NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A last-minute maneuver by Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk means the public will not be learning more about the eavesdropping scandal involving Funk's office — at least for now.
More than a year after NewsChannel 5 Investigates first exposed an eavesdropping scandal inside the Nashville DA's offices, a judge overseeing a June 2000 murder case was scheduled Friday to hear from witnesses with direct knowledge about the operation.
Now, Funk has stepped aside from the case against defendant Calvin Atchison, arguing that "it would be in the interests of justice to appoint a special prosecutor" and that there's no need for "protracted litigation" over the eavesdropping allegations.
"The pending Motion to Disqualify the Office of the District Attorney General is devoid of merit and is based on factually incorrect innuendo," Funk said in a new court filing. "However, the needless and possible protracted litigation resulting from the Motion will only further delay obtaining justice for the victim, Velma Tharpe."
The issue arose in September following the release of a damning investigative report from the state comptroller's office that concluded "government employees" in the DA's office "surveilled and monitored audio and video recordings of criminal defense attorneys without their knowledge or consent."
A photo from that report showed attorney Ben Powers and an investigator viewing files made available at the DA's office suite as they prepared their defense for Atchison.
What they did not know was that the DA's office was recording their conversations.
"Investigators spoke to numerous criminal defense attorneys, and they told investigators in part: they were unaware, and no office personnel had ever informed them that the viewing room was equipped with a microphone device capable of capturing their conversations or that they would be recorded in the viewing room while examining evidence in a criminal case," the state's investigative report said.
“Privileged information among themselves was often discussed, including statements made by their clients along with defense strategies, and they said that they would not have stayed in the viewing room had they known that the room was equipped with a microphone.”
Related: Damning report confirms secret recordings of defense attorneys, others inside Nashville DA's office
Funk’s office posted signs warning of video surveillance but did not reveal that those cameras were also equipped with microphones capable of intercepting conversations, as required by law, investigators concluded.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates first revealed the eavesdropping system in February 2023, and “other defense attorneys stated they stopped coming to the district attorney’s office.”
Other cameras throughout the office were also capable of recording conversations, the report confirmed.
Funk admitted he knew that those conversations were being recorded, the report stated, although he insisted those defense attorneys had no expectation of privacy.
During an October hearing before Judge Chappell, Funk had sometimes angrily objected to Powers' interest in pursuing the allegation, but Judge Chappell agreed he had a right to know how far prosecutors had gone in monitoring the defense team.
"His photograph was in the report. I think he should have the ability to investigate," she added.
After Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti announced he would not be prosecuting Funk or anyone in his office for the eavesdropping, state Comptroller Jason Mumpower had publicly called for Funk to request a special prosecutor to review the allegations — a suggestion rejected by the Nashville DA.
Atchison's murder case was the only one specifically identified in the state investigation where the DA's office recorded a defense team at work.
However, those questions have also been referred to the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility, the state board that regulates attorney licenses.
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Below is a summary of NewsChannel 5’s recent investigations of the DA's Office:
Nov. 8, 2022: He's a $75,000-a-year government employee who gets paid with little evidence of what he's doing for the money. Week after week, he bills taxpayers for almost 20 hours a week, hours frequently listed in the middle of the night when no one else is around. Click here to read the story that kicked off this investigation.
Nov. 10, 2022: An exclusive NewsChannel 5 investigation has uncovered new questions about whether employees in Nashville DA Glenn Funk's office crossed the line, using your tax dollars during last spring's campaign to help get the boss reelected. Watch the story here.
Dec. 19, 2022: New photos and emails from inside Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk's office are renewing questions about whether government resources were used to help get the boss re-elected. The photos of assistant DA Sunny Eaton's desk show a stack of domestic violence dockets for cases that had been handled by Funk's challenger. Read more about what our investigation uncovered here.
Feb. 9, 2023: District Attorney Glenn Funk's team installed listening devices in areas around the DA's office capable of picking up conversations of employees and visitors who are not warned about the audio monitoring, NewsChannel 5 has learned. In a written statement, Funk's office insisted "there is no reasonable expectation of privacy for conversations in public places." There’s more to the story that can be found here.
Feb. 20, 2023: How many listening devices were placed in and around Nashville DA Glenn Funk's office? New emails obtained by NewsChannel 5 Investigates are raising that question — even as Tennessee's attorney general opens a criminal investigation into Funk's office. The newly obtained emails raise the possibility that the eavesdropping could have been even more pervasive. Click here to read more about those emails.
March 24, 2023: Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agents and technicians descended upon the offices of District Attorney General Glenn Funk as part of an on-going criminal investigation into the operations of the DA's office. About a dozen TBI personnel were seen going in and out of Funk's offices in downtown Nashville. The full story can be found here.
May 2, 2023: When Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agents descended upon the offices of Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk back in March, the DA issued a statement saying they were there following his "invitation." Now, NewsChannel 5 Investigates has learned agents were executing a search warrant issued by a Davidson County judge. You can read more about this development by clicking here.
June 28, 2023: So who's funding the political campaigns that affect you and your family? That's the question raised by our latest NewsChannel 5 investigation. That investigation discovered a number of questionable contributions that helped fuel Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk's re-election campaign. Funk's campaign says those discrepancies were all innocent mistakes. Click here to read more about those questionable contributions.
Aug. 17, 2023: The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance voted to take no action regarding a series of questionable contributions to Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk's 2022 re-election campaign. Board members argued that there was nothing else for them to do since no one has filed a sworn complaint alleging any violations of campaign finance laws. There’s more to the story here.
Sept. 19, 2023: An unprecedented raid of the Nashville District Attorney's Office in March included a search of DA Glenn Funk's own office — including his laptop, briefcase and other electronics — as TBI agents sought evidence of possible illegal wiretapping, according to newly unsealed court documents. Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Jennifer Smith ordered the release of documents in response to a motion filed by NewsChannel 5. This is what agents were seeking.
Feb. 23, 2024: Documents that Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk fought to keep secret raise new questions about eavesdropping in and around the DA's offices. Those documents, produced as a result of a months-long legal battle waged by NewsChannel 5, reveal there were more microphones — and more concern about conversations being monitored — than the DA admitted. Click here to see what was in those documents.
Sept. 25, 2024: A damning state investigation concludes that Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk’s office operated an extensive surveillance system that secretly recorded conversations of criminal defense attorneys, members of the DA’s own staff and visitors without their knowledge. Read more about the report's findings here.
Sept. 25, 2024: Tennessee's lead government watchdog is calling for the appointment of a special prosecutor for a second opinion on whether Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk or anyone in his office violated any laws. You can watch that interview here.
Oct. 2, 2024: A Nashville murder case scheduled to go to trial next week has been placed on hold amid concerns that District Attorney General Glenn Funk's office illegally eavesdropped on the defense team as they reviewed evidence in the case. This is why defense attorneys are concerned.
Oct. 3, 2024: Over the strenuous objections of Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk, a Davidson County judge ruled Thursday that she will allow time for a full hearing in a first-degree murder case regarding allegations of the DA’s office eavesdropping on defense lawyers. Click here for more about the judge's ruling.
Oct. 3, 2024: Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk, responding to allegations of his office eavesdropping on defense attorneys, says a recently released state investigative report is “filled with inaccuracies and misleading innuendo.” Read more here.
Do you have information for our investigation? Email us: investigate@newschannel5.com
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