Several Tennessee prosecutors have signed on to an effort to retain three Tennessee Supreme Court justices who are facing a retention election.
They said they "have joined forces to oppose efforts to politicize our courts while noting that our current Tennessee Supreme Court has upheld almost 90 percent of death penalty cases."
Serving as statewide spokesperson is Tom P. Thompson Jr. of the 15th Judicial District, Tennessee’s longest-serving district attorney general at 37 years – possibly making him the nation’s longest-serving record-holder. He is currently running unopposed for another eight-year term serving Wilson, Smith, Macon, Jackson and Trousdale Counties.
He said, “As a district attorney, I may not agree with them on every single case but I know this: I understand that all three of these justices are fair, they are impartial, they protect our rights under our Tennessee and U.S. Constitutions, and these justices are tough on criminals.
“That is all I need to know. All three of these justices should be retained.
”I understand that some prosecutors may not agree with every decision made by this court. It is an adversarial system, and these justices have had to make some tough calls, but the fact is these justices and this court have upheld almost 90 percent of death penalty cases. They are not soft on crime. These justices have had outstanding records and deserve to be retained.”
Prosecutors joining DA Thompson to support retention efforts include:
- Dan Alsobrooks, District Attorney of Cheatham, Dickson, Houston, Humphreys, and Stewart Counties - Berkeley Bell, District Attorney of Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, and Hawkins County - Mike Bottoms, District Attorney of Giles, Lawrence, Maury and Wayne Counties - Garry Brown, District Attorney of Crockett, Gibson and Haywood Counties - John Carney, District Attorney of Montgomery and Robertson Counties - Dave Clark, District Attorney of Anderson County
- James Dunn, District Attorney of Cocke, Grainger, Jefferson, and Sevier Counties - John Gill, Former U.S. Attorney of Knoxville who served under President Reagan at the recommendation of U.S. Senator Howard Baker - Torry Johnson, District Attorney of Metro Davidson County - Hansel McCadams, District Attorney of Benton, Carroll, Decatur, Hardin and Henry Counties - Randy Nichols, District Attorney of Knox County - Greeley Wells, Retired District Attorney of Sullivan County - Bill Whitesell, District Attorney of Cannon and Rutherford Counties.