Commissioner calls for Shelby Co. judge to resign over release of defendants

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Shelby County Commissioner Mick Wright is calling for General Session Judge Bill Anderson to step down.

Wright says Anderson should resign based on his leadership and because too many criminal defendants are being released back on the streets of Memphis.

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“They (Memphians) are seeing friends and neighbors assaulted and harmed by all the crime and people are crying out and want to see something different from our justice system,” Wright said. “It’s time for Judge Anderson to step down from leading the judicial commissioners.”

Anderson supervises Shelby County’s 14 judicial commissioners.  Their job, among other things, is to set bail when someone is first arrested.

“The number one important thing for a judge is to be impartial, and I know he’s already been reprimanded with regard to his statements on the bail bond industry,” Wright said.

In an interview with WREG last year, Anderson defended the job of his judicial commissioners.

“I will take the heat for any magistrate that works down here. I will defend my magistrates ’cause it is one of the toughest jobs there is,” Anderson said.

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But Wright questions Anderson’s leadership.

“To know that he’s been on record basically pressuring them saying there’s some type of quota they need to make with regard to release on recognizance, those things are totally inappropriate,” Wright said.

In the past, Anderson has pointed blame at bail bond companies for the quick release of defendants.

“The people who make the decision on who gets out of our jails on a monetary bail is the bail bond company. It’s not the judges. It’s not the magistrates,” Anderson said. “It’s a private entity we have absolutely no control over.”

Wright also points to the bond hearing of Jaylen Lobley, an 18-year-old who was back on the streets just weeks before he was in a shootout with police, leaving an officer dead.

“I’m also reflecting on some of the comments he’s made in particular cases. He’s said that it’s an appropriate decision to release someone who ultimately ends up being involved in a firefight where three of our officers are shot and one of them ultimately passes away,” Wright said.

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For now, Wright says he’ll continue to push for Anderson’s resignation.

“We need leadership change, and we need people who are willing to keep the public safe,” Wright said.

WREG did reach out to Judge Anderson for comment today but has yet to respond to our request.

In a published report, Anderson was quoted as saying “I was elected to an eight-year term, by the people of Shelby County and I intend to fulfill my obligation to the best of my ability.”

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