MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The chef at my hotel's restaurant talked to our table about how the music-filled city had a lot of BLM protests during 2020, just like any other American city, but it did not have any riots. Instead, city residents have had to deal with the low-intensity breakdown of law and order: A high daily rate of crime.
While the protests on Friday after the city released footage of the brutal beating of Tyre Nichols by five black police officers blocked traffic at a key bridge for hours, it was a peaceful event that ended around 10:00 pm. In the eastern part of the city, however, multiple stores were looted in the early morning hours.
One of my Uber drivers told me the criminals have no fear of being caught by police since the city has a "no chase" policy. Only if there is a violent felony being committed are officers allowed to engage in a pursuit. He detailed a time a customer he picked up bragged about partaking in a recent smash and grab, even showing him the jewelry he had stolen inside a plastic bag that he was about to sell.
I saw the recent aftermath of a smash-and-grab at a liquor store a few miles north of downtown (the picture of it is this story's featured image). Police scanner chatter said the looters were using a car to break down the security door. By the time I arrived, police had secured the scene, but the thieves had made it inside. Broken glass and liquor bottles were scattered all over the floor.
Smash-and-grabs are not the only types of crime the city is overwhelmed with, as they also have a serious car theft problem. The chef from earlier said he drives his crappy work car downtown in order to keep his good car at home to prevent it from being stolen. Last year alone, over 8,500 cars were stolen, according to WMC. Similar to the youths in Washington, D.C., who commit carjackings, Memphis Police arrested 128 18-year-olds, 108 17-year-olds, and 110 16-year-olds for car thefts in 2022.
The thefts and property crimes are not random. They are planned and carried out in an organized way, which is why the perfect storm is being created in Memphis since BLM activists want the entire organized crime unit to be disbanded, not just the special unit the five former police officers were in. Since this appears to be a case where the police were 100 percent in the wrong, the city is under more pressure than ever to give in to the demands of the activists, despite serious charges being brought against the five men.
It's a self-fulling prophecy where people with the integrity and character needed to be officers do not join, departments then lower standards to fill squad cars, leading to less-than-ideal candidates joining their ranks, who then commit criminal acts while in uniform, causing more calls to defund or disband the police while crime gets out of control. It's a vicious cycle, and it looks like Memphis will be a leading case study for it.