Clinton Lewis was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, May 14, for his role in the multi-state drug organization headed by Craig Petties.

2. Hamlet Pleads in Petties Drug Case - Thursday, May 09, 2013

After five years in a Mexican prison, Chris Hamlet pleaded guilty in Memphis federal court Tuesday, May 7, to U.S. drug conspiracy charges that could earn him an even longer stint in a U.S. prison.

3. Suburbs Start Again on Municipal Schools - Wednesday, May 08, 2013

Aldermen in five of the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County began the move Monday, May 6, to a July 16 referendum date for a second round of referendums on forming municipal school districts possibly as early as the 2014-2015 school year.

4. Suburbs Start Second Move To Ballot On Municipal Schools - Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Aldermen in five of the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County began the move Monday, May 6, to a July 16 referendum date for a second round of referendums on forming municipal school districts possibly as early as the 2014-2015 school year.

5. School Board Approached by Suburbs - Thursday, May 02, 2013

A new round of talks about the schools merger and municipal school districts is about to begin.

And this time, the countywide school board may be at the table.

Countywide school board attorney Valerie Speakman told school board members Tuesday, April 30, that attorneys for the leaders of Shelby County’s six suburban municipalities have sent her a letter about possible talks on issues that go beyond the consent decree governing the merger.

6. School Board Delays Supt. Search, Approves Merger Outsourcing Contracts - Wednesday, May 01, 2013

Countywide school board members voted Tuesday, April 30, to move their search for a merger superintendent beyond the August start of the merger.

But the board voted down a resolution asking Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays to consider delaying the merger itself.

7. School Board May Delay Superintendent Search - Wednesday, May 01, 2013

The search for a superintendent to lead Shelby County’s consolidated school system could be put on hold by the countywide school board Tuesday evening.

And Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell said Tuesday he agrees with a proposed year-long delay in the merger if it is to take into account the impact of suburban school districts.

8. Mays Ponders Changes in Merger Terms - Tuesday, April 30, 2013

U.S. District Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays is considering whether he should change the terms of the 2011 consent decree that so far has governed the path to consolidation of Shelby County’s two public school systems.

9. Schools Merger Saga Faces Busy Day - Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Countywide school board members will discuss and vote Tuesday, April 30, on starting the process of closing 11 more schools, one agenda item during what promises to be a busy day in the schools consolidation saga.

10. Board Continues Delay on Outsourcing Decision - Monday, April 29, 2013

Not every member of the countywide school board who voted against outsourcing custodial services in February is still trying to stop the contract to carry that out.

But enough were at the Thursday, April 25, special meeting of the board that there was another delay in going through with one of the most critical decisions the 23-member body will make about the merger. And another four to six school board members were absent during the series of votes.

11. School Board Votes Down Custodial Contract Twice - Friday, April 26, 2013

Countywide school board members twice voted down outsourcing custodial services in the merged school district to the company GCA Thursday, April 25, leaving undone the second step of the board’s February decision to outsource the services.

12. Hamlet to Plead in Petties Drug Case - Thursday, April 25, 2013

The last defendant in the Craig Petties federal drug case is scheduled to plead guilty in May to drug conspiracy charges.

13. New Schools Computer System Behind Schedule - Thursday, April 25, 2013

One of the earliest items on the schools merger checklist was a new computer system that would handle the payroll and other human resources needs of Shelby County’s two school systems once they become one at the start of the new fiscal year July 1.

14. Hopson Proposes Closing 11 Schools In 2014-2015 - Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Memphis-Shelby County Schools superintendent Dorsey Hopson is proposing the countywide school board close 11 more schools, 10 in the city of Memphis and one in Millington.

The closings which include three Memphis high schools – Northside, Carver and Westwood – would take effect in the 2014-2015 school year if approved by the school board.

15. Special Elections Take Shape in Suburbs - Wednesday, April 24, 2013

It looks like 2013 will be an election year in the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County.

But Memphis may not join the forming set of special elections until very late in the year if at all, according to one estimate by the Shelby County Election Commission.

