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.”
