Paula L. Skahan Reprimanded Retired

Paula L. Skahan, a Shelby County Criminal Court judge in Memphis, was publicly reprimanded by the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct over her handling of Courtney Anderson's post-conviction case. Anderson had been sentenced to 162 years, 11 months, and 29 days for non-violent theft and forgery convictions in the late 1990s. The Board found Skahan was prepared to grant Anderson relief before hearing any argument, taking any evidence, or even before his post-conviction petition had been officially filed. Skahan arranged for Anderson's release in 2022, and he spent months out of prison before the Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled that Skahan had "illegally" released him and ordered him remanded back into custody. The Board's reprimand also cited Skahan for admittedly making "injudicious comments" about former Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich and the judge who had originally handled Anderson's case. This reportedly marked the fourth reprimand issued to Skahan within a single year.