Shelby County Judge Bill Anderson to resign amid criticism
by: Alex Coleman
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — After 14 years on the bench, embattled Shelby County Judge Bill Anderson will retire in March.
In a letter sent to County Mayor Lee Harris, Anderson wrote, “When I was first re-elected in 2022, It was the plan for both my wife and I to retire in 2025… Please accept my resignation from my judicial position in General Sessions Criminal Court Division 7, effective March 1, 2025.”
Anderson also stated in the letter that he will not run for, or accept an appointment as a judge in the future, noting that March 1 will end his 51-year career in the criminal justice system.
“At age seventy-one, my work is done,” he said.
Anderson had come under fire after complaints from some county and state leaders about his methods of setting bail. For months, state Senator Brent Taylor of Memphis had called for Anderon to face disciplinary action.
Taylor noted his elation at the news in a Facebook post Thursday, saying, “Thank God and Greyhound that Rogue Judge Anderson is gone.”
Taylor claimed that the state legislature was likely to take action on Anderson when it reconvened later this month.
“Rogue Judge Anderson clearly saw the writing on the wall with my latest complaint. He was placing dangerous people back on the streets by misapplying my law requiring safety of the community be the first consideration when setting bail,” Taylor wrote.
WREG has reached out to Judge Anderson for comment.
Anderson won re-election in 2022 by more than 50,000 votes. The Shelby County Commission will appoint his replacement.
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