16. Hopson Eliminates All But One Executive Director's Position - Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The still forming central office of the consolidated school sytem will include only one executive director -- the executive director of safety and security.

Interim schools superintendent Dorsey Hopson has reposted central office positions following his decision last week to eliminate all of one of the executive director positions from the city and county school systems in the front office of the new school system to come.

17. Suburban Mayors Preach Patience to Parents - Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Suburban leaders are counseling patience among parents of children in their communities who will be part of the coming merger of the county’s two public school systems.

And they will start moving in May on the process of forming municipal school districts for the 2014-2015 school year.

18. Mays Hears School Board Member Selection Question - Thursday, April 18, 2013

A year and a half ago, all sides in the federal court case over the consolidation of public schools in Shelby County reached a hopeful milestone that set the ground rules for the merger.

“The proposed decree brings finality to this matter,” wrote Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays in accepting the agreement and making it an order in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. “It prevents years of litigation and establishes the basis for cooperative solutions based on good public policy, rather than legal solutions imposed by the court.”

19. Mays Weighs School Board Changes - Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays remembers the part of the 2011 consent decree in the schools merger case that gives the Shelby County Commission the option of increasing the size of the countywide school board to up to 13 members after Sept. 1.

20. Municipal Schools Bill Sails Through House, Senate - Wednesday, April 17, 2013

After much speculation about resistance from other parts of the state to lifting the statewide ban on special school districts statewide, the bill to do that sailed through the Tennessee House and Senate Monday, April 15.

21. Legislature Sends Municipal Schools Bill To Haslam - Tuesday, April 16, 2013

The Tennessee House and Senate sent a bill permitting municipal school districts in 29 cities including the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County to Gov. Bill Haslam Monday, April 15, for his signature.

22. Mays to Consider 13-Member School Board - Tuesday, April 16, 2013

After some time out of the public eye, the schools consolidation court case goes back before federal Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays Tuesday, April 16, for a hearing on the plan to change the structure of the countywide school board.

23. Mays Sets Hearing in Schools Case - Monday, April 15, 2013

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has set a Tuesday, April 16, hearing on the move by the Shelby County Commission to make the countywide school board a 13-member body effective Sept. 1.

24. School Board Restructure Next for Federal Court - Wednesday, April 03, 2013

All sides in the federal lawsuit over the schools merger will be getting together soon to talk about the Shelby County Commission’s plan to restructure the countywide school board.

A trio of court filings before and after the Easter weekend set the stage for a decision to come by Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee on the commission’s plan to appoint six new school board members to take office Sept. 1.

25. Commission Votes Down Residency Referendum, Names Gomes New Judge - Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners gave final approval Monday, April 1, to an exemption to the county government residency requirement for Memphis City Schools teachers and other school system employees.

The commission also voted down an August ballot question that would have put to voters doing away with the residency requirement in the county charter.

26. Hopson Takes Over Public Schools Leadership - Thursday, March 28, 2013

Since Dorsey Hopson became general counsel for Memphis City Schools in 2008, he has experienced a whirlwind of change.

The Memphis City Council cut funding to the school system triggering a landmark court case, city and county school systems have been on a fast and rocky path to a merger, and the countywide board ballooned to 23 members. And then Hopson found himself in January serving as the interim superintendent of Memphis City Schools.

27. Hopson Heads Both School Systems - Wednesday, March 27, 2013

The city and county school systems have a single school superintendent less than five months from the start of the first school year of the consolidated school system in Shelby County.

Interim Memphis City Schools superintendent Dorsey Hopson was appointed interim Shelby County Schools superintendent at the first countywide school board meeting since the board approved a buyout last week of county schools superintendent John Aitken.

28. Board to Weigh School Closings - Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Countywide school board members are scheduled to vote Tuesday, March 26, on the closings of four schools at the end of the current year.

And they could see additions to the agenda that put the Achievement School District’s Gestalt Community Schools charter operation in Humes Middle School with the new school year. That would also come with an end for the time being of plans for a new optional school the school board had approved for Humes at the start of the school year.

