Free Republic

A Shelby County grand jury has indicted former state senator Kathryn Bowers on one count of reckless driving, Dist. Atty. Gen. Bill Gibbons said Monday. Bowers, 63, was charged with reckless driving, DUI and failure to exercise due caution last summer after her car swerved across three lanes of Interstate 40 and struck a UPS truck. The DUI count was dismissed in February after a toxicology report showed she had no alcohol in her system and no measurable amount of prescription medicines. The charge of failure to exercise due caution also was dropped. The reckless driving offense, a misdemeanor, was...

NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance has fined former state Sen. Kathryn Bowers after she didn’t appear at a hearing over an unreported campaign contribution. The registry notified Bowers, a Memphis Democrat, that she was in violation of election finance laws because she had failed to report a $2,500 contribution from FedEx in January. She was ordered to appear before the board Wednesday. She didn’t attend the hearing and the registry voted to fine her $10,000. Bowers can appeal the decision, officials said. Bowers is one of five current or former lawmakers indicted in the Tennessee Waltz public...

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - State Sen. Kathryn Bowers, awaiting trial on federal corruption charges, announced Monday she would resign because of poor health. "This has nothing to do with the criminal case. This has to do with my health," said Bowers, who easily won the Democratic nomination for re-election on Aug. 3. Bowers said she has high blood pressure and a rapid heart rate. In a letter to Lt. Gov. John Wilder, the Senate president, Bowers said her resignation will take effect Sept. 1. The executive committee of the Shelby County Democratic Party will choose a replacement candidate for the...

NASHVILLE — Sen. Kathryn Bowers is facing bribery charges in one of the biggest corruption scandals in Tennessee history, but the Memphis Democrat doesn't expect that to keep her from winning her primary on Aug. 3. "I'm very confident that I have the support of the people," Bowers said. "I have a very intelligent constituency that understands that a person is innocent until proven guilty." Bowers, one of five current or former lawmakers indicted in the federal investigation called Tennessee Waltz, is the only one seeking re-election. Two of the former lawmakers have been convicted, and Bowers is awaiting trial....

Seven, Including Four State Lawmakers Arrested in Bribery Scheme Memphis, TN - Federal authorities arrested four Tennessee state legislators, a former state legislator and two others Thursday (5/26) as part of a corruption probe into the business dealings of state Senator John Ford of Memphis. At a news conference in Memphis, authorities said those arrested are Ford; Senator Kathryn Bowers of Memphis; Senator Ward Crutchfield of Chattanooga; Representative Chris Newton of Cleveland; and Roscoe Dixon, a former senator who is now a top aide to Shelby County Mayor A. C .Wharton. Also charged were Charles Love and Barry Myers....