Tennessee
Tennessee Enacts First-In-The-Nation Law To Stop Adults From Helping Minors Access Gender-Affirming Care
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) on Tuesday signed a first-in-the-nation law to block adults from helping trans youth receive gender-affirming care without their parents’ consent.
Under the law, known as House Bill 2310, anyone who helps a child access gender-affirming care within Tennessee state lines can be sued for compensation by the minor or the minor’s parents. There are exceptions for the child’s own parents or legal guardians, for adults who have permission from the minor’s parents, and for transportation companies, like those that operate ride-sharing apps, buses or airlines, that a minor could take to get to a gender-affirming care clinic.
A previous version of the law included a criminal penalty, making anyone who “recruits, harbors, or transports an unemancipated minor within this state for the purpose of receiving a prohibited medical procedure” chargeable with a Class C felony.
Lee’s office did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
Tennessee had already banned gender-affirming care for minors — measures that can include puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy and, in rare instances, gender-affirming surgery — last July, when Lee signed an earlier bill, Senate Bill 1, into effect.
“I want to be clear that this in no way bars parents or legal guardians from helping their child access to medical care that they need out-of-state,” Bryan Davidson, a policy director at the ACLU Tennessee, told HuffPost.
“I think that this is an attempt by the legislature to try to use misinformation and intimidation to try to get parents and families to self-censor themselves and to police their own behavior. That is the concerning part.”
If the problem of adults transporting minors across state lines were indeed a major issue, Davidson said, Tennessee already has a law on the books for that. “It’s called kidnapping,” he said.
The gender-affirming care ban, S.B. 1, was temporarily blocked for certain residents thanks to a legal challenge from the American Civil Liberties Union, but a federal appeals court ruled in the fall to allow the ban to stand.
Advocacy groups are now waiting to see if the Supreme Court will take up the ACLU’s challenge to S.B. 1, known as L.W. v. Skrmetti, and weigh in on the question of who is allowed to make medical decisions for minors seeking gender-affirming care. If this highest court does take up the challenge to Tennessee’s ban, it could have precedent-setting ramifications for other states’ restrictions on care.
Lee signed a separate bill on Tuesday that penalizes “abortion trafficking of a minor” and makes it a misdemeanor office for a person to help a minor obtain an abortion or abortion-inducing drugs without consent from the minor’s parents. Several GOP-led states — most notably Idaho — have passed similar laws since the reversal of Roe v. Wade two years ago.
The two new laws go into effect July 1.
Tennessee’s state legislature, which has a Republican supermajority, has long been an early adopter of new kinds of anti-LGBTQ legislation. As governor, Lee has never issued a veto on an anti-LGBTQ bill, and the state has far outpaced the rest of the country in terms of anti-LGBTQ legislation.
During this year’s legislative session, Lee enacted at least eight new anti-LGBTQ+ laws. This includes laws that force school administrators to tell parents if their child asks to use a name or gender marker that differs from their birth certificate; allow people to refuse to perform same-sex marriages; permit foster families to discriminate against LGBTQ+ kids; and eliminate the state’s human rights commission.
Last year, Tennessee became the first state to enact a drag ban, and blocked performances from taking place anywhere in public where children could be present. A federal judge ruled that ban unconstitutional, but the state Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti is trying to argue for the ban to be applied in private spaces, as well.
The state also garnered national attention last year after Skrmetti probed Vanderbilt University Medical Center for the records of trans patients — both minors and adults — after a Nashville-based right-wing media figure posted an inflammatory, misleading information on Twitter about the hospital’s treatments for transgender children. The Department of Health and Human Services has since opened an investigation into Vanderbilt’s release of patient medical records.
“Tennessee has become a sort of policy laboratory for attacks on LGBTQ+ folks at the state level,” said Davidson. “The anti-LGBTQ legislation is largely driven to appease the small fringe activist base in Tennessee.”
Davidson added that Tennessee is one of the most “egregiously gerrymandered states in the nation” and has one of the lowest rates of voter turnout, allowing more extreme rhetoric and policy to flourish.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — The attempted murder case against Tennessee livestreamer Dalton Eatherly, known online as “Chud the Builder,” has now been bound over to the grand jury following a court hearing on Wednesday in Montgomery County.
