By J. Holly McCall | Editor-in-Chief
Good morning, Lookout readers:
We lead off this morning with an update from Senior Reporter Anita Wadhwani on a case from Memphis in which agents from the Drug Enforcement Agency operating with with the Memphis Safe Task Force shot a man eight times while he was working the breakfast shift at a Burger King.
Darrin Pigram’s family is asking for an investigation into his killing, but they aren’t likely to get satisfaction from Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy. As Wadhwani reports, Mulroy announced on Monday he will not pursue charges against the federal agents.
And Cassandra Stephenson reports that statewide, ballots cast in the first two days of voting for the August 6 primary election are up 47% from the 2022 midterm primary.
In other news:
Ad watch: Rep. Todd Warner, a candidate for the Republican nomination for the 9th Congressional District, is firing back at his opponent — and legislative colleague — Sen. Brent Taylor of Memphis. Pro-school voucher groups backing Taylor have slammed Warner for voting against private school vouchers. Warner is out with an ad in which he addresses the attacks and blasts a trash can with flames.
A question of ethics: Phil Williams, investigative reporter for NewsChannel5 in Nashville, reported Monday that transcripts and tapes obtained as part of a U.S. Senate Ethics Committee investigation into U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, reveals members of her Senate staff were concerned about being required to violate ethics rules.
THE LOOKOUT’S TOP STORY
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy has declined to prosecute a Drug Enforcement Administration agent’s fatal shooting of 41-year-old Darrin Pigram. Pictured: a makeshift memorial outside Burger King, where Pigram was killed by officers serving a warrant as part of the Memphis Safe Task Force. (Photo by Brad Vest for the Tennessee Lookout)
by Anita Wadhwani
The Shelby County District Attorney will not pursue charges in the fatal shooting of a man inside a Burger King by a federal agent assigned to the Memphis Safe Task Force, District Attorney Steve Mulroy’s office announced Monday.
NEWS AND NOTES
Canadian hockey sticks, wine and cement subject to new Trump tariffs | Ashley Murray, States Newsroom
FDA: Taylor Farms iceberg lettuce sample produced a false positive for cyclospora | Sam Gauntt, States Newsroom
FEATURED IN THE LOOKOUT
A death row inmate is asking the Tennessee Supreme Court to replace the physician to be use for his August 13 execution by lethal injection. (Photo by Mike Simons/Getty Images)
by Sam Stockard
A death row inmate is asking the Tennessee Supreme Court to replace the physician in charge of a botched execution in May or appoint a special master to consider his claim that a scheduled Aug. 13 execution could be unconstitutional.
FEATURED IN THE LOOKOUT
Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Andy Holt, with hat, is accused in a lawsuit of pressuring the Tennessee Farm Bureau to cut ties with a long term agent. Photo from a Sept. 5, 2025 forum with Republican candidates in a special election for the 7th Congressional District. (Photo: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
by Adam Friedman
Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Andy Holt used his position to pressure the Tennessee Farm Bureau to cut ties with an agent after a personal dispute, a lawsuit filed in Weakley County alleges.
ICYMI
Tennessee District 5 candidates vie for constituents spread across the state’s extremes | Cassandra Stephenson
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