of Criminal Justice Degree from Middle Tennessee State University. Jernigan represented District 11 on the Metro Council starting in 2007, and has respresnted District 60 since 2012. Jernigan is a member of seven house committees. He has sponsored dozens of bills, including introducing House Bill 1670, which updates outdated language used to de-
scribe deafness. Jernigan is an advocate for the DREAM Act, the expansion of Medicaid, the legalization of medical marijuana, and equitable access to healthcare. He is pro-choice and voted against a bill that would ban abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detected. He supports a living wage, equal pay, affordable childcare, and universal Pre-K education in Tennessee. He opposes predatory lending and the use of public funds as vouchers for private school tuition.
CALEB HEMMER A native Nashvillian, Caleb Hemmer’s education through metro schools culminated in a
DARREN JERNIGAN Living in the Hermitage and Old Hickory areas since
on civil litigation. Clemmons currently serves in the Tennessee House of Representatives, representing the 55th District. While in office Clemmons has served on the Civil Justice, Education Administration, Health, K-12, and Emergency Orders Committees. He has served on various boards including Nashville Reviving Baseball in Inner-Cities, the Metro Board of Fair Commissioners, and the Tennessee Civil Service Commission. His policy priorities include Medicaid Expansion, gun safety laws, public transportation, and promoting equality for all.
DISTRICT 60
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
State Executive CommitteeMan & CommitteeWoman Office The objective of the Democratic State Executive Committeeman and Committeewoman is to promote the ideals and principles of the Democratic Party and identify party supporters within their district that will help elect Democratic nominees. In addition, one man and one woman from each State Senate District are Nashville in the early 1990’s. She studied Business at The University of Tampa, and holds an associate’s degree in Paralegal Studies. After working a variety of marketing and sales management jobs for national retail brands, Cash opened the Crystal Couture Store in Nashville. In 2010, she moved her business to Lebanon, Tenn., and became involved in local leadership. In 2015, she served as Lebanon’s Economic Development Director, creating a branding program to help grow the city. Cash is a member of the Wilson Coun-
HELENE SINGER CASH Committeewoman D17
Helene Singer Cash was raised in Tampa, Fla., and moved to
MARY ALICE CARFI Committeewoman D17
Mary Alice Carfi is running for District 17’s State Executive Committeewoman. After growing up on a farm in Smith County, she graduated Cum Laude
LULU ROGERS ELAM
Committeewoman D20 A native Nashvillian and 7th-generation Tennessean, Lulu Rogers Elam graduated
elected every four years to serve on the State Party’s Executive Committee. These are volunteer positions that serve as the liaison between the district and the party. The committee oversees all party functions, budgets, and committee work. It plans the party’s conventions and establishes procedures for selecting nominees
from Stanford University in 1985 with a B.A. in French Language and Communications. She returned home to Tennessee and for the past 34 years has been a full-time homemaker. She is a member and sponsor of both church and outreach organizations. Since March 2017, she has volunteered with CASA Nashville as a court-appointed child advocate for children in DCS custody. She previously served as the president of Nashville Right to Life. She is a trustee
JOLIE GRACE WAREHAM
Committeewoman D21 Jolie Grace Wareham holds a B.A. in Political Science from Rhodes College, where she founded The
ty Chamber of Commerce, holds the Executive Board Secretary chair for the Republican Women of Wilson County, and is Vice President of Republican Women of Tennessee, Area 5B. She currently works as a realtor and marketing manager at Agee & Johnson Realty. On her campaign website, Cash writes that “Tennessee is changing” due to a “new surge of people fleeing California and other liberal states.” She is running to “defend conservative values” and ensure that Tennessee remains “a Republican-led state.”
from Middle Tennessee State University, and earned her Juris Doctor degree from Nashville School of Law. Mary Alice sings in her church choir and with the Bert Coble Singers, of which she is also an advisory board member. Carfi is admitted to practice law in the Middle District of Tennessee’s Federal
of the Restoration Foundation, which is a private grantmaking foundation founded in 1999. Elam is a Christian prolife advocate and believes that fetuses have rights as citizens. She supports gun rights, foreign defense, veterans, and economic freedom. Her campaign goals are recruiting candidates to represent conservative values, involving the community to grow and enrich the party, protecting the integrity of elections, and promoting fair rules for candidate qualification.
Rhodes College Democrats, and was a member of the T ennessee Intercollegiate State Legislature. She began her political career in Illinois, working on the digital engagement team for Congressional candidate Leslie Coolidge. She went on to become a campaign staffer for State Representative Deb Conroy, and an intern for State Senator Tom Cullerton. Wareham is an active member of the Tennessee Democratic Party (TNDP). She served as President of Tennessee Young Democrats, is President of Davidson County Democratic Women, and founded
and delegates. It operates party headquarters and provides recordkeeping, including, but not limited to, a list of all county parties and committees, minutes of meetings, and financial reports from the Treasurer. The committee members hold leadership positions within their boards but can also be active for the state.
TERRI NICHOLSON
Committeewoman D17 A sixth-generation Tennessean, Terri Nich-
Court. She is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association and the 15th Judicial Bar Association, and is a Rule 31 Listed Mediator. Carfi is currently a practicing attorney with Kane & Crowell, PLLC in Lebanon, and practices in the areas of family law, business law, wills and probate, landlord/tenant law and general
KAREN MOORE
Committeewoman D20 Karen Moore has been a Nashville resident for over thirty years. Moore holds a Bachelor’s degree in Education from
the TNDP’s Cyber Safety Committee. Wareham works at Vanderbilt University as an Executive Project Coordinator. She is also the CEO of protasec, a cyber security firm. She currently serves as the State Executive Committeewoman in District 20, and is running in District 21 due to redistricting. On social media, Wareham writes that she wants to “continue speaking up and shaping a party that walks the walk on being anti-racist, anti-classist, pro-feminist, pro-LGBTQ+, and pro-equity in all other forms.”
olson was born and raised in Middle Tennessee. She earned her bachelor’s degree in business from Middle Tennessee State University and now operates her own home health business, Nicholson Therapies, with her husband. Her extensive experience in the Republican Party includes serving as Chairman, Treasurer, and Vice-Treasurer of the Wilson County
civil litigation. Mary Alice believes that her understanding of both the law and of working families is what sets her apart from other candidates. In the past, she has advocated for the expansion of Medicaid, and access to strong education for all of Tennessee’s children.
Lipscomb University and spent more than a decade working in the public library system. In 2015, Moore was appointed to the By-Laws Committee of the Davidson County Republican Party. She was then elected as the Regional Vice Chair, South of the Davidson County Executive Committee in 2017, a county role that functions similarly to the State Executive Committee. From 2020 to 2021, she served as President of the Music City Republican Women. Moore fought against the
BEVERLY B. KNIGHT
Committeewoman D21 Beverly B. Knight attended Cohn High School and went on to graduate
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Republican Party. She is a member of the Republican Women of Wilson County, the Republican Women of Action, and the Tennessee Federation of Republican Women. Nicholson strongly supports the tenets of the Republican party, naming specifically the Second Amendment, the right to life, and “respecting the conservative Republican Party platform.”
Metro Council’s 2020 decision to increase property, gas, and income tax, as well as the metro transit plan. If elected, Karen Moore will represent conservative values on the State Executive Committee, including protecting election integrity; fighting for school choice; investing in free-market economic policies; protecting Second Amendment rights; and enacting pro-life legislation at the state level. She is endorsed by Utah Congressman Owens and Tennessee Congressman Dr. Mark Green.
from George Peabody College in 1967. She works as an independent real estate professional. She has also served as the recording secretary for the Davidson County Republican Party since 2011, helping with a variety of administrative tasks. She has never held public office, but has twice served as the President of the Nashville Republican Women’s (NRW) executive committee and has
been an active member for several decades. She was selected as one of former President Trump’s alternate delegates to the 2016 Republican National Convention. As a member of the NRW organization, she supports individual responsibility, limited government, equal rights and opportunities for all races and creeds, foreign defense, and preservation of the Constitution.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
JERRY BEAVERS Committeeman D17
Jerry Beavers is running for reelection as State Executive Committeeman in District 17 after winning the seat in 2018.
Beavers is an air force veteran and retired from the United Parcel Service after 38 years. He also attended Trevecca Nazarene University. He has been involved in the Wilson County Republican Party for the last 28 years, organizing and opening a Mt. Juliet headquarters for the last four presidential campaigns. He was also chosen as a delegate for the Trump campaign at the 2016 Republican National Convention, along with his wife, former state senator Mae Beavers. He
helped his wife in her election and went door to door for many other candidates and they both served as co-chairs for the 6th Congressional District for the Trump campaign. Beavers advocates for closed primaries, meaning voters would have to commit to a party and only be able to vote for that party’s candidates in primaries, instead of the current system where voters may choose their party and ballot in each election, and would support legislation on the issue.
CHARLES “CHASE” MONTGOMERY Committeeman D19
RON MCDOW
Committeeman D20 Ron McDow, M.D., graduated in 1981 from the University of Tennessee College of Medicine.
LARRY “CHUCK” GRIMES Committeeman D21
Larry “Chuck” Grimes grew up in Lexington, Tenn. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Government from
JOHN D. RICHARDSON Committeeman D21
A native Nashvillian, John D. Richardson graduated from
He has practiced for more than twenty years, specializing in dermatology, family medicine, and medical genetics. He is also the CEO of CFS Corp, a cryosurgery medical device company. In 2016, McDow was a delegate to the RNC, representing Tennessee in support of candidate Trump. The same year, McDow challenged Steve Dickerson for the Tennessee Senate District 20 seat. Amidst allegations of abuse from former wife and a controversial political mailer critiquing Dick-
AUBREY T. GIVENS Committeeman D17
Aubrey T. Givens grew up in Lebanon, Tenn., and majored in aerospace/aviation marketing at Middle Tennes-
Charles “Chase” Montgomery is running for re-election as the Republican State Executive Committeeman for District 19, a position he has held since 2020. Montgomery attended high school in Huntsville, Alabama
erson’s stance on asylum seekers, McDow ultimately lost to his incumbent opponent. Dr. McDow believes in supporting and accommodating small businesses to promote the state’s culture and economy. He opposes the Common Core curriculum, which sets federal standards for education. His platform focuses on discouraging illegal immigration through heightened border security, managing traffic through infrastructure, and creating jobs.
the University of Memphis, where he also served as president of the College Republicans. Chuck began his political career as a legislative intern for Ron Ramsey, who went on to become Lieutenant Governor. In 2007, he moved to Nashville to work as a staff assistant for then State Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris. From 20132017, Chuck served as Council District Chair and Southeast Regional Vice-Chair for the Davidson County Republican Party. He has served as District 21’s State Executive Committee-
man since August 2021, when he was elected to carry out the term of Robert Duvall. In 2020, Chuck supported a petition to oppose a 34% property tax increase in Davidson County. On his campaign website, he writes that he was raised in a church devoted to “Biblical preaching” and grew up in a family of “hard working, blue-collar professionals.” As committeeman, Chuck aims to “listen to all Republicans and work hard to accomplish their goals.”
the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Richardson worked as a comprehensive fee-based financial planner in Brentwood, Tenn., for almost two decades. Richardson volunteers with the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, the Middle Tennessee Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and several fraternal organizations, including The Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels and the
Nashville Valley Scottish Rite. He is an active member of his church, The Village Chapel, and volunteers for Music City Tres Dias. Richardson has not held political office before but has served as a poll worker and Officer of Elections with the Davidson County Election Commision for over 20 years. He also served as the campaign manager for numerous political races. He identifies his core values as faith, family, and freedom.
July 20 - August 3, 2022
see State University, graduating with honors in 1991. He graduated from Nashville School of Law in 2001. Now a Nashville resident, Givens founded Aubrey Givens & Associates in 2004. He also served as an intern at the District Attorney’s office in Wilson County, and worked at Underhill, Blackwell, Underhill & Givens. Besides his interest in the law, Givens is a farmer, raising beef cattle for several years. Givens notes that his law
and received a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Alabama in 2011. In addition to his current post, he also has served as the director of media relations for the Tennessee Republican Minority
the political director for the Tennessee American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). The AFL-CIO is the largest federation of unions in the United States. He served as the Executive Director for Tennessee’s Democratic Party until 2019. Most recently, he managed Chancellor Anne Martin’s successful 2022 reelection campaign. He has also served on the board of Tennesseans for Fair Taxation.
ism from Northern Illinois University (NIU), along with a minor in Non-profit and NGO Studies. At NIU, he served in various positions, including Student Association Senator, and Director of Community Service. After college, Pastrana worked in education as an AVID Tutor and a registrar at Hampshire Middle School, providing student tutoring and administrative services. He later worked in
healthcare administration at DaVita Kidney Care. He moved to Nashville in 2019 and currently works in the Office of the Dean of Students at Vanderbilt University as an Administrative Coordinator, overseeing logistics, purchasing requests and expense reports, and other administrative tasks for Vanderbilt’s student organizations. This is Pastrana’s first campaign for political office.
Tennessee, Knoxville, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence Law degree from Nashville School of Law. Summers is currently the President of SailNashville, the only American Sailing Association affiliated sailing school in Tennessee. From 2015-2019, Summers was an attorney and the President of John Summers & Associates, where he helped provide government relations, strategic consulting, fundraising and communication services. Summers has held several elected Metro Council posi-
tions in Nashville, including the 6th District in East Nashville from 1983-1991 and the 24th District in West Nashville from 1999-2007. Summers has acted as the former executive director of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, chair of the Coalition for Nashville Neighborhoods, and has been a lobbyist at the General Assembly. While serving as Metro Council member for West Nashville, Summers faced criticism from constituents on an overlay issue for the Sylvan Park neighborhood.
Committeeman D20
Committeeman D21 Mikey Pastrana holds his Bachelor’s Degree in Journal-
JOHN SUMMERS
Committeeman D21 John Summers obtained a Bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University, Master’s degree from University of
Coalition since 2013. Outside of politics, he has worked as a financial advisor at Waddell & Reed since 2011. He is also a member of the Nashville City Club and participates in multiple events in the Nashville Sports League.
Kris Murphy was born and raised in Nashville. He left Tennessee to earn his bachelor’s degree in politics at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C, and later returned to Nashville. Murphy has substantial work experience in Democratic politics, including with electorally focused nonprofits and campaigns. After college, he worked as an organizer at Tennessee Citizen Action, and later as
KRIS MURPHY
MIKEY PASTRANA
firm supports several charities, including the Nashville Zoo, the March of Dimes, the American Cancer Society, and Faith Family Medical Center. His law firm concentrates on civil matters and criminal cases, including automobile injuries, workers compensation, real estate law, and Social Security Disability representation. In 2010, he lost in the Democratic primary for District 17 of the Tennessee State Senate. In 2014, he ran unsuccessfully for 15th circuit court judge.
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Oak Hill City Commissioner
DALE GRIMES
Dale Grimes has served as the Mayor of the Oak Hill City Commission since 2018. He and his family have lived in Oak Hill for over 35 years.Grimes is a partner at Bass, Berry & Sims PLC. After earning his B.A. from Sewanee, Grimes obtained his J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law
in 1978. He has worked in civil litigation, specializing in antitrust law, for over 40 years. In his 2018 campaign, Grimes’s primary issues involved land planning and zoning. He advocated for keeping Oak Hill completely residential and preserving single-family zoning.
