{"id":3932,"date":"2026-05-28T19:39:43","date_gmt":"2026-05-28T19:39:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/05\/28\/trumps-memphis-crime-taskforce-accused-of-using-immense-force-in-intimidation-campaign\/"},"modified":"2026-05-28T19:39:43","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T19:39:43","slug":"trumps-memphis-crime-taskforce-accused-of-using-immense-force-in-intimidation-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=3932","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s Memphis crime taskforce accused of using \u2018immense force\u2019 in intimidation campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"border-color:var(--article-border);background-color:var(--article-inner-background)\" class=\"dcr-wqti5a\">\n<div class=\"dcr-2zxs1v\">\n<div style=\"--grid-area:media\" data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tr9ye5\">\n<figure id=\"ee1ea14b-d099-478c-9ec7-8d67c09239f8\" class=\"dcr-142siv7\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t8m8f2\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Military police in camouflage uniforms walk down Beale Street at dusk\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/9ab50f59f194f7d3bc0770328e6bf23d19b8b843\/0_0_5147_3431\/master\/5147.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"309.9698853701185\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-evn1e9\"><span class=\"dcr-v822l1\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-gup2gr\">\n<div class=\"dcr-fntg6k\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-1xgwz8b\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1os51wo\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Members of the national guard patrol along Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee, on 24 October 2025.<\/span> Photograph: George Walker IV\/AP<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-13fd1ms\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"ee1ea14b-d099-478c-9ec7-8d67c09239f8\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-4tmywn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-194i6pr\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-n4pnam\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1hdkqum\"><span class=\"dcr-hvsf4t\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1qvd3m6\">Members of the national guard patrol along Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee, on 24 October 2025.<\/span> Photograph: George Walker IV\/AP<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:border\" data-gu-name=\"border\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\"><\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:headline\" data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-14emo0l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1aqe7zu\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-1k1a1x\">Trump\u2019s Memphis crime taskforce accused of using \u2018immense force\u2019 in intimidation campaign<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:standfirst\" data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1fnjjtg\">\n<div class=\"dcr-15in7js\">\n<p>Exclusive: community observers claim agents have tailed cars, surveilled homes and even \u2018falsely arrested\u2019 someone<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:body\" data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-kn9unn\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1a4fred\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-ydnaza\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-1c9t5u6\">\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">An anti-crime taskforce ordered by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Donald Trump<\/a> onto the streets of Memphis has been accused of targeting community observers with widespread intimidation including \u201cimmense force\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Agents have been \u201cretaliating against, intimidating, and harassing\u201d observers attempting to monitor the federal taskforce\u2019s activity, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Louisiana, which alleges that officials have tailed cars, surveilled homes and even \u201cfalsely arrested\u201d a community observer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The ACLU filed a lawsuit this month against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/tennessee\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Tennessee<\/a> state and federal officials administering the anti-crime initiative.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Additional declarations filed on Thursday by six community observers detail \u201ccowboy tactics\u201d they say have been used in recent months, from bumper-riding their cars in unmarked vehicles and pre-textual traffic stops to an arbitrary arrest.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The taskforce was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2025\/oct\/10\/federal-appeals-court-trump-oregon-national-guard\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">launched last September<\/a> by Tennessee\u2019s Republican governor, Bill Lee, following an executive order by Trump, who cited the persistently high rate of violent crime in Memphis. Lee promptly activated the national guard and flooded his state\u2019s second-largest city with more than 2,000 state and federal police officers.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The US marshals service declined to comment on the ACLU\u2019s allegations that agents and officers have targeted activists attempting to monitor the taskforce. Gadyaces S Serralta, director of the service, chairs the taskforce.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"taken-away-my-peace\" class=\"dcr-12ibh7f\">\u2018Taken away my peace\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Hunter Demster, lead litigant in the case, alleged that police officers surveilled his home, and the homes of other activists who had been trying to observe the taskforce\u2019s activities.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">He described an alleged incident in which a masked agent driving an unmarked black Ford Expedition sped up and swerved toward him while he was standing near a grassy median. The vehicle turned sharply as it approached, missing him by two inches, he said in his declaration.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">In another alleged incident, an agent Demster had not previously met addressed him by name from the loudspeaker of a truck.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cWhen I am home alone and I hear a branch snap, my heart drops,\u201d Demster said in his declaration. \u201cThe presence of these unmarked vehicles outside my home gives me a scary, uneasy feeling that has taken away my peace inside my own home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The six plaintiffs in the lawsuit offered meticulous documentation to support their allegations of retaliation by the taskforce.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">US Customs and Border Protection revoked the decade-long Global Entry expedited border screening program status of James West, a retired anesthesiologist, less than a month after he began photographing the activities of the taskforce, according to his declaration. The official email notification stated he no longer met requirements because he may be \u201csubject to a law enforcement investigation\u201d or was suspected of \u201cconduct related to terrorism\u201d.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"i-was-shocked-and-scared\" class=\"dcr-12ibh7f\">\u2018I was shocked and scared\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Jessica Chodor described her arrest \u2013 <a href=\"https:\/\/youtube.com\/watch?v=goDCot13rjM.