Tennessee Governor Bill Lee speaks about the National Guard and federal agencies arriving in Memphis, Tennessee, during a news conference. (Picture credit: AP)
Memphis is set to receive National Guard troops and a surge of federal and state resources next week as part of a broader effort to combat crime in the city, Tennessee officials said.Governor Bill Lee, a Republican, said on Friday that the “Memphis Safe Task Force” will include National Guard members from Tennessee, state troopers, and agents from more than a dozen federal agencies, including the FBI, ATF, and DEA, reported news agency AP. While he did not specify how many Guard troops might be sent, he stressed they would provide a “critical support role” to police rather than act as front-line officers, as per the New York Times.
The Guard will be deputized by the US Marshals Service to support local law enforcement. Troops will not make arrests and will only carry weapons if requested by police.Lee emphasised that the deployment will be phased and sustained rather than a short-term operation. “It will operate as long as it takes,” he said. He also announced $100 million in state funding for public safety initiatives, alongside the deployment of 300 state troopers, 100 of whom will be on duty at any given time. Memphis Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat, acknowledged that the city had not requested National Guard assistance but expressed support for using the incoming resources effectively. “My goal is to make sure that as resources come into our community, we find ways to use them effectively and for the benefit of the residents of our great city,” he said, as quoted by the New York Times.City officials stressed that crime rates in Memphis have recently declined, though both Young and Lee said more work is needed to ensure residents feel safe. Lee added, “Success looks like Memphis being a safe city, Memphis being a place where people have no concerns about going out with their family, about locating their business”, as per AP.The National Guard and federal authorities will be easily identifiable in standard uniforms, and no armoured vehicles or masks will be used, the city said on a dedicated task force website.Trump announced the deployment on September 12 and signed an order on September 15 establishing the federal task force. Officials have noted the plan differs from prior deployments in Los Angeles and Washington, DC, where the Guard was under federal control and accompanied by Marines or involved in arrests.