29. Defendant Gets 12 Years in Petties Drug Case - Monday, March 25, 2013

A contract killer for the Craig Petties drug organization who never carried out his job got a 12-year, five-month prison sentence Thursday, March 21, from U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays.

30. Mays Needs to Grab Control of Merger - Saturday, March 23, 2013

Maybe most of the work of the schools merger has been done by the countywide school board. That’s a big maybe.

Even with that assumption, it is still hard to put a happy face at the top of this assignment that counts for most of a critical grade our elected leaders should get.

31. Aitken Departs Post Without Board Opposition - Thursday, March 21, 2013

In the end there weren’t any attempts Tuesday, March 19, to talk John Aitken into remaining as Shelby County Schools superintendent.

Countywide school board members made no moves to call off a superintendent search process that now has no firm date by which to pick a schools leader.

32. School Board Restructuring Plan Goes to Mays - Wednesday, March 20, 2013

On the way to U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays is a plan by the Shelby County Commission to convert the countywide school board to a 13-member single-district body effective Sept. 1.

33. County Commission Sends 13-Member School Board Plan to Judge - Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners approved a plan Monday, March 18, to convert the countywide school board to a 13-member single district body effective Sept. 1.

The plan which includes district lines that are almost but not an identical match of the 13-member single districts to be used in county commission elections in 2014 goes to Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays for his action.

34. Aitken’s Surprise Greets School Board - Tuesday, March 19, 2013

The countywide school board returns from spring break Tuesday, March 19, for a special meeting that could include terms of or at least a discussion of buyout terms for Shelby County Schools superintendent John Aitken.

35. County Commission Weighs School Merger Changes - Monday, March 18, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners might discuss Monday, March 18, the idea of restructuring the countywide school board for a third time in the last year and a half.

But they are likely to delay action on a resolution that would create a 13-member school board effective Sept. 1 by appointing six new members to go with the seven existing members.

36. School Board Expansion Advanced - Thursday, March 14, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners advanced in Wednesday, March 13, committee sessions a general plan to restructure the countywide school board.

But the plan to turn the 23-member board into a 13-member board on Sept. 1, instead of the seven-member board it is now scheduled to become on that date, is far from complete. And lots of legal questions remain about the details.

37. Masson Talks Plan for Merger Work - Monday, March 11, 2013

The special master in the schools merger federal court case says his first order of business is to look at the paperwork and other documents of the case and what has been done so far in the merger.

38. Special Master Has Tight Five-Month Window - Thursday, March 07, 2013

The special master appointed by U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays to oversee the schools merger knows the political and fiscal dealings of large local government entities.

39. Mays Appoints Masson Schools Special Master - Wednesday, March 06, 2013

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays appointed former city of Memphis Chief Administrative Officer Rick Masson Tuesday, March 5, as special master overseeing the federal court consent decree on the merger of Shelby County’s two public school systems.

40. Critical Merger Decision Now Centers on School Board - Wednesday, March 06, 2013

The group with the most direct role in what a consolidated school system will look like and how it will operate is now the group at the center of the ongoing federal lawsuit over the merger and the reactions to it.

41. Ritz, McDonald Clash on Suburban Schools Talks - Tuesday, March 05, 2013

The Shelby County Commission and the county’s suburban mayors agree in writing and in a court proceeding on something related to schools.

But that remains the exception to the rule, particularly on issues beyond the first year of the schools merger – namely separate suburban school systems.

42. School Board’s Choices Intensify Merger Debate - Monday, March 04, 2013

Countywide school board members began making what are considered the toughest and most controversial decisions of the schools merger Thursday, Feb. 28.

But the series of votes on 10 merger recommendations at the four-and-a-half hour meeting didn’t do much to settle the emerging questions about what is motivating the board as the schools merger start date draws closer.

43. School Board Approves Outsourcing After Long Debate - Friday, March 01, 2013

Countywide school board members approved Thursday, Feb. 28, the first of the three most controversial schools merger recommendations they are likely to face – outsourcing custodial services across the single merged school system.

