The federal crackdown on crime in Memphis has officially begun. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Tuesday morning that “our operation in Memphis is now underway, and we’re just getting started,” noting that nine arrests had already been made and two illegal firearms seized in the first wave of enforcement.
Bondi added that 219 officers had been “special deputized” with federal law enforcement powers and that a Joint Operation Center had been established. She thanked multiple federal partners, including the FBI, ATF, and U.S. Marshals Service, as part of the sweeping deployment.
The crackdown follows President Donald Trump’s directive, issued two weeks earlier, ordering a surge of federal agents and National Guard personnel into Memphis to address what he described as “tremendous levels of violent crime.”
A Federal-Local Operation
While Trump has faced resistance in other cities where he has proposed or carried out military-style crime crackdowns, Tennessee leaders have largely welcomed the move. Governor Bill Lee confirmed last week that the deployment would unfold in phases over the coming months, involving personnel from 13 federal agencies and approximately 300 Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers.
“The planning has been underway for months,” Lee said, describing Memphis as a “world-class city with an historic opportunity to address its crime challenge.” He emphasized that National Guard members would support law enforcement but would not have arrest authority.
Unlike in Portland and Chicago, where lawsuits and protests erupted over federal overreach, Tennessee’s Republican senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty have publicly supported the Memphis Safe Task Force, which Trump unveiled at the White House.
A City Divided
Memphis Mayor Paul Young has expressed cautious concern. Earlier in September, Young said he was “certainly not happy” with the deployment of National Guard members, citing community tensions. But in recent comments, he struck a more measured tone, pledging to direct the influx of federal resources toward positive outcomes for city residents.
“As the leader of our city, 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,” Young said.
The Memphis Police Department has reported encouraging statistics: overall crime in the first eight months of 2025 was at a 25-year low. Murders were at a six-year low, aggravated assaults at a five-year low, and sexual assaults at a twenty-year low.
Still, challenges remain. FBI and Council on Criminal Justice reports note that homicide rates in Memphis remain among the highest of major U.S. cities, and motor vehicle thefts have also risen since 2019.
Opposition and Activism
Not everyone welcomes the federal presence. Over the weekend, nonprofit groups and local activists launched the “Free the 901” movement, invoking the city’s area code in their campaign against the National Guard deployment. Protesters warned that Memphis was being used to normalize “militarization” in American cities.
“History shows us that the makings of martial law often begin with tactics like this,” one protester said. “The slow normalization of militarization, stepped-up deployments that blur the lines between emergency aid and occupation, and the erosion of ordinary civic protection.”
The ACLU of Tennessee also entered the debate. In a letter to Mayor Young and Memphis Police Chief C.J. Davis, ACLU leaders demanded compliance with the Kendrick Consent Decree, a landmark 1978 agreement designed to prevent unconstitutional surveillance of Memphis residents.
“Federal and National Guard involvement in local law enforcement doesn’t diminish these protections,” said ACLU Tennessee Legal Director Stella Yarbrough. “In fact, it makes strict compliance more critical than ever.”
The ACLU warned that cooperation with federal agencies could violate the decree if local police overstep into surveillance activities or political monitoring.
Community Response and Next Steps
Local officials have moved to balance the federal crackdown with transparency. The city of Memphis launched a website where residents can log complaints and track federal agents’ activities. Community groups are also offering know-your-rights trainings, while Shelby County Commissioner Erica Sugarman has been relaying lessons learned from federal crackdowns in Washington, D.C.
Although National Guard members had not been visibly deployed as of Tuesday, Bondi confirmed that more arrests and seizures are expected in the coming weeks. State leaders maintain that the presence of federal agents will reduce crime, while activists argue it risks undermining civil liberties.
For Memphis residents, the operation marks the beginning of what may be a long and contentious experiment — balancing the promise of safer neighborhoods with fears of over-policing and federal intrusion.
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