Tag Archives: Tennessee

NewsNation reports: Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed into law the Medical Ethics Defense Act, which lets health care practitioners refuse to perform or pay for a procedure or prescription that goes against their personal morals, ethics, or religious beliefs. The legislation, which applies to medical professionals, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and insurance companies, immediately went into effect with Gov. Lee’s …

“Where was the Constitution when the Patriot Act was passed? Right, give me a break. Like, I had to be molested at the airport to go to Florida, right, just to get on an airplane, just because I’m not going to go through the ‘gay beam’ machine. I didn’t let CJ do it, I wouldn’t let him do it. “I …

The Tennessee Lookout reports: The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to take up Senate Bill 936 Tuesday, a measure declaring it is state policy that only biological males and females exist in Tennessee, despite the presence of multiple transgender residents at legislative meetings. Sponsored by Republican Sen. Paul Rose of Covington, the bill contains a broad amendment requiring local governments …

Johnson City’s ABC affiliate reports: A bill to make public school systems require students seeking to enroll to show documentation of U.S. citizenship or legal status passed Tennessee’s Senate Education Committee 5-4 Wednesday. The bill, which is co-sponsored by Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City) in the Senate, would allow public school systems to charge tuition to students who aren’t documented in …

The Tennessean reports: A former Southern Baptist pastor and seminary professor won’t serve jail time after lying to federal investigators in the first and potentially only felony conviction to emerge from an abuse-related investigation into the nation’s largest Protestant denomination. The Department of Justice began investigating the Southern Baptist Convention in late 2022 following a third-party report on clergy sexual …

“I am grateful to move HJR0051 forward with a positive recommendation to the State and Local Committee. I believe it is important to seek Almighty God’s hand of blessing in our state. As our Founders sought His help, I think it is important to seek His help today. If we are to pass on a free and prosperous state to …

The Hill reports: The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a challenge to a Tennessee law restricting some drag performances, allowing the first-in-the-nation law to remain largely intact. In a brief, unsigned order, the justices denied a Tennessee theater company’s request to intervene in its challenge to the state’s limits on drag, first enacted in 2023 by the Republican-dominated Legislature. …

Chattanooga’s NBC affiliate reports: A Cleveland pastor has plead guilty to sexual exploitation of a minor after investigators uncovered child sexual abuse material on his laptop. In the summer of 2023, the Cleveland Police Department (CLPD) received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. At the time, Sentell was the senior pastor at Cornerstone Church of …

Memphis’s CBS affiliate reports: A priest at a church in West Memphis, Arkansas has been arrested in connection with a case involving two cats who police say appeared to have been drowned, city officials said Tuesday. Charles Thessing, 63, is listed in the Crittenden County jail log, charged with two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals. On Feb. 7, West …

Tennessee’s Greenville Sun reports: Eliminating the minting of new pennies could come at significant cost to Greene County. Tusculum-based Artazn LLC is the U.S. Mint’s sole supplier of cent planchets, the blank discs stamped into pennies.  The former Jarden Zinc Products was purchased in 2019 by a Los Angeles-based private equity firm. Americans for Common Cents, a pro-penny group with Artazn among …

The Tennessee Mountain Press reports: A Sevier County grand jury has charged the pastor of a local church with rape of a child and five counts of sexual battery. Sixty-nine-year-old Dwight Daniel Suttles was booked at the Sevier County Jail Tuesday night, according to arrest warrants. He was charged through a sealed presentment issued by a Sevier County grand jury, …

Jackson, Tennessee’s ABC affiliate reports: 40-year-old Ryan Kelley McElrath is charged with statutory rape by an authority figure, sexual battery by an authority figure, and aggravated statutory rape. The charges stem from a May 2024 incident that occurred at Fellowship Bible Church in Jackson. McElrath was working as a youth pastor at the church at the time. Records show that …

Nashville’s ABC affiliate reports: In a 26-7 vote, state senators approved SB6002 Wednesday, which will create criminal penalties (Class E felony) for officials who adopt sanctuary policies. According to the bill’s text, officials can also be removed upon conviction. State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) spoke during the hearing. He said he believes the bill is unconstitutional and restricts lawmakers’ ability …

Nashville’s NBC affiliate reports: For as long as he can remember, Gunner Joseph Fisher, 18, has thought about mass murder. “When I was a f**king child, before I even got into school, I saw crowds of people and (fantasized) about someone mowing them down.” Driven by a hatred of Jews, African Americans and Muslims, Fisher believed he was “bound to …

The Chattanooga Free Press reports: The Tennessee Federation of Republican Women is coming under fire for providing parents a reading list for children that cites Adolf Hitler as an example of leadership. “Hitler and all intelligent leaders throughout history have understood that the way to change a country was through the training of its youth, to get them while they …

Nashville’s NBC affiliate reports: Two students are dead and another student was injured after a shooting inside Antioch High School on Wednesday. According to police, two students were shot by another in the cafeteria. The shooter then turned the gun on himself. One female student and the shooter are dead. “We know at 11:09 a.m. a person who has been …

Axios reports: Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) has been making calls and telling people she is likely to make a bid for governor, D.C. and Tennessee sources tell Axios. Blackburn would be a formidable contender in the 2026 gubernatorial race. She would be running to be the first female governor in the state’s history. State and federal elected officials have been …

404 Media reports: Almost two years ago, Louisiana passed a law that started a wave that’s since spread across the entire U.S. south, and has changed the way people there can access adult content. As of today, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina join the list of 17 states that can’t access some of the most popular porn sites on the …

The Tennessean reports: Police have arrested a suspect in connection to dozens of gunshots reportedly fired at Global Vision Bible Church Pastor Greg Locke’s home, garage and vehicle at the time late night on Sept. 3 in western Wilson County. Tyler Poole, 20, of Hermitage, is charged with aggravated assault, four counts of reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon, and …

The New York Post reports: A Tennessee state senator has been arrested on a DUI charge after he was filmed allegedly failing a sobriety test following a drunken hit-and-run crash in Georgia. Rep. Ken Yager, 77, was caught on camera stumbling around as troopers tried to make him walk in a straight line on Jekyll Island at about 5 p.m. …