44. Merger Special Master Could Have Different Terms - Friday, March 01, 2013

The Shelby County Commission, the city of Memphis and suburban Shelby County leaders all agree details of the merger of public schools in Shelby County could come down to a federal court order.

But in their filings Wednesday, Feb. 27, in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, there are some differences in how the three parties in the federal lawsuit believe the court might become involved directly in the merger.

45. Commission, City and Suburbs Agree on Schools Master - Thursday, February 28, 2013

Attorneys for the Shelby County Commission, the city of Memphis and suburban leaders agree that a special master should be appointed by Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays.

The master would generally monitor progress toward the August date for the consolidation of Shelby County’s two public school systems.

46. Legal Path to Special Master Unclear - Thursday, February 28, 2013

If U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays appoints a special master to oversee the merger of Shelby County’s two public school systems, there are legal questions about how much authority the master would have and precisely what he or she would do to advance the merger’s pace.

47. School Board Won't File On Possibility of Special Master - Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Countywide school board members had plenty to say Tuesday, Feb. 26, about a Memphis Federal Court status conference a day earlier that included the idea of Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays appointing a special master to oversee some aspects of the schools merger.

48. Commission’s Schools Debate Has Political Crossover - Wednesday, February 27, 2013

When U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays summoned attorneys from all sides in the schools merger case to his conference room Monday, Feb. 25, there was someone else in the room.

49. Schools Questions Dominate County Commission Agenda - Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners approved on the second of three readings Monday, Feb. 25, an ordinance that gives Memphis City Schools teachers living outside Shelby County five years to move within Shelby County.

50. Mays Plans to Appoint Special Master - Monday, February 25, 2013

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays plans to move ahead with appointing a special master to oversee the merger of Shelby County’s two public school systems.

51. Ending of Schools Talks Still Rankles Both Sides - Monday, February 25, 2013

When all sides in the school merger court case gather Monday, Feb. 25, before federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays, they will have lots of time to talk over municipal school districts.

The status conference is the only item on Mays’ calendar Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.

52. Commission Mixes Residency With Schools Issues - Monday, February 25, 2013

It isn’t hard to get a debate going on the Shelby County Commission about the coming Shelby County schools merger and separate suburban school districts.

A majority of the 13-member body voted to file the second part of the Memphis federal court lawsuit over the connected issues. But there remains a vocal minority of four to five commissioners on both issues as well.

53. Mays Schedules Monday Schools Case Conference - Saturday, February 23, 2013

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has called a Monday, Feb. 25, status conference in the Shelby County schools merger case. All sides in the 2-year-old lawsuit are scheduled to appear before Mays at 9:30 a.m.

54. Mays Schedules Monday Schools Case Conference - Thursday, February 21, 2013

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has called a Monday, Feb. 25, status conference in the Shelby County schools merger case.

All sides in the 2-year-old lawsuit are scheduled to appear before Mays at 9:30 a.m.

55. Mays Sets Monday Conference in Schools Merger Case - Friday, February 22, 2013

Memphis federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has called a Monday, Feb. 25, status conference in the Shelby County schools merger case.

All sides in the two-year-old lawsuit are scheduled to appear before Mays at 9:30 a.m.

56. Schools Merger Issues Moving on Several Fronts - Tuesday, February 19, 2013

The schools merger issue is moving again on several fronts less than six months before the first school year of the consolidation begins.

The movement began with the release of a preliminary schools budget for the first year of the merger that shook many county and city schools parents out of the mindset that the merger would mean few changes at the school level.

57. Hart To Explore Schools Merger Delay - Saturday, February 16, 2013

Countywide school board member Tomeka Hart will offer a resolution at a school board meeting Monday, Feb. 18 that could call for a one year delay in the scheduled July 1 merger of the city and county school systems.

58. Merger Again Intersects With Nashville - Monday, February 18, 2013

For a third consecutive year in Nashville, the Shelby County schools merger and the suburban reaction to it are on the calendar of the Tennessee legislature.

As the General Assembly finished its legislative week Thursday, Feb. 14, state Senate Republican leader Mark Norris of Collierville introduced several bills, some of them captions to be added to as needed that would make suburban municipal school districts possible.

