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Meribah Knight

Rutherford County juvenile judge is leaving. Will that change the system that illegally arrested and detained children?

Meribah KnightandNina Cardona

January 25, 2022

Listen

WPLN’s Meribah Knight sat down with WPLN host Nina Cardona to explain what Judge Donna Scott Davenport’s departure means — and what it doesn’t — for the children of Rutherford County.  

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, Race & Equity, WPLN News Tagged With: Donna Scott Davenport, juvenile detention, ProPublica, Rutherford County, Rutherford County juvenile justice

Judge Donna Scott Davenport announces retirement from Rutherford County’s juvenile court

Meribah Knight

January 18, 2022

Rutherford County’s embattled juvenile court judge will not seek reelection, a county spokesperson announced Tuesday.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, Race & Equity, WPLN News Tagged With: Donna Scott Davenport, juvenile detention, ProPublica, Rutherford County, Rutherford County juvenile justice

New documents prove Rutherford County disproportionately jails black children, and it’s getting worse

Meribah Knight, Ken Armstrong, PropublicaandHannah Fresques, Propublica

December 30, 2021

Rutherford County has been jailing Black children at a disproportionately high rate, according to newly obtained data. And, in a departure from national trends, the county’s racial disparity is getting worse, not better.

Filed Under: Race & Equity, WPLN News Tagged With: Rutherford County, Rutherford County juvenile justice

For the first time in decades, Rutherford County’s juvenile court judge faces a challenger

Meribah Knight

November 16, 2021

Rutherford County’s embattled juvenile court judge has her first challenger in more than 20 years. The county’s senior judicial commissioner, Jacob Flatt, announced his plans to run against Judge Donna Scott Davenport in the 2022 election this summer.

Filed Under: WPLN News Tagged With: Rutherford County juvenile justice

Members of Congress are asking for an investigation into Rutherford County’s juvenile court following WPLN’s report

Meribah KnightandKen Armstrong, Propublica

October 20, 2021

Government officials called Rutherford County’s juvenile justice system a “nightmare” that “boggles the mind.” They are demanding answers about why children were “unjustly searched, detained, charged, and imprisoned.”

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, Politics, Race & Equity, WPLN News Tagged With: Congress, juvenile detention, Rutherford County, Rutherford County juvenile justice

Rutherford County’s juvenile court judge is no longer an adjunct instructor at MTSU

Meribah Knight, Emily SinerandKen Armstrong, Propublica

October 12, 2021

Judge Donna Scott Davenport, who oversees Rutherford County’s juvenile court system, will no longer teach at Middle Tennessee State University, according to an email sent to faculty and staff Tuesday evening.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, Education, WPLN News

Black Children Were Jailed for a Crime That Doesn’t Exist. Almost Nothing Happened to the Adults in Charge.

Meribah KnightandKen Armstrong, Propublica

October 8, 2021

Judge Donna Scott Davenport oversees a juvenile justice system in Rutherford County, Tennessee, with a staggering history of jailing children. She said kids must face consequences, which rarely seem to apply to her or the other adults in charge.

Filed Under: WPLN News

Lawyers Search For Kids Who Were Illegally Jailed In Rutherford County For Multimillion Dollar Settlement

Meribah Knight

September 30, 2021

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After Rutherford County settled a large class action lawsuit over its policies for arresting and detaining children, lawyers who sued the county are scrambling to find more than a thousand children who are owed compensation. And close to $6 million is at stake.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: criminal justice, juvenile detention, Rutherford County

Rutherford County To Pay Up As Much As $11M For Arrest And Jailing Of Children

Meribah Knight

June 16, 2021

Rutherford County has agreed to pay up to $11 million to settle a large, class-action lawsuit over its policies for arresting and detaining children. The settlement, filed in federal court on Wednesday, is the largest in a string of lawsuits surrounding the county’s juvenile court.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News

Listen: The Promise Radio Special

Meribah Knight

April 23, 2021

Listen

The hour-long special delves back into history, chronicling the city’s epic 43-year battle over school desegregation and the devastating sacrifices one Black family made in the name of progress and equity.

Filed Under: Race & Equity, The Promise

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