SCOTT PRICE Originally from Birmingham Ala., Scott Price
The City of Oak Hill is south of downtown Nashville and spans 8 square miles with around 1,800 homes and 4,700 residents. The current Oak Hill Board of Commissioners consists of three members: the mayor, the vice-mayor, and a third commissioner. The mayor and vice-mayor have terms that run until 2022. Oak Hill Board of Commissioners is a municipal government in which individual elected officials serve on a small governing board that exercises legislative and executive powers.
graduated from Vanderbilt University with a B.A. in History in 1971 and received his Juris Doctor degree from Samford University in 1974. After four years in the Marines, Price earned a Master of Law degree in Taxation at George Washington University. Before becoming Vice President and General
Counsel for the Eller and Olsen Stone Company, Price worked as a private practice lawyer with Nashville firm Cornelius, Collins, Higgins and White. He has also been a member of the Municipal Planning Commission for the City of Oak Hill for 16 years, having served as its Chairman, as well as a Commissioner for the City. He current-
ly serves as the Douglas Henry State Museum Commissioner. Price was a board member and VP for the Spina Bifida Foundation of America. He also acted as Vice Chair of the Lipscomb University Board of Trustees. He has served as a Bible class teacher, deacon, and elder at the Hillsboro Church of Christ.
Chancellor, Chancery Court The 95 counties in Tennessee are divided into 31 judicial districts; Davidson County Chancery Court is District 20. Chancellors, or judges, who preside over the chancery court, hear constitutional issues, contract disputes, employment lawsuits, construction, real property and commercial litigation, applications for receivership and liquidation of insurance companies, state tax
PATRICIA HEAD MOSKAL Chancery Court Part I
Patricia Head Moskal is the incumbent judge running unopposed. Moskal holds a
I’ASHEA L. MYLES Chancery Court Part III
I’Ashea L. Myles is running for Chancellor of Chancery Court, Part III. Myles received both her bachelor’s and law degrees from
B.A. from Indiana University-Bloomington. She earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she graduated with highest honors and was a John W. Green Scholar. Before attending law school, Moskal was a special needs teacher in Chattanooga. She went on to become a longtime employee and partner at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, where she litigated business and commercial cases, as well as tax law. Moskal served
as Vice President and Board Member of the Nashville Bar Association, is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Nashville Bar Foundation, and serves as a Character and Fitness Interviewer for the Board of Law Examiners. In 2018, Moskal received the Judge Martha Craig Daughtrey Award from The Lawyers’ Association for Women. In 2019, Moksal was appointed as Davidson County Chancellor, Part I, to replace retiring Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman.
Belmont University and is now an attorney at Spencer Fane Bone McAllester PLLC, where she practices construction, real estate, employment, and commercial business law. The Nashville Business Journal recently named Myles one of 2021’s Women of Influence and honored her with the Trailblazer Award. She led the first-ever expungement clinic for Rutherford County. Myles was named an Attorney for Justice by the Tennessee Supreme
Court for her pro bono service and currently serves as the President of the Napier Looby Bar Association and was a former member on the Board of Directors for the Lawyers’ Association for Women and United Way. She was endorsed by Davidson County Democratic Women. According to her website, Myles plans to bring a diverse and inclusive perspective to Chancery Court and plans to interpret and apply the law impartially and equally for everyone in this County.
disputes, workers compensation, local governmental actions, including appeals from a variety of local boards and commissions, applications for injunctions, writs of certiorari, emancipation of minors, and name changes. The Davidson County Chancery Court is also the court of appeals for several administrative agencies, such as the Tennessee Department of
ANNE C. MARTIN Chancery Court Part II
The incumbent Anne C. Martin first took office in 2018. In 2019, the Tennessee Supreme Court appointed her judge of Nashville’s Business Court Docket. Mar-
RUSSELL T. PERKINS
Chancery Court Part IV Russell T. Perkins is the incumbent running for reelection
TennCare, Tennessee Department of Labor, and the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, among many others. Chancellors are elected for eight-year terms and must be authorized to practice law in the courts of Tennessee. In addition, they must be at least 30 years of age and a state resident for five years, and of the district for one year.
tin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Smith College and a Juris Doctor degree from Vanderbilt University. Before becoming a judge, she worked for Nashville law firms Dodson Parker Behm & Capparella and Bone McAllester Norton PLLC, where she specialized in commercial litigation and employment law. She describes herself as a “natural networker” who is passionate about “using the special gifts she has developed as a lawyer to help others who cannot help themselves.”
Outside of court, Chancellor Martin is passionate about the numerous charities she works with, especially those benefiting children. The Chancellor sits on the board of special needs education and childcare center First Steps, Inc. and is also involved with the Interfaith Dental Clinic, which provides dental services for low-income and uninsured individuals. She was an Adjunct Professor at the Belmont University College of Law and now teaches at the Nashville School of Law.
in Tennessee’s 20th Judicial District Chancery Court. Perkins obtained an undergraduate degree from Tennessee State University and a Juris degree from Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law. Perkins served as an assistant attorney general in the Ohio Attorney General’s Office before joining the Nashville law firm of Williams and Dinkins in Nashville in 1982, where he practiced law for 12 years. From 1994 to 2008, he
served in the Tennessee Attorney’s General Office, notably as lead counsel for Tennessee’s historic tobacco settlement. He was appointed to his current position in 2008 and won reelection in 2014. Russell T. Perkins is the founding pastor of Bread of Heaven Church. In 2000, Perkins received the William M. Leech, Jr. Award. Perkins is a member of the Nashville Bar Association and Harry Phillips Inns of Court.
PAGE 12 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Circuit Court Judge Davidson County Circuit Court Judges preside over eight divisions of the 20th Judicial District of Tennessee. Circuit Courts are of general juris-
David Briley
Division I Former Nashville Mayor, David Briley, was raised in Nashville. He is the grandson of Beverly Briley, the first mayor of Metro Nashville. He received his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University and his law degree from Golden Gate Universi-
Amanda McClendon Division II
Amanda McClendon is running for re-election as Division II Circuit Court Judge, and was elected to the bench in 2006. A native Nashvillian, McClendon attended MTSU before transferring to Vanderbilt University, where she grad-
Phillip Robinson
Division III Phillip Robinson is a lifelong resident of Nashville. He earned his bachelor’s degree and law degree from the University of Tennessee. Shortly after graduating, Robinson became an associate at Norman Law Office, where his practice included personal injury, criminal, and domestic relations
Philip E. Smith
Division IV Philip E. Smith has served as a Circuit Court Judge since 2009, when he was appointed by Governor Phil Bredesen. Born and raised in Donelson, Smith graduated from Tennessee State University and earned his law degree from the Uni-
diction in Tennessee, and judges hear civil and criminal cases and appeals of decisions from Juvenile, Municipal, and General Sessions Courts.
ty. He served as Councilman at Large from 1999 to 2007, and was elected vice-mayor in 2015. He was then sworn in as mayor after Megan Barry’s resignation, but lost re-election in 2019. Before and after his term as mayor, Briley worked as an attorney at Bone McAllester Norton PLLC, specializing in personal injury, products liability, commercial, and class action litigation. Over the past two decades, he has
served as a board member for The Housing Fund, Nashville CARES, Boy Scouts of America, Hands on Nashville, Habitat for Humanity, and Beaman Park to Bells Bend Corridor, amongst others. Briley is known for his progressive politics. He is committed to equity and fairness from the bench and believes the law should be “enforced fairly and compassionately.” He is running unopposed from the Republican Party.
uated with a B.S. in Economics and History. McClendon obtained her Juris Doctor Degree from University of Tennessee. McClendon was an attorney in private practice from 1984-2006. She was the second female attorney elected to Metro Council, serving the 16th district from 19992006. As a council member, she chaired several committees, including the Budget and Finance Committee, Chair of
Public Works, and Chair of the Federal Grants Committee. Judge McClendon is an adjunct professor at the Nashville School of Law. She is a member of the National Association of Women Judges, the Tennessee Bar Association, the Nashville Bar Association, the Harry Phillips Inns of Court, the Nashville Bar Foundation, and the Tennessee Judicial Foundation.
matters. Robinson is board certified as a family law trial advocate by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, as well as a hearing panel member on the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee. In addition to being listed in Best Lawyers in America, he has the highest rating from Martindale-Hubbel, a company that publishes peer ratings to estimate the legal and ethical standards of an attorney. In 2012, he was appointed
by former governor Bill Haslam to Davidson County’s Third Circuit Court judgeship, following the retirement of Judge Barbara Haynes. Robinson was nominated as a highly recommended candidate, receiving 93 percent approval from members of the Nashville Bar Association who participated in the poll. In 2014 he won re-election for this position, and he is running unopposed for re-election this year.
versity of Tennessee College of Law. Smith worked for the Child Support Enforcement Division of the Office of the District Attorney General in the 29th District, and practiced law at several firms. Smith’s prior judicial experience includes serving as Special Judge in multiple Circuit Courts and Probate Court, as well as Special Referee for the Juvenile Court of Davidson County from 1990-1994.
Among the cases heard by the Circuit Courts are contract disputes, civil torts (a broad area of the law that covers wrongdoing by one individual against another), worker’s compensation claims, domestic matters, and the administration of estates. Judges should maintain the dignity of judicial office. They should always aspire to ensure public con-
Joe P. Binkley, Jr. Division V
Joe P. Binkley, Jr. is a lifelong Nashvillian who received his bachelor’s degree and law degree from Vanderbilt University. Binkley worked for nearly 40 years as a trial lawyer representing workers’ compensation, personal injury, domestic
Thomas W. Brothers Division VI
Thomas W. Brothers is a Democrat running for reelection as Judge of the Division VI Circuit Court of Davidson County, a position that he has held for thirty-three years. He received a B.A. with honors from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 1973 and
Andra Hedrick
Division VII Andra Hedrick is running for election as Circuit Court Judge in Division VII. Hedrick earned her B.A. from Indiana University in 1995. In 1998, she received her J.D. from the University of Memphis School of Law, where she worked as a research assistant and law clerk.
Lynne Ingram
Judge Smith has received several honors for his work with family law, and was certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy as a Family Law Trial Advocate. He serves on the Board for the Family Safety Center and performed adoptions for same sex parents. In 2015, Smith was honored with the Good Guy’s Award by The Women’s Political Collaborative for his work in domestic violence prevention.
July 20 - August 3, 2022
Division VIII Lynne Ingram is running for Circuit Court Judge in Division VIII. Ingram received a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of South Carolina in 2000 and a Juris Doctor degree from Western Michigan Cooley Law School in 2003. Ingram has lived and worked in Nashville since 2009. As an attorney of 18 years, 14 of them have been in public ser-
fidence in their impartiality, integrity, and competence. Circuit Court judges are elected for eightyear terms and must be authorized to practice law in the courts of Tennessee. To serve as a circuit court judge, one must be at least 30 years of age and a state resident for five years, and of the district for one.
relations, and criminal cases. He was first appointed as Davidson County’s Fifth Circuit Court Judge by Governor Phil Bredesen in March 2008. He was then elected in August 2008, and reelected in 2014. He is running unopposed for this election. Binkley was the recipient of the 2019 Law Day USA Liberty Bell Award from the Nashville Bar Association. He is both a member and a Fellow
of the Tennessee and Nashville Bar Associations, as well as a Trustee of the Nashville Bar Foundation, and has served as a Board Member of the Nashville Bar Association for two terms. Judge Binkley is also an Emeritus member of the Harry Phillips American Inn of Courts, as well as a member of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers’ Association.
a Juris Doctor degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1977. After graduating from law school, Brothers served as Chief Warrant Officer for the Davidson County Sheriff’s Department and, from 1978-1989, practiced law in Nashville in the law offices of Jack Norman. Brothers has twice served as Presiding Judge for the 20th Judicial District and has served as Chairman of the Minorities Opportunities Committee
and as a member of the Board of Directors for the Nashville Bar Association. He currently serves as Chairman of the Technology for the Courts Committee and is a member of the Pattern Civil Jury Instructions Committee and the Delay Reduction Committee for the Tennessee Judicial Conference, as well as Vice Chair of the Justice Information System of the Nashville metropolitan government.
Hedrick moved to Nashville and joined Gullett Sanford Robinson & Martin PLLC. She has over 23 years of experience in probate law, including estate planning, administration, and litigation. She is an adjunct professor at the Nashville School of Law and has co-authored reference books on Tennessee probate law. She provides pro bono services through the Legal Aid Society and Tennessee Innocence Project and is also a member of several law commit-
tees and associations, including the Tennessee Bar Association’s Probate Study Group. Hedrick believes in an accessible, efficient, and easy-to-understand judicial process. She also plans to implement new processes to support these goals. She hopes to bring an attitude of inclusiveness and equality to all who come to probate court. Hendrick won the Democratic primary election with a 55 percent lead.
vice working for a non-profit organization. Ingram went on to serve for more than 11 years as an assistant U.S. Attorney. She also worked as a family law attorney at Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands and currently practices law at Robinson Reagan & Young. Ingram teaches as an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt Law School. Ingram serves as vice-president of the Nashville Bar Association, as co-chair of the Special Committee on Race and Equity. She serves on Legal
Aid Society’s Racial Justice and Equity Committee and chairs the End Slavery Tennessee board of directors. She serves on the Women’s Fund through the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. She founded the Child Care Alliance of Middle Tennessee through the Community Foundation. Ingram was recognized by the Nashville Business Journal in 2021 as one of its Women of Influence, and she received the Tennessee Bar Association’s Larry Dean Wilks Leadership Award.
| The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 13
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Criminal Court Judge Criminal courts exist in 13 of Tennessee’s 31 judicial districts, including Davidson County. The state legislature established criminal courts to relieve circuit courts with heavy caseloads. In districts without criminal courts, circuit court judges handle criminal cases at the trial level. A criminal court judge presides over criminal cases
STEVEN DOZIER Division I
Steven Dozier is seeking re-election as a Criminal Court Judge in District I as his current eight-year term expires in 2022. Dozier is a lifelong Nashvillian
CHERYL BLACKBURN Division III
Cheryl Blackburn was born in Oak Ridge, Tenn. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in 1969 in Clinical Psychology from Van-
KHADIJA BABB Division V
Khadija Babb is the current Judge-Elect for Davidson County Criminal Court, Division V. An East Nashville native, Babb received her Bachelor of Arts in legal studies from the
and misdemeanor appeals from lower courts. Criminal courts handle cases where the defendants have been arrested and charged with a crime such as assault, murder, arson, or other types of crimes. Judges preside over the courtroom, make decisions on motions and rulings, enforce rules of the court, read through court documents, research legal issues, and more in order to make sure
and the son of a Metropolitan Police Officer who served the city of Nashville more than 40 years. He received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University in 1979 and his J.D. degree from Nashville School of Law in 1984. He began his career as a law clerk and then moved to assistant district attorney general. He then practiced law at his law firm Williams, Smith and Dozier. After five years, he returned to the district attorney’s office until he replaced Judge Thomas Shriver. He was re-elected to his
seat in 2006 and 2014. Throughout his tenure, Dozier has served on the Tennessee Supreme Court District 5 Investigating Committee, the Governors Alliance of Drug Free Tennessee, the Davidson County Child Sex Abuse Council and the Governor’s DUI Task Force. He has experience from the perspective of prosecutor, defense attorney and judge. He pledges a continuity of his unwavering commitment to justice, fairness, and safety of Nashville as he seeks re-election.
derbilt University and a Juris Doctorate from the Nashville School of Law in 1979. For the next seventeen years, Blackburn served as Assistant District Attorney. She was certified as a Criminal Trial Specialist in 1994 by the National Board of Trial Advocacy, the first woman and assistant district attorney to achieve this certification in Tennessee. In 1996, Blackburn was appointed Division III Judge of the Criminal Court. She was elected in 1998 and re-elected in 2006 and 2014.
She is dedicated to the responsibilities of being a judge and ensuring everyone’s constitutional rights. She believes she deserves your vote because of her deep understanding of criminal law, her specialized mental health training, and her advocacy for the law. Blackburn states, “Frequently, defendants in the criminal justice system suffer from mental health disorders and require treatment, which is an issue I have practical experience addressing and routinely do so in my courtroom.”