According to court officials, Eatherly’s case was moved out of General Sessions Court and will now proceed in Circuit Court. His previously scheduled May 26 hearing has been canceled.
Eatherly’s bond was also lowered from $1.25 million to $1 million, according to updated court information on Wednesday.
WATCH: Here’s all we know so far about the controversial, arrested streamer known as “Chud the Builder”
The 28-year-old faces multiple felony charges, including attempted murder, after investigators said he shot another man during a confrontation outside the Montgomery County Courthouse on May 13.
Authorities previously said the shooting happened in broad daylight outside the courthouse complex after an altercation between two men escalated into gunfire. Both Eatherly and the other man suffered gunshot wounds.
The case has drawn widespread attention due to Eatherly’s controversial online presence. Known online as “Chud the Builder,” Eatherly built a following through confrontational livestreams filmed across Tennessee, including in Nashville and Clarksville.
Before the courthouse shooting, Eatherly had also recently been arrested in Nashville after police said he refused to pay a more than $370 bill at a steakhouse following a disturbance inside the restaurant.
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Eatherly remains jailed in Montgomery County as the criminal case moves forward in Circuit Court.
The Tennessee Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 20, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from May 20 drawing
10-28-30-46-57, Powerball: 25, Power Play: 3
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from May 20 drawing
05-14-26-39-46, Star Ball: 06, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 3 numbers from May 20 drawing
Morning: 8-7-7, Wild: 6
Midday: 1-9-4, Wild: 0
Evening: 4-8-1, Wild: 0
Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 4 numbers from May 20 drawing
Morning: 9-7-0-2, Wild: 5
Midday: 0-4-7-5, Wild: 1
Evening: 6-5-2-9, Wild: 2
Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Daily Tennessee Jackpot numbers from May 20 drawing
16-26-27-35-38
Check Daily Tennessee Jackpot payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Tennessee Cash numbers from May 20 drawing
07-17-24-26-31, Bonus: 01
Check Tennessee Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from May 20 drawing
12-27-37-40-66, Powerball: 17
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from May 20 drawing
14-23-27-44-50, Bonus: 04
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Tennessee Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.
For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at Tennessee Lottery offices. By mail, send a winner claim form, winning lottery ticket, a copy of a government-issued ID and proof of social security number to P.O. Box 290636, Nashville, TN 37229. Prize claims less than $600 do not require a claim form. Please include contact information on prizes claimed by mail in the event we need to contact you.
To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a winner claim form and deliver the form, along with the ticket and government-issued ID and proof of social security number to any of these locations:
Nashville Headquarters & Claim Center: 26 Century Blvd., Nashville, TN 37214, 615-254-4946 in the (615) and (629) area, 901-466-4946 in the (901) area, 865-512-4946 in the (865) area, 423-939-7529 in the (423) area or 1-877-786-7529 (all other areas in Tennessee). Outside Tennessee, dial 615-254-4946. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Knoxville District Office: Cedar Springs Shopping Center, 9298 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37922, (865) 251-1900. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $199,999.
Chattanooga District Office: 2020 Gunbarrel Rd., Suite 106, Chattanooga, TN 37421, (423) 308-3610. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $199,999.
Memphis District Office: Chiles Plaza, 7424 U.S. Highway 64, Suite 104, Memphis, TN 38133, (901) 322-8520. Hours: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $199,999.
Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://tnlottery.com/.
When are the Tennessee Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT Tuesday and Friday.
- Cash 3, 4: Daily at 9:28 a.m. (Morning) and 12:28 p.m. CT (Midday), except for Sunday. Evening game daily, seven days a week, at 6:28 p.m. CT.
- Daily Tennessee Jackpot: 9:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Tennessee Cash: 10:34 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
- Powerball Double Play: 10:30 p.m. CT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Tennessean editor. You can send feedback using this form.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Attorneys for a Tennessee death row inmate say they are concerned the state may be planning to use expired lethal injection drugs at his execution on Thursday, a growing concern across the country as states work to keep most information about their drugs secret.
