Memphis attorney Vincent Perryman discusses Shelby County Environmental Court

Vincent Perryman, an attorney with the Law Offices of J. Vincent Perryman discusses the Shelby County Environmental Court with John Cameron, staff attorney and magistrate of the Environmental Court. Topics discussed include the clarification of "What is the Environmental Court?", "What jurisdiction does the Environmental Court preside over?", "Ordinance violations", "Criminal jurisdictions", and "Animal violations".

Common court presidings that take place include criminal littering and waterway violations. The Shelby County Environmental Court is unique among the general sessions courts in having dual civil and criminal jurisdiction. As part of that civil jurisdiction suits are brought under the state's public nuisance code. The public nuisance code is used when there are a certain number of criminal or illegal activities placed at a certain property in Memphis that would constitute blighting influence or a nuisance to the area around it. Examples include housing where drug deals take place, a strip club where prostitution and drug sales are involved, and even entire apartment complexes being shut down if excessive arrests are accumulated over a set time frame. These situations are resolved through the District Attorney's office petitioning the Shelby County Environmental Court to shut down the property in question.

The organized crime unit of the Memphis Police Department is then dispatched to the property where they placard and close the business until such time that assurances can be made that such violations will be resolved to the satisfaction of the court.

Additionally, the Shelby County Environmental Court has started handling cases regarding the Tennessee Neighborhood Preservation Act. This act allows individuals, groups, the city of Memphis, or Shelby County to sue a property owner for failure to maintain a property up to community standards, and/or local codes. If the owner of the property is unwilling or unable to make repairs on said property, the court can appoint an overseer who will complete the necessary repairs. The repairs at that point constitute a lien which must be satisfied even if that requires the sale of the property. This is referred to as a "nuclear option".

Vincent Perryman and John Cameron continue their discussion of the Shelby County Environmental Court. The Shelby County Environmental Court arose in the summer of 1982 through the need for a court system to handle cases that involved individuals who proved to be repeat offenders regarding things such as public health and safety concerns through rental properties. The goal was to have these cases heard before a single judge so as to have the offenders dealt with in a consistent manner that would reinforce accountability. This problem failed to be addressed with the former system due to repeat offenders being seen by different judges for subsequent offenses. This created an inconsistent form of correction. Due to the increase of cases brought before the judge, the Shelby County Environmental Court was formed. This enabled the judge to issue fines for multiple violations and issue bench warrants for those who failed to appear for court. With this injunctive authority now in place, the court could now affect a permanent injunction against the offending properties, resulting in contempt of court for any individual who failed to follow the judge’s decision.

After the Shelby County Environmental Court was established as a general session’s court, they began handling community court dockets. This was basically an extension of the general session’s court into the community. Now, the court has dockets in Frasier, White Haven, Orange Mound, Millington, and Hickory Hill. This allows the court to hear violations at the community level, prevent individuals from feeling like criminals, and focus on the goal of cleaning up the violation(s).

The mission of the Shelby County Environmental Court is not to persecute individuals, but instead to keep the community safe. The correct maintenance of properties can deter criminal activity from spawning in Memphis and Shelby County neighborhoods that are well cared for.

Memphis attorney Vincent Perryman concludes his discussion about the Shelby County Environmental Court with guest John Cameron. Example cases are discussed concerning possible courses of action that could be taken by the Shelby County Environmental Court.

The first example details the possibility of an individual residing at a rental property, and having tree damage to that property with no course of action being taken by the owner. In said case, John Cameron describes the manner in which The Shelby County Environmental Court would possibly resolve the issue by confronting the owner, requesting any documentation that could be presented as proof that the owner has taken steps to resolve the issue, and monitoring the situation as it progresses to see that the issue is resolved.

The second example examines the case in which an individual has a collection of refuse occupying a significant portion of their land. In such a case, the court would establish a timeline that would need to be followed toward the goal of removing the refuse. Possible actions for failure to follow the court order could include a court order toward that goal or even jail time. However, provisions are included to account for the disabled, elderly, and otherwise unable to help resolve the situation.