Tennessee gun safety bill inspired by Waffle House shooting victim passes first House hurdle
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — In rare form, a gun safety bill sponsored by a Democrat passed a Tennessee House subcommittee this week.
The bill, sponsored by Rep. Shaundelle Brooks (D-Hermitage), would make it an offense to sell, offer to sell, deliver, or transfer a gun to a person knowing they've been a patient at a mental institution within the past five years.
Rep. Brooks named the proposed legislation 'Akilah's Law' in honor of her late son, who was one of four people shot and killed in the Nashville Waffle House shooting in April 2018.
📧 Have breaking news come to you: →
The shooter, Travis Reinking, was deemed by authorities mentally unfit to have a gun, but prosecutors said his father, Jeffrey, gave him one anyway.
'Despite being instructed by each of these oversight agencies to store their firearms safely and not return them to the shooter, the parents knowingly and intentionally disregarded those instructions, broke the law, and were subsequently held accountable because they resided in another state,' Rep. Brooks said during the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee Wednesday.
According to officials, Reinking's father gave him the gun in Illinois, which already had a similar law to 'Akilah's Law' on the books.
'Thank God he gave him those guns in Illinois because if that happened here in Tennessee, I couldn't have done one thing about it,' Jan Norman, Nashville's assistant district attorney, testified during the subcommittee hearing. 'He wouldn't have been punished at all if it happened in Tennessee.'
During the hearing, Republican lawmakers commended Rep. Brooks for meeting with each of them about the bill.
'That's how you work your bills, that's how you work your legislation and things you care about,' Rep. Andrew Farmer (R-Sevierville) said. 'I think you're going to go a long way in the Tennessee state legislature.'
After Rep. Brooks' bill passed the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee seven to two, applause erupted.
However, later in the week, she told reporters her work was far from over.
'I'm going to continue to work hard and push and connect with the committees,' Rep. Brooks said. 'I'm new at this, and I'm hoping for the best.'
⏩
Rep. Brooks' bill is scheduled to be debated in the House Judiciary Committee next Wednesday. The Senate version of the bill is set to be debated in the Senate Judiciary Committee next Monday.
Travis Reinking is currently serving a life sentence for the Waffle House shooting. His father, Jeffrey, was sentenced to 18 months in 2023 for giving him the gun.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
19 minutes ago
As legal fight over Guard deployment plays out, Noem vows to continue Trump's immigration crackdown
LOS ANGELES -- Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem pledged to carry on with the Trump administration's immigration crackdown despite waves of unrest across the U.S. Hours after her comment Thursday, a judge directed the president to return control to California over National Guard troops he deployed after protests erupted over the immigration crackdown, but an appeals court quickly put the brakes on that and temporarily blocked the order that was to go into effect on Friday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals scheduled a hearing on the matter for Tuesday. The federal judge's temporary restraining order said the Guard deployment was illegal and both violated the Tenth Amendment and exceeded President Donald Trump's statutory authority. The order applied only to the National Guard troops and not Marines who were also deployed to the LA protests. The judge said he would not rule on the Marines because they were not out on the streets yet. Gov. Gavin Newsom who had asked the judge for an emergency stop to troops helping carry out immigration raids, had praised the order before it was blocked saying 'today was really about a test of democracy, and today we passed the test" and had said he would be redeploying Guard soldiers to 'what they were doing before Donald Trump commandeered them.' White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said the president acted within his powers and that the federal judge's order 'puts our brave federal officials in danger. The district court has no authority to usurp the President's authority as Commander in Chief." The developments unfolded as protests continued in cities nationwide and the country braced for major demonstrations against Trump over the weekend. Noem said the immigration raids that fueled the protests would move forward and agents have thousands of targets. 'This is only going to continue until we have peace on the streets of Los Angeles,' she said during a news conference that was interrupted by shouting from U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat who was forcibly removed from the event. Newsom has warned that the military intervention is part of a broader effort by Trump to overturn norms at the heart of the nation's democracy. He also said sending Guard troops on the raids has further inflamed tensions in LA. So far the protests have been centered mostly in downtown near City Hall and a federal detention center where some immigrants are being held. Much of the sprawling city has been spared from the protests. On the third night of an 8 p.m. curfew, Los Angeles police arrested several demonstrators who refused orders to leave a street downtown. Earlier in the night, officers with the Department of Homeland Security deployed flash bangs to disperse a crowd that had gathered near the jail, sending