University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and her law degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. After graduating, she established the Law Office of Khadija L. Babb, serving the Nashville area as a criminal defense attorney. Babb has supported the Nashville community by providing quality and affordable legal services and facilitating discussions around constitutional rights. During this time, she also coached the Stratford High School Mock Trial team and was the Assistant District Attorney of Davidson County
Juvenile Court. During her time as Assistant D.A., she handled juvenile detention cases. In addition, she has mentored middle and high school students, taught seminars about voting rights restoration, and participated in various criminal justice reform efforts. As Criminal Court Judge Division V, Babb will respect victims’ rights, reduce disparities in the criminal justice system, and serve the community. She wants to transform the way criminal justice looks and create a healthy, stable, restorative justice program.
ANGIE BLACKSHEAR DALTON Division II
Angie Blackshear Dalton is running for re-election, and has held the judgeship since 2017. Dalton was the first Af-
JENNIFER SMITH Division IV
Jennifer Smith is seeking re-election. She was appointed Division IV Criminal Court Judge by Governor Haslam in 2018. Smith received both undergraduate and J.D. de-
CYNTHIA CHAPPELL Division VI
Cynthia Chappell is originally from McKenzie, Tenn., and has lived in Nashville
that those accused receive a fair trial for determining their guilt or innocence. Criminal court judges are elected for eight-year terms and must be authorized to practice law in the courts of Tennessee. To serve as a criminal court judge, one must be at least 30 years of age and a state resident for five years, and of the district for one year.
rican-American woman to be elected to a judgeship for General Sessions in Davidson County in 2006 and was re-elected in 2014. A native Nashvillian, she earned a B.A. in English from Lane College, and her law degree from the University of Toledo College of Law. Judge Dalton started her career working for the Tennessee Supreme Court. She then went on to hold several positions at the Davidson County District Attorney General’s Office from 1997-2005, where she special-
ized on the domestic violence prosecution team. She has twice been voted as Presiding Judge among her peers and has worked on an array of committees during her time with the General Sessions Court. Dalton is a member of the Napier-Looby, Nashville and Tennessee Bar Associations, and the Lawyers’ Association for Women. She is also an adjunct professor at the Nashville School of Law. In her work, she aims to ensure that efficiency of the court and fairness for all parties are top priorities.
grees from the University of Mississippi in 1988 and 1991, respectively, and an M.S. from the National Intelligence University in 2008. Smith is an U.S. Navy Reserve Intelligence Officer and has been twice deployed to conflict zones. She is a mentor for Belmont University Law, a member of the Lawyers’ Association for Women, and both a Committee Member and parent for the Boy Scouts. Smith was the Associate Solicitor General in the Tennessee Attorney General’s Offices, the Deputy At-
torney General of the Law Enforcement and Special Prosecutions Division, and the Associate Deputy of the Criminal Justice Division. She was involved with criminal prosecution and defense in state and federal appellate courts and has substantial federal habeas corpus experience. Smith has argued three cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. Recently, Smith argued the state’s controversial lethal injection protocol was constitutional; the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled in her favor.
since 1995. Chappell attended Rhodes College on a Presidential Scholarship and later earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Memphis School of Law. Chappell is a solo practitioner and has over 25 years of experience in criminal defense, family law, and civil litigation. Chappell has been an active member of the Federal Criminal Justice Act panel for over a decade and regularly handles pro bono cases for the Nashville Bar Association.
Chappell is a member of the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Nashville Bar Association, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Tennessee Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. In addition, Chappell has served on a committee for the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission. Nashville Business Journal recognized Chappell as “Best of the Bar” in 2017 and 2019.
PAGE 14 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
General Sessions Judge The Metropolitan General Sessions Court of Nashville-Davidson County is a high vol-
Gale B. Robinson Division I
Gale B. Robinson is a Nashville native who has presided over Division I of Davidson County’s General Sessions Court since 1990. The incumbent judge is running unopposed for his fifth consecutive term. He holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Tennessee,
Melissa Blackburn Division II
Judge Melissa Blackburn is running for reelection and was first elected in 2014. A Nashville native and mother of four, she attended Lipscomb High School and University before studying at Nashville School of Law, where she earned her Juris Doctor degree in 1993.
Ana L. Escobar
Division III Ana L. Escobar is running for re-election for General Sessions Court Judge in Division III. She is a first-generation immigrant from Bogota, Colombia, who moved to Nashville with her family when she was three years old. She went on to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in po-
Allegra Walker
Division IV Allegra Walker has served as a judge since 2014. Walker holds a B.S. in Economics from Fisk University and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Toledo. She runs unopposed for reelection. Before becoming a judge,
ume limited jurisdiction court that hears nearly 70 percent of litigation in Davidson County
Knoxville, and a Juris Doctorate from the Nashville School of Law. Prior to his election, Robinson worked for the Davidson County Sheriff’s Department and clerked for Judge A.A. Birch, who went on to become the first black Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court. In 1996, Robinson was given the Jane Wheatcraft award from the Tennessee Task Force Against Domestic Violence. In 2000, he received
the “Good Guys Award” from the Nashville Women’s Political Caucus. In addition to being a General Sessions Court judge, Robinson is president and owner of Phillips-Robinson funeral home. He lives in Goodlettsville and is a member of the Jackson Park Church of Christ, the Madison-Rivergate Chamber of Commerce, the Historic Nashville Business Association, the Scottish & York Rite Masons, and the Al Menah Shrine.
Before becoming a judge, Blackburn ran her own practice. She specialized in employment law, representing clients who faced discrimination and unfair wage practices. She went on to become the Director of Capital Campaign for the Nashville Habitat for Humanity, where she raised over $8 million to create new homes for nearly 400 Nashville families. Judge Blackburn is passionate about serving those
with mental health needs, as well as veterans recovering from trauma. She worked with the mayor’s office to help approve the Police Department of Nashville’s first mental health crisis intervention team, and currently serves as presiding judge of the Mental Health and Veterans Courts. Blackburn was recently selected for the 2022-2023 class of Leadership Nashville, a selective executive leadership program for local leaders.
litical science from Vanderbilt University and a Juris Doctorate from George Washington University. The incumbent started her career as an assistant public defender, then practiced privately with the Nashville firm Funk and Kay, and then moved on to become Deputy Director of the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. In 2015, Escobar became an assistant district attorney, where she led the D.A.’s Domestic Violence
Unit and prosecuted over 500 domestic violence cases. In 2018, she became Tennessee’s first Latinx judge. Escobar believes in treating victims and defendants with dignity. She is passionate about creating pathways for safe and productive lives rather than delivering punishment. In her own words, Escobar feels that the courts “should provide equal justice, create safer communities, and strive for constant improvement.”
Walker worked as an assistant public defender and an assistant district attorney in Davidson County. At the district attorney’s office, she primarily prosecuted domestic and family violence cases. Walker is now one of three judges that preside over the General Sessions Court’s domestic violence cases. In 2020, she received the Women of Legend and Merit Award from Tennessee State University and in 2021, she was named
a Woman of Influence by the Nashville Business Journal. Last year, Walker held the first General Sessions job fair for people on probation seeking work. She also runs an annual oratorical contest for local high school students. Of her sentencing philosophy, Walker says, “Jail is not my automatic go-to. When I have to do tough sentencing, I’m really at the end of my rope — like I’ve already tried some alternative things.”
July 20 - August 3, 2022
including civil, misdemeanor, felony, traffic, environmental, and metropolitan ordinance violations. There are 95 General Sessions Courts in Tennessee. Civil jurisdiction is restricted to specific monetary limits and types of actions. Criminal jurisdiction is limited to preliminary hearings in
Robin Kimbrough Hayes Division V
Robin Kimbrough Hayes is a Kentucky native earned a bachelor’s degree from Fisk University, a master’s degree from Vanderbilt Divinity School, and a Juris Doctorate from Emory University. Hayes served as the Assistant Attor-
Jim Todd
Division VI
Jim Todd is a Nashville native, and graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1984 with his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Communication and received his J.D. from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in 1993. He has practiced law for over 25 years and was ap-
Marcus Floyd
Division VII A Nashville resident since childhood, Marcus Floyd attended Hillsboro High School and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice Administration from MTSU and a law degree from Belmont University. Floyd has worked as probation officer and a ju-
Rachel L. Bell Division VIII
Rachel L. Bell is running for re-election as General Session Judge in Division VIII. Bell is a third-generation Nashvillian with a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Memphis and a Juris Doctorate Degree from Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.
felony cases and misdemeanor trials in which a defendant waives the right to a grand jury investigation and trial by jury in Circuit or Criminal Court. General sessions judges are elected to eight-year terms. They must be at least 30 years of age and a resident of the state for five years and of the district for one year.
ney General in Tennessee’s Attorney General’s Office and the Associate General Counsel for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services. In addition, Hayes has recently been appointed a seat on the Tennessee Democratic Party Advisory Board. She is a spiritual counselor at the Dr. Lloyd Elam Mental Health Center at Meharry Medical College helping those dealing with drug and alcohol dependency, an
ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church, and a member of the NAACP, NOAH, and the Nashville Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Hayes is committed to using her legal skills “to advance social justice for the least in our communities.” If elected, Hayes would host court after hours, conduct community meetings, support bond reform, and “utilize restorative justice in criminal and civil matters.”
pointed lead prosecutor for Criminal Court Division VI and special prosecutor for violent and gang-related juvenile offenders. Todd was also a special assistant for Senator Al Gore in D.C. and Tennessee Governor McWherter. During his time as a prosecutor, Todd fought to reform the Drug-Free School Zones law which increases misdemeanors to felonies and disproportionately affects minorities. Todd also sent a resolution on bail reform to Metro Council that would expedite the time
it takes for judges to review cases. His extensive community leadership positions include Juvenile Justice Reform Commission, NAARAL, Chair of Nashville’s Sexually-Oriented Business Licensing Board, Board of Nashville Ballet, and Nashville Urban League. According to Todd, “To make the justice system more just, we need judges who treat everyone in the courtroom with respect and further, listen to all sides in every case.”
dicial law clerk, in addition to his work as both a prosecutor and defense attorney. He acted as an assistant district attorney general under District Attorney Glenn Funk. Floyd influenced the MNPD Body Camera program which has now been extended for use by every Metro officer. Floyd served as Public Safety and Justice Policy Advisor to Mayor Briley and helped to establish the Community Oversight Board. He is also a
founding member of Nashville’s Conviction Review Unit which was established to investigate wrongful convictions. He presently serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Hands on Nashville. Marcus has said, “As judge, I will be committed to using transparency and accountability to strengthen public trust and public safety and ensuring equity through concrete solutions like ensuring alternative pretrial services based on ability to pay...”
Bell was the Managing Partner of Bell & Kinslow law firm prior to being elected to General Sessions Court Judge in Division VIII in 2012 and 2014. Shortly after taking the bench, Judge Bell created Music City Community Court which has created several community initiatives focused on preventive and diversionary justice. Bell currently and previously served on several boards, a few include Hands
of Nashville, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Women in Numbers, and Nashville Black Chamber of Commerce. Bell is the first LGBTQ judge in Davidson County. In 2021, Judge Bell was presented with the Tennessee Human Rights Award for Outstanding Service and was the recipient of the 2021 Janice M. Holder Award. Bell cares deeply about equal justice, and her mantra is, “Justice does NOT stop at the courthouse steps!”
| The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 15
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
GENERAL SESSIONS JUDGE, CONT. Brian A. Horowitz
Division IX Brian A. Horowitz grew up in Nashville and attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where he earned a degree in finance. Horowitz later attended Massey School of Business at Belmont University, where he received his
Sam Coleman
Division X Sam Coleman is a graduate of Tennessee State University, where he earned a B.S. degree in political science, and a masters degree in public administration. He went on to graduate from Nashville School of Law in 1989. Coleman began his public
MBA before earning his JD from Nashville School of Law. In 2019, he opened his own firm, Wahoo Verde, which focuses on criminal defense and boasts humorous slogans such as, “When you got the legal shitz... Call Brian Alexander Horowitz!”. His law firm sells the opportunity to have dinner & drinks with Horowitz on its website, offering it as a method for consultation. Horowitz currently
sits on the Board of Directors for Benton Hall Academy, a private school for children who learn differently. Running as a Republican, he has stated that he believes in decriminalizing poverty, and putting that into practice by taking a defendant’s financial background into account when evaluating court fines and fees. He believes in being a judge for the average person.
service in 1978 working for the Corrections Department and later, as an administrator for the Department of Youth Development. Coleman specialized as an attorney in criminal, civil, probate, landlord and tenant law. He served as Metro Council Member for District 32 from 2003 to 2011 and District 33 from 2015 until being appointed a judge in 2017. Coleman serves as a pro bono attorney with Legal Aid
of Nashville and is an adjunct instructor at Nashville Paralegal Career School and the Tennessee Correction Academy. He is a member of the NAACP, the American Bar Association, and the Nashville Bar Association. He believes that the law is the “manifest will of the people” and that it must “be administered with compassion and applied equitably.” He has pledged to serve the court fairly and with integrity.
Lynda Jones
Division IX Lynda Jones was born in Lima, Ohio, but has been a resident of Nashville for more than 30 years. Jones holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee Knoxville and a law degree from the University of Memphis.
John Aaron Holt Division XI
Incumbent and native Nashvillian, John Aaron Holt, graduated from David Lipscomb University in 1977 with his Bachelor of Science degree and Nashville School of law in 1982. Prior to his election as judge in 1998, he served as an attorney in
For 22 years she was the managing partner of Jones Law Group. In 2011, she was named Advocate of the Year by the Nashville Alliance for the Mentally Ill. She was first elected to be a General Session Judge in 2014. During her first term, she oversaw the creation of Nashville’s Homelessness Court, a program connecting people experiencing homelessness to resources and information to help them avoid
accruing a criminal record of non-violent charges directly related to their homelessness. She is the presiding Judge of the Homelessness Court. Jones currently serves on the board of Dismas House, an organization that empowers formerly incarcerated Tennesseans as they enter back into society. She is also a member of Nashville’s Behavioral Health and Wellness Advisory Council.
private practice for thirteen years. He served two terms as a Metro Councilman, as well as presiding judge over the Davidson County General Sessions Court from 2001-2003. In 2019, Holt was investigated and disciplined alongside Criminal Court Judge Monte Watkins, who was recently defeated by Khadija Babb in the May 3rd County Primary election, for reportedly paying
prostitutes and for marijuana usage during a trip to Costa Rica with former judge Casey Moreland who is currently serving time on corruption charges. Holt is a member of the Nashville Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association and the American Judges Association. He’s also a donor of the Tennessee Innocence Project, a group focused on overturning wrongful convictions.
School Board Metropolitan Nashville School Board members represent the public’s voice in public education, providing oversight for what the public schools need and what the community wants. An effective school board member has an important role in keeping your local school on track and setting policies that affect the children of their represented district. In 2021, the Tennessee General Assembly passed a law allowing partisan school board elections. Prior to that, school board elections were bi-partisan. The Metropolitan Board of Public Education consists of nine elected members, one member being
elected from each of the nine school districts. The term of office is four years. The terms are staggered so that no fewer than four members are elected every two years. School board members must be at least 25 years old by the beginning of the elected term. The member must be a resident of Davidson County for at least five years and a resident of the school district that the member seeks to represent for at least one year and continue to reside there during their elected term. The member can hold no other elected or appointed public office and must be a qualified, registered voter.
