Tennessee
Tony Von Carruthers v. State of Tennessee
Tennessee plans to execute Tony Carruthers on May 21 even though they refuse to run a simple fingerprint comparison and DNA testing that could prove what Tony has been arguing for 30 years - that he is innocent of this crime and that Tennessee convicted and sentenced the wrong man to death.
Status: Ongoing
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22 Tennessee Cases
Tennessee Supreme Court
Aug 2026
Capital Punishment
Free Speech
Associated Press v. Nelsen
Tennessee's execution policies prevent the press from witnessing critical stages before and after a state execution. However, the public needs to know how they work—or don't work—to participate in informed public debate. The ACLU's State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the ACLU of Tennessee, filed an amicus brief explaining why a provision in the Tennessee Constitution that guarantees access to government proceedings requires greater press access to executions.
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Tennessee Supreme Court
Aug 2026
Capital Punishment
Free Speech
Associated Press v. Nelsen
Tennessee's execution policies prevent the press from witnessing critical stages before and after a state execution. However, the public needs to know how they work—or don't work—to participate in informed public debate. The ACLU's State Supreme Court Initiative, alongside the ACLU of Tennessee, filed an amicus brief explaining why a provision in the Tennessee Constitution that guarantees access to government proceedings requires greater press access to executions.
Tennessee
Jul 2026
LGBTQ Rights
+3 Issues
OUTMemphis v. Skrmetti (formerly OUTMemphis v. Lee)
OUTMemphis v. Skrmetti (formerly OUTMemphis v. Lee) is a first-of-its-kind challenge to a state-level HIV criminalization law as a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Constitution. Plaintiffs OUTMemphis and Jane Does 1-4 seek to strike down Tennessee’s discriminatory, irrational and cruel enforcement of its “Aggravated Prostitution” law and related sex offender registration requirements.
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Tennessee
Jul 2026
LGBTQ Rights
+3 Issues
OUTMemphis v. Skrmetti (formerly OUTMemphis v. Lee)
OUTMemphis v. Skrmetti (formerly OUTMemphis v. Lee) is a first-of-its-kind challenge to a state-level HIV criminalization law as a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Constitution. Plaintiffs OUTMemphis and Jane Does 1-4 seek to strike down Tennessee’s discriminatory, irrational and cruel enforcement of its “Aggravated Prostitution” law and related sex offender registration requirements.
Tennessee
Jun 2026
Immigrants' Rights
Lucy v. Skrmetti
The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Tennessee, and National Immigration Law Center filed a federal class-action lawsuit challenging a new Tennessee law, HB 1704, that unconstitutionally usurps federal immigration enforcement power by making it a crime for certain immigrants to remain in the state.
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Tennessee
Jun 2026
Immigrants' Rights
Lucy v. Skrmetti
The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Tennessee, and National Immigration Law Center filed a federal class-action lawsuit challenging a new Tennessee law, HB 1704, that unconstitutionally usurps federal immigration enforcement power by making it a crime for certain immigrants to remain in the state.
Tennessee
May 2026
Voting Rights
Sherman v. Hargett
The American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Tennessee filed a federal lawsuit on May 11, 2026, challenging Tennessee’s discriminatory new congressional redistricting map.
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Tennessee
May 2026
Voting Rights
Sherman v. Hargett
The American Civil Liberties Union and ACLU of Tennessee filed a federal lawsuit on May 11, 2026, challenging Tennessee’s discriminatory new congressional redistricting map.
Tennessee
May 2026
Free Speech
Demster v. Blanche
Four Memphis residents represented by the ACLU, ACLU of Tennessee, and law firms Selendy Gay and BraunHagey & Borden are challenging the Memphis Safe Task Force's policy and pattern of retaliation, intimidation, and harassment against observers who record Task Forceent operations, an activity protected by the First Amendment. The lawsuit also challenges the Task Force’s invocation of a Tennessee law criminalizing approaching officers within 25 feet after one warning against the plaintiffs, which burdens their ability to record Task Force activity.
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Tennessee
May 2026
Free Speech
Demster v. Blanche
Four Memphis residents represented by the ACLU, ACLU of Tennessee, and law firms Selendy Gay and BraunHagey & Borden are challenging the Memphis Safe Task Force's policy and pattern of retaliation, intimidation, and harassment against observers who record Task Forceent operations, an activity protected by the First Amendment. The lawsuit also challenges the Task Force’s invocation of a Tennessee law criminalizing approaching officers within 25 feet after one warning against the plaintiffs, which burdens their ability to record Task Force activity.