Steve Cavendish

Nashville

President and Editor at Nashville Banner

Editor @NashvilleBanner, Prez of Nashville Public Media. Former Editor, @NashvilleScene, @WCP. email steve [at] nashvillepublicmedia [dot] com

Articles

Judge rules Kilmar Abrego Garcia poses no flight risk

5 days ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

A federal magistrate judge ordered Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man improperly deported to an El Salvador prison, can be freed ahead of his federal trial in Nashville. But that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s returning home to Maryland or even leaving federal custody.
The Tennessee companies cashing in on the state’s $1.5 billion franchise tax refund

3 weeks ago | timesfreepress.com | Steve Cavendish

At the end of the 2024 legislative session, the General Assembly slashed the state's franchise tax for businesses, effectively eliminating the property tax portion of the levy at a cost to the state of $405 million per year. Steered by the Republican leadership in both chambers, who said they feared litigation over the two-pronged tax, the legislature also opened a window for companies to apply for a rebate of the last three years' worth of their franchise taxes, or $1.55 billion in refunds.
Tennessee's $1.5 billion franchise tax refund to businesses

3 weeks ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

At the end of the 2024 legislative session, the General Assembly slashed the state’s franchise tax for businesses, effectively eliminating the property tax portion of the levy at a cost to the state of $405 million per year. Steered by the Republican leadership in both chambers, who said they feared litigation over the two-pronged tax, the legislature also opened a window for companies to apply for a rebate of the last three years’ worth of their franchise taxes, or $1.55 billion in refunds.
Nashville faces Congressional probe over immigration actions

4 weeks ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

Want a fight? You need a villain. When U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles stepped to the podium Monday, the bad guy in his narrative about the supposedly lawless streets of Nashville was Mayor Freddie O’Connell, who had the temerity to say that ICE raids don’t make Nashville safer and that they actually make it harder for Metro Police to do their job, you know, making Nashville safer. In Ogles’ mind, O’Connell has been “aiding and abetting illegal immigration” and protecting violent criminals.
Glen Casada and Cade Cothren Attorneys Begin to Show Split

1 month ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

Slight cracks began to form between Glen Casada and Cade Cothren on day seven of their trial. Wednesday was the third full day on the witness stand for Casada and Cothren’s alleged conspirator, former Rep. Robin Smith’s. Most of the day was taken up by cross-examination. The moment of interest came during Casada attorney Jonathan Farmer’s questioning, when he drew attention to texts between Smith, the government’s star witness, and Cothren during the formation of Phoenix Solutions.
Mayor O'Connell's chief of staff to change roles soon

1 month ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

Marjorie Pomeroy-Wallace, Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s chief of staff and one of the architects of his successful 2023 campaign, will change roles soon, multiple sources have told the Banner. Pomeroy-Wallace is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the mayor’s office and has been an influential voice in an administration that spent its first year focused on transit.
New Tennessee Board Cracks Down on Inmates and Adds Millions to Taxpayers' Bill

2 months ago | nashvillebanner.com | Demetria Kalodimos |Steve Cavendish

For the origin story of the Inmate Disciplinary Oversight Board, you need only look at the murder of Eliza Fletcher. The Memphis woman was killed by a recently released inmate who had a long record of violence behind bars, yet still earned “good time” credit. In response, the legislature established a panel to reduce sentence reductions. Now, a hand-selected board has the power to reconsider the punishments given for every serious offense committed in custody.
Food insecurity crisis: Impact of federal cuts on Tennessee

2 months ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

Walk through the side door of Watson Grove Baptist Church in Edgehill and you’ll find the food pantry Rev. Margareat Smithson has managed to carve out — roughly 200 square feet of tables and shelves and a single refrigerator she shares with two other ministries. It may not look like much, but this one-woman operation has been feeding families every day for decades.
Protesters rally against Trump administration policies

2 months ago | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

Jocelyn and Clay Galvez don’t look like “radicals.” Or maybe they do. The word “radical” is losing its meaning these days, with everyone who doesn’t fall in line with the new administration’s policies labeled as a “far-left radical.” Recently, President Donald Trump called NPR and PBS part of the “radical left” and I don’t know how I would describe Kermit the Frog, the hosts of PBS NewsHour or the folks at “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me,” but “radical” isn’t it.
Metro Council pays for rejection of settlement with Turner

Feb 10, 2025 | nashvillebanner.com | Steve Cavendish

On March 7, 2024, the city’s attorneys brought to the Metro Council a $105,000 settlement offer for a federal lawsuit filed by Tracy Turner. The fire captain had been busted down to firefighter for some pretty gross comments he made on Facebook about Black protesters during the George Floyd protests.