Key facts
- A man was killed by federal agents from the Memphis Safe Task Force on Wednesday.
- This is the fourth death involving agents from the taskforce since its inception.
- The taskforce was established by Donald Trump via executive order to combat crime in cities.
- Authorities stated the deceased pointed a handgun at agents before they returned fire.
- The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is leading the inquiry into the shooting.
A member of a federal crime-fighting task force in Memphis shot and killed a person on Wednesday, the second fatal shooting by a task force member in four days and the fourth death involving the unit since it started in September. The Memphis Safe Task Force, created by President Donald Trump, was part of an effort to place National Guard troops and federal agents in cities he described as crime-ridden.
The shooting occurred while U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents were serving a drug warrant at a hotel room. According to a news release from the Marshals Service, the man was killed after pointing a handgun at task force members. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which is probing the circumstances, stated that for reasons still under investigation, the situation escalated, resulting in a DEA agent firing into a room, striking and killing a man.
Wednesday’s shooting follows another one early Sunday by two members of the Tennessee National Guard assigned to the task force. Authorities said 20-year-old Tyrin Johnson was killed after he turned toward them with a gun during a downtown pursuit. Johnson’s family is calling for the release of video evidence.
Data from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation shows that at least four people have died in encounters with officers tied to the federal task force, including at least one other fatal shooting by a DEA agent. In mid-May, when task force members were serving an arrest warrant, the agent shot and killed 41-year-old Darrin Pigram, who had allegedly reached for a gun. Later that same month, a Homeland Security special agent fired her weapon when task force members responded to a report of a man armed with a gun, threatening to harm himself. Jonah Neal, 25, was pronounced dead at the scene, but it was not immediately clear whether Neal died as a result of the agent firing upon him or if it was self-inflicted. In a fifth shooting in December, a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper assigned to the task force opened fire at a vehicle and struck one person after the car did not pull over in a traffic stop. All five shootings are being investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.