MEMPHIS, Tenn. — State Sen. Brent Taylor is calling for an investigation into a Shelby County criminal court judge and the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office in connection with reduced sentences in recent cases.

Taylor (R-Dist. 31) says Shelby County is in a crime crisis, and he says Judge Paula Skahan and D.A. Steve Mulroy took “unlawful” action by reducing a man’s 162-year sentence and commuting the sentence of a death row inmate.

“I am asking the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct to review the actions of Judge Paula Skahan regarding her apparent advocacy of a criminal defendant and her personal bias concerning previous judicial officials,” Taylor said in a news release. “It appears Judge Skahan used the powers of her office to get a man released from prison knowing she had no such power.”

Taylor also called for the state board to review whether Mulroy played a role in reducing one sentence and “commuting the death sentence of a twice-convicted murderer.”

“This individual will soon be eligible for release into the community which could be as early as August of 2024,” Taylor said.

Taylor’s release did not specify which cases he was referring to, but some cases that have made news recently match the details he described.

Courtney Anderson was sentenced in the late 1990s to 162 years for multiple counts of theft and forgery charges. He was released in December 2022 after serving 25 years, but a state appeals court later reinstated that sentence in October after the court determined the judge did not have proper jurisdiction and that only the governor could commute a sentence.

Michael Sample, who was convicted of a double murder in 1983, had his death sentence vacated in May after Sample was found to have intellectual disabilities that prevented his execution.

Sample’s lawyers presented the case to Judge Skahan in February 2023 and asked her to vacate the death sentence. Mulroy didn’t challenge the request.

D.A. Mulroy defended his office’s actions in both cases Wednesday, saying he had complete confidence in his office’s ethical conduct.

In the Courtney Anderson Case, he said, “A 162-year sentence for a string of nonviolent thefts was overly harsh. Mr. Anderson served a lengthy 25-year term, which was enough. We quite appropriately didn’t oppose the defense’s motion for relief, and the judge agreed. I challenge anyone to defend a 162-year sentence for nonviolent offenses.”

Meanwhile, he said Michael Sample’s legal team had presented compelling evidence establishing his intellectual disability, which rendered him ineligible for the death penalthy under state law. The D.A.’s office agreed to a sentence of life in prison.

“To argue otherwise—to push for the death penalty when I was convinced he was legally ineligible—would have been unethical,” Mulroy said.

He continued, “We have a serious crime problem and need to work together to solve it. That’s why I recently convened a crime summit and am actively working with other agencies to implement the resulting strategies.  I hope to meet with Sen. Taylor soon to discuss the many other initiatives our office has put in place to curb crime and how we can all work together to tackle the issue.”

We reached out to Judge Paula Skahan and she told us she will respond to Taylor directly in a written letter.