SCHOOL BOARD D2
Rachael Anne Elrod Rachael Anne Elrod is running for reelection to the school board in District 2. Elrod was
originally elected to the School Board in 2018, and presently serves as the Board’s ViceChair. She studied Education at Austin Peay State University and has worked both as a teacher and a consultant. Elrod has two young children. Speaking on her accomplishments during her time on the School Board, Elrod has highlighted efforts to both increase pay for teachers, and to integrate social-emotional learning (SEL) into schools. Additionally, there has been a push for additional psychologists in
order to meet national recommendations, and to expand advocacy centers that provide students with spaces to work out emotional issues outside of the classroom. Within her current campaign, Elrod has outlined a number of priorities for improving schools, including expanded access to high quality pre-k, increasing classroom resources, and supporting a student-focused curriculum that takes into account the needs of the whole child.
Edward Arnold Edward Arnold earned his bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1978 and his
PAGE 16 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
master’s degree in Sociology from Middle Tennessee State University in 1982. He is currently a doctoral student at Tennessee State University. Until he retired, Arnold worked for the State of Tennessee as an information resource specialist. Arnold is a native Nashvillian who ran for Davidson County School Board in 2014 and 2018 but did not win. He is also the father of three children who have attended public schools in Nashville.
Arnold advocates for removing capital expenditures from the Metro Nashville Public Schools budget. He also proposed a method of funding public schools that he titled, Teacher Incentive for Public Schools (TIPS), where solutions to research identified obstructions to academic achievement are addressed and funded before the budgeting of operational and capital expenditures.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
SCHOOL BOARD D2, CONT. Todd Pembroke Todd Pembroke is originally from Florida but has lived in Nashville since 2003. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida where he studied
finance. Since 2010, he has run an insurance company in Brentwood. He is also an active member of the U.S. Army National Guard. Pembroke’s tagline is “No Woke Todd Pembroke.” Although he does not currently have any children in school, his eldest daughter
is set to start kindergarten in the fall. He has said that he wants to see a return to “traditional forms of education” and wants to remove education about race and gender. Pembroke states also that he wants to see discipline restored as a virtue in schools.
SCHOOL BOARD D4
Kelli Phillips This is Kelli Phillips first campaign for public office. Phillips, a Nashville native and mother of three, began
speaking at school board meetings in August of 2021. She was inspired to do so after seeing her high-school-aged daughter and her toddler’s struggles with COVID-19-related changes to schooling and socializing respectively. On social media and in radio interviews, she has called for an end to masking policies in schools. Additionally, she has criticized critical race theory and appeared at events hosted by Tennessee Stands, a conservative advocacy group.
Berthena Nabaa-McKinney
Dr. Berthena Nabaa-McKinney is running for school board in District 4, a position she held for 4 months in 2020 following the passing of school board member Anna Shephard. Dr. Nabaa-Mckinney’s focus is “ensuring that all schools in District 4, and across MNPS, will have the equitable funding they need to provide a high-quality education for ALL students.” Dr. Nabaa-McKinney
moved to Nashville in 1997 after growing up in Indiana. She obtained her Doctorate in Educational Leadership & Professional Practice from Trevecca Nazarene University. Dr. Nabaa-Mckinney was formerly a MNPS chemistry teacher, as well as a private school principal. She is a parent of five MNPS graduates and a 3rdgrade student in a District 4 school. Nabaa-McK i n ney i s the founder of Nabaa Con-
sulting, which focuses on school improvement for Early Childhood and K-12 schools. Her previous positions include Commissioner for the Metro-Nashville Action Commission, Chair of the Director of Schools Evaluation Committee, CoChair for the Teaching and Learning Committee for the Board of Education, Board Chair of the Muslim American Cultural Center, and Co-Chair of Women of Color for Educational Equity.
villian who has resided in the Antioch community since 2001. She has 5 boys who have all attended the MNPS schools. Bush graduated from Tennessee State University with a degree in Healthcare Administration. She began her own childcare center, The Model Kids Learning Academy, which has been running for the past 15 years. Over the years, Bush has volunteered for several education nonprofit organizations. For the past
eight years, she has been volunteering at ACT Prep, which lines up with her stated desire to make sure that all students learn and have an opportunity to be college and career ready. Bush’s self-stated advocacy is to ensure that schools provide social-emotional learning (SEL), in-person learning where masks are optional, and that families have school choice.
Pate currently works in sales for a construction company. She serves on the JT Moore PTO and is part of the group “Let Nashville Parents Choose” that formed to support schools reopening in 2020-21. She is a mother of three children in the Metro Nashville Public School system and was outspoken about her disappointment about the lack of structure that metro schools had while reopening. Pate believes in always
putting the needs of kids before politics, listening to parents about what they want and need for their children, and holding the district and board of education accountable. Pate is supportive of parents being involved and voicing their opinion regarding issues within MNPS. She emphasizes that her loyalties lie not with a party but with the students and families of MNPS.
SCHOOL BOARD D6
Cheryl D. Mayes Cheryl D. Mayes has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from TSU, and is the founder of My
Toolbox Consulting, a leadership development and training consulting firm. Mayes works as the Director of Community Relations with the Multicultural Business Synergy Team at Nissan North America and also as District Director in the office of Congressman Jim Cooper. Mayes was previously elected to the Board of Education for MNPS and served as Chair for her final two years on the board. She volunteers for the American Cancer Society, YWCA of Middle Tennessee, Boy Scouts of America in Middle Tennes-
see, and Hands on Nashville. Mayes is endorsed by the Metropolitan Nashville Education Association. In 2016, she received the Benjamin Elijah Mays Lifetime Achievement Award in Education from the Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE), a division of the National School Boards Association (NSBA). Mayes states that her goals include listening to the community and ensuring the schools receive “the resources and funding that provides equitable and equal opportunities for all students.”
Fran Bush Fran Bush has been on the school board since 2018. Bush is a native Nash-
SCHOOL BOARD D8
Erin O’Hara Block Erin O’Hara Block has a master’s degree in Public Policy from Vanderbilt’s Peabody
College of Education and a bachelor’s degree in American government and African/African American studies from the University of Virginia. For over 20 years, O’Hara Block has worked in education policy and research on issues including early learning, afterschool programs, college access, educator preparation, and school leadership. She is currently the Executive Director of the Tennessee Education Research Alliance, a partnership between Vanderbilt University and the
Tennessee Department of Education, and served as an adjunct faculty member at Peabody College. If elected, O’Hara Block wants to help create integrated systems to support the mental health of students and educators, both inside and outside of school. She wants to ensure the district provides the resources to recruit and retain high quality staff, and use her expertise to shape education policy and research in Nashville and across the state.
July 20 - August 3, 2022
Amy Pate Amy Pate is a Nashville native, and graduated from John Overton High School.
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
District Attorney General The 20th Judicial District elects the District Attorney General every eight years. To qualify for the office one must be a duly licensed attorney admitted to practice of law in Tennessee and a resident for five years and living in their judicial district for one year. This office is responsible for the prosecution of all alleged violations of state criminal laws that occur within
GLENN FUNK Glenn Funk has served as Davidson County District Attorney since 2014. He holds an undergraduate degree from Wake Forest and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Mississippi. According to Funk, his goal is to prosecute violent crimes but prioritize treatment and rehabil-
itation for non-violent offenders and describes himself as a change agent who has pushed needed reforms since taking office. During his tenure, minority representation among assistant district attorneys has grown from 3 percent to 28 percent. He stopped prosecuting for possession of small amounts of marijuana, and announced that he would not enforce recently enacted state laws that limit ac-
Public Defender The head of the Davidson County Public Defender’s office is an elected position every four years. Candidates must be a licensed attorney, resident in Tennessee for five years, and reside in the judicial district for one
year. Typical responsibilities include representing clients in General Sessions Court, Criminal Court, and Juvenile Court, and working collaboratively with other defense team members, including investigators, so-
MARTESHA L. JOHNSON Nashville native Martesha L. Johnson is the incumbent and the first African American to be elected to this position. Johnson earned her undergraduate degree at Tennessee State University and her J.D. from the
ERICA GILMORE
cess to abortions and impact the rights of transgender Tennesseans. Funk also declined to prosecute teachers who require masks in their classrooms, in spite of Gov. Bill Lee’s executive order. In 2019, Funk publicly apologized for a photo of him and his fraternity brothers posing with a Confederate flag, calling his behavior “hurtful and divisive.” In 2021, Funk’s decision to agree to a plea deal with former
cial workers, and legal assistants. Residents are eligible for legal representation from a public defender in General Sessions Court if their annual income is 125 percent below federal poverty guidelines. In Criminal Court, the judge determines eligibility based on income. The mission of the Metropolitan Public Defender’s Office is to defend the liber-
University of Tennessee College of Law. Johnson is the current president of the Nashville Bar Association. Johnson has represented clients from diverse social and economic backgrounds in general sessions and state criminal court, conducting hearings, trials, factual investigations, legal research and negotiations. She
County Trustee The Office of the Trustee is a constitutional office created to lead the tax collection agency for each county. The trustee acts as a treasurer or banker, collecting property, personal, and public utility taxes. A trustee’s duties are to pay the county’s bills, settle claims, and keep a fair and regular account of all transactions. The office also administers tax relief, tax deferral, and tax freeze programs and collects and processes delinquent taxes, central business improvement district taxes, gulch central business improvement district taxes, and vegetation liens.
Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County. Both felony and misdemeanor crimes are prosecuted by the District Attorney’s Office along with the criminal acts of juveniles. The District Attorney’s Office is committed to public service, fairness and justice for all. District Attorneys are responsible for ensuring victims constitutional
Metro Nashville Police Officer Andrew Delke led to protests in Nashville. Funk serves on the board of the YWCA of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, Nashville Children’s Alliance, the Down Syndrome Association of Middle Tennessee, the Optimist Club, Vanderbilt Kennedy Center Leadership Council, Arc of Davidson County & Greater Nashville and Dismas House.
ty, honor, and constitutional rights of the individuals, of all ages, whose cases have been entrusted to them. Through zealous advocacy, they strive to deliver excellence in their representation of each and every client but also to stand with their clients and the community to create a more just, fair, and compassionate legal system.
has also led two criminal court teams and been a part of leadership and policy-making groups, including the Community Corrections Advisory Board. Johnson is also an active participant in DEFEND Nashville, and an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt University of Law. She focuses on her client’s education surrounding consti-
Nashville native Erica Gilmore is a long-time public official running for re-election to the office of Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County Trustee. She has served in the position since August of 2020. Gilmore received her bachelor’s degree in English at Howard University, her master’s degree in English at Tennessee State University, and has taught at Fisk University and Nashville State Community College. She also has a
rights are protected. They work in their community with treatment centers and support services to prevent crimes and increase safety. They are expected to advocate for vulnerable populations and oversee the administrative needs of their offices to make sure their teams are equipped with the training, resources, and support they need to perform their duties.
tutional rights and the criminal justice process. Johnson believes that people should be treated with dignity regardless of race, socio-economic status, gender, sexual orientation or the nature of the charges against them. She has been a staunch advocate for the decriminalization of poverty and the elimination of wealth-based disparities.
Master of Arts and Executive Degree in government. She formerly served as an at-large council member where she spent 12 years on the Budget and Finance Committee. Gilmore was also a public school teacher. With family ties to public service, Gilmore’s mother is State Senator Brenda Gilmore, and her father is retired Juvenile Court Officer Harry Gilmore. She makes frequent appearances at many public forums and community meet-
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ings to talk directly with the citizens of Nashville about the change they want to see in their communities. Gilmore advocates for government transparency, racial justice, affordable housing, the importance of education, an increase in the minimum wage, and community safety. Gillmore has earned a reputation as a strong, pragmatic legislator who champions bold and progressive solutions to remedy Nashville’s toughest challenges.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Juvenile Court Judge Juvenile Courts in Davidson County have exclusive oversight of cases involving minors. These courts also have concurrent jurisdiction with Circuit, Chancery, and Probate Courts in certain areas. To hold the position of juvenile court judge, one has to be at least 30 years of age and a resident of the state for five years and of the circuit or district one year. Additionally, a judge has to be licensed to practice law in Tennessee. These judges serve eight-year terms. Juvenile court judges are responsible for making sure that every child and parent who passes through court is met with justice, fairness, and hope. As described by Tennessee Code Annotated Section 37-1-101, the purpose of the juvenile court is: “To provide for the care, protection, and wholesome moral, mental and physical development of the children coming within its provisions.”
SHEILA CALLOWAY
Sheila Calloway is running unopposed for her third consecutive term. A Kentucky-native, Calloway moved to Nashville in 1987. She holds a B.A. in Communications and a Juris Doctorate, both from Vanderbilt University. Prior to her election as Juvenile Court Judge in 2014, Calloway worked at the Metro Nashville Public Defender’s Office, and as a Juvenile Court Magistrate.
Judge Calloway has been recognized for her implementation of a youth justice delivery model that focuses on trauma-informed care. She has spoken publicly about the importance of diverting youth from detention, and her team has created programs to support parents navigating the juvenile justice system. The incumbent judge has received a number of awards including
the ICCA “Doing What Works Judicial Award” from the International C om mu n it y C or re ctions Association, and the “Centennial Legacy Award” from the NAACP. In 2018, Judge Calloway was honored by the Tennessee Justice Center Hall of Fame. She’s a member of numerous community organizations and sits on the advisory council for Tennessee Voices for Victims.
ment for law enforcement. According to his office, the number of incarcerated individuals in Davidson County is 50% lower than it was ten years ago. Hall has been criticized for speaking at an event hosted by a group the Southern Poverty Law Center identifies as a hate group, and for housing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainees. In 2019, Hall terminated his office’s contract with ICE,
calling it a “distraction from sheriff ’s office priorities”. Hall is passionate about decriminalizing mental illness. In 2017, he was awarded the National Alliance on Mental Illness’ Sam Cochran Award. In 2020, he opened a behavioral care center that offers the mentally ill an alternative to jail. He is seeking his sixth consecutive term.
Public Service. Day began working in the Circuit Court Clerk’s office as an intern in 1997, and rose through the ranks to become Chief Deputy of Public Relations and Employee Development. He’s credited with implementing the office’s electronic filing system, and received the endorsement of departing Circuit Court Clerk Richard Rooker, who wrote that “many of the great
things that have transpired in the clerk’s office over the last few years can be traced back to [Day’s] ideas and vision”. Day defeated two opponents to win the Democratic primary in May and is running unopposed in the general election. His primary objectives are to employ a diverse workforce, utilize technology, and make the office more transparent to the public.
Sheriff The office of sheriff is established by the Tennessee Constitution. The sheriff is the chief law enforcement officer for the county and is elected every four years. This office oversees the county’s law enforcement department, including all staff. County sheriffs enforce the law in unincorporated areas within a county and also sometimes provide law enforcement services to municipalities lacking their own police departments. Additionally, county sheriffs are in charge of county jails and are sometimes asked to serve subpoenas, protection orders, and eviction notices. A sheriff candidate must be an American citizen who is at least 25 years old and lived in the county for at least one year. They must have a high school diploma and not have been convicted of any felonies, nor been discharged from the military due to dishonor or court martial. A candidate for sheriff must have at least three years experience as a peace or law enforcement officer in the previous ten years. Candidates must also confirm they have had a psychological evaluation from a certified psychologist or psychiatrist.
DARON HALL
Native Nashvillian Daron Hall is running unopposed for Davidson County Sheriff, an office he’s held since 2002. Hall, a Western Kentucky University graduate, will become Metro Nashville’s longest-serving sheriff at the end of his current term. Hall strives to “arrest the problem, not the person”. He has focused on programming for inmates and community involve-
Circuit Court Clerk Davidson County Circuit Court Clerks serve the needs of the courts, legal community, and the citizens by ensuring the efficient operation of courts. They record and document all steps in the judicial procedure while performing calculating, accounting, and typing duties to process citations and cases for the Court. The responsibilities of Circuit Court clerks include maintaining not only the records of the eight Circuit Courts but also the civil records of the eleven General Sessions Courts. The Circuit Court Clerk also maintains dockets and records, handling administrative matters, and serving as good will ambassadors to the public. Court Clerks are elected to four-year terms.
