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Flyer Wins Court AppealA state appellate court has ruled that the city of Memphis willfully held records from public inspection by The Memphis Flyer and must pay almost all of the paper's litigation fees. The Flyer sued the city in late 1997 when the city attorney's office did not release the contents of an out-of-court settlement the city reached with the family of Adam Pollow, a University of Memphis student who died in 1993. Following an altercation at an East Memphis bar, Pollow choked on his own vomit after being hog-tied by Memphis police officers and placed in a squad car. Attorneys for the city tried to argue that they were bound by the terms of a confidentiality agreement reached with Pollow's parents. Then they argued that the agreement had been bound under a federal court seal. In a strongly worded opinion, the three-judge appeals court unanimously admonished the city for refusing to turn over the records. "The idea of entering into confidentiality agreements with respect to public records is repugnant to and would thwart the purpose and policy of the [Open Records] Act," the opinion reads. "The City simply has not presented any evidence that it did not know that the record was public . Furthermore, the City has not offered any explanation as to what legitimate governmental purpose might be served by withholding this settlement agreement from public scrutiny." The Flyer had to fight for access to the Pollow records in both federal and state courts, and legal fees exceeded $29,000. The appellate court stated that a few fees, such as advisory telephone conversations, are not allowable, but the court also said that the city was liable for covering the Flyer's appellate litigation costs. -- Phil Campbell
Waterworks Buildings Endure -- For Now
The Romanesque Revival structures on Auction Street were built in the 1890s and housed the city's first artesian water wells. The property, donated to St. Jude by the city in the mid-'80s, was scheduled for demolition two years ago before MHI stepped in. "As of right now, Memphis Heritage has until August 1999 to find something to put in there," says MHI director Judith Johnson. Most recently, "we've had a couple of groups interested in developing a Julliard-type school down there for inner-city students talented in the performing arts," Johnson says. "We did not personally expect to redevelop the building," she continues. Instead MHI was trying to find a group who could put a plan into action. "To that end, we're still trying to do that," says Johnson. Richard Shadyac, national director for St. Jude's fund-raising division, says that the hospital is committed to saving the buildings if someone comes up with a use for them. "We're still giving them leeway," Shadyac says. "But no one has done a thing to move the project forward." -- Mary Cashiola
Magazine Announces Fiction ContestMemphis magazine is seeking entries for its 1999 fiction contest, the annual short story competition, now in its 10th year, open to Mid-South writers. Besides a $1,000 grand prize for the best story, which will be published in an issue of Memphis, the contest also awards two $500 honorable mention prizes. Deadline for entries is August 1, 1999. To qualify, writers must live within 150 miles of Memphis. Stories must be typed, double-spaced, and between 3,000 to 5,000 words long. The writer's name should not appear anywhere on the story itself; instead, include a cover letter with your name, address, phone number, and title of the story. Contestants may enter as many stories as they like, but each should be accompanied by a $10 entry fee. Previously published manuscripts will be accepted as long as they weren't published in a national magazine or a regional publication within Shelby County. Stories should be sent to: Fiction Contest, c/o Memphis magazine, P.O. Box 256, Memphis, TN 38101. No e-mails or faxes will be accepted. Writers who want their stories returned should include a self-addressed, stamped envelope with each entry. Winners will be announced in September. The contest is sponsored by Burke's Book Store, Davis-Kidd Booksellers, The Deliberate Literate, and Barnes & Noble/Bookstar. For more information, call Marilyn Sadler at 521-9000.
WMC and City Have Star-Spangled SpatSo why does WMC want to pack up its fireworks and move its annual Star Spangled Celebration from Tom Lee Park to Shelby Farms for this year's Fourth of July? Because of the Ku Klux Klan -- sort of. According to Cindy Horton, WMC's Celebration coordinator, she was told by Mayor Herenton spokesperson Carey Hoffman that the city would no longer pay certain expenses such as extra police service, electricity, and cleanup because of a city ordinance that was approved in May 1998. The parade ordinance, as it's known, is a set of guidelines for parades and public assemblies that was written after the chaotic January 19, 1998, KKK rally held downtown at the courthouse. The section that Hoffman is referring to states in part: "If additional police protection for the public assembly is deemed necessary by the Director of Police, he shall so inform the applicant for the permit. The applicant then shall have the duty to secure the police protection deemed necessary by the Director of the Police at the sole expense of the applicant." The ordinance is not really new; it only makes previously established guidelines more official and mandates that event organizers get a permit. Furthermore, it has nothing to do with providing cleanup or electricity. The bottom line, says Hoffman, is that the city is a business and should be run as such. Horton counters that the amount (around $20,000) is a small price for the city to pay, considering that many people think the city puts on the Star Spangled Celebration, not WMC, which swallows the $150,000 cost of the free-admission event. Hoffman says the city would still welcome the event. Meanwhile, Jeff Sanford, president of the Center City Commission, says that he's already received several phone calls from other groups interested in holding a Fourth of July event downtown. Says Sanford, "There's no place better to celebrate the Fourth of July than on the banks of the mighty Mississippi." -- Susan Ellis