59. County Commission Debates Schools Merger - Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Shelby County Commissioners marked the two-year anniversary Monday, Feb. 11, of the federal lawsuit over schools consolidation and municipal school districts with a running debate across several items about the upcoming schools merger.

60. Prosecutors Weigh Cooperation Against Murder - Tuesday, February 12, 2013

For a second time, prosecutors in the largest drug case ever brought into Memphis federal court have decided not to recommend a reduction in the sentence of a high-ranking member of the Craig Petties drug organization who cooperated to some extent.

61. Suburban Districts Back in Federal Court - Tuesday, February 12, 2013

The faded red kick ball that is the issue of metropolitan school districts in the Shelby County suburbs is now back in Memphis federal court after about two-and-a-half months of private mediation talks.

62. Petties Case: Vaughn Gets 36.5 Year Prison Sentence - Saturday, February 09, 2013

Vacha Vaughn, a high ranking member of the Craig Petties drug organization, was sentenced Friday, Feb. 8, to 36 years and six months in prison on a federal drug conspiracy conviction.

63. Suburban School Talks End - Saturday, February 09, 2013

Private talks between the Shelby County Commission and the county’s six suburban mayors on suburban school districts have ended, according to Shelby County Commission chairman Mike Ritz and Bartlett Mayor Keith McDonald.

64. Fields Gets 37-Year Sentence in Petties Case - Tuesday, February 05, 2013

Demetrius Fields, a high-ranking member of the Craig Petties drug organization, drew the longest jail term yet as those convicted in the largest drug case ever brought in Memphis federal court continue to be sentenced.

65. Fields Gets 37-Year Sentence In Petties Case - Saturday, February 02, 2013

Demetrius Fields, a high ranking member of the Craig Petties drug organization, drew the longest jail term yet as those convicted in the largest drug case ever brought in Memphis federal court continue to be sentenced.

66. Mays Hears of Cell Phones and Drug Delivery Planned Behind Bars At Mason - Friday, February 01, 2013

Two leaders of the Craig Petties drug organization were caught with cell phones while they were prisoners at the federal prison in Mason, Tennessee last year and a third was suspected of trying to have a kilogram of cocaine delivered to him in prison.

67. Schools Court Case Continues on Two Fronts - Wednesday, January 16, 2013

No new mediation sessions were scheduled as of Monday evening in the municipal school district court case in Memphis federal court.

But the continued lack of specifics by the parties about what is happening is an indication that the talks will likely continue.

68. Petties Hit Man Sentence Poses Dilemma - Monday, January 07, 2013

U.S. District Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays had a dilemma as he sentenced a contract killer Thursday, Jan. 3, for his part in the Craig Petties drug organization.

69. Broady Gets 31 Year Sentence In Petties Case - Friday, January 04, 2013

Clarence Broady, who at one time robbed drug dealers, was sentenced to 31 years in prison Thursday, Jan. 3, for being a hit man for the Craig Petties drug organization.

70. More Sentences Expected for Petties Drug Case in 2013 - Wednesday, January 02, 2013

Five years after Memphis drug kingpin Craig Petties was captured in Mexico, the federal court drug case that bears his name is still moving through the courts of the Western District of Tennessee.

71. Schools Talks to Resume in Private - Wednesday, January 02, 2013

Private talks aimed at settling the federal lawsuit over municipal school districts are expected to resume with the end of the holiday season.

All sides in the legal matter had met behind closed doors at least twice after U.S. District Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays ruled in late November that all moves taken in 2012 toward forming municipal school districts were void. He ruled the 2012 state law allowing leaders in Shelby County’s six suburban towns and cities to move ahead with their plans immediately violated the Tennessee Constitution.

72. Suburbs to Discuss Schools Agreement - Friday, December 14, 2012

There will be plenty to discuss Friday, Dec. 14, when suburban leaders sit down with their attorneys to talk about some kind of agreement on the terms under which schools in the six suburban municipalities will be part of the merged Shelby County public school system.