JOSEPH P. DAY
July 20 - August 3, 2022
Joseph P. Day is a Democrat running for Davidson County Circuit Court Clerk. He was born and raised in Nashville and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Tennessee State University, a Master’s Degree in Public Service Management from Cumberland University, and a Certified Public Administrator Certification from the University of Tennessee Institute of
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BALLOT BREAKDOWN
Criminal Court Clerk Criminal court clerks perform administrative duties for the operation of the General Sessions and State Trial Criminal Courts, assisting other officers of the court as well as judges and lawyers. The largest part of a court clerk’s job is handling court records. They process legal documents, schedule cases and hearings, audit files for accuracy, and ensure consistent records are kept at all times. Clerks handle payments for fees, fines, and court costs and should perform a level of customer service when
HOWARD GENTRY Seventy-year-old incumbent Howard Gentry is a veteran of Nashville political and professional circles. He earned his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Education from Tennessee State University,
where he served in various positions over 15 years, including Director of Athletics and Executive Director of the TSU Foundation. He was appointed to his current position of Criminal Court Clerk in 2011, where he has implemented systematic changes to streamline efficiency of the court and facilitate access to public records.
dealing with the public. They maintain court records, administer oaths to witnesses and jurors, and authenticate copies of the court’s orders and judgments with the court’s seal. During trials, a court clerk will take on a secondary set of duties. Clerks maintain court calendars and handle and assemble documents such as subpoenas, judicial orders, writs, injunctions, and judgments. Clerks review briefs, motions, and lawsuits submitted to the court to ensure they are accurate
The Sentencing Project places Tennessee No. 2 in the nation for the number of voting age residents unable to vote because of a felony conviction, and Gentry’s office has worked to restore the voting rights of felons. Gentry served as a Metro Council member-at-large and was elected Vice Mayor in 1999
and 2003; he is Nashville’s first African-American Vice Mayor. Other civic engagements include former Board positions on the Metro Homelessness Commission, 100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee, Alliance for Public Education, Nashville Poverty Reduction Council, NAACP, and more.
Juvenile Court Clerk The Davidson County Juvenile Court Clerk is the court’s record keeper and is a constitutional officer elected by the people for a term of four years. The duties and responsibilities include processing all legal documents filed in Juvenile Court, maintaining docket and minute books, acting as the keeper of the court records, preparing
LONNELL MATTHEWS Lonnell Matthews is running for re-election to the position of Davidson County Juvenile Court Clerk in Tennessee, an office he assumed in 2018. Matthews is a Nashville native, raised in Bor-
deaux, who earned his B.S. in Accounting and Business Law from Tennessee State University. Matthews was named “40 Under 40” by Nashville Business Journal and has a long record of volunteer work with the YMCA, serving as the District Executive Director of Youth Outreach for the organization. At age 27,
hearing dockets, providing deputy clerks for all court hearings, maintaining financial records, and collecting court costs, fines, child support, bonds, and restitution.The clerk also prepares orders for the Juvenile Court, administers trust funds for minors, and any other trust accounts ordered by the court.
he was elected to the Nashville Metropolitan Council, becoming the youngest African American elected to the council. ‘His campaign focuses on restorative justice, with a promise to ensure that the entire clerk’s staff is trained in trauma-informed care. Matthews advocates for community partnerships
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with non-profit youth service providers. Matthews says, “The biggest threat to Nashville is destructive segregation because it creates pockets of concentrated poverty, low-quality public schools, and destroys economic mobility, thus making the American dream much more difficult to obtain.”
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
County Clerk The county clerk is a constitutional officer established by the Tennessee State Constitution. In Davidson County, the county clerk is responsible for keeping the official record of county commission meetings, handling vehicle registrations, marriage licenses, busi-
BRENDA WYNN Brenda Wynn is running unopposed for re-election as Davidson County Clerk. A Nashville native and graduate of Pearl High School, she received her Bachelor of Science and Mas-
ter’s Degrees in Business from Tennessee State Universit y. Wynn worked for nine years at Meharry Medical College and also as an adjunct professor in the Health Care Administration and Planning Department at Tennessee State University. Wynn has served as President of the League of Women
ness licenses, driver license renewal, and fish and game permits. Notary public applications and pawnbrokers are also processed by the county clerk’s office. It is an elected position serving a four year term and the county clerk must reside in their serving district.
Voters, the YWCA, and Women in Numbers, as well as on Boards for organizations such as You Have the Power, Nashville Women’s Political Collaborative, Nashville’s Agenda Steering Committee, and WPLN, among others. Wynn was elected as Davidson County Clerk in 2012,
becoming the first African American woman elected to a constitutional office in Davidson County. She served as the first Director of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhoods under former Mayor Bill Purcell before joining Jim Cooper’s congressional team as Director of Community Outreach.
Register of Deeds The Register of Deeds provides accurate recording of public records for all who use the Register’s office and is responsible for providing excellent customer service and convenient access to these records by utilizing the latest technology in an effective, cost efficient way. The Register of Deeds is a constitutional office established by the Tennessee
KAREN JOHNSON Karen Johnson is running for re-election as Register of Deeds, a position she has held since 2018. She was the first African American and the first woman to be elected to this position. John-
July 20 - August 3, 2022
son came up through the Nashville Public schools and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Tennessee State University (TSU) and an MBA in Management from Trevecca Nazarene University. She has worked as a CPA with a focus on human resources and records keeping for the State of
state legislature as the custodian of legal documents pertaining to real property. These documents include Warranty Deeds, Deeds of Trust, Releases, Powers of Attorney, Liens, Plats, Amendments and other miscellaneous documents designated by state law to be recorded by the Register of Deeds. The office is elected every four years and the candidate must reside in Davidson County.
Tennessee, HCA, Shoney’s Inc., and Mercy Health Services. Previously, Johnson has also served as a city councilwoman. Johnson is the recipient of the 2019 “Women of Legend and Merit” award from her alma mater, TSU. She was named one of the Nashville Business Journal’s Women of Influence, The Tennessean’s
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40 Under 40, and the Nashville Chamber’s Emerging Leaders. Johnson’s stated goals as Register of Deeds include making the services offered by her office more visible and accessible, specifically through modernizing the web-based services and making them as user-friendly as possible.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
The Tennessee Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals Judges The state of Tennessee has three appellate courts, or courts that hear appeals from trial courts: The Supreme Court, The Court of Appeals and The Court of Criminal Appeals. In these courts, Judges hear oral arguments and review the attorneys’ written materials, and they issue written decisions, known as opinions. They also interpret the laws and constitutions of Tennessee and the United States. Since 2014, Judges that preside
on these courts are appointed by the Governor in office and then subject to approval by the General Assembly, and immediately take office upon approval. Prior to 2014, and the adoption of Amendment 2 to the Tennessee Constitution, three judges would be nominated by a bipartisan Judicial Nominating Commission, made up of 17 lawyers, and one of these nominees would be selected by the Governor to be placed on the ballot, with a final “yes or no”
vote by the public electing the judge. This is the first election where Tennessean’s will not have access to the findings of a 12-member Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, composed of lawyers. This commission reviewed the record of incumbent judges and published its findings approximately six weeks before the retention elections. This commission was also dissolved in 2014. The Court of Appeals hears appeals
in civil, non-criminal cases, from trial courts and certain state boards and commissions. The court has 12 members who sit in panels of three, the Eastern, Western, and Middle Divisions. The Court of Criminal Appeals has nine members that hears trial court appeals in felony and misdemeanor cases, as well as post-conviction petitions. All decisions made in these two courts may be appealed, with permission, to the Tennessee Supreme Court.
The Tennessee Supreme Court is the state’s court of last resort and consists of 5 judges. The Supreme Court may assume jurisdiction over undecided cases in the Court of Appeals or Court of Criminal Appeals when there is special need for an expedited decision. Tennessee Supreme Court opinions on federal constitutional issues can be appealed only to the United States Supreme Court, which may or may not agree to consider the appeals.
SUPREME COURT, AT LARGE Jeffrey S. Bivins Justice Bivins has served on the Tennessee Supreme Court since his appointment by Governor Haslam in 2014. He was elected as Chief Justice by his colleagues in 2016, and held that position until 2021. Bivins earned a J.D. from Vanderbilt in 1986 and a B.A. in Political
Sarah K. Campbell Justice Sarah K. Campbell is the newest member of the Tennessee Supreme Court, seeking retention after approximately 5 months on the bench. She was appointed by Governor Bill Lee in January 2022 and confirmed in a near
Holly Kirby Justice Holly Kirby has served on the Tennessee Supreme Court since her appointment by Governor Haslam in 2014. Kirby earned a J.D. from the University of Memphis in 1982 and a B.S. in Engineering from University of Memphis in 1979. Following law school, she
Sharon Gail Lee Justice Sharon Gail Lee has been a Tennessee Supreme Court Justice since 2008. Lee earned a law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1978. From 1978 to 2004 Lee practiced law in Madisonville, where she also served as County Attorney for Monroe County, City Judge, and
Science from East Tennessee State University in 1982. He practiced law in Nashville for Boult, Cummings, Conners, and Berry before serving on the Circuit Court for the 21st District from 1999-2000 and returning for a full elected term in 2006. He was appointed to the Court of Criminal Appeals in 2011. Justice Bivins has served as a past President of the Tennessee
Judicial Conference, member of the Board of Judicial Conduct, and member of the Tennessee Judicial Evaluation Commission. He was awarded the ABA’s Justice Frank Drowota III award in 2020, and has emphasized his work to support legal access for underserved communities, including serving as the Supreme Court Liaison for the Access to Justice Commission.
Most recently, Justice Bivins voted with a 3-2 split in a high-profile case concerning the “ESA Act.” The ESA Act is Tennessee’s school voucher program championed by Governor Lee, and it allows only Nashville and Memphis students to apply state funding for their public school education towards private school tuition and fees. Metro Nashville challenged this program, argu-
ing that Tennessee’s Home Rule Amendment should prevent the state from changing local education policy in only these two cities. Justice Bivins voted with the majority in the case, ruling for the state and against Nashville/ Memphis. He also authored the opinion for a unanimous court, finding for the Republican Party that had not erred in removing Newsom from the primary ballot.
unanimous vote by the General Assembly. Campbell earned a J.D and Masters of Public Policy Degree from Duke University in 2009, where she was managing editor of the Duke Law Journal, and earned a BA degree from the University of Tennessee. Prior to her appointment, Campbell clerked for Justice
Samuel Alito of the US Supreme Court and worked at Williams and Connolly LLP in Washington DC. From 2015 until her appointment, Justice Campbell served in the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office, serving as Associate Solicitor General and Special Assistant to the Attorney General. Campbell is a member
of the Tennessee Bar Association, the American Law Institute, and the Federalist Society. Since joining the Tennessee Supreme Court, Justice Campbell has only recently had a chance to join opinions, as most cases decided recently are from the November 2021 term. She did join the
unanimous majority opinion authored by Justice Bivins in the Robert Starbuck Newsom case, finding that the Republican Party had not erred in removing Newsom from the primary ballot. The Court conclusively rejected Newsom’s arguments, and thus far it is the only opinion she has had the chance to participate in.
clerked for Justice Harry Welford on the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals and practiced law in Memphis at Burch, Porter, and Johnson. In 1990, she became the firm’s first female partner. Justice Kirby was appointed to the Court of Appeals in 1995, becoming the first woman ever to sit on the Court of Appeals and served there until her appointment to the Ten-
nessee Supreme Court. Kirby has served on the Board of Judicial Conduct, the Tennessee Judicial Conference, and the Court of the Judiciary’s independent ethics panel. She is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, the Memphis and Shelby County Bar Association, and the Tennessee Lawyers’ Association for Women. Kirby has received numerous awards as a
distinguished alumna from the University of Memphis. Most recently, Justice Kirby has authored unanimous opinions, in Harris v. Board of Professional Responsibility, upholding the one-year suspension of an attorney for misleading testimony and in Kampmeyer v. State of Tennessee, reevaluating the definition of “timely notice” in Tennes-
see Code for claims against the state. Justice Kirby also dissented in part from the 3-2 split in a high-profile case concerning the “ESA Act’’ school voucher program. The Court ruled against Metro Nashville, but Kirby disagreed, arguing that the Home Rule Amendment should bar the ESA Act from singling out Metro Nashville and Shelby County.
City Attorney for Madisonville. Justice Lee was appointed to the Court of Appeals in 2004, and retained in 2006, becoming the first woman to serve on the Eastern Section of the court. Appointed to the Supreme Court in 2008 and retained in 2014, she served as Chief Justice from 2014 to 2016. Lee is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Lawyers Associa-
tion for Women and the East Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women. In a 2014, Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission report, the Commission expressed positively to Justice Lee’s use of judicial restraint and loyalty to the original intent of interpreting constitutional and legislative provisions. Further, Justice Lee, “professed a jurisprudential
philosophy of deference to the co-equal branches of state government.” In the TN Supreme Court decision that ruled that Governor Lee’s Education Savings Accounts pilot program was not unconstitutional in Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, et al. v. Tennessee Department of Education, et al., Justice Lee alongside Justice Kirby wrote a
separate opinion from the majority concurring and dissenting in part on the ruling. In addition, Justice Lee joined in on the opinion in Robert Starbuck Newsom a/k/a Robby Starbuck v. Tennessee Republican Party, et al. which overturned a lower court’s ruling, and removed TN Congressional District 5 candidate Robby Starbuck from the Republican Primary ballot.
PAGE 22 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
SUPREME COURT, AT LARGE (CONT.) Roger A. Page Justice Roger A. Page is running for reelection for the Tennessee Supreme Court after being sworn in February 2016 by Republican Governor Bill Haslam and elected as Chief Justice in September of 2021. Page began his career as a Circuit Court Judge in 1998, later serving as an appellate judge on the Tennessee Court
of Criminal Appeals. Justice Page also served as a Trial Court Judge in the 26th district, which includes both urban and rural counties. From rural West Tennessee himself, Page believes that his experience as a Trial Court judge gave him a wide variety of experiences and an introduction to a wide range of cases. Page prioritizes respecting everyone in the courtroom, saying “If I mistreat someone, that’s the only impres-
sion that person or spectator would ever have of me.” The ESA Act is Tennessee’s school voucher program championed by Governor Lee, and it allows only Nashville and Memphis students to apply state funding for their public school education towards private school tuition and fees. In this case of Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, et al. v. Tennessee Department of
Education et al, Justice Page voted that the ESA Act does not implicate the Home Rule Agreement, also delivering the opinion. In the case of Robert Starbuck Newsom aka “Robby Starbuck” v. Tennessee Republican Party et al., Robby Starbuck sought to be on the ballot as a Republican candidate for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District for the US House of Representatives. Mr.
Starbuck filed a complaint after the Tennessee Republican Party and the Tennessee Republican Party State Executive Committee determined that he was not a bonafide Republican and excluded him from the ballot, claiming that this violated the Tennessee Open Meetings Act. The court ruled that this did not violate the Tennessee Open Meetings Act, and Justice Page joined in the opinion.