protesters sprinting away. Those incidents were outliers. As with the past two nights, the hourslong demonstrations remained peaceful and upbeat, drawing a few hundred attendees who marched through downtown chanting, dancing and poking fun at the Trump administration's characterization of the city as a 'war zone.' Elsewhere, demonstrations have picked up across the U.S., emerging in more than a dozen major cities. Some have led to clashes with police and hundreds have been arrested. The immigration agents conducting the raids in LA are 'putting together a model and a blueprint' for other communities, Noem said. She pledged that federal authorities 'are not going away' even though, she said, officers have been hit with rocks and bricks and assaulted. She said people with criminal records who are in the country illegally and violent protesters will 'face consequences.' 'Just because you think you're here as a citizen, or because you're a member of a certain group or you're not a citizen, it doesn't mean that you're going to be protected and not face consequences from the laws that this country stands for," she said. Noem criticized the Padilla's interruption, calling it "inappropriate.' A statement from her agency said the two met after the news conference for about 15 minutes, but it also chided him for 'disrespectful political theater.' Padilla said later that he was demanding answers about the 'increasingly extreme immigration enforcement actions' and only wanted to ask Noem a question. He said he was handcuffed but not arrested. 'If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, I can only imagine what they are doing to farmworkers, to cooks, to day laborers throughout the Los Angeles community,' he said. The administration has said it is willing to send troops to other cities to assist with immigration enforcement and controlling disturbances — in line with what Trump promised during last year's campaign. Some 2,000 Guard soldiers were in the nation's second-largest city and were soon to be joined by 2,000 more, along with about 700 Marines, said Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, who is in charge of the operation. About 500 of the Guard troops deployed to the Los Angeles protests have been trained to accompany agents on immigration operations, Sherman said Wednesday. The Guard has the authority to temporarily detain people who attack officers, but any arrests must be made by law enforcement. With more demonstrations expected over the weekend, and the possibility that Trump could send troops to other states for immigration enforcement, governors are weighing what to do. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, has put 5,000 National Guard members on standby in cities where demonstrations are planned. In other Republican-controlled states, governors have not said when or how they may deploy troops. A group of Democratic governors earlier signed a statement this week calling Trump's deployments 'an alarming abuse of power.' There have been about 470 arrests since Saturday, the vast majority of which were for failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement, according to the police department. There have been a handful of more serious charges, including for assault against officers and for possession of a Molotov cocktail and a gun. Nine officers have been hurt, mostly with minor injuries. ___ Rodriguez reported from San Francisco and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press writers Julie Watson in San Diego, Jesse Bedayn in Denver, and Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas, and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Israel Bombing Iran Has Already Caused a MAGA Civil War
MAGA seems to be split on whether continuing to fight and fund Israel's wars against the rest of the Middle East is 'America First' or not. Israel bombed multiple cities and nuclear facilities in Iran Thursday night, dragging its U.S. benefactor into a war against what Prime Minister Netanyahu swears is an imminent nuclear threat from Iran. And while Trump and most GOP officials have fallen in line, a recent X poll suggests disharmony among the base on this issue. 'Explain it to me like I am 5 years old,' wrote MAGA loyalist Laura Loomer. 'How is it not AMERICA FIRST to congratulate those who just made sure Islamists who chant 'DEATH TO AMERICA' and who openly plotted to assassinate President @realDonaldTrump never have an opportunity to have a nuke? Explain it to me.' Loomer was rebuked by some of her own fellow MAGA coalition members. 'Explain to me, how is it America First to openly support those who blatantly disregarded our diplomatic efforts in order to get us dragged into another war on behalf of them?' one 'America First' user replied. 'You can't be America first and support billions of dollars going to a foreign nation to sponsor their war. You can't be America first if you want our servicemen to die on behalf of another nation.' 'Iran has 'almost had a nuke' for 30+ years. Read 'The Boy Who Cried Wolf.' Not crying for Iran. Screw em!' an account named 'Silent Patriot' responded. 'But I also haven't forgotten all the children abused by the Mossad/CIA controlled Epstein/Maxwell. This is not good guys vs bad guys. Bad killing bad.' Republican Senator Lindsey Graham giddily egged on Israel's attack. 'Game on. Pray for Israel,' he posted shortly after Israel bombed Iran multiple times. 'War pig says what?' a prominent MAGA account replied. Using taxpayer dollars to help Israel start a war is certainly not 'America First,' and neither are most of Trump's actions compared to his rhetoric. Only time will tell if his base actually catches on.
