Local

Virginia hospitals and health systems provided $3.3 billion in community support for the commonwealth in 2022, according to a new report by the Virginia Hospital & Healthcare Association (VHHA) published on Wednesday. The report also revealed Virginia's healthcare industry generated more than $64 billion in positive economic activity over the same period. VHHA determined the dollar amount in community support by "reflecting the cost of uncompensated care, community wellness investment, taxes, and donations."

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney reportedly wants the Virginia General Assembly to approve $100 million for the city's sewer upgrades, plus additional revenue for new speeding cameras, and warned Virginians could see their utility rates "skyrocket" without additional state funding. “We’re asking for more because we know if we are unable to find the needed amount, a lot of this burden will fall on the ratepayers,” Stoney claimed, according to 12 On Your Side. The outlet reported that Stoney warned "utility bills could skyrocket" without additional funding approved by Virginia lawmakers and Governor Glenn Youngkin (R).

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump reportedly urged Memphis Mayor Paul Young to embrace the police reforms passed through city ordinances following the death of Tyre Nichols last year, even after former Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland claimed the ordinances were illegal. Crump, who represents family members of Nichols, said in a statement issued on the anniversary of Nichols' death that the family and legal team "are deeply disturbed by the recent revelation by former Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland that he actively avoided signing and enforcing the Driving Equality Act in honor of Tyre Nichols that the Memphis City Council passed in Spring 2023."

Memphis had the highest murder rate of 2023 in a comparison of 10 major cities identified as "homicide hubs" within the United States, according to an analysis published Wednesday. The only Tennessee city tracked for the Wirepoints report, Memphis had a murder rate of 63.9 homicides per 100,000 people in 2023. A total of 397 homicides were reported in the city last year, up by 38 percent from 2022, when the city saw 288 homicides.

Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and Police Chief Darin Schierbaum held a joint press conference on Thursday to detail what they identified as a downward trend in crime within the city, but preliminary numbers published by the Atlanta Police Department (APD) in December 2023 reveal that not all types of crime are declining. Dickens said during the press conference that the "major crime against people" was "down more than 15 percent," with homicides down about 20 percent and rapes down about 50 percent since 2022.

Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego (D) was selected by Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg to participate in a new advisory committee on December 29. Gallego was among the 27 members of the agency's new Transforming Transportation Advisory Committee (TTAC) for a two-year term named by Buttigieg last week. Explaining the need for the committee, Buttigieg noted the United States faces both "unprecedented opportunity and unprecedented challenges in transportation."

San Luis City appointed city Council Member Gloria Torres as the city's new vice mayor on December 14, 2023, representing her first promotion since her conviction for a misdemeanor ballot harvesting scheme in June of last year. Her colleague and longtime critic, Council Member Gary Garcia Snyder, told The Arizona Sun Times his constituents "are at a loss" following Torres' appointment. Torres (pictured above) pleaded guilty to her role in a ballot harvesting scheme after she was indicted following the release of camera footage obtained by Garcia Snyder and David Lara, a San Luis Republican who was elected to a school board seat in 2016, as the result of a "sting" operation.

A section of the Cheshire Bridge Road will remain closed to traffic for up to 10 weeks after a fire that may have started in a homeless encampment under the bridge, an Atlanta City Council member confirmed in a December 29 newsletter to his constituents. Atlanta City Councilmember Alex Wan told his constituents in his newsletter that the bridge is slated to be repaired, all at once, over a period that may take up to 10 weeks. Wan explained, "it has been determined that it is better long term to complete the entire rehab work at once" rather than partially opening the bridge to accommodate some traffic while repairs are finished.

The City of Tucson claimed it is legally immune to consequences of its public policy as part of its defense in a lawsuit claiming the city's decision to allow a homeless camp is causing damages to local residents and businesses. Bernardo Velasco, an attorney representing the city in the lawsuit, reportedly argued on Friday that Tucson "is immune from liability for its policy determinations, according to The Arizona Daily Star. That policy determination, the outlet explained, was to allow homeless individuals to camp in a "pocket park" known as the Navajo Wash.

Tennessee State Senate Minority Leader Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) claimed the new letter grades assigned to every Tennessee school are "flawed." Akbari represents Memphis, where more than 40 percent of schools did not receive passing grades. Akbari released a statement on Thursday declaring the "flawed letter grades will never define a school, their students and families, or their teachers and staff." She asserted the grades instead reflect what she claimed is inadequate state funding for education.

Shelby County Commissioner Mick Wright promised a formal complaint about County Clerk Wanda Halbert on Wednesday following a December 21 letter from Hamilton County District Attorney Coty Wamp (R) stressing the need for a document formally notifying her office of the clerk's alleged failures. Halbert is being investigated over claims of mismanagement, and allegations include hours-long lines for basic services, a backlog in license plate registrations, and alleged unpaid back rent on a satellite location that purportedly resulted in the court's eviction, reported Action News 5.

The Murfreesboro Police Department (MPD) released new details about its Real Time Crime Center (RTCC) on Tuesday, revealing the new system will rely on Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs), Public Safety Camera systems, and potentially "gunshot detection technology" to more quickly locate and respond to crime. The agency revealed on its website that MPD "is taking the final steps" toward completing its RTCC, with ALPRs already "installed in various locations" selected "based on historical crime trends and traffic patterns" throughout the city, and cameras coming soon to areas hit with violent crime or another "specific need" identified by police.

It was confirmed on Friday that a $5 million "rapid transitional housing" project in Atlanta is on pace to accept 40 residents from the city's homeless population beginning in January as city officials consider cracking down on homeless encampments. The report came after Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens (D) toured the project, known as The Village, which WSB-TV reported "could house up to 40 people in individual units with private baths, social services," and a "dog park" in "donated converted shipping containers and modular units."

The city-appointed Metro Nashville Airport Authority board voted unanimously on Wednesday to ratify 19 actions taken during the tenure of the previous board, which state officials appointed some of its members in accordance with a new Tennessee law. After the Tennessee General Assembly passed a law in June, the Nashville mayor, Tennessee governor, and top two lawmakers in the Tennessee General Assembly would each select two members for the board. The board was selected and began operating, but a ruling by a panel of three judges at the Tennessee Chancery Court agreed with Metro Nashville's argument that the law violates the Tennessee Constitution because it only applied to one Tennessee city.

Tennessee State Senator Heidi Campbell encouraged her supporters to make political donations to her campaign in the name of "abortion rights" to celebrate Christmas, even declaring that a certificate explaining the donation would make a "great stocking stuffer." Campbell declared it "the season for saving abortion rights" in a post on X, formerly Twitter. She urged her supporters to donate a "gift" to her campaign "in honor of a loved one" for the "Holiday season."