Federal agents shot and killed a man at an extended-stay motel in Memphis on Wednesday morning, marking the fourth fatality involving President Trump's anticrime taskforce since it launched five months ago.
The shooting occurred at a motel on Poplar Avenue, roughly 11 miles east of downtown Memphis, during a Drug Enforcement Administration operation. U.S. Marshals Service officials said agents had surrounded the location to serve a warrant on a fugitive wanted on felony drug charges out of Shelby County.
"Federal and local law enforcement officers were attempting to serve a warrant on a wanted fugitive facing felony drug charges out of Shelby county," a Marshals Service spokesperson said. "After issuing numerous verbal commands for the individual to surrender, officers made a forced entry into the building. Additional commands were given for the individual to exit. During the encounter, the individual pointed a handgun at members of the Memphis Safe Task Force. Taskforce members responded to the immediate threat by discharging their firearms."
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is handling the investigation. The dead man's identity has not been released.
Trump created the Memphis Safe Task Force by executive order in September, deploying federal law enforcement to what he characterized as crime-ridden Democratic cities. The four shooting deaths have all occurred within the past two months, intensifying scrutiny of the operation.
The taskforce deployment arrived as Memphis struggled with violent crime rates among the highest for major U.S. cities. However, homicides and aggravated assaults had already declined sharply in the year before Trump took office, following a pandemic-era surge that affected much of the country.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee complemented the federal effort by activating the National Guard to patrol Memphis streets, a deployment that has lasted ten months. Activists have challenged the military presence in state and federal courts without success.
The earlier fatalities paint a pattern of escalating force. On Monday, National Guard soldiers killed 20-year-old Tyrin Johnson during a pursuit by Memphis police after reports of gunfire near Ida B Wells and Gayoso avenues downtown.
On May 21, taskforce officers responded to a report of an armed man threatening self-harm at a residence. Police found Jonah Neal, 25, inside with several weapons. A Homeland Security special agent shot him.
The first death came on May 13, when Memphis Safe Task Force agents fatally shot 41-year-old Darrin Pigram while serving an arrest warrant at a Burger King in the Frayser neighborhood.
Author James Rodriguez: "Four deaths in two months reveals how quickly paramilitary-style enforcement can turn lethal in real-world conditions."
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