Month: April 2010

Former Memphis police officer Bridges McRae left the federal courtroom a free man last week, after the jury in a high-profile case failed to reach a unanimous verdict as to whether or not McRae violated victim Duanna Johnson’s civil rights.

But McRae isn’t in the clear yet. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has requested a new criminal trial, though a date had not been set by press time. And if the criminal trial results in another hung jury or if McRae is found not guilty, he also faces a civil suit.

In February 2008, McRae was caught on surveillance video beating Johnson, a transgender woman who’d been arrested on prostitution charges, in the lobby of the Shelby County Jail. Though the 18-minute video contains no audio, Johnson later told reporters that McRae hit her after she refused to respond to taunts of “he/she” and “faggot.” Johnson was found shot to death in a North Memphis street later that year in a seemingly unrelated incident. No arrest was made in that case.

Johnson’s attorney, Murray Wells, filed the civil suit against McRae in late 2008, but the federal court issued a stay after the conclusion of the criminal trial.

“Even if McRae is found not guilty, my case moves forward,” Wells said. “The burden of proof is substantially different. In the criminal case, it’s beyond a reasonable doubt, which is pretty high. My burden would be preponderance of evidence, which means more likely than not.”

If McRae is convicted in the civil trial, the monetary award would go to Johnson’s estate.

In the recent criminal trial, the jury voted 11 to one to convict McRae. After hours of deliberation, the jurors asked Judge Thomas Anderson to define “willfulness,” since they were asked to decide if McRae willfully violated Johnson’s civil rights.

“I kept hearing that one juror had trouble with the definition of willful. To me, it seems pretty obvious in the video,” said Memphis Gay & Lesbian Community Center director Will Batts. “To have him walk away [from Johnson] and come back multiple times. The reports were that he had handcuffs wrapped around his knuckles. That all seems to indicate a willful thought-out response.”

McRae claimed he was acting in self-defense and described Johnson as aggressive. McRae’s attorney did not return phone calls for comment.

Last week, the Flyer reported that the Newspaper Guild of Memphis was launching a “Save Our CA” advertising campaign, created to inform Commercial Appeal readers about the Memphis Publishing Company’s intention to outsource more positions. Now guild members must decide whether to accept the newspaper’s final offer or consider the possibility of going to “war” with their employer.

On May 8th, after seven contentious years of negotiation, guild members will vote for or against a contract that permits unlimited outsourcing of all positions at The Commercial Appeal. The CA has always had the right to outsource any position, but under terms of the old contract, management couldn’t fire an employee in order to outsource his or her job.

The proposed contract gives employees making top-scale immediate raises, the first pay increases in more than six years. If the contract is approved, employees will receive a 4 percent raise in 2010, a 3 percent raise in the following year, and a 2 percent raise in the third year. The new contract would freeze pensions, although employees would keep all benefits accrued to date.

If the new contract is rejected, CA management will declare an impasse and implement the contract anyway, according to guild president Daniel Connolly. He says it would mean the union would be “at war,” adding “all options would be on the table, including boycotts and other methods to inflict economic damage.”

CA management announced its “final offer” weeks ago, but the guild successfully lobbied for another round of negotiations, which took place April 26th. Unlimited outsourcing was termed non-negotiable, but CA management agreed to pay employees who lose their jobs to outsourcing two weeks salary in “true severance,” in addition to the normal severancwe pay, which is deducted from an employee’s accrued pension. The union gets to keep a clause in its contract that ensures the terms of agreement won’t expire until a new contract is ratified.

In a message to guild members, Connolly said: “We recognize that the newspaper industry is troubled and, at various times, we proposed economic concessions to save jobs, such as furloughs and temporary wage cuts. The company rejected these ideas. … Going forward, we would encourage the company to see its workers as assets who can help save the business, rather than as obstacles to progress.”

After 17 years of riding MATA, Johnnie Mosley thinks the transportation authority is backing itself into a new motto.

“You cannot continue this policy of eliminating bus routes every time there’s a situation,” he said. “If the MATA board does not take into consideration the darkest impacts of taking bus routes away … the new motto eventually will be: No Bus Routes. No Bus Service. No Passengers. No Bus Drivers Needed.”

Not very catchy, is it? But it gets his point across.

About 43 percent of MATA’s operational funding, or $23 million, comes from the city of Memphis. In anticipation of a 4 to 8 percent cut in funding from the city, accompanied by an almost $1.5 million increase in fuel costs for the next year, MATA is cutting personnel, eliminating or consolidating nine bus routes, and changing the frequency of several others.

“In areas where the ridership is not as great, we’ll reduce the headway, and passengers may have to wait longer,” said William Hudson, president and general manager of MATA. “Transit systems across the country are cutting service and increasing fares.”

The route changes, approved this week by MATA’s board, will begin in August. Hudson notes that MATA Plus, the service for people with disabilities, won’t be affected.

“Cutting your budgets puts you in survival mode. You try to do the best you can. We’re not raising fares, because it’s counterproductive. When we raise fares, it reduces ridership,” Hudson said.

Cutting service is a more complex story. Last year, MATA cut service 4 percent. Before the change, its number of riders per hour per bus was 25. After the cuts, that number went up to 26.

But Mosley, who is chair of the advocacy group Citizens for Better Service, still raises a valid question: If every budget crisis at MATA is met with another reduction in service, where will public transportation in Memphis end up?

It’s a question MATA board members and staff are keenly aware of.

“If we continue what we’re doing, someday we will have two bus riders and one bus,” board member John Vergos said.

In addition to the city’s contribution, MATA’s revenue stream includes fares, funding from the state, and advertising dollars. But only a quarter of every dollar needed to run MATA comes directly from its riders.