Tony Carruthers’ attorneys twice asked the Tennessee Department of Correction last month whether it had secured the appropriate drugs for his execution date and for assurance the drugs had not expired.
Assistant Attorney General John W. Ayers’ response did not directly answer but said the department will comply with its lethal injection protocol — which includes regular inventory of the drugs to monitor expiration dates.
Carruthers, 57, was sentenced to death after being found guilty of the 1994 kidnappings and murders of Marcellos Anderson, his mother Delois Anderson, and Frederick Tucker.
The Tennessee Department of Correction declined to answer on Wednesday when asked by The Associated Press whether the drugs they plan to use to kill Carruthers are expired. Gov. Bill Lee’s office did not immediately respond to a similar inquiry.
Federal Public Defender Amy Harwell said in an email that expiration dates reflect when a drug can no longer be safely relied upon to obtain the desired result.
“In the execution context, this may mean a slow, lingering death without a reliable loss of consciousness, as the body painfully and fitfully shuts down,” Harwell wrote.
Public opposition to executions has made it difficult for prisons to obtain execution drugs, among the lingering issues for those who use lethal injection. Some states have been forced to speed up executions or stop them entirely due to expiration dates on drugs.
In South Carolina, executions were on hold for 12 years while the state struggled to obtain drugs. They were eventually able to get them only after the state passed a shield law that would keep the identity of the supplier secret.
Tennessee has argued in court that its shield extends to revealing expiration dates. Just before the December execution of Harold Nichols, Tennessee Deputy Attorney General Cody Brandon offered instead to provide a declaration “attesting that the chemicals to be used in Mr. Nichols’ execution will not expire before his execution and have not expired,” according to a transcript of the proceedings.
“The fact that TDOC was willing to provide such assurances to Mr. Nichols, but not Mr. Carruthers, raises serious concerns that TDOC is, in fact, intending to use expired drugs,” Harwell wrote in a May 18 follow-up to Ayers’ letter.
Arkansas, Idaho have faced challenges
In 2017, Arkansas’ then-Gov. Asa Hutchinson issued death warrants for eight prisoners on the state’s death row in an effort to beat the clock on a batch of lethal injection drugs that were set to expire. The state executed four of the men, but four others were granted stays.
Arkansas has not had any executions since then, in part because of the difficulty in obtaining drugs.
A group of Texas inmates in 2023 unsuccessfully tried to stop the state from using drugs they alleged were expired and unsafe. Prison officials denied their claims and said the state’s drug supply was safe.
Attorneys for Idaho’s death row inmates raised similar concerns in 2024, when the state planned to take a second try at executing Thomas Creech after the first attempt was botched.
The Federal Defender Services of Idaho told a federal judge that prison officials apparently failed to even check the expiration date of the execution drugs before obtaining a death warrant for Creech in October 2024. Nine days later, the drugs were returned to the supplier because they were expired, according to court documents. A new Idaho law has changed the state’s primary execution to firing squad in part because of the difficulty of getting lethal injection drugs.
Tennessee has had problems with execution drugs
Tennessee has a history of problems with its execution drugs. In 2022, Oscar Smith came within minutes of being executed before Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee issued a surprise reprieve that revealed the state’s lethal injection drugs were not being properly tested for purity and potency. Executions were on hold for two years to allow for an independent investigation into the problems.
The state attorney general’s office was also forced to concede in court that two of the people most responsible for overseeing Tennessee’s lethal injection drugs at the time “ incorrectly testified ” under oath that officials were testing the chemicals as required.
Tennessee released a new lethal injection process in December 2024, and restarted executions in 2025. Several death row inmates have sued over the new protocols, arguing that the Correction Department did not follow the recommendations from the investigation.
Meanwhile, the new process has not been completely smooth. When Byron Black was executed by lethal injection in August, he said he was “ hurting so bad.” Prison officials have offered no explanation for what might have caused the pain.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
101st Airborne veterans get Purple Hearts years after an insider attack
As we honor those who have served our country and made the ultimate sacrifice, it is also heartening to see the military right a wrong. Chris Davis brings us the moving story of a Purple Heart ceremony two decades in the making. It’s worth a watch.
A heartfelt thanks to all who bravely serve.
– Carrie Sharp
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