73. Huffman Brings Leverage to Possible Mediation - Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Tennessee Education Commissioner Kevin Huffman would bring lots of political leverage with him should he mediate the coming merger of schools in Shelby County.

74. Commission Approves Legal Fees in Schools Fight - Wednesday, December 05, 2012

A week after they won a major argument in the federal court fight over municipal school districts, Shelby County Commissioners approved Monday, Dec. 3, an additional $473,549 from its contingency fund to pay its legal fees in the lawsuit.

75. Calls Come to Change Schools Merger Process - Wednesday, December 05, 2012

As suburban mayors were scheduled to meet this week to talk over their options, the consolidation of all public schools in Shelby County that begins in August began to show signs of a shift.

The shift might be to take at least some of the decisions about the schools merger out of the hands of just the countywide school board or to junk the process the board is using. The mayors of the six towns and cities have all indicated they intend to push on for their own school districts, although several have said it is highly unlikely they could form them and open them for classes by August.

76. Commission Approves Pidgeon Land Sale, Weighs Schools Moves - Tuesday, December 04, 2012

Shelby County Commissioners approved Monday, Dec. 3, the purchase of 33.6 acres of land in the Frank C. Pidgeon Industrial Park by Carolyn Hardy for the Hardy Investment Trust.

77. Differences Discussed as Schools Move Ahead - Tuesday, December 04, 2012

Students and public schools in Shelby County’s six suburban towns and cities are almost certainly going to be part of the consolidated Shelby County public school system that debuts in August.

78. Commission to Vote on Industrial Land Sale - Monday, December 03, 2012

Shelby County Commissioners take up the proposed sale Monday, Dec. 3, of 33.6 acres of land in the Frank C. Pidgeon Industrial Park in southwest Memphis.

Carolyn Hardy, owner of the Hardy Bottling Co. and consultant to the Blues City Brewery operation that later bought the plant, wants to buy the last available roadside acreage in the industrial park for a business to store and stage modular containers.

79. The Next Steps - Monday, December 03, 2012

About a half hour before the ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays in the municipal school district lawsuit, the chairman of the countywide school board called for his board and the school boards for the six suburban municipal school districts to get together.

80. Court Decision Not End to Schools Fight - Thursday, November 29, 2012

About a half hour before the ruling Tuesday, Nov. 27, by Memphis federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays in the municipal school district lawsuit, the chairman of the countywide school board called for his board and the school boards for the six suburban municipal school districts to get together.

81. Mays Voids Move to Municipal School Districts - Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays ruled Tuesday, Nov. 27, that the six suburban towns and cities in Shelby County must stop their movement toward suburban school districts.

82. Election Commission Certifies Nov. 6 Vote Results - Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Shelby County Election Commissioners certified the results Monday, Nov. 26, of the Nov. 6 election.

The certification sets in motion the swearing-in of members of the six suburban municipal school boards. And the boards, one for each of the suburban towns and cities in Shelby County, are expected to move quickly on a process for selecting superintendents for each school system by the end of the year.

83. School Board Delays Vote On School Closings - Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Countywide school board members put off a vote Tuesday, Nov. 20, on a recommendation to close 21 schools in northwest and southwest Memphis.

The recommendation from the schools consolidation planning commission is considered one of the most controversial items from the citizens group that made 172 recommendations in all on the move to a merger of Shelby County's two public school systems earlier this year.

84. Mediation in Cards for Schools Case - Monday, November 19, 2012

The silence in the municipal schools federal court case is a sign. With a gag rule in place for attorneys on all sides, there are nevertheless reports that all sides in the case that has already reshaped public education in Shelby County might get together Monday, Nov. 19, and give a mediated settlement a try.

85. Mays Denies Motion on CA Commenters - Friday, November 16, 2012

Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has denied a motion to subpoena information from The Commercial Appeal about on line commenters in the newspaper about the schools merger and formation of municipal schools.

86. Schools Case Attorneys Talk Mediation - Thursday, November 15, 2012

Mum is the word after attorneys in the federal court municipal schools lawsuit conferred by phone Thursday, Nov. 15, for a second day about a possible mediation effort in the case.