COURT OF APPEALS, EASTERN DIVISION Kristi Davis Kristi Davis was originally appointed to the Court of Appeals, Eastern Division by Republican Governor Bill Lee in 2020. She grew up in the rural Knoxville community of Karns, and graduated cum laude with her Bachelor of Science from
Thomas R. “Skip” Frierson Judge Thomas R. “Skip” Frierson was appointed to the Court of Appeals, Eastern Section by Bill Haslam in 2013 and retained in 2014. Frierson graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 1980. He received his
John W. McClarty John W. McClarty was appointed to Court of Appeals Judge, Eastern Division by Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen in 2009, and retained in 2014. McClarty received his Bachelor of Science in Political Science from Austin Peay State University and went on to serve in the US Army, receiving both the Army Good Conduct Medal
Mike Swiney Judge Mike Swiney has been a Court of Appeals judge since 1999. Swiney obtained a law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1978 and was accepted to the Tennes-
the University of Tennessee and magna cum laude with her Juris Doctor from the University of Tennessee College of Law. Davis went on to clerk for Judge Joseph M. Tipton on the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals before serving as an attorney for Hodges, Doughty, & Carson, PLLC, where she practiced for 14 years. Davis has
served as Knox County Circuit Court Judge since 2014 and as Presiding Judge for the Sixth Judicial District from 20182019. Davis is the second female judge to serve on the Court of Appeals, Eastern Division and the sixth woman to serve on the Court of Appeals. Judge Davis feels “very strongly that our job as judges is simply to interpret
the law that is made. We are not to be activists. It is not our job to impose our policy [preferences] in the cases we decide, that’s the job of the legislature.” She is a member of both the Tennessee and Knoxville Bar Associations, where she is a member of the executive committee, as well as the Tennessee Trial Judges Associa-
tion. She is involved in the Executive Women’s Association and the University of Tennessee’s Chancellor’s Associates program, and has served as a special judge on the Tennessee Supreme Court Workers’ Compensation Panel as well as on the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility’s investigative panel.
Juris Doctor from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1983. He pursued private practice law with Bacon, Dugger, Jessee & Perkins from 1983-1990. In 1990, he was elected as Hamblen County General Sessions Court Judge for the Domestic Relations Court, Probate Court, and as the municipal judge for the City of Morristown. In 1996, he began serving as chancellor
in the Third Judicial District. In May 2022, in the wake of the late Justice Cornelia Clark’s passing, Frierson presided over a Tennessee Supreme Court hearing for Governor Bill Lee’s controversial school voucher Education Savings Account (ESA) program. Frierson contributed to the 3-2 majority that overturned the ruling from lower courts that the law was
unconstitutional, a significant victory for Lee at the end of his first term. He is a past president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference and has served as a Chairperson for their Family Judicial Institute. He was elected a Fellow of the Tennessee Bar Association in 2007. He served as president of the Tennessee Trial Judges Association from 2007-2009
and in 2000 was honored as “Trial Judge of the Year” by the American Board of Trial Advocates, Tennessee Chapter. Frierson is “committed to performing the duties of judicial office impartially, competently, and diligently. [sic] I am fully committed to upholding and promoting the independence, integrity, and impartiality of the judiciary.”
and the Army Commendation Medal in 1973. In 1976, he graduated with his Juris Doctor from the Southern University School of Law in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He began his law career at the Law Office of Jerry Summers from 1976-1978, and went on to work as a solo practitioner at his own practice until his appointment as Court of Appeals Judge in 2009. His prior judicial experience includes serving as
the Hamilton County Juvenile Court Referee and as a Special Judge for the Chattanooga City Court and the Hamilton County Juvenile and General Sessions Courts. When he was appointed as a Court Appeals Judge in 2009, McClarty stated, “I will bring to this appointment a commitment to equal justice under the law for all parties and my belief that the business of the court should be conducted in a manner that demon-
strates respect and dignity for all who come before it.” He is a member of the Chattanooga Bar Association, sat on the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee, and was a Fellow with the American College of Trial Lawyers in 2009. Notably, he also received an “AV” rating from Martindale-Hubbell in 2001, which is the highest rating in the peer-review process
and signifies excellence in skill and integrity. McClarty is a lifetime member of the NAACP and past member of the NAACP Official Board; a past member of the board for Greater Chattanooga Community Services, YMCA Youth Residential Center, past Chairman of the Board for Hamilton County Police Department Civic Service Board; and has also served associate pastor at Warren Chapel A.M.E. Church.
see Bar in 1979. He and his wife live in Knoxville. Swiney was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals in 1999 by Governor Sundquist. He was retained by voters in 2000, 2006, and 2014. His fellow Court of Appeals judges elected him Chief Judge in 2016. Judge
Swiney is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, Knoxville Bar Association, and was an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee College of Law from 1997 to 2006. Swiney has ruled in favor of letting plaintiffs sue a church accused of covering
up sexual assualt cases in John Doe 1, et al v. Woodland Presbyterian, et al; authored an opinion telling state legislators to stop becoming legally involved in a same-sex divorce case due to the divorce case being over and no further lawsuit left to pursue and become
involved in Sabrina Renae Witt v. Erica Christine Witt; and ruled that in the midst of a criminal investigation, Tennessee cannot withhold public records in Scripps Media, Inc., et al v. Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services et al.
July 20 - August 3, 2022
| The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 23
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
COURT OF APPEALS, MIDDLE DIVISION Andy D. Bennett Andy D. Bennett was appointed judge on the Tennessee Court of Appeals in 2007 by Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen, and has held the position through elections in 2008 and 2014. Bennett received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt Uni-
Frank G. Clement Jr. Frank G. Clement Jr. was appointed to the court by Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen in 2003, elected in 2004, and retained in 2006, and 2014. He is the son of former Tennessee Governor Frank G. Clement received his undergraduate degree
W. Neal McBrayer W. Neal McBrayer was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals by Republican Governor Bill Haslam in 2013 and retained the position in 2014 even though McBrayer held no previous experience as a judge. McBrayer received his undergraduate degree from Maryville College in 1986 and
versity in 1979 and his J.D. degree from the Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1982. He worked at the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office from 1982-2007, and was Chief Deputy Attorney General before being appointed to the Court of Appeals. Bennet received the William M. Leech, Jr. Award for outstanding service to the
Tennessee Attorney General’s Office in 1998 and the Marvin Award from the National Association of Attorneys General for “outstanding leadership, expertise and achievement in advancing the goals of the National Association of Attorneys General” in 2004. In Jetmore v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville
and Davidson County, Bennett ruled against the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) concluding that, according to the Tennessee Public Records Act, a person has the right to prompt delivery of records from MNPD and that delaying or limiting access to public records violates the law. The now dissolved Judicial Performance
Evaluation Commission in 2014 recommended Bennett for retention, by a 7-2 vote. Those who voted against retention raised concerns that Bennett’s opinions may lack proper application of judicial precedent and review. Those who voted in favor of retention, the majority, concluded that his service and record justified retention.
from the University of Memphis in 1972 and his J.D. from the Nashville School of Law in 1979. He practiced law privately from 1979 until 1995, when he was appointed to the position of Judge of Division VII of the Circuit Court of Davidson County. He served in that capacity until his appointment to the Court of Appeals.
In 2012, he was awarded the Appellate Court Judge of the Year by American Board of Trial Advocacy. A commission of his peers on the Appellate court reported that Clement Jr. shows “ethical conduct, demonstration of courtesy and respect, and appropriate judicial temperament were particularly noteworthy”. Clement Jr. was recognized as
the Appellate Court Judge of the Year in 2012 by the American Board of Trial Advocacy. He is a Past President of the Nashville Bar Association and a member of the Tennessee and Nashville Bar Associations. A 2013 ruling by then judge Richard Dinkins, but joined by Clement, set legal precedent to allow any government official
to refuse to release documents to a citizen seeking to review, establishing a “deliberative process privilege” that shields the records of policymakers. This received criticism as it holds negative implications for open government in Tennessee. This decision has been upheld and clarified by subsequent Federal Supreme Court rulings.
his J.D.from William & Mary Law School in 1989. From 1989 until his appointment in 2012 McBrayer practiced commercial litigation and bankruptcy law for three different private practice firms in Nashville. He is a past president of the Mid-South Commercial Law Institute. He has written extensively on the law of commercial transactions, includ-
ing his published 2001 Article 9 Forms and Practice Manual. McBrayer has been recognized in “The Best Lawyers in America” and as a Mid-South Super Lawyer. He is a member of Maryville College Board of Directors, the Nashville, Tennessee, and American Bar Associations, and The Harry Phillips American Inn of Court. McBreyer is a member of the Federalist Society, a legal
organization of conservatives and libertarians that advocates for a textualist and originalist interpretation of the United States Constitution. In 2020, McBrayer supported a ruling in Glenn R. Funk v. Scripps Media, Inc., and Phil Williams affirming that fair and accurate news reports of judicial proceedings are protected from defamation claims, unless malicious
intent is proven. McBrayer dissented against a ruling by Judge Dinkins in The Tennessean, et al. v Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, et al., which denied media outlets access to public records being used during the the continuing police investigation and pending prosecution of an alleged rape in a Vanderbilt campus dormitory.
COURT OF APPEALS, WESTERN DIVISION Kenny Armstrong Judge Kenny Armstrong was born in Munford, Tenn. In 2014, Gov. Bill Haslam appointed Armstrong to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Western Section, where he currently presides and was retained in 2016. He holds an undergraduate degree from
Arnold B. Goldin Arnold B. Goldin was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Western Section, by Governor Bill Haslam in 2014 and was retained in 2016. Goldin holds a B.A. from the University of Virginia and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Memphis.
Tennessee State University and a Juris Doctorate from the Duke University School of Law. Armstrong worked for the United States Department of Justice as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and as a legal officer for the U.S. Air Force before moving into private practice in 1978. After 18 years at Higgs, Armstrong, White
& Johnson, Armstrong became Clerk and Master of the Thirtieth District Chancery Court in Memphis. In 2006, he was elected Chancellor of the Thirtieth District Chancery Court, Part III. In a profile published by the Memphis Daily News, Armstrong is described as a “highly competent, highly effective lawyer” and a “life-
long Republican.” In 2009, he made the news when he ruled in favor of Memphis City Schools in the case of The State of Tennessee, ex rel. The Board Of Education Of The Memphis City Schools, et al. v. City Of Memphis, et al. Armstrong ruled that the Memphis City Council broke the law when it drastically cut funding
to city schools, in spite of a ‘maintenance of effort’ statute that requires municipalities to at least match funding from the previous year. He ordered the city to pay $57 million in funds owed to the school board, a decision that was hailed as a victory by the board of education and school advocates in Shelby County.
After receiving his law degree in 1974, Goldin went into private practice, where he litigated civil cases in state and federal courts for nearly 30 years. In 2002, Governor Don Sundquist appointed him chancellor in the Shelby County Chancery Court, where he served for 12 years until his Court of Appeals appointment. In 2004, Goldin received the Chancellor Charles A. Rond
“Judge of the Year Award.” In April, Goldin made the news when he reversed the decision of a trial court judge in the case of Clay County v. AmerisourceBergen Drug Corp. Over a dozen Tennessee counties filed suit against Endo Pharmaceuticals and its parent companies for alleged lax oversight of highly addictive drugs, contributing to the opioid epidemic. Judge
Jonathan Young of the Circuit Court for Cumberland County ruled that Endo and its parent companies were liable by default for concealing documents from the court. He harshly sanctioned the drugmaker and stripped them of their right to legal defense in upcoming stages of the trial. Sparked by an appeal from Endo, Goldin and two other appellate judges ruled
that Judge Young was unfit to preside over the case due to several Facebook posts in which he displayed “clear bias.” Consequently, Goldin reassigned the case to a different court, and threw out Judge Young’s sanctions on the grounds that Young should have recused himself from the start. Goldin, now 73, lives in Memphis and has authored over 300 opinions.
PAGE 24 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
COURT OF APPEALS, WESTERN DIVISION (CONT.) Carma Dennis McGee Judge Carma Dennis McGee was appointed to the Court of Appeals, Western Section, by Bill Lee in 2019, making her the fifth ever wom-
J. Steven Stafford Judge J. Steven Stafford was appointed by Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen to the Court of Appeals, Western Section in 2008 and has retained this position for 14 years. He holds an undergraduate degree from The University of Tennessee at Martin, and a Juris Doctorate from the
an to sit on the court. A native of Savannah, Tenn., she holds an undergraduate degree from Union University and a Juris Doctorate from the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at the University of Memphis. After receiving her law de-
gree in 1998, McGee returned to Savannah and spent the next 15 years practicing privately as a partner at McGee & Dennis. In 2014, Governor Bill Haslam appointed her a chancellor of Tennessee’s Twenty-Fourth District Chancery Court. In
2019, at her appointment ceremony, Governor Lee praised McGee’s leadership and conservative values. McGee stated “I am proud to serve the people of West Tennessee. I pray that God will grant me the wisdom to
be a faithful steward over the responsibilities that He has entrusted to me.” She is a member of the Lawyers Association for Women and the Tennessee Bar Association. She last faced and won a retention vote in August of 2020.
Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. After graduating in 1983, Stafford went into private practice. In 1988, he took on a part-time role as a judge at the Municipal Court in Dyersburg. Five years later, he became a chancellor on the 29th District Chancery Court where he served until his appointment to the Court of Appeals.
Stafford was retained in 2014, and the Tennessee Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission voted unanimously in his favor. The commission praised Stafford for his “professional demeanor” and “collegial nature,” but noted that his written opinions showed “room for improvement.” In 2021, Stafford made the news when he reversed a
Shelby County Circuit Court judge’s decision in the case of Moses v. Terry Roland et al. Stafford overturned the circuit court’s ruling that former Shelby County Commissioner Terry Roland was guilty of defaming Memphis-based organizer and BLM-affiliate Pamela Moses during a county commission meeting. Stafford argued that government officials have full immunity to li-
bel and defamation suits when conducting legitimate government business and struck down the initial ruling, which had been hailed as a victory for activists in Shelby County. Stafford is a member of the Leadership Team for Tennessee’s Committee on Building Public Trust and Confidence in the Judicial System, and is a frequent seminar speaker, specializing in ethics.
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, EASTERN DIVISION Robert H. Montgomery Jr. Robert H. Montgomery Jr. was appointed by Republican Governor Bill Haslam to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals in 2014. He attended Vanderbilt Uni-
James C. Witt Jr. James C. Witt Jr. was appointed to the Court of Criminal Appeals in 1997 by then Republican Governor Don Sundquist and retained in 1998, 2006, and 2014. Witt received his associate’s degree from Hiwassee Col-
versity and earned his J.D. from the University of Tennessee in 1979. Montgomery Jr. practiced law privately in Kingsport, Tenn., from 1979 until 1986 when he became the unemployment appeals referee in the Department of Employment Security for four cities.
In 1987, Montgomery became the Assistant District Attorney for Sullivan County, where he won the President’s Award from the Tennessee District Attorney’s Conference and served as the prosecutor for the Sullivan County Highway Safety Office. Montgomery assumed
the Sullivan County Criminal Court bench in 2006 until his appointment to the Court of Criminal Appeals. As the former vice president and legislative committee chair of the Tennessee Judicial Conference, he served as an instructor for the National District At-
torneys Association and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. He was also a faculty member at Indiana University for Alcohol and Highway Safety. Montgomery has belonged to the Judicial Performance Eva luation Comm ission since 2012.
lege in 1968, his undergraduate degree from Tennessee Wesleyan College in 1970, and his Juris Doctor from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1973. He then circled back to the U.T. College of Law as an adjunct professor. Witt served the Monroe County Juvenile Court from
1979-82. His career also involved time as a counsel on the Monroe County Board of Education, and a Juvenile court referee. He has also served on the Faculty of the Tennessee Judicial Academy and regularly lectures on legal topics. In 2014, the Tennessee Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission unanimously rec-
ommended his retention and in their report noted that “his ratings in oral argument and ethical conduct were particularly noteworthy” but otherwise included little detail on their findings in their report. Witt’s community involvement includes serving as the past president of the Boys & Girls
Club and includes a variety of memberships as the President of Monroe County Bar Association, the Board of Professional Responsibility, the Tennessee Judicial Council, former chairman, board of trustees of Emory & Henry College, Tennessee Wesleyan College, and Hiwassee College.
