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Criminal Justice

Epstein files show former UT professor used students to develop AI tools for predatory billionaire

By Pierce Gentry, WUOT

February 6, 2026

Dozens of emails involving a former UT professor and Jeffrey Epstein were released by the Department of Justice, revealing an effort funded by the disgraced financier to develop an AI-powered robot with facial recognition capabilities.

An associate professor of computer science at UT spent years communicating with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein before leaving the university in 2021, DOJ documents show.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom, Artificial Intelligence, Jeffrey Epstein, sexual abuse, surveillance, University of Tennessee

Tennessee appeals court says school shooter’s writings can be made public

By Travis Loller, AP

February 5, 2026

The writings of the person who killed three 9-year-olds and three adults at a private Christian elementary school in Nashville can be made available to the public, the Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled on Wednesday.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: Covenant School, open records, Tennessee Court of Appeals

Tennessee judge grants expanded media access to state-run executions

By Adrian Sainz, AP

January 17, 2026

A judge has ruled that Tennessee prison officials must grant expanded access to media members to view state-run executions. The ruling Friday comes after a coalition of news organizations sued on claims that state execution protocols unconstitutionally limit thorough and accurate reporting.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: death penalty, First Amendment, journalism, lethal injection protocol, media, Tennessee Department of Correction

Tennessee’s new domestic violence registry is live. Here’s how it works.

By Paige Pfleger

January 14, 2026

Sign outside the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation headquarters

The state’s new domestic violence registry is live on the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation website. But so far, it does not include much information.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: domestic violence, gun violence

A County’s Move to Protect Domestic Violence Victims Is Spreading Across Tennessee After Legislative Delay

By Paige Pfleger

December 20, 2025

A courtroom scene in which three women and one man stand facing a judge. The judge is gesturing with her hand as she speaks to the group. The three women are on one side of the room, and the man is on the other.

Judges across Tennessee are demanding more accountability from domestic abusers who have been ordered to give up their guns. It’s an effort to strengthen protections for survivors.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: domestic violence, gun dispossession, guns, Scott County

Tennessee executes Harold Wayne Nichols in third lethal injection of the year

By Catherine Sweeney

December 11, 2025

The Tennessee Department of Correction executed Harold Wayne Nichols Thursday morning, injecting him with a massive dose of the sedative pentobarbital.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: Byron Black, death penalty, Harold Wayne Nichols, lethal injection, Oscar Franklin Smith

On the cusp of reform, advocates for Tennessee’s domestic violence victims are left waiting again

By Paige Pfleger

December 11, 2025

For years, advocates for victims of domestic violence have been pushing for a relatively small change that would close a big loophole.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: domestic violence, gun dispossession, Moms Demand Action, Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence, Waffle House shooting

Judge orders release of Tennessee execution records

By Catherine Sweeney

December 10, 2025

Tennessee prison barbed wire

A court ordered the Tennessee Department of Correction to release a cache of execution records, but it’s unclear whether the agency will have to comply.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: Byron Black, death penalty, Harold Wayne Nichols, lethal injection, lethal injection protocol, Oscar Franklin Smith, Tennessee Department of Correction

Lisette Monroe lost her beloved sister to murder. She hopes an execution will bring some peace

By Travis Loller, AP

December 7, 2025

Lisette Monroe was a 23-year-old new mother in 1988 when she lost her beloved little sister in the most horrific way possible. Karen Pulley was raped and murdered. The man who did it is scheduled to be executed.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: death penalty, Harold Wayne Nichols

Tennessee law protects lethal drug seller identities. A judge will decide how broad that secrecy is.

By Catherine Sweeney

December 3, 2025

Tennessee is set to execute Harold Wayne Nichols. His attorneys want to confirm the state’s lethal injection drugs are safe.

Filed Under: Criminal Justice, WPLN News Tagged With: death penalty, Harold Wayne Nichols, lethal injection protocol, Oscar Smith, Tennessee Department of Correction

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