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3h ago

National Guard Patrols Begin in Memphis as Leaders Press for Answers and Feds Tout Arrests

Unclear authority, troop levels, duration fuel calls for transparency.

FILE - A relief squad of the Tennessee National Guard files across Beale Street in Memphis, Tenn., to replace troopers already stationed at strategic points in the racially tense city, March 30, 1968. The troops have been on duty in Memphis since violence erupted during a march led by Dr, Martin Luther King Jr. on March 28. (AP Photo/Charles Kelly, File)
FILE - Striking firefighters yell at working firefighters inside the fire station, as Tennessee National Guard troops guard the front entrance, on Aug. 15, 1978, in downtown Memphis. (AP Photo/Chuck Robinson, File)
FILE - Tennessee National Guard troopers in jeeps and trucks escort striking Memphis sanitation workers during a march through downtown Memphis, Tenn., March 30, 1968. (AP Photo, File)
FILE - Tennessee National Guard troops leap out of a truck at the Memphis Armory after being ordered into the city by Gov. Buford Ellington at the request of city officials, March 28, 1968, in Memphis, Tenn. The guard was ordered after rioting and looting erupted midway through a march led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in support of striking garbage workers. (AP Photo/Jack Thornell, File)

Overview

  • Guard members were photographed patrolling with Memphis police in downtown retail corridors on Friday and again Saturday, with small groups also observed near Nutbush and the Pyramid.
  • The multiagency task force launched by President Trump includes hundreds of federal agents from the FBI, ATF, DEA, ICE and U.S. Marshals, with the Justice Department reporting 627 arrests and 155 firearms seized as of Thursday.
  • WREG reported more than 3,000 traffic citations since Sept. 29, alongside more than 600 arrests tied to the operation.
  • Gov. Bill Lee says Guard personnel are deputized by the U.S. Marshals to serve in support roles, won’t make arrests, and will remain unarmed unless requested by local police, while local officials say the deployment could last indefinitely.
  • Residents and civic leaders are divided, citing fears of harassment and historical memories of 1968 even as some welcome a heightened presence, and Mayor Paul Young and Chief C.J. Davis say they are working to align the surge with local priorities.