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, MIDDLE DIVISION Jill Bartee Ayers Jill Bartee Ayers was appointed to the Criminal Court of Appeals by Republican Governor Bill Lee in 2021 and is only the fifth female to hold this position.
Ayers majored in English at Belmont University and attended University of Tennnessee’s College of Law for her JD. She has served as a partner at Batson Nolan PLC in Clarksville, Tennessee, a school board attorney for the Clarksville-Montgom-
ery County School System, and an Adjunct Professor at Austin Peay State University. Ayers ran for her first position on the courts citing the need for a “conservative, qualified candidate.” In 2015, Ayers was appointed as a Circuit Court judge by for-
mer Governor Bill Haslam, covering primarily criminal cases in Montgomery and Robertson Counties. Notably, she has worked with three expungement clinics in partnership with the NAACP, and the Faith and Justice Alliance, among oth-
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPE ALS, MIDDLE DIVISION CONTINUED ON NEX T PAGE
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er organizations. Ayers is an active member in her community, participating in various volunteer and board positions, including Leadership Middle Tennessee, SAFE (Soldiers and Families Embraced), and Tennessee Promise.
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, MIDDLE DIVISION, CONT. Timothy L. Easter Timothy L. Easter was appointed by Republican Governor Bill Haslam to the Criminal Appeals Court in 2014. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree at Lipscomb University, and law degree from the Nashville
Robert L. Holloway Jr. Robert L. Holloway Jr. was appointed as Court of Criminal Appeals Judge in 2014 by Republican Governor Bill Haslam. Holloway Jr., gradu-
Robert W. Wedemeyer Robert W. Wedemeyer was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals by Republican Governor Don Sundquist in 2000, and was retained in 2006 and 2014. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Van-
School of Law. After law school he worked as an assistant district attorney for the 21st Judicial District, and later at the law firm of Rogers & Easter. He joined the 21st Circuit Court in 1998, presiding over Hickman, Lewis, Perry, and Williamson counties in Tennessee. Easter served on
the 21st Circuit Court until his appointment to Criminal Appeals Court. In 2001, Easter was one of the founders of the 21st District Recovery Court. Recovery courts offer people with substance use issues rehabilitation and support services as an alternative to serving jail time for
non-violent, criminal offenses. Easter commented that the people in his courtroom are “children of God, deserving of grace and redemption.” Easter is a member of the Williamson County Bar Association and has served as both the Vice President and Secretary of the Tennessee Judicial Confer-
ence. Additionally, he is part of the Integrated Criminal Justice Committee of Tennessee, which seeks to provide technical infrastructure and systems that share criminal and juvenile justice data among partners of the state such as law enforcement agencies, judicial agencies, and corrections agencies.
ated from Columbia Central Highschool and attended University of Tennessee, where he earned his Bachelor’s and law degree. Following law school, he served as a clerk for Judge James Parrot of the Tennessee Court of Appeals. After his clerkship, he
joined the law firm of Fleming, Holloway, Flynn and Sands. During that time he served as general counsel for Columbia Power and Water Systems, and as general counsel for Kwik Sak. In 1998, he became Circuit Judge of the 22nd Judicial District, presiding over Giles,
Lawrence, Maury and Wayne counties, until his appointment to the Court of Criminal Appeals. Outside of the courtroom, Holloway was Chairman of the Maury County Republican Party; President of the United Way of Maury County; Scoutmaster
for the Boy Scouts; and Deacon at First Presbyterian Church. He was also President of the Kiwanis Club of Columbia, where he was honored with the “George F. Hixson Fellowship” for his significant contributions to the Kiwanis’ history of service and generosity.
derbilt University, and his law degree from the University of Memphis. Following law school he worked in private practice for 13 years. He was appointed as Circuit Judge in the 19th Judicial District in 1990 by Democratic Governor Ned R. McWherter, and was re-elected in 1998 serv-
ing until his appointment to the Court of Criminal Appeals. Outside the courtroom, Wedemeyer frequently lectures at Austin Peay State University, and has taught courses on Family Law and the Death Penalty. He is also faculty for the Tennessee Bar Association and has taught various courses on Criminal Law
basics. In his community, he has served as a Little League Baseball Coach, Soccer Coach, YMCA Basketball Coach, and President of Montgomery County Chapter of American Red Cross. The Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission, published in 2014, although unanimously recommended his reten-
tion, stated that Wedemeyer had “performance with both areas of excellence and potential for self-improvement” and within this report, it was noted that attorneys rated him slightly lower than the other groups, leaving some room for improvement in what was an overall favorable evaluation.
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, WESTERN DIVISION John W. Campbell, Sr. Judge John W. Campbell, Sr. was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, Western Section on January 12, 2022 by Republican Governor Bill Lee.
J. Ross Dyer Judge J. Ross Dyer was appointed to The Court of Criminal Appeals in the Western Division in 2016 by Republican Governor Bill Haslam.
Camille McMullen Judge Camille McMullen was appointed to The Court of Criminal Appeals in 2008 by then Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen, and was retained in 2014. McMullen
Campbell earned his bachelor’s degree in history and his law degree in 1980 from Memphis State University. Campbell served as an Assistant Public Defender in the 30th Judicial District from 1984 to 1985, and then an Assistant District Attor-
ney General from 1985 until 2012 when then Republican Governor Bill Haslam appointed him to Criminal Court Judge of Division VI in 2012. He retained his judgeship in 2014. He has served as a technical advisor to the Nation-
al Civil Rights Museum, has taught on ethics and trial advocacy, and is Chairman of the Education Committee for the Tennessee Judicial Conference. Campbell has stated that he is “passionate about criminal justice, education and the law.” Judge Camp-
bell also is a member of the Diocesan Review Board of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis. This board focuses on evaluating sexual misconduct accusations, and then advises the Bishop of how to proceed to better protect children in these institutions.
Coming from three generations of lawyers and judges, he received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from Millsaps College in 1995 and his J.D. from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in 1998.
He has served as Assistant Attorney General in the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office from 1997 until 2007, when he became Senior counsel and managing attorney for the Memphis office of the Tennessee Attorney Gener-
al. Dyer also served as chief counsel for Shelby County from 2014-2016. Dyer is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association as well as the Memphis Bar Association. Dyer is a board member on Christ Commu-
nity Health Services and Lay Leader, Congregational Elder and Past Chair of Board of Trustees for the Christ United Methodist Church.
is the first African-American woman to serve on an intermediate court in Tennessee. Earning her B.S. degree in political science from Austin Peay State University, McMullen went on to receive her law degree from the University of Tennessee in 1996.
McMullen was Law clerk to Joe G. Riley, Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals from 1996 to 1997, and went on to serve as the Assistant District Attorney General in Shelby County District Attorney’s Office until 2001, and Assistant U.S. Attorney for the
Western District of Tennessee from 2001 until 2008. McMullen received the US DOJ Special Achievement Award in 2005. She is a past board member of Girls Incorporated of Memphis, Tenn., and The Children’s Museum of Memphis, and a member
of Memphis, Tennessee, and National Bar Associations, and the Tennessee Women’s Forum. Judge McMullen has stated that “...I will continue to work tirelessly to ensure the fair and impartial application of the law in each and every case that comes before me.”
PAGE 26 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
BALLOT BREAKDOWN
COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS, WESTERN DIVISION (CONT.) John Everett Williams John Everett Williams was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals’ Western Division by then Republican Governor Don Sundquist, in 1998,
The Charter of The Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, commonly referred to as the “Metro Charter”, established the creation of Metro Nashville and governs it to this day. Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County (often called “Metro Nashville” or “Metro”) is the con-
elected in 2000 and retained in 2006 and 2014. Williams received his law degree from Cumberland School of Law, Samford University in 1981. Before beginning his judicial career, Williams was an attorney with Williams and Williams Attorneys at Law.
Judge Williams is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, and participated in the Tennesseans for Fair and Impartial Courts Project. He lectures frequently on legal topics and is involved in the American
Heart Association, American Cancer Society, and Carroll County Habitat for Humanity, among several other community organizations. In 2014, Williams was unanimously recommended for retention by the Tennessee Judicial Performance
Charter Amendments
solidated city-county structure that governs Davidson County, the City of Nashville, and the municipalities of Belle Meade, Berry Hill, Forest Hills, Oak Hill, and parts of Goodlettsville, which retain their charters, provide police services, and regulate zoning, while being otherwise governed and served by
Metro Nashville. The Metro Charter operates at a local level like the Constitution does at a federal level; it is the legal document and framework explaining what Metro Nashville can do and how those things get done. In essence, the Charter sets up a structure of government, requires
Evaluation Commission. He received notable ratings in giving parties adequate time to be heard in oral arguments as well as demonstrating respect to court personnel. Williams’ judicial philosophy is one that approaches the law practically.
a city budget, and delegates powers, such as setting property taxes, regulating zoning, and establishing public schools. It establishes the City Council, sets term limits, and regulates tax bonds. In addition, it establishes and governs the form of important Metro service departments, including police, fire,
public works, transit, library, and water/sewer. In short, if it happens through the Metro Nashville government, the Metro Charter provides for and regulates it. Amending the Charter is comparable to amending the Constitution; it is a change in the government structure for Metro Nashville.
County would be in line with state standards and every other county in Tennessee, as it changes the floating standard, that requires signatures of 10% of voters who participated in the previous countywide election, to a fixed standard requiring 10% of total registered
voters, in order to get an amendment on the ballot after certification. With its passage, amendments to the Metro Charter would require certification from a Charter Revision Commission, a legal review, and significantly more signatures to get on the ballot.
man Resources to carefully study and adopt appropriate standards to determine whether applicants for positions in MNPD possess the required physical qualifications. This includes conducting physical
examinations and reporting these findings to the Civil Service Commission. This amendment would also further update U.S. citizenship requirements to reflect Tennessee state law.
to occupation but who work outside the medical profession, and are voted in by the board unanimously. The Board of Health will appoint a Director of Health who will oversee the direction of the department with
“respect to all administrative functions of the Metropolitan Government pertaining to.” This amendment will also modernize the language used in the charter by replacing the word “insane” with “mentally ill.”
ARTICLE 19 - Changing Requirements to Alter the Metro Charter The Metro Council, consisting of both Republicans and Democrats, unanimously voted to amend Article 19 of the Metro Charter which would alter the process and timing in which amendments to the charter are to be filed, certified, and placed on the ballots
in Davidson County. This amendment establishes a Charter Revision Commission and requires a legal review of the proposals before certification. It clarifies the timelines for submissions of revisions, and timeline requirements for this process
of certification. It also clarifies that if a petition garners certification, the signature requirement must be met within 90 days to be placed on the ballot. Importantly, it also changes the number of signatures required. With passage of this amendment, Davidson
ARTICLE 8, SECTION 208 - Changing MNPD Physical Qualification Requirements The Metro Council, consisting of both Republicans and Democrats, unanimously voted to amend Article 8, Section 208 of the Metro Charter which would alter the physical qualification requirements for the
Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) proposing that members of the department follow the standards of the civil service commission rather than US Army and Navy standards, at the request of the MNPD.
If this amendment passes, the Civil Service Commission will work with appropriate parties including the Civil Service Medical Examiner’s Office, Metro Nashville Police Department, and Metro Hu-
ARTICLE 10, SECTIONS 101-107,110,208, & 306 - Establishing a Board of Health The Metro Council, consisting of both Republicans and Democrats, unanimously voted to amend Article 10, Sections 101-107,110, 208, & 306 of the Metro Charter to make a clearer distinction between the Board
of Health, and the Metro Health Department; the former being the administrative over see-er of the latter. These changes come as a response to the county’s ability to respond to the pandemic. The amendment creates
and clarifies the makeup of the Board of Health: one doctor and one licensed mental health professional, both having at least 5 years of experience in his or her profession; one registered nurse; and two members, without reference
CHAPTER 4, ARTICLE 8, SECTIONS 401-406 - Creating a Department of Transportation The Metro Council, consisting of both Republicans and Democrats, unanimously voted to amend Chapter 4, Article 8, Sections 401406, to create The Department of Transportation and Multimodal Infrastructure to replace Public Works.
The amendment establishes that the new department will be responsible for the following: the design, construction, and maintenance of all public roads, bridges and other related structures; maintenance of automotive equipment used to perform these functions;
construction and creation of all of all documents and plans needed to execute projects that seek to address community infrastructure needs; overseeing administration and enforcing of licensing and permits; and overseeing the operation of traffic control devices. It also
discusses the qualifications and compensation of the new Director of Transportation. From 2010-2020 the Nashville/ Davidson County population has grown 14.7%, which is double the nation’s average. This amendment could allow Nashville to catch up
to other major cities that use this framework to maintain large populations’ effect on infrastructure. The Metropolitan Government will continue to provide all the services of the former Department of Public Works that fall outside of these tasks.
The following candidates had no information online and did not respond to our emails requesting information, and therefore were not included in this issue: Pime Hernandez, Republican running for Tennessee Senate in District 19.; Christopher Huff, Republican running for Tennessee House of Representatives in District 60.; Lee Jones, Republican running for State Executive Committeewoman in District 20. ; Michael Bono and Joy O’Dell running for Oak Hill City Commissioner. July 20 - August 3, 2022
| The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 27
FUN
HOBOSCOPES CANCER
The little, round, yellow tomatoes from the garden are sweet and the oblong red ones are more sour. I’ve been chopping up the red ones to mix in with beans or pasta or scrambled eggs whenever I remember. But the yellow ones, I just eat right out of the bowl on the counter. I’m just letting you know, Cancer, because sometimes it helps to pay attention to the subtle differences. You’ve got plenty of great tomatoes. If you organize them, you might enjoy them more.
LEO
As an amateur astrologer I pay a lot of attention to the stars and the planets. But recent advancements in telescopic imaging have shown me that the sky has more going on than I’d previously thought. So I still look to the 5,000 visible stars and the 88 constellations that have always served me so well. But now I know that the sky is filled with trillions of galaxies, each teeming with millions of stars creating who knows how many constellations from countless points of view. We do what we can, Leo, with the data we have available. Then when new data arrives, we do even better.
VIRGO
I understand why you don’t want to talk about it, Virgo. Because what if you talk about it and it comes true? Sometimes fear feels that way. Like you’ve got to keep it way down there all covered up and quiet. Maybe practice saying it with nobody around. Just get a little sunlight on it. Try saying your fear out loud when you’re alone. Do that till it feels OK. Then I’d say you’re safe to share it with somebody else. Sometimes when you get it out into the light, it doesn’t look like much of anything. But even if it stays scary, you’ll have us there to back you up.
LIBRA
It’s not so much the heat, Libra. It’s the futility. You wake up to face the day. The day faces you back. By the time you turn around to lock your door, the sweat has started dripping down your neck. It just makes everything a little harder. Libra. It’s not that anything went wrong, it’s just exhausting accomplishing the basics on a day like this. Give yourself a break. You worked your shift. Go ahead and collapse into the air conditioning. You can get back to 100 percent when the humidity drops below 30 percent.
SCORPIO
The speed of light doesn’t upset me too much most of the time. I guess I understand that light bounces off my cat and then it hits my eye and I experience it as instantaneous. But I also understand that scientists are pointing telescopes at stars so far away, that the light we’re seeing is from billions of years ago. I wonder, Scorpio, if anybody out there is watching us. And if they are, how far away are they? Are they watching Earth 1996? Or maybe 2011? What version of you do you hope they see? When were you at your best? I think it’s right now, Scorpio. Because right now you can make a choice about what to do next. You should come see what my cat is doing.
