MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two of Memphis and Shelby County’s top officials will be in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday for President Obama’s State of the Union address.
Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell will be a guest in the first lady’s box, and newly elected Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland is going as a guest of Congressman Steve Cohen.
Luttrell said he’s excited to not just attend the State of the Union address but to represent an issue that Obama has made a priority for his final year of office, criminal justice reform.
“I feel very honored to be invited to represent this particular interest.”
Criminal justice reform is something Luttrell has been involved in for years. As a former warden and Shelby County sheriff, he’s built federal partnerships, which also took him to D.C. in September. The Republican leader met the Democratic president then.
When WREG brought up their different parties, he said his invitation is definitely noteworthy.
“There seems to be so few things going on in Washington where you can build bipartisan support. This is an area where you can build bipartisan support.”
Luttrell said there are several reasons why Shelby County is getting attention from the White House, including special courts, juvenile justice programs and workforce re-entry programs.
“We’re really the only large county in Tennessee that has a strong re-entry program from people transitioning from prisons back into the world of work,” he explained.
Luttrell said Shelby County specialty courts that have recently been created like veterans, drug, and mental health courts are also being looked at as cost effective and alternatives to incarceration.
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland also announced on his Facebook that he would be going and plans to meet with Sen. Bob Corker and Sen. Lamar Alexander.
Luttrell said he plans to accompany Strickland in meeting some lawmakers before the State of the Union speech to talk about the needs for the people in our area — everything from transportation to mental health issues, infrastructure, concerns on roads.