Board members recently discussed the importance of increasing ridership to increase revenue. Unfortunately, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where the current service cuts — especially an increase in wait time between buses — would result in more riders.

“People have told me that they would love to ride public transportation,” Mosley said. “But getting from one side of town to the other in two hours is not going to work for them.”

In all fairness, MATA has shifted its operations somewhat this year. Hudson said they’ve been trying to fix a route system that, traditionally, has been overly accommodating for some passengers at the expense of the entire system for quite some time.

“We used to have buses go by riders’ houses and directly by employment sites,” Hudson said. “Now we try to stick closer to main thoroughfares. … In order to be more efficient, we have to eliminate some of the detours and let [riders] walk to their destinations.”

MATA is also eliminating 10-cent transfers as of this week, a move that could be costly for passengers since MATA’s system operates around several hubs. As of May 1st, each ride will cost the full $1.50 fare, but MATA hopes passengers will take advantage of its new unlimited-ride daily, weekly, or monthly Fast Passes.

MATA staff members say the Fast Passes increased pre-paid sales 14 percent in January, 24 percent in February, and 41 percent in March from sales in the previous year. It’s unclear how the program has affected overall revenue or ridership.

While the Fast Pass is a good start, MATA’s long-term plan needs to include other ways to generate more riders and revenue. But how to do that with limited resources?

MATA representatives often talk about how the public transportation authority has no dedicated funding source. The City Council could ask citizens to vote on a referendum to fund public transportation, but MATA hasn’t felt it’s been the right time to push for that yet.

“At one time, we had a thriving system, because people didn’t have to wait an hour on a bus,” Hudson said. “We’re going to have to find ways to improve our system, but money is an issue.”

In the meantime, Mosley said MATA should have asked the city for the money instead of pre-emptively approving service cuts.

“If they don’t ask for it, they’re guaranteed not to get it. If you ask for it, and you present a strong case, there’s a possibility you might get it,” Mosley said. “If MATA can’t make a strong case for how to fund public transportation in Memphis, no one can.”

With additional reporting by Bianca Phillips

About “Letter from the Editor” and the real beginnings of the Tea Party movement:

“The Tea Party movement is a modern-day, right-wing version of the Symbionese Liberation Army. It’s only a matter of time before Sarah Palin changes her name to ‘Tania’ and starts robbing banks.” — phlo

“Wrong, phlo, it’s actually only a matter of time until she’s hanging out in a milk bar with her droogs getting ready for her next episode of ultra violence. While listening to Beethoven. And reading violent Bible passages.” — packrat

About “Worst Foot Forward” and the reasons MCS needs the city to look poor:

“Finally a throwdown challenge to the bottomless sponge.

In tonight’s first match we have Geoff Caulkins vs. RC Johnson. And in the title match, Challenger John Branston vs. Kriner ‘Needmo’ Cash.” — danzo

About “Herenton, Kyles, and Cohen: The Case of the Averted Glitch” (referring to an apparent snub of Cohen at the funeral of Benjamin Hooks):

“Is it just me, or is political grandstanding at a funeral just a bit inappropriate? ESPECIALLY for a supposed man of the cloth?” — mad_merc

About “Hey, Big Spender” and a guide to tipping:

“Farm workers can be paid less than minimum wage; should we tip the dude who picked the asparagus on the menu too?” — packrat

Comment of the Week:

About “Ghost Story”:

“There’s other stuff out there NO ONE can explain. We aren’t the only beings on this earth. I have had that proved to me on a few occasions.” — COPR

WSG wooed Midtowners with rumors of a Target store and mixed-used commercial and retail space in 2007, but the out-of-town development company missed the bull’s-eye thanks to the economic downturn. Now the abandoned development project has taken a new twist, but its future remains uncertain.

Last week, Lehman Brothers Holding Company, Inc. purchased the 26-acre site of vacant single-family homes and apartments located southeast of the Poplar and Cleveland intersection.

The area once housed a mostly low-income immigrant population, but the residents of the 30-plus single-family homes and multi-story apartment buildings were relocated to make way for the proposed WSG development.

The big-box retailers never came. WSG defaulted on its $14 million loan from Lehman Brothers, and in 2008, Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Now the buildings remain vacant, their crumbling facades transformed into a vast canvas for gang graffiti.

A representative from Lehman Brothers was vague about the company’s plans.

“I’m not at liberty to discuss anything that’s going on with that property at this point. These are discussions that are ongoing,” said Kim Macleod, a spokesperson for Lehman Brothers.

Mary Baker, deputy director of land use control with the city’s Office of Planning and Development, said WSG’s plans are still on file with the city. Those plans were approved by the City Council in October 2008. Baker says planned developments with no action typically expire after five years.

If another development company purchases the property from Lehman Brothers with similar mixed-use commercial and residential plans, it might be able to simply modify WSG’s original plans. Those plans called for diminished parking, creating a walkable, urban-style development.

“If they came in and said we want to do a suburban-style development and push a big box back and put in a big parking lot, then I think we’d be talking about [starting over],” Baker said.

Though little has been done to tear down the abandoned structures, a chain-link fence was erected around the neighborhood in the late fall. Since then, crime in the area has dropped dramatically.

Major Terry Landrum with the Memphis Police Department’s Union Station said the area used to be the highest crime area in Midtown. Vagrants were living in the abandoned properties, and an arsonist struck several buildings.

Landrum has high hopes for future development on the site.

“We were hoping we’d get the Target store there. That would have been nice,” Landrum said.

“I don’t know what they intend to do with the property now, but I hope someone comes in with some kind of upscale business. If they put in more apartments, you’ll have more people. Where there’s more people, there’s more crime.”