During the conference call with Memphis Federal Court Judge Samuel "Hardy" Mays, Mays reportedly ordered all sides not to talk about any details of the discussions.

87. Attorneys Revive Correspondence Requests in Schools Case - Tuesday, November 13, 2012

When attorneys for the Shelby County Commission made their final arguments on municipal school districts before Memphis federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays in September and October, they focused on the intent of legislators.

88. School Changes Continue on Many Fronts - Friday, November 09, 2012

There won’t be much waiting around for a federal court ruling with this week’s set of suburban school board elections now decided.

The six boards are the latest move toward the formation of municipal school districts in each of the suburban cities.

89. Election Follows Script in County - Thursday, November 08, 2012

In Shelby County and Tennessee the presidential race stuck to the script both national campaigns expected.

President Barack Obama carried Shelby County and Republican challenger Mitt Romney took the state and its 11 electoral votes.

90. School Board Members Look to Post-Election Direction - Tuesday, November 06, 2012

Once the winners are certified in the six sets of suburban school board races on Tuesday’s ballot in Shelby County, the first order of business for all of the boards will be selecting superintendents to run the six fledgling school systems.

91. Decision Day - Tuesday, November 06, 2012

The last election of 2012 will be one where questions continue to command as much attention if not more than candidates.

The polls are open Tuesday, Nov. 6, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Voters come to the polls in this election to vote in the presidential general election. That is what drives the only election cycle in which more than half of the county’s registered voters consistently show up.

92. Petties Drug Runner Draws Eight-Year Sentence - Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Bobby Cole was a professional drag racer and race promoter known as a kind of arbiter of differences among drivers and someone who helped those in financial straits with loans of cash or one of his trailers.

93. Petties Drug Runner Draws Eight-Year Sentence - Tuesday, October 30, 2012

A professional drag racer and mechanic who used his racing trailers to run money and cocaine for the Craig Petties drug organization was sentenced Monday, Oct. 29, to eight years and one month in prison.

94. First Of Many Funding Requests Approved For Merged System - Wednesday, October 24, 2012

The first Shelby County government financing of the soon to be merged public school system approved Monday, Oct. 22, was about $1 million less than expected. And it drew the support of Shelby County Commissioners opposed to the consolidation of Shelby County’s two public school systems.

95. Child Sex Trafficker Draws 14-Year Prison Sentence - Monday, October 15, 2012

A Bartlett woman who pleaded guilty to federal child sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking by force, fraud and coercion was sentenced Thursday, Oct. 11, to 14 years in prison.

The sentencing of Kala Bray, 19, by U.S. District Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays drew reaction from U.S. Justice Department officials in Washington who have made such cases a priority and have highlighted investigations of the trafficking by Memphis federal prosecutors and FBI agents.

96. Commission Argues Racial ‘Resegreation’ With Districts - Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Attorneys on all sides of the federal court case over municipal school districts are waiting for a ruling from U.S. District Court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays on issues involving the Tennessee Constitution.

97. Filings Represent Numerous Possibilities for Schools Case - Tuesday, October 09, 2012

All six population maps for Carroll and Gibson counties are on file. And Memphis federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays has all of the material he needs to make a critical ruling on the future of municipal school districts in Shelby County.

98. Schools Case Stretches Into 2013 - Monday, October 01, 2012

By his count, Memphis federal court Judge Samuel “Hardy” Mays is on his fourth third-party motion in a year-and-a-half-old court case involving the reformation of public education in Shelby County.

99. Drug Kingpin Petties Moved to New York - Thursday, September 27, 2012

Memphis drug kingpin Craig Petties has been moved from the federal prison in Atlanta to the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City.

100. Maps to be Entered as Evidence in Schools Case - Friday, September 21, 2012

All that’s left is a set of six maps. All sides in the federal court fight over municipal school districts on Thursday, Sept. 20, completed their proof before U.S. District Court Judge Samuel Hardy Mays on the issue of whether the state laws on the school districts violate the Tennessee Constitution.