Juvenile Court looks for other locations following emergency closure

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The clerk of the Juvenile Court hopes staff can be moved into a temporary building by early next week after the court’s downtown home was closed indefinitely.

Shelby County Juvenile Court workers moved out of the building Wednesday, after an inspection found mold, asbestos and lead paint.

Juvenile Court closed; inspection finds mold, asbestos, lead paint

For now, court cases are being heard in person at the Shelby County Youth Justice and Educational Center, and virtually. Child support can be paid in person at the Shelby County Child Support Services office on South Mendenhall.

Juvenile Court Clerk Janeen Gordon Gordon says she’s exploring all options.

“I know I can defeat this,” she said. “We are going to be able to defeat mold and asbestos and lead, whether that means tearing down, building, or moving the team to an entirely different building, but I have to do the work I was elected to do.”

The health department says the building is an imminent hazard.

Gordon says for the more than 200 people that worked in that building, this is a temporary hurdle.

Juvenile Court’s emergency closure could cause case backups

“It’s the fact that people say, ‘I have worked there for 36 years, been there for 22 years, and now we find out there is lead, mold and asbestos,'” Gordon said.

Gordon, who is battling breast cancer for the second time, has been in the Juvenile Court building since 2022 herself.

She says her office is supposed to receive a plan of other buildings that were vetted by the county, so they can move staff. However, they are still waiting on those plans.

Gordon says she was also waiting to receive results after an air quality inspection she asked for in March. Those results still have not been shared.

WREG reached out to the county to find out when the last inspection was done on the building, but never heard back

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.