Los Angeles Times
22 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Kilmar Abrego Garcia pleads not guilty to human smuggling charges in Tennessee federal court
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose mistaken deportation has become a flashpoint in President Trump's immigration crackdown, pleaded not guilty on Friday to human smuggling charges in a federal court in Tennessee. The plea was the first chance the Maryland construction worker has had in a U.S. courtroom to answer the Trump administration's allegations against him since he was mistakenly deported in March to a notorious prison in El Salvador. The Republican administration returned Abrego Garcia to the U.S. last week to face criminal charges related to what it said was a human smuggling operation that transported immigrants across the country. The charges stem from a 2022 traffic stop in Tennessee during which Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle with nine passengers. His lawyers have called the allegations 'preposterous.' Friday's hearing will also focus on whether Abrego Garcia should be released from jail while awaiting trial on the smuggling charges. A federal judge will hear arguments from Abrego Garcia's lawyers and attorneys for the U.S. government. Before the hearing began in Nashville, Abrego Garcia's wife told a crowd outside a church that Thursday marked three months since the Trump administration 'abducted and disappeared my husband and separated him from our family.' Her voice choked with emotion, Jennifer Vasquez Sura said she saw her husband for the first time on Thursday. She said, 'Kilmar wants you to have faith,' and asked the people supporting him and his family ''to continue fighting, and I will be victorious because God is with us.'' Abrego Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador who had been living in the United States for more than a decade before he was wrongfully deported by the Trump administration. The expulsion violated a 2019 U.S. immigration judge's order that shielded him from deportation to his native country because he likely faced gang persecution there. While the Trump administration described the mistaken removal as 'an administrative error,' officials have continued to justify it by insisting Abrego Garcia was a member of the MS-13 gang. His wife and attorneys have denied the allegations, saying he's simply a construction worker and family man. U.S. attorneys have asked U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes to keep Abrego Garcia in jail, describing him as a danger to the community and a flight risk. Abrego Garcia's attorneys disagree, pointing out he was already wrongly detained in a notorious Salvadoran prison thanks to government error and arguing due process and 'basic fairness' require him to be set free. The charges against Abrego Garcia are human smuggling. But in their request to keep Abrego Garcia in jail, U.S. attorneys also accuse him of trafficking drugs and firearms and of abusing the women he transported, among other claims, although he is not charged with such crimes. The U.S. attorneys also accuse Abrego Garcia of taking part in a murder in El Salvador. However, none of those allegations is part of the charges against him, and at his initial appearance June 6, the judge warned prosecutors she cannot detain someone based solely on allegations. One of Abrego Garcia's attorneys last week characterized the claims as a desperate attempt by the Trump administration to justify the mistaken deportation three months after the fact. 'There's no way a jury is going to see the evidence and agree that this sheet metal worker is the leader of an international MS-13 smuggling conspiracy,' private attorney Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg said. In a Wednesday court filing, Abrego Garcia's public defenders argued the government is not even entitled to a detention hearing — much less detention — because the charges against him aren't serious enough. Although the maximum sentence for smuggling one person is 10 years, and Abrego Garcia is accused of transporting hundreds of people over nearly a decade, his defense attorneys point out there's no minimum sentence. The average sentence for human smuggling in 2024 was just 15 months, according to court filings. The decision to charge Abrego Garcia criminally prompted the resignation of Ben Schrader, who was chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Tennessee. He posted about his departure on social media on the day of the indictment, writing, 'It has been an incredible privilege to serve as a prosecutor with the Department of Justice, where the only job description I've ever known is to do the right thing, in the right way, for the right reasons.' He did not directly address the indictment and declined to comment when reached by The Associated Press. However, a person familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a personnel matter confirmed the connection. Although Abrego Garcia lives in Maryland, he's being charged in Tennessee based on a May 2022 traffic stop for speeding in the state. The Tennessee Highway Patrol body camera video of the encounter that was released to the public last month shows a calm exchange between officers and Abrego Garcia. It also shows the officers discussing among themselves their suspicions of human smuggling before sending him on his way. One of the officers says, 'He's hauling these people for money.' Another says Abrego Garcia had $1,400 in an envelope. Abrego Garcia was not charged with any offense at the traffic stop. Sandoval-Moshenberg, the private attorney, said in a statement after the video's release that he saw no evidence of a crime in the footage. Meanwhile, the lawsuit over Abrego Garcia's mistaken deportation isn't over. Abrego Garcia's attorneys have asked a federal judge in Maryland to impose fines against the Trump administration for contempt, arguing that it flagrantly ignored court orders forseveral weeks to return him. The Trump administration said it will ask the judge to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that it followed the judge's order to return him to the U.S. Loller, Mattise and Finley write for the Associated Press. Finley reported from Norfolk, Va.