SAGITTA R IUS
Sometimes, Sagittarius, when I’m watching a movie I think about how strange it is that I’m in front of the screen, tuning out everything else and my brain is letting me pretend that what I’m seeing and hearing is all that there is. And afterward, I go outside and look around and I have to wonder if I’m still just pretending. If things are getting dramatic, Sagittarius, remember that there is so much more going on outside your field of view. You may just need a change of scenery.
CAPRICORN
They say birds of a feather flock together, Capricorn. They also say opposites attract. I think they’re just trying to cover all their bases. I say spend your time with whomever makes you feel the most yourself, Capricorn. Whether it’s birds, or…whatever the opposite of birds are. Maybe turtles?
AQUA RIUS
Today I saw a picture of a dying star in a nebula 2,000 light years away. It has already shed its outer layers, creating a fluorescing cloud of ultraviolet light. It’s so beautiful and also somehow sad. It’s been collapsing for thousands of years. And will still be fading out for thousands more. Long after I’m gone, it will still be diminishing. But the gradual extinguishing of a star still feels like a lesson in impermanence, Aquarius. Nothing lasts. Be a light.
PISCES
It’s hot, Pisces, and you need a pool. A pool where you can cool off, relax, and enjoy the water. A pool where you can jump and dive and splash until the sun drops below the horizon. A pool where you can see the reflection of the moon and then notice your own captivating visage. You stare into your own eyes. You want to be with the person that you see but when you reach out, you disturb the water and ripples disfigure the face you sought to cradle. You crouch at the edge wanting something you can never have, not comprehending that what you seek is to truly understand and love yourself. It’s hot, Pisces, and you need a pool.
ARIES
So let me get this straight, Aries. We’re basically just made of chemicals? Like oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, that’s pretty much us? And those chemicals form molecular compounds and the molecules form cells and the cells expend energy and the energy requires fuel and the fuel is more chemicals and that’s why we’ve been waiting in line for 25 minutes at this hot dog cart? You’re more than the sum of your parts, Aries. Whatever you’re made of, that’s not you. You’re the one at the front of the line, demanding to be taken seriously even though you only want a dry bun with two pickles on it.
TAURUS
I’ve seen all these amazing pictures of the sky this week, Taurus. And it’s all really beautiful and exciting and humbling. It’s great. But I’m confused about one thing. Where are all the aliens? I figured with this level of technology we’d be able to see all the other earths with all the other people with all their other telescopes. But…nothing so far. Makes me feel a little lonely, Taurus. But here we are. Just you, me, and the other seven and a half billion people on this planet. Feeling lonely and waiting for someone new to fix it. While we wait, Taurus, maybe we should meet some of the folks in our own neighborhoods. Just to pass the time. Until the aliens show up.
GEMINI
I love those shoes, Gemini. They’re so noticeable and classy and unique and they work perfectly with your whole…thing. But are they comfortable? I’m not trying to start anything here, Gemini, I just want to make sure you’re prioritizing yourself at least as much as you prioritize your image. I mean, keep those shoes, they’re amazing. But please tell me you’ve got something comfortable in the car.
Mr. Mysterio is not a licensed astrologer, a trained astronomer, or a registered cobbler Mr. Mysterio is, however, a budding intermediate podcaster! Check out The Mr. Mysterio Podcast. Season 2 is now playing at mrmysterio.com. Got a question, just give Mr. M a call at 707-VHS-TAN1
PAGE 28 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
VENDOR WRITING
ROE IS DEAD! May She Rest in Peace BY JEN A., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR Considered settled precedent for 49 years, Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that recognized a woman’s right to make reproductive decisions about her own body, recently evaporated into the penumbra of its constitutional foundation. Though it is extremely rare for Supreme Court precedent to be overturned, writing for the Court, Associate Justice Samuel Alito proclaimed, “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.” His opinion went downhill from there. I, for one, am happy to see it go. Dogeared and emaciated by con-
stant attacks from so-called religious groups, the Roe baby has finally been taken off life-support and not-so-respectfully laid to rest. It never seemed enough that if a woman thought abortion morally wrong, that she just not have one. In his concurrence to the Roe decision, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the Court intends to move on in subsequent sessions to reverse other precedents like, Griswold, that made access to birth control legal in the U.S. The Court is now issuing blatant threats against women’s rights. They’re
coming for us and not even trying to pretend they’re not. So what are women to do when the Supreme Court seems hell-bent on denying us any rights to our bodies? If precedent and laws that can be overturned at their whim are not enough, our only recourse to protect ourselves is with a constitutional amendment. We need to bring women’s rights out of the penumbra of the fourteenth amendment into the full sunlight of the Constitution. Only then, will our human rights be respected and protected. Women have been used and for-
gotten throughout history. I don’t even know the maiden name of my paternal great- grandmother. No one thought it was important enough to write it down. Our own Constitution was crafted by men who considered women as little more than property. How has this disrespect gone on for so long? The Supreme Court decision to strike down Roe demeans every American: female an male alike. It takes a woman’s agency and leaves her exposed to grave bodily harm. In Tennessee, a girl as young as nine or
10 could be forced to carry the fetus of her father or her brother to term. I wonder who exactly Tennessee’s laws are meant to protect. It certainly isn’t that young girl or the deformed fetus she’s infected with. At the end of the day, ladies, there is much work to be done. Watch over your sisters. Band together for support and protection. We must fight on. Don’t allow our daughters to believe they are nothing in the eyes of the law. I’m sure we’ll get to our promised land in due course. It’s just too sad to believe we won’t.
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July 20 - August 3, 2022
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PAGE 30 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
VENDOR WRITING
TWO SIDES
SLAVE’S CRAVING
Nobody wants to admit they’re wrong. Why can’t we all learn to get along? Change is un-pleasant, un-tried and un-true. But it’s you who decides, what you think’s best for you. If you choose to help the homeless, you’re going to get hurt. It’s a hard lesson learned, to live by those words. Some you can help and some you can’t, So just, move on to the next, And help the rest of them.
A slave’s forced to work, Ignoring the hurt, Because the craving’s saying, “Never Enough.” Punishing themselves, With one more trip to Hell, Like time well-spent with the one they Love. The Voices of Reason, Like noise in the wind. They talk behind your back, About the mess that you’re in. Again and again, And when will it end? The needle is your lover, And the drug’s your best friend.
Written by Chris Scott Fieselman
There are Two Sides to every story. And two very different sides of the fence. Don’t settle for less than victory, At your enemy’s expense. There are those who are for, Evening up the score, And those who stand firmly against. A place to call home and an open door, For every Red-Blooded-American. Now, peace between adversaries, Can be found upon common ground. The secret ingredients Mercy. Not enough of it to go around. Everybody loses and nobody wins, Till somebody chooses, Something new to begin. We’ve got a big problem, We’ve got the solution, And we’ve got an opportunity. What better place to start? Then the Heart of Country, Music City, Nashville, Tennessee. There are Two Sides to every story. And two very different sides of the fence. Don’t settle for less than victory, At your enemy’s expense. There are those who are for, Evening up the score, And those who stand firmly against. A place to call home and an open door, For every Red-Blooded-American. We know, It’s all about the money, And those who want to know, “What’s in it for me?” How does, Helping the homeless, Advance my career? Or benefit me politically? There are Two Sides to every story. And two very different sides of the fence. Don’t settle for less than victory, At your enemy’s expense. There are those who are for, Evening up the score, And those who stand firmly against. A place to call home and an open door, For every Red-Blooded-American
July 20 - August 3, 2022
Written by Chris Scott Fieselman
Trying to get the money, To fill the next needle. The Slaves that crave the taste of Hell. Anticipation’s the sensation, Overtakes them again. That daily medication, Upon which they depend. “The Needle and The Spoon” And that trip to the moon. Another innocent young victim, Ends up dying too soon. Heading down a Dead-End Road, Is all they know. What happened to them? Way back when, so long ago. It’s win or lose… It’s life or death… They sold their very soul, So, they can try to forget. Like that Lynyrd Skynyrd song, Ooh-Ooh “That Smell.” The Slaves that crave the taste of Hell. A life of confinement, In a padded cell. And the people with the key, Are way too busy to help. I know what that’s like. I know how they feel. A desperate appetite, For what might, Be their last meal. I Survived, By the Grace of God. With a Calling on My Life, And Burden on My Heart. I am what I am, All because of my past. To him who has been given much, Much more will be asked. I pray I make a difference. What I say may help. The Slaves that crave the taste of Hell.
| The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 31
The New Christian Year Selected by Charles Williams
Charles Walter Stansby Williams (1886–1945), the editor of the following selections, is today probably the third most famous of the famous Inklings literary group of Oxford, England, which existed in the middle of the 20th century, and which included among its ranks the better-known and longer-lived Oxford Dons J.R.R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. First published in 1941, this series of profound quotations, encompassing all walks of life, follows the sequence of the themes and Bible readings anciently appointed for contemplation throughout the church's year. It is hoped that the readings reproduced here will prove beneficial for any who read them, whatever their place in life's journey. — Matthew Carver
6th Wednesday after Trinity
The Feast of St James
FOR there is no pride, but that it may be healed through the meekness of God's Son; there is no covetize but that it may be healed through His poverty; no wrath but that it may be healed through His patience: nor malice but that it may be healed through His charity. And moreover there is no sin or wickedness, but that he shall want it and be kept from it, the which beholdeth inwardly and loveth and followeth the words and the deeds of that man in whom God's Son gave Himself to us into example of good living. Wherefore now both men and women and every age and every dignity of this world is stirred to hope of everlasting life. Mirror of the Blessed Life of Jesus Christ, (trs. by Nicholas Love).
HERE we may see the great virtue of true belief in that the faith and the belief of one man helpeth and saveth another: as the faith of the bearers of this paralysed man saved him. And also in the next chapter before the faith of the centurion gave healing to his servant. And also hereafter the faith of the woman saved her daughter. And so it falleth now that children baptised, and after dead before the years of discretion, be saved in the faith of their godfathers through the merit of Christ. Mirror of the Blessed Life of Jesus Christ, (trs. by Nicholas Love).
6th Thursday after Trinity WHOEVER has admitted this tyranny of pride within suffers this loss first of all, that from the eyes of his heart being closed, he loses the equitableness of judgement. For even all the good doings of others are displeasing to him and the things which he has done, even amiss, alone please him. He always looks down on the doings of others, he always admires his own doings; because whatever he has done he believes he has done with singular skill; and for that which he performs for desire of glory, he favours himself in his thought; and when he thinks he surpasses others in all things, he walks with himself along the broad spaces of his thought and silently utters his own praises. St Gregory: On the Book of Job.
6th Friday after Trinity HOW many maggots remain in hiding until they have destroyed our virtues. These pests are such evils as self-love, self-esteem, rash judgement of others in small matters, and a want of charity in not loving our neighbour quite as much as ourselves. Although, perforce, we satisfy our obligations to avoid sin, yet we fall far short of what must be done in order to obtain perfect union with the will of God. St Teresa: The Interior Castle.
6th Saturday after Trinity OTHER sins find their vent in the accomplishment of evil deeds, whereas pride lies in wait for good deeds to destroy them. St Augustine: Epistle. THE impossible is still temptation. The impossible, the undesirable, voices under sleep, waking a dead world, so that the mind may not be whole in the present. T. S. Eliot: Murder in the Cathedral.
7th Monday after Trinity HOLD fast this short and summary saying—"Leave all, and you shall find all; leave your desires and you shall find rest." Give your mind to this, and when you have put it into practice, you shall understand all things. Thomas à Kempis: Imitation.
BEING to ourselves what God ought to be to us, He is no more to us than we are to ourselves. This secret identification of ourselves with God carries with it our isolation from Him. Barth: Epistle to the Romans.
7th Tuesday after Trinity I HAVE a mind to draw a complete character of a worldly-wise man . . . He would be highly-finished, useful, honoured, popular—a man revered by his children his wife, and so forth. To be sure, he must not expect to be beloved by one proto-friend [best friend], and, if there be truth or reason in Christianity, he will go to hell—but, even so, he will doubtless secure himself a most respectable place in the devil's chimney-corner. Coleridge: Table Talk.
THY word remaineth for ever, which word now appeareth unto us in the riddle of the clouds, and through the mirror of the heavens, not as it is: because that even we, though the well beloved of thy Son, yet it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. He looked through the lattice of our flesh, and he spake us fair, yea, he set us on fire, and we hasten on his scent. But when he shall appear, then shall we be like him, for we shall see him as he is: as he is, Lord, will our sight be, through the time be not yet. St Augustine: Confessions.
LORD, I perceive my soul deeply guilty of envy . . . I had rather thy work were undone than done better by another than by myself! . . . Dispossess me, Lord, of this bad spirit, and turn my envy into holy emulation; . . . yea, make other men's gifts to be mine, by making me thankful to thee for them. Thomas Fuller: Good Thoughts in Bad Times. TO thee, O God, we turn for peace . . . but grant us too the blessed assurance that nothing shall deprive us of that peace, neither ourselves, nor our foolish, earthly desires, nor my wild longings, nor the anxious cravings of my heart. Kierkegaard: Journals. WHAT did He, in loving us, love, but God in us? not who was in us, but so that He might be? Wherefore let each of us love the other, as that by this working of love, we make each other the habitations of God. St Augustine, quoted in Aquinas: Catena Aurea.
Seventh Sunday after Trinity IF you have no will but to all goodness, everything you meet, be it what it will, must be forced to be assistant to you. For the wrath of an enemy, the treachery of a friend, and every other evil, only helps the Spirit of Love to be more triumphant to live its own life and find all its own blessings in an higher degree. Whether therefore you consider perfection or happiness, it is all included in the Spirit of Love and must be so, for this reason, because the infinitely perfect and happy God is mere love, an unchangeable will to all goodness; and therefore every creature must be corrupt and unhappy so far as it is led by any other will than the one will to all goodness. William Law: The Spirit of Love.
7th Wednesday after Trinity IT is the sign of a reasoning soul when a man sinks his mind within himself and has dealings in his heart. St Seraphim of Sarov. THE enthusiasm for goodness which shows that it is not the habit of the mind. Patmore: The Rod, the Root, and the Flower.
7th Thursday after Trinity
Sixth Sunday after Trinity
7th Saturday after Trinity
ABSOLUTE poverty is thine when thou canst not remember whether anybody has ever owed thee or been indebted to thee for anything; just as all things will be forgotten by thee in the last journey of death. Tauler: Sermons.
7th Friday after Trinity I AM no companion for myself, I must not be alone with myself, for I am as apt to take as to give infection; I am a reciprocal plague; passively and actively contagious; I breathe corruption, and breathe it upon myself; and I am the Babylon that I must go out of, or I perish. Donne: Sermons.
8th Monday after Trinity LOVE and the good life are needful to right belief. Wycliffe: Quicunque Vult. THOU hast not commanded us continency alone, that is, from what things we should refrain our love: but justice also, that is, which way we should bestow that love: and, that it is not thy will to have us love thee only, but our neighbor also. St Augustine: Confessions.
8th Tuesday after Trinity BEG our Lord to grant you perfect love for your neighbour, and leave the rest to Him. He will give you more than you know how to desire if you constrain yourselves and strive with all your power to gain it, forcing your will as far as possible to comply in all things with your sisters' wishes, although you may sometimes forfeit your own rights by so doing. Forget your self-interests for theirs, however much nature may rebel; when opportunity occurs take some burden upon yourself to ease your neighbour of it. St Teresa: The Interior Castle.
PAGE 32 | July 20 - August 3, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE
