Latest news with #NashvilleMetroCouncil
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nashville council should allow police access to private surveillance footage
Editor's note: Letters to the editor reflect the views of individual readers. Scroll to the bottom to see how you can add your voice, whether you agree or disagree. We welcome diverse viewpoints. Re: 'Nashville violent crime might be dropping, but many citizens don't feel safer,' by David Plazas, Feb. 26 (online) and March 2 (print). David Plazas published a very informative column. Mr. Plazas researched crime rate offenses in Nashville. In short his research supports that violent crime is down but property crime is up in Nashville. Offenses not reported – whether violent or property related – cannot be captured and analyzed. This column concerns how the Nashville Metro Council may vote in the near future for a second time on Fusus. FUSUS allows Metro Nashville Police Department to access cameras of private citizens to help apprehend criminals faster. Private citizens willingly offer MNPD to use their videos. Theses citizens are saying to the City that "I want to help and be part of the solution in making Nashville safe again.' The video feeds from private citizens should convince the doubters that no bias, profiling or politics were involved to capture feeds. There are some that believe that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will have access to the captured information. This has been confirmed a 100 different times, and the answer is no. There are many who want to put limitations and restrictions on the private citizen feeds. Will it be so watered down that it is useless? That is not what I want. I want a fair and non-biased tool to reduce crime rates. Opinion: Nashville must postpone surveillance program because there are too many concerns Keeps politics away and support the use of this technology. This is like adding more boots on the ground for MNPD. The Metro Council's next meeting is Tuesday night and my hope is that the Council has come to its senses and has started to listen to the every-day citizens. Maybe that will convince Mayor Freddie O'Connell to stop sitting on his hands and roll out the use of previously voted and approved License Plate readers . Private citizens are willing to help, listen to them! Should the Council vote no, we are left to defend for ourselves. To quote Mr. Plazas " Show citizens council is working to make them feel safer." Steve Jones, Nashville 37221 Agree or disagree? Or have a view on another topic entirely? Send a letter of 250 words or fewer to letters@ Include your full name, city/town, ZIP and contact information for verification. Thanks for adding to the public conversation. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville police should get access to camera owners' footage | Letters
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former Metro fire captain awarded $1.7 million in federal free speech lawsuit
A federal jury on Friday returned a verdict in favor of a former Metro fire captain — and awarded him $1.7 million in damages — in a First Amendment lawsuit, about a year after the Nashville Metro Council soundly rejected a proposal to settle the litigation for just a fraction of that total. According to a news release from attorney Larry Crain, former Metro fire captain Tracy Turner prevailed in the case after the court found, "as a matter of law," that Turner's political comments on social media were entitled to full constitutional protection. Turner had been demoted from his rank in 2020 after posting comments about people protesting police brutality and the murder of George Floyd on his Facebook account, calling them "the stupidest people on the planet." He also referred to Black Lives Matter supporters as "thugs." "This is an important vindication of a public employee's freedom to exercise their right of free speech," Crain said in the release. "We should never tolerate government retaliation against an employee for speaking out on a matter of inherent public concern." Turner sued Metro in 2021, arguing that his demotion was retaliation for exercising his First Amendment right to "political expression as a private citizen." Three years later, the Metro Council voted 31-0 against adopting a resolution that would've settled the case for just $105,000. At the time, council members reasoned that moving forward with the legal battle would better define the lines for government employee social media policy, protect public trust in government services, and make a stand against government employees disparaging the residents they serve. Metro Director of Law Wally Dietz warned at the time that taking a chance in front of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals would be "a crapshoot," depending on judges' subjective interpretations. As of Saturday, it's not yet clear what will happen from here from Metro Legal's perspective. "We are evaluating our options at this point," Dietz told The Tennessean on Saturday morning. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Former Metro fire captain awarded $1.7 million in free speech lawsuit
