Jared Effler, 8th District Attorney General, has been elected by fellow members of the Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference to serve as president of the organization’s executive committee. In this position, Effler will play a crucial role in guiding the overall administration of justice in Tennessee.

The 8th Judicial District includes Campbell, Claiborne, Fentress, Scott and Union counties.

Effler said he looks forward to working with his colleagues “as we advocate for crime victims and work to improve public safety in our great state.”

Effler took office in 2014 as the 8th District attorney general and was re-elected without opposition in 2022. He was born and raised in Union County, Tennessee, and is a product of the Union County Public Schools. Upon graduating from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in 1999, Effler was appointed as an assistant district attorney for the 8th Judicial District.

The Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference was created by the General Assembly in 1961 to provide for a more prompt and efficient administration of justice in the courts of the state. It is composed of the elected District Attorneys General from the state’s 32 judicial districts. www.tndagc.org

State goes after Memphis man who did not remit taxes

The Special Investigations Section of the Tennessee Department of Revenue conducted the investigation that led to Alex Crowder’s guilty plea to theft and tax evasion.

On Wednesday, July 2, 2025, Judge Lee V. Coffee accepted Crowder’s guilty plea to one felony count of theft of property over $60,000 and one felony count of tax evasion. These charges stemmed from Crowder filing false sales tax returns for Mr. P’s Buffalo Wings, a restaurant he owns located on Hacks Cross. Crowder was sentenced to eight years’ probation and ordered to pay restitution of $348,620.

The Department of Revenue pursued this criminal case in cooperation with District Attorney Steven Mulroy’s Office. Citizens who suspect violations of Tennessee’s revenue laws should call the toll-free tax fraud hot line at 800-372-8389.

Notes & Quotes
  • In response to excessive rain and flash flooding, U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is introducing a bill to prohibit “the injection, release or dispersion of chemicals or substances into the atmosphere for the express purpose of altering weather, temperature, climate or sunlight intensity.” It will be a felony offense.
  • Knoxville Bar Association will sponsor a Bankruptcy CLE and summer social on Friday, July 11, 2025, from 3 to 4:40 p.m. at the City County Building. The social will begin at 5 p.m. at Chesapeake’s. The CLE is a roundtable discussion with experienced Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees and collaborative dialogue on current issues, best practices and emerging trends in Chapter 7 cases.
  • Trump moving too fast for you? A nonprofit is publishing a daily update of Executive Orders and legal challenges to same. Info here.
In Memoriam

Armistead Smith

Armistead “Army” Smith, 89, passed away on Sunday, June 29, 2025, at his home in Strawberry Plains, Tennessee. He did undergraduate work at the University of Wisconsin at Madison and earned a law degree from the University of Memphis.

After service in the U.S. Marine Corps, he entered a career in banking which included 25 years with First Tennessee Bank (now First Horizon) and 15 years with Union Planters Bank. He chaired United Way campaigns in Memphis, Knoxville and Kingsport.

Mr. Smith’s memorial service will be held at the Church of the Ascension, 800 S. Northshore Drive, in Knoxville, on July 13, 2025, at 3 p.m. The full obituary is here.