Category: News

As it stands, getting caught with marijuana in Tennessee could leave you with a criminal record or even jail time. But a measure to decriminalize the drug has made it through one vote at Nashville’s Metro Council.
While legalizing pot is a hard sell to some, the push to decriminalize the substance has picked up steam in cities and states across the country, according to Kate Bell, legislative counsel with the Marijuana Policy Project.
“The greatest harm associated with the consumption of marijuana is getting a criminal record for it,” Bell said. “Decriminalization is essentially the removal of criminal penalties. So it’s still illegal, but it’s treating it more like a parking or a traffic ticket.”
Twenty states have passed laws to stop jailing those possessing small amounts of marijuana, at least for a first offense. In Tennessee, possession of any amount of marijuana can result in up to a year in prison and as much as $2,500 in fines.
Opponents to the measure said it would eliminate a strong deterrent against breaking the law.
While convincing southern lawmakers to legalize pot can feel like heavy lifting, Bell said, there is much less resistance in the general public, where views on marijuana have shifted.
“It is absolutely true that the population in the United States is far, far ahead of the politicians on this issue,” Bell said. “And I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that people have realized that this is a much safer alternative to alcohol.”
Neighboring states Mississippi and North Carolina have passed laws that decriminalized possession of small amounts of marijuana.
More information on marijuana laws in Tennessee, visit mpp.org.

 

Gas prices are on the rise, as crude oil got more expensive last week. Oil prices hit their highest level in more than a month. Since last Sunday, the state average for a gallon of gas rose 4 cents in Tennessee.
The average price of gasoline is $1.95 in Tennessee. On Sunday, the state average rose for the sixth consecutive day in Tennessee. Although gas prices rose slightly this week, they are still well below year-ago levels by 32 cents in Tennessee.
“Gas prices are likely to get more expensive through the rest of the week as retail prices adjust to the oil price hike,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA – The Auto Club Group. “The weekly average for oil rose about $4 which could translate to a 10 cent hike at the pump. It usually takes a couple of weeks for retail prices to fully adjust to the oil price shift.

Tennessee’s unemployment rate for July was 4.3 percent, up two-tenths of a percentage point from the June rate of 4.1 percent. That’s according to Tennessee Labor Commissioner Burns Phillips.
Even with the slight increase this month, the unemployment rate in Tennessee has declined 1.3 percent since July of 2015.
The U.S. rate for July was 4.9 percent, unchanged from the previous month.
Over the past year, Tennessee’s unemployment rate decreased from 5.6 percent to 4.3 percent, while the national rate declined from 5.3 percent to 4.9 percent.

Motlow State Community College will offer a “sunny” welcome to both new and returning Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect students arriving on campus beginning next week with a special celebration at each of the Motlow State Moore County, Fayetteville, McMinnville and Smyrna campuses.
Under the theme “My Future’s So Bright,” Tennessee Promise and Reconnect students will be invited to participate in a variety of activities during the college’s annual Welcome to Campus celebrations, including writing down their visions of their futures on a special banner and taking a “future selfie” dressed in graduation attire or other gear associated with their future careers. A limited number of sunglasses will also be given away to attendees.
“As the second class of Tennessee Promise students arrive, and the first class returns, we want to give them a little extra recognition and make their first days on campus exciting,” said Rhonda Cotham, director of student success at Motlow State. “These students have taken a big step toward ensuring their futures are indeed bright. We want to show them that we are dedicated to helping them succeed.”
Tennessee Promise, now in its second year, is a state program offering two years of free tuition at one of the state’s 13 community colleges or 27 colleges of applied technology in the state for any student graduating from a Tennessee high school. More than 16,000 students enrolled in the first Tennessee Promise class in fall 2015, contributing to a 10.1 percent increase in overall first-time freshman enrollment in Tennessee public higher education in the fall of 2015 over the previous year. The Tennessee Reconnect program is a newer program for eligible older Tennesseans to return to college.
“Starting with Governor Bredesen, and now elevated by Governor Haslam, we are grateful for the Tennessee Promise and for the hopes and dreams that this will provide to a whole new generation of Tennesseans who might otherwise never have had the opportunity to go to college,” said Dr. Anthony Kinkel, Motlow president.