\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">recorded<\/a> on an officer\u2019s body camera \u2013 after she began filming taskforce officers last October. She alleged that she had already had several other incidents where police interfered with her observations.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cI exclaimed to him: \u2018you\u2019re on Live\u2019 which means being recorded and broadcast to social media in real time,\u201d Chodor said in her declaration. \u201cWhen I told him that, Trooper Suzore tackled me to the ground with immense force. Once I was on the ground, he and another person pinned me to the ground facedown. I was shocked and scared. I did not know what was happening or understand that they were arresting me, because I hadn\u2019t broken any laws and they did not tell me I was under arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Chodor spent 27 hours in an overcrowded jail cell with a broken toilet, she said, before being released. The state dropped its charge of resisting official detention in December.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The ACLU alleges that the taskforce\u2019s methods amount to unconstitutional retaliation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Tennessee lawmakers passed the Halo law in 2025, which made intentionally approaching a police officer within 25ft an arrestable offense \u2013 a class B misdemeanor \u2013 for failing to withdraw after the instruction of an officer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">The ACLU lawsuit contends that taskforce officers have weaponized this law, pushing witnesses far beyond a 25ft perimeter by walking toward them to back them away from a scene, refusing to define where the 25ft buffer begins, telling them they must stay 25ft away from the furthest agent \u2013 or from an empty, parked cruiser \u2013 or saying \u201cit is where I say it is\u201d and \u201c25ft isn\u2019t a thing \u2013 you have to get back to where I want you\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">In a filing earlier this month, the ACLU claimed that taskforce agents \u201care issuing verbal threats, including threats of arrest\u201d in response to \u201cconstitutionally protected\u201d information gathering: \u201cThey are taunting Plaintiffs by name when they arrive at scenes of Task Force activity, tailing Plaintiffs in their vehicles, and sitting outside Plaintiffs\u2019 homes \u2013 often after photographing Plaintiffs\u2019 faces and license plate numbers and presumably placing their personal information into databases for the purpose of enabling further surveillance and retaliation. And they have used excessive force against and falsely arrested, to date, one of the Plaintiffs.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"theyre-looking-at-this\" class=\"dcr-12ibh7f\">\u2018They\u2019re looking at this\u2019<\/h2>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">Trump, Lee and law enforcement officials have repeatedly touted their claims of the taskforce\u2019s success.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cOverall crime in Memphis is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox13memphis.com\/news\/president-trump-to-visit-memphis-as-debate-grows-over-safe-task-force-impact\/article_4fca6277-ae0e-4d32-990e-bcd47106a750.html\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">down<\/a> more than 43% compared to the same period last year \u2013 a dramatic drop from the bloodshed ushered in by the failed policies of the past,\u201d the White House said in a release before Trump\u2019s visit to Memphis in March. \u201cLast year, the city <a href=\"https:\/\/www.memphispolice.org\/news\/memphis-sees-significant-crime-reduction-in-2025-focus-shifts-to-sustaining-progress\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">recorded<\/a> fewer than 200 murders for the first time since 2019, with shootings dropping nearly 40% from the previous year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">By mid-March, the taskforce had made more than 7,000 arrests, seized more than 1,000 illegal guns and reunited more than 150 missing children with their parents, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/trump-administration\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Trump administration<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cFor years, our leaders allowed entire cities in America to be destroyed by crime, drugs and gang violence,\u201d Trump said at a roundtable discussion that month.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">\u201cTolerating this violence was always a choice \u2026 They\u2019re looking at this all over the country, what you\u2019re doing,\u201d he said to Tennessee house speaker Cameron Sexton. \u201cThey\u2019re studying it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-130mj7b\">But violent crime had been <a href=\"https:\/\/counciloncj.org\/crime-in-memphis-what-you-need-to-know\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">falling sharply<\/a> in Memphis before the taskforce started making arrests. Crime has been <a href=\"https:\/\/counciloncj.org\/crime-trends-in-u-s-cities-year-end-2025-update\/\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">falling<\/a> in cities large and small across the US since 2022, due largely to youth population and post-pandemic secular trends.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-qxqnsy\"><span class=\"dcr-1rq3vad\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-1dzx48f\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-1rrvs2w\">\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/tennessee\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Tennessee<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/donaldtrump\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/trump-administration\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Trump administration<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-crime\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">US crime<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-hj8byr\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/memphis\" class=\"dcr-1gwziyt\">Memphis<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-nu129i\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Trump%E2%80%99s%20Memphis%20crime%20taskforce%20accused%20of%20using%20%E2%80%98immense%20force%E2%80%99%20in%20intimidation%20campaign&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/may\/28\/trump-memphis-crime-taskforce?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-125qj9d\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-zhx6xs\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fmay%2F28%2Ftrump-memphis-crime-taskforce&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/may\/28\/trump-memphis-crime-taskforce\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-14rjinq\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div style=\"--grid-area:right-column\" data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-1h2hraq\">\n<div class=\"dcr-tn16h9\">\n<section class=\"dcr-1hko8ef\"><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Members of the national guard patrol along Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee, on 24 October 2025. Photograph: George<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":3934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3932","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3932","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3932"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3932\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}