Ever since he was arrested in June 2014 and accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend twice in less than 24 hours, the legal proceedings surrounding the case of Nashville developer David Chase have been volatile in the extreme. But they took an entirely unexpected swerve last week after court documents raised allegations of extortion, blackmail and even possible bribery. Among those mentioned in the documents are a veteran political consultant and Nashville's district attorney, who have both firmly rejected any question of wrongdoing.
Some background: Chase, then lead developer on the planned Virgin Hotel project in Midtown, was arrested on June 8, 2014, and charged with domestic assault. But although he was deemed a threat to the alleged victim, and consequently had a 12-hour hold placed on him, Judge Casey Moreland ordered the hold lifted. He had Chase released just a few hours after his arrest — at which point, according to police, Chase allegedly returned home where his ex was collecting her belongings and assaulted her a second time.
The incident ultimately inspired a change in state law, making a 12-hour "cooling off period" mandatory in domestic-violence situations. But the controversy had another layer. It turned out that Moreland had overruled the night-court commissioner's hold order after taking a phone call from Chase's then-defense attorney, Bryan Lewis. That sort of ex-parte conversation alone got Moreland in hot water — and his intervention in the case brought a reprimand from the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct.
But the Scene would later report that Moreland and Lewis were chummy beyond the courtroom — indeed, Facebook photos showed the two vacationing together in Costa Rica. Moreover, Lewis had secured favorable outcomes for Chase in front of Moreland before, getting one DUI charge dismissed and another pleaded down to reckless driving. Where at first the system appeared insensitive to domestic violence victims, it now seemed to indicate a good-ol'-boys network operating in the halls of power as well.
Nashville's problematic track record on domestic violence sparked concern among activists and some officials, and the Chase episode fanned it. But apart from minor procedural developments, the case eventually faded from headlines. That changed in June 2015, when Chase filed a federal lawsuit against Metro and a dozen police officers.
Among other things, the suit accused the defendants of violating his civil rights and subjecting him to false arrest and imprisonment. Less than a month after the suit was filed, on July 1, the office of Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk dropped the criminal charges against Chase. As grounds, the prosecution cited evidence that Chase's ex-girlfriend, Lauren Bull, and her allegations were not credible.
Assistant DA Katy Miller, who had been the lead prosecutor on the case, said then that the state would not proceed "because of prior inconsistent statements made under oath and other evidence that contradicts the victim's allegations." But in a move little noticed at the time, Chase dismissed his lawsuit the same day.
Two weeks later, however, he filed another — this one in Williamson County, accusing nine people including Bull of engaging in a conspiracy that led to his criminal charges. The files of that suit have triggered the latest explosion.
Documents from the case obtained by the Scene and other media outlets — including transcripts of sworn testimony and text messages between Chase and his mother, Sandra Chase — contain allegations that veteran Democratic political consultant and PR pro Bill Fletcher came to the Chases while the criminal charges were still pending with a request for $2 million to "make this go away." In a deposition, Sandra Chase says that she believes her husband, construction executive Dean Chase, inferred that the purpose of the $2 million was for a bribe.
In that same deposition, however, she says that she did not "get that feeling at all" that DA Glenn Funk — the man in the best position to make Chase's troubles "go away" — had asked for a bribe. Whatever the case, according to the documents, the Chases say they rejected the offer and fired Fletcher.
In a statement released to media last week, Fletcher denied any wrongdoing. He said he "never proposed any payments of any kind to anyone regarding the criminal case" and that he "never had any contact at all" with Funk or anyone in the DA's office during his involvement with the Chases.
Funk too denies any wrongdoing and any involvement with the alleged $2 million request. He also rejected a claim made by David Chase in a text message to his mother, which Chase repeated last week to NewsChannel 5, that Funk had blackmailed him.
Even so, that allegation does seem to arise from something Funk confirms: The DA's office dropped the criminal charges against Chase on the condition that Chase dismiss his lawsuit against Metro.
Citing decades-old Supreme Court precedent, Funk says that type of deal is legal and routine. But Chase argues the arrangement used the threat of possible incarceration to pressure him to drop his suit. Funk rejects that characterization — which typifies the public back-and-forth ever since the news broke.
Funk didn't stop at denials, though. Less than 24 hours after NewsChannel 5 first reported on the allegations and Funk's deal with Chase, the DA filed a $200 million defamation suit against the station and its chief investigative reporter, Phil Williams. As you'll recall, Williams broke the sweeps-week story last year that Funk accepted a state job as a special prosecutor before he was sworn in, allowing him to qualify for a sweeter pension plan.
Funk's attorney says any damages from his suit would go to domestic-violence nonprofits. Legal experts doubt the suit will ever get that far. In the meantime, if there's anything that can't be counted out in this spiraling saga, it's the element of surprise.
