Who pays when Memphis police work special events?
Memphis police officers direct traffic while fans arrive for the Tigers game at the FedExForum on Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (Brad Vest/he Daily Memphian file)
Many of the officers working Downtown during special events— such as Memphis Grizzlies games, concerts, parades and road races — are often working overtime, picking up extra shifts that taxpayers cover during dozens of events each year.
Organizations ask MPD for help calming traffic, for maintaining order and providing security. All of that costs money.
A recent Memphis Police Department presentation obtained by The Daily Memphian shows that the department does not always bill the entities incurring police overtime, and those organizations also don’t always pay when billed.
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Samuel Hardiman
Samuel Hardiman is an enterprise and investigative reporter who focuses on local government and politics. He is a native Rhode Islander who lives Downtown. He has covered Memphis since 2018.
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