Memphis Police Association

06/04/2026

Sergeant Officer Verdell Smith was struck and killed by the driver of a vehicle who had been involved in a triple shooting approximately 30 minutes earlier.

The man, who had been seen talking to himself loudly, suddenly pulled out a handgun and shot two customers outside of a restaurant on North Main Street shortly before 10:00 pm. Several citizens then chased the man on foot a short distance to a sporting goods store parking lot, where the man shot an employee and fled in a car, as officers arrived on the scene.

Responding officers pursued the vehicle, which started driving the wrong way down B. B. King Boulevard, which had been closed to vehicle traffic for a street festival. As the pursuit entered the area, Sergeant Smith and other officers attempted to clear the street and sidewalks of pedestrians, but the vehicle crashed through a barrier and struck him.

The man was taken into custody after striking Officer Smith. He was convicted of first-degree murder and vehicular homicide and sentenced to life without parole.

Officer Smith was a U.S Navy veteran and had served with the Memphis Police Department for 18 years. He is survived by his children, fiancée, and father.

He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Sergeant. In 2019, he received the Medal of Valor for sacrificing himself for civilians.

05/25/2026

05/22/2026

Police Officer Scotty Triplett was killed in a motorcycle crash while he and other officers performed an es**rt along Hickory Hill Road at about 4:45 pm.

He was traveling northbound when an oncoming car disregarded his emergency equipment and turned left in front of him at the intersection with Swaying Pine Lane, causing a collision. Officer Triplett was transported to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

Officer Triplett had served with the Memphis Police Department for 27 years. He is survived by his wife and two children.

05/21/2026

Patrolman David Clark was shot and killed while attempting to apprehend a suspect who had just murdered four people and wounded a federal probation officer.

The officers responded to a shots fired call in the 1700 block of Kansas Street. When they arrived, they found that four people had been shot and killed, along with the wounded federal probation officer. Patrolman Clark then chased the suspect, who was armed with a .30-.30 rifle, to the rear of a frame house at 1760 Kansas Street.

Patrolman Clark encountered the suspect in the rear of the house at a range of about 20 feet and fired one shot, hitting the suspect in the shoulder. He then took cover at the corner of the house. The suspect fired one shot from his rifle and the round pierced the wall of the house where Patrolman Clark was concealed, and he was struck in the side of the head.

The suspect then kicked down the door of the house and barricaded himself inside. Officers surrounded the house and fired tear gas into it. When the suspect exited the house holding the rifle, officers opened fire, killing him.

Patrolman Clark was a United States Air Force veterand and had served with the Memphis Police Department for eight years.

05/12/2026

Lieutenant Clarence Cox was shot and killed while attempting to arrest a suspect who was wanted for escape and for the murder of a priest.

He had encountered the subject near the intersection of N Lauderdale Street and Exchange Avenue and attempted to take him into custody.The suspect was able to gain control of Lieutenant Cox's service weapon and shoot him with it.

The man was later arrested in Jackson, Tennessee. He was sentenced to death but later murdered in prison by other death row inmates.

Lieutenant Cox was a United States Navy veteran and had served with the Memphis Police Department for 22 years.

04/12/2026

Officer Joseph Russell "Rusty" McKinney was shot and killed while investigating a suspicious vehicle at the intersection of Charter Avenue and Horn Lake Road at about 2:00 am.

He and other officers were approaching the vehicle when the occupants opened fire on them. Officers returned fire before the car fled. The officers pursued the vehicle and took two wounded subjects into custody after it stopped.

The adult subject died of his gunshot wounds, and the juvenile subject suffered critical gunshot wounds. The adult subject was out on bond from an arrest the previous month in which he had been charged with possession of a modified semi-automatic weapon and two counts of grand larceny related to vehicle thefts. The juvenile pleaded guilty to facilitation of second-degree murder and multiple counts of reckless aggravated assault and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Officer McKinney was transported to Regional One Hospital, where he succumbed to his wounds. Two other officers were wounded.

Officer McKinney served with the Memphis Police Department for over three years. He is survived by his beloved daughter, Camila McKinney; fiancée, Karina Najera Sanchez; parents, Chris and Tina McKinney; brother, David McKinney; and a host of aunts, uncles, extended family, and friends.

03/31/2026

03/30/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18GVGzRTJ1/

March 28th No Kings Rally incident: Statement below.

Full Release: https://www.memphispolice.org/news/no-kings-rally-incident/

City of Memphis

01/25/2026

Officers Wendell Robinson and Ernest Withers. 1948
Memphis PD