MPD Power Struggle ContinuesA recent personnel shuffle on the 12th floor of 201 Poplar Avenue underscores just how personal the political power struggle may be inside the Memphis Police Department. Interim Police Director William Oldham has removed Deputy Chief Brenda Jones from her position as head of the Organized Crime Unit (OCU). He also transferred OCU administrative supervisor Chuck Newell to the Central Precinct. He makes these moves without offering any explanation, citing, through spokeswoman Debby Hall, his right to transfer responsibilities among his staff when needed. More notably, Oldham moves Jones before the results of a city audit on the OCU's finances have been formally released to the public. There has been much speculation lately -- both in the media and inside the department -- over how much abuse has occurred over confiscated drug money and other OCU funds. Both Jones and Oldham are waiting for the results of the next mayoral election to see who will be made the next permanent director. Mayor Willie Herenton, not having yet announced his plan to run for reelection, is leaving the question open, neither citing the need to search for a new director nationally nor telling anyone his own preferences -- assuming he's reelected in the first place. Oldham, a 49-year-old white male, has served as the department's number-two man for years, but worked in the shadow of his boss, then-director Walter Winfrey. Since being named interim director, Oldham has been making a strong effort to show that he can clean up the department, both in its finances and in the way it handles internal-affairs investigations. Jones is a 42-year-old black woman whom insiders say has been the subject of a lot of grooming for the director's slot, attending conventions for the International Association for Chiefs of Police, for example. A new wrinkle to Jones' story was added last week, after she and Sex Crimes Unit commander Coria Williams were spotted together at the law offices of Kathleen Caldwell, an attorney with experience in discrimination cases. The deputy chief, however, denies that she approached Caldwell about suing the department, though she would not discuss the nature of her conversation with the lawyer. "I have not contacted Kathleen Caldwell about this or any attorney about a lawsuit with the city of Memphis," Jones says emphatically. Oldham's decision to move Jones away from OCU comes when media attention has been focusing on the OCU credit cards, which are used to protect the identities of undercover agents. Even though the city was paying for their use, officials such as City Attorney Robert Spence and Chief Administrative Officer Rick Masson claim they did not know such cards existed. As a result, they were unregulated, and some questions about their proper documentation have been raised. The potential abuse of credit cards has inspired at least one shouting match among chiefs occupying the top floor of the Criminal Justice Center, where MPD administrative offices are located. Among the officials who did use the cards were Jones, Oldham, and Winfrey. Top officials who have not used the cards are deputy chiefs Walter Crews, David Dugger, and Sam Moses. According to OCU credit-card records, Oldham has taken at least four out-of-town trips accompanied by his wife, Jean. He ultimately repaid the city for the cost of her airline tickets, taking a couple of months to do so. Jones, however, has declined to discuss this when questioned by reporters. "I cannot recall an instance where Director Oldham did not turn in a receipt where expenses were not allowed on a credit card," she says. Even though there were no written policies regarding the OCU cards for years, Jones adds that she was not authorized to approve certain expenses. "The commander of the OCU could not approve travel; the deputy chief of OCU could not approve travel," she says. "Only through the director or deputy director would that have been done." -- Phil Campbell
Last-minute Decision Scuttles Confederate Park PlanIn a move that suggests the future of the Memphis park system rests on the whims of one man, Park Commission chairman John Malmo abruptly took Confederate Park out of contention last Tuesday as the site of a planned cancer survivors' tribute. The location, which Malmo had publicly supported until his sudden reversal last week, had been chosen after a four-year search with the R.A. Bloch Foundation of Kansas City, Missouri. Park officials now say they will begin the search again. The philanthropy had offered Memphis a free park and endowment for its maintenance, and -- amid outcry from local Civil War groups -- park officials had maintained that, for several reasons, refurbishing Confederate Park was the best plan. "Yeah. Well, yep, I changed my mind," a reticent Malmo told The Memphis Flyer last week in an interview markedly different from his usual quote-by-the-seat-of-the-pants style. "If you like, I'd be glad to fax you a statement I sent to The Commercial Appeal." Some park commission members say they didn't learn of Malmo's decision until May 5th, when they read about it in the newspaper. Others say Malmo told them the day before. Park commission director Wayne Boyer, who had enthusiastically supported the Confederate Park proposal, says Malmo informed him and the newspaper about the same time on May 4th that he was changing the plan. "What he indicated to me was the information he shared with The Commercial Appeal, that he was going to withdraw his recommendation," says Boyer. "He just felt the controversy was taking away from the intent of the project, and he didn't want that to happen." Ostensibly, the decision is not final until the five-member commission votes on it at the next meeting on May 20th. "I'm sure the commission will go along with what he says," given Malmo's public disclosure of his intentions, Boyer says. Park commission member Fred Davis says that "all I know at this point is what I read in the paper. ... "Apparently, the [chairman] made a decision for the commission, and I'm not in a position to debate that. The statement was made, it's on the streets, so there is no discussion we could have that would change that." Davis says the commission had not recently discussed any plan other than the Confederate Park proposal. "We had agreed on it and we hadn't had a meeting to unagree," he says. "It was a surprise to me." Bloch Foundation spokeswoman Vangie Rich says the philanthropy's president, Richard Bloch, was also surprised by Malmo's decision. She says someone from Memphis contacted, not the foundation, but the H&R Bloch tax firm. Richard Bloch co-founded that company, but it is not affiliated with the foundation. In his written statement, Malmo says that "it was my suggestion, and mine alone, to locate [the cancer survivors' park] on the present site of Confederate Park." Park board member Peggy Seessel says Malmo was disturbed by the controversy, and contacted her before the Commercial Appeal article came out. "He certainly let us know ahead of time what he was going to do, and if four of us had said, 'We don't agree with you,' it wouldn't have been done, but we all agreed," she says. "It sounded like he was taking the blame for this entire [controversy], and I don't think that should have been the case because ... we all made that decision," to change Confederate Park, Seessel says. "It was not a one-man decision." Seessel says she hopes those who opposed the Confederate Park plan will help support the site's future needs. "There are always improvements to be made, maintenance," she says, "and if this park is that important to them, I would love them to be a partner with us in trying to do some positive things for the park." -- Eileen Loh-Harrist |