On June 24 Jessica Campos age 28 of Murfreesboro, was killed when her car was struck by a vehicle driven by Garieon Simmons of Decherd.
Authorities were pursuing Simmons after he reportedly stole a Cadillac Escalade from the Coffee County Funeral Chapel on the McMinnville Highway in Manchester. At times Simmons was allegedly traveling on the wrong side of the road including Interstate 24, at a reported high rate of speed.
The family of Campos has filed a $10 million lawsuit. Campos’ husband, Edgar Campos, filed the lawsuit in Rutherford County and has now added more defendants after the original suit was filed. Added to the suit are; the City of Manchester, Coffee County and the company that owns and operates Coffee County Funeral Chapel. Campos is represented by David Randolph Smith & Associates of Nashville and also Ivan Lopez.
Previous defendants are still named; Simmons, the Coffee County and Rutherford County sheriff’s departments and Manchester Funeral Home and its owner, Tim Kilgore.
The amended suit now claims that Simmons only took the vehicle for “joyriding.” The new accusations state that Simmons only took the SUV to use it for a “joyride,” and that Kilgore “needlessly and recklessly acted initially to create the risks and dangers” that lead to Campos’ death. It added that Simmons “was well within his rights to flee from the reckless actions of Defendant Kilgore in fear for his own safety.”
Katrina Sadler was driving the third vehicle involved in the crash and the same law firm is said to have filed a suit on her behalf.

Over the past 15 years Bonnaroo has given back to Coffee County in many ways including the county receiving money off of ticket sales.
$3 is collected from tickets and a $30,000 flat fee. The amount received has averaged around $250,000 per year until this year. Normally Bonnaroo sells around 80,000 tickets. The past June organizers only sold 43,870 tickets for the 2016 event. The total from the ticket sales and the $30,000 flat fee amounted to just $161,611.
County officials say despite getting some $92,000 less, the county is in good financial shape because of the fund balance for this fiscal year is $2 million, which is reported to be much better than some years in the past.
Bonnaroo is set to return to Coffee County in June of 2017.

“September is National Preparedness Month.”  The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, Tennessee Association of Broadcasters and WMSR are reminding you how important it is to be ready for disasters and emergencies. Take some time to prepare an emergency kit for your home, office, and vehicle, and have an emergency plan so you and your family are ready.  Visit www.tnema.org for information on how to prepare, plan and be informed.”
The Tennessee Emergency Management Agency and the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters, and its members, will conduct a statewide test of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) to deliver a voluntary Emergency Alert System (EAS) message and a Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) at 2:30 p.m. CDT/3:30 p.m. EDT, on Thur., Sept. 1, 2016. A National Test is planned for Wednesday, September 28, 2016, with more information to be released later.

The number of people taking public transit in Tennessee is on the rise, according to the Tennessee Public Transportation Association and citizen groups are beginning to organize to make sure their city maintains and improves its local bus service. The Memphis Bus Riders Union met with the area Amalgamated Transit Union Local 713 to discuss how cuts to bus service and route consolidation are affecting their communities.
Justin Davis, secretary for the Memphis Bus Riders Union said it’s time for the entire region to recognize the importance of public transit.
“Transit is definitely a big issue in the South,” he said. “The South spends the least on public transit out of any region in the country, so we’ve been in contact with some other riders’ advocacy groups throughout the South.”
Davis said Nashville bus riders are also looking to organize to advocate for better transit in that city. He said one concern is that cutting bus routes and services has a disproportionate impact on economically-depressed neighborhoods and minority residents.
But some cities are recognizing the benefits of public transit. Johnson City now has a real-time passenger information system that people can access on their mobile devices. Chattanooga, Clarksville, Cookeville and Murfreesboro all have recently expanded their services. Davis said public transit benefits more than just people without cars.
“Transit has so many potential benefits that a lot of policymakers don’t really see, and I think that’s just part of our job,” he added. “Representing riders is getting that message out there, making sure that people understand just how important transit really is, especially when we have so many cars on the road.”
In 2012, the most recent data available, 35 million trips were taken on public transportation in the Volunteer State, with riders traveling more than 51 million miles that year alone.