There are 77 article(s) tagged Michael Rallings:

• July 2020

  • Memphis homicides up 30%, on pace for record year

    Memphis police report a 30% increase in homicides this year compared to same period last year. 

    By Yolanda Jones July 09, 2020

  • Strickland, Rallings shift emphasis from police reform to ongoing violence

    Mayor Jim Strickland’s reform discussions are continuing, he said Wednesday, but critics of the belief that more cops means less crime have become more vocal since the death in Minneapolis of George Floyd on Memorial Day. 

    By Bill Dries July 08, 2020

  • City Council takes first vote to remove police residency from ballot, talks other reforms

    Memphis City Council members also got their first look Tuesday at how much police have spent in the past four years on overtime and riot gear as well as other preparations to handle protests.

    By Bill Dries July 08, 2020

  • Lee announces enhanced police training plan

    Gov. Bill Lee announced Thursday, July 2, plans for a partnership with various agencies to enhance officer training and increase police training.

    By Sam Stockard July 02, 2020

• June 2020

  • Strickland, Rallings make new overture on police reform

    Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings talked about further police reform efforts at a Tuesday briefing that was partially an answer to critics of Strickland's first set of reforms.

    By Bill Dries June 30, 2020

  • Councilwoman: Our police officers should live in Shelby County

    "While the MPD has some ways to go before it is fully reflective of the communities it serves, do we really believe that officers brought in from outside counties or states will improve any situation?"

    By Michalyn Easter-Thomas June 28, 2020

  • Nine religious leaders reject Strickland police reform effort

    Nine ministers – who were all involved in the set of private meetings with the mayor that lead up to his City Hall announcement Thursday regarding moves toward police reform – put out a letter Friday critical of the reforms Strickland had announced.

    By Bill Dries June 26, 2020

  • Strickland outlines MPD changes including seeking subpoena power for CLERB

    The press conference comes after a month of private discussions with community and religious leaders and a move toward police reforms by the Memphis City Council as well as the Shelby County Commission. 

    By Bill Dries June 25, 2020

  • Rallings says technology ‘vital’ for modern police work

    Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings said Thursday, June 18, that technology, including social media, is vital to the department, and he fears the 1978 Kendrick Consent Decree will stop his department from doing its job.

    By Yolanda Jones June 18, 2020

  • Daily Memphian records request inspires resolution to improve MPD transparency

    Memphis City Council member JB Smiley is pushing a resolution to urge Mayor Jim Strickland’s administration to put data, complaints and other information regarding police misconduct and use of force on the city’s website.

    By Marc Perrusquia June 11, 2020

  • Introduction of police reforms encounters little resistance

    The first reception to the council resolutions presented Tuesday comes with a record of past resistance that indicates it probably won't be as easy as a council vote. The resolutions are advisory.

    By Bill Dries June 09, 2020

  • Mayor vows to fight police brutality, but city blocks records

    As Mayor Jim Strickland vows to 'fix' police brutality against African American citizens, his staff puts up roadblocks to accessing records.

    By Marc Perrusquia June 08, 2020

  • Civic memorial for George Floyd includes police and mothers

    The chief of staff to Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris talks about her son's coming transition as a young black man and worries about what will happen when he encounters police. The city's police director says his officers are not the enemy.

    By Bill Dries June 08, 2020

  • Notes from a sixth night of protest in Memphis

    If there’s a commonality among many who disagree about protest tactics as well as those who by profession are on the other side of a line, maybe it’s a care for the city. Defensive pride in place is a Memphis throughline, and it may be serving us here. 

    By Chris Herrington June 02, 2020

  • City curfew follows night of 31 arrests, property damage Downtown

    The imposition of the late night curfew by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, announced Monday, also marks another chapter in the relationship between the city and activists who led the splinter group that tried to occupy the city's two interstate bridges Sunday night.

    By Bill Dries, Yolanda Jones, Clay Bailey June 01, 2020

  • Memphis’ largely peaceful protests warrant praise and relief, but also action

    Protesters distributed a list of “suggested demands” at a weekend rally. Some are easier to achieve than others given the coronavirus-spiked budgeting chaos. All, perhaps, are debatable. But it would do the city great good for the current moment to become a more actionable one.

    By Chris Herrington June 01, 2020

• May 2020

  • Tennessee to stop sharing COVID-positive information with law enforcement

    Gov. Bill Lee’s Administration is ending a highly-criticized policy of sharing COVID-positive information with 911 boards and law enforcement agencies across the state, saying plenty of PPE is available and urging first responders to wear it when they interact with people.

    By Sam Stockard May 28, 2020

  • House Judiciary Committee passes constitutional carry bill

    Despite the protests of Memphis officials and lawmakers, the House Judiciary Committee has passed a constitutional carry bill that enables “law-abiding” people to pack handguns without a state permit.

    By Sam Stockard May 27, 2020

  • Black Caucus urges governor to stop COVID information-sharing with police

    The Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators is asking Gov. Bill Lee in letter form to end a program allowing personal information of COVID-positive people to be shared with law enforcement. Otherwise, it says people should refuse to give their addresses when tested.

    By Sam Stockard May 21, 2020

  • Rallings defends police use of addresses of those with COVID-19 virus

    Rallings said Monday that Shelby County 911 has an agreement with the Tennessee government to get the names and addresses of those diagnosed with COVID-19, but only addresses will be used when dispatching officers, not the patients' names. The agreement has been in place since mid-March.

    By Bill Dries May 14, 2020

  • First responders need to protect themselves, too

    In the age of COVID-19, suspicions that police are not trustworthy must take a back seat to the certainty that this pandemic will spread without adequate safeguards.

    By Otis Sanford May 14, 2020

• April 2020

  • Rallings notes slight uptick in violent crime during pandemic

    Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings said Wednesday, April 15, that violent crime is up slightly in the city since the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the police department has launched a sting operation to combat the uptick.

    By Yolanda Jones April 15, 2020

  • Rallings says MPD ‘didn’t miss a beat’ during his trip to Ghana

    Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings is back at work after a two-week self-quarantine after he went to Ghana with Memphis in May delegation. He discusses policing in the age of COVID-19. 

    By Yolanda Jones April 11, 2020

• March 2020

  • Department cites ‘personal travel’ for MPD director’s self-isolation

    Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings has been out of the office on "personal time" off and no one will confirm if he went on trip to Ghana with the Memphis in May delegation. 

    By Yolanda Jones March 28, 2020

  • Sanford: No more Mr. Nice Guy

    Gov. Bill Lee sticks to his guns, unmoved by pleas from law enforcement officials, mayors, gun merchants and firearms trainers. 

    By Otis Sanford March 12, 2020