First Came the Warning Signs. Then a Teen Opened Fire on a Nashville School.
Tennessee authorities were alerted to Solomon Henderson’s threatening and violent behavior long before he brought a gun to Antioch High School. It’s unclear how many red flags were heeded.
Tennessee Lawmakers Push to Change How the State Disarms Dangerous People to Better Protect Domestic Violence Victims
The GOP-sponsored bill would provide more transparency when a court orders someone to give up their firearms. The move follows WPLN and ProPublica reporting that found the state’s lax gun laws allow weapons to remain in the hands of domestic abusers.
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Two Families Sue After 11-Year-Old and 13-Year-Old Students Were Arrested Under Tennessee’s School Threat Law
The lawsuits, filed in federal court this month, argue East Tennessee school officials violated students’ rights by calling the police on them under Tennessee’s threats of mass violence law.
A 13-Year-Old With Autism Got Arrested After His Backpack Sparked Fear. Only His Stuffed Bunny Was Inside.
Disability rights advocates said kids like Ty should not be getting arrested under Tennessee’s school threats law. And they tried to push for a broader exception for kids with other kinds of disabilities. It didn’t work.
An 11-Year-Old Denied Making a Threat and Was Allowed to Return to School. Tennessee Police Arrested Him Anyway.
A state law makes threats of mass violence at school a felony, even if they’re not credible. Judges and school officials say the law unnecessarily traumatizes kids.
In Rural Tennessee, Domestic Violence Victims Face Barriers to Getting Justice. One County Has Transformed Its Approach.
Despite being a rural area that’s steeped in gun culture, Scott County has emerged as a model for the state in trying to prevent domestic violence from escalating.
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Despite Outcry Over Seclusion at Juvenile Detention Centers, Tennessee Lawmakers Fail to Pass Oversight Bill
The legislation, sponsored by two prominent Republicans, had backing from the Department of Children’s Services and would have cost the state nothing. Child welfare advocates are baffled as to why it failed.
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Tennessee Lawmakers Want More Oversight of Juvenile Detention. The Department of Children’s Services Is Pushing Back.
New legislation would shift enforcement power to an independent agency after a WPLN and ProPublica investigation found that a Knoxville detention center was illegally locking kids alone in cells.
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Knoxville’s Juvenile Detention Center Says Hundreds of Seclusions Were “Voluntary.” Some Kids Don’t See It That Way.
Tennessee says the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center is improving when it comes to illegally secluding kids alone in cells. The facility says its lockups comply with the law, but new reporting suggests otherwise.
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Tennessee Lawmakers Demand an Audit of Juvenile Detention Facilities, Citing “Culture Of Lawlessness”
Following reporting from WPLN and ProPublica, the state lawmakers said there is a “culture of lawlessness” inside Knoxville’s Richard L. Bean Center and called for an audit throughout the system.
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This Youth Detention Center Superintendent Illegally Locks Kids Alone in Cells. No One Has Forced Him to Stop.
The Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center has been punishing kids with seclusion more than any other facility in Tennessee. And as the laws and rules on how to treat kids changed, the facility failed to keep up.
Local Reporting Network