NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — There are some bills that move quickly through the Tennessee House, but HB 1931 by Rep. John Gillespie wasn't one of them.
"This is simply saying that there are certain state laws that have been on the books for a very long time, and all we’re saying is that local law enforcement has to enforce state law," Rep. Gillespie, a Republican from Shelby County explained.
The bill may sound straightforward, but it comes after the Memphis City Council passed an ordinance blocking law enforcement from pulling someone over for just a minor violation. That ordinance was crafted at the request of the Tyre Nichols family, who was killed while in Memphis Police custody after a traffic stop.
His family came to the capitol Monday to fight against this bill. "I'm not going to stand here and act like I know all about this politics," said RowVaughn Wells, Nichol's mother on Monday. "We don’t understand how a local municipality or local people can pass an ordinance, and someone comes in and try to take it away."
There was controversy on the House floor about whether or not the Wells family knew this bill was back up for consideration this Thursday. Rep. Justin Pearson, a Democrat from Memphis, alleged Rep. Gillespie knowingly misled the Wells family into thinking it wouldn't be considered Friday. "You are here before us today, on a bill that should be going back to committee, having lied to them. You did," Rep. Pearson said.
Pearson was ruled out of order for calling Gillespie a liar and was barred from finishing his remarks on the floor.
Even though the measure eventually passed the full Tennessee House, the fiery debate certainly wasn't extinguished when lawmakers left the House floor. "I'm sick and tired of these racist, white patriarchal people in positions of power, abusing their power, taking away their voice, taking away the democracy of our communities," Pearson in the hallway outside of the House chamber said.
"I’ll be honest, I’m not sure why that’s controversial because those are the laws of this state," said Rep. William Lamberth, a Republican who serves as House Majority Leader.
Pearson and Lamberth exchanged crosswords when the two encountered each other in the hallway. "William is the leader of the most racist caucus of Tennessee legislators," Pearson shouted.
"There’s only one of us that brings up skin color, and it’s you, brother. I’m here for everybody," Lamberth said, turning away from Pearson.
The bill still has to be considered by the Tennessee Senate. It's passed through the committee process and is expected to be scheduled for a floor vote soon.
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