The library had been closed since Feb. 2, when Memphis Police Department officer Geoffrey Redd was shot there.

The Daily Memphian has identified all 56 MPD officers who were a part of SCORPION, the now disbanded unit whose officers were criminally charged with the death of Tyre Nichols. One local law enforcement leader says the stats show MPD needs more rigid hiring practices. 

As part of our “Minor Offenders, Major Offenses” series, The Daily Memphian takes a look at Tennessee’s only state-run, hardware-secure juvenile detention facility currently in use. Wilder Youth Development Center opened in 1971, and various officials say it needs to either be replaced or expanded. 

The number of delinquent charges against juveniles in Memphis and Shelby County increased 30.3% in 2022 from the year before, according to data from the Memphis Shelby Crime Commission. 

In this installment of “Minor Offenders, Major Offenses,” we look at how lawmakers intend to build on the mandatory-minimum “truth in sentencing” law with bills that treat juveniles as adults in more circumstances. Many of the tough-on-crime proposals pivot from former Gov. Bill Haslam’s moderate juvenile justice reform effort in 2018.

Aisha Stephens, 35, of Syracuse, New York, died after being injured in a stampede after a weekend concert by the rapper GloRilla in western New York state.

In the latest from our “Minor Offenders, Major Offenses” series on juvenile crime, criminalizing students for frequently missing school can actually make things worse: “You label a kid as delinquent, you actually create a future criminal.”

The lawsuit filed by Alicia Franklin alleges negligence by the city regarding her alleged September 2021 sexual assault by Cleotha Henderson, aka Abston.

Two teens facing aggravated kidnapping charges in connection with an attempted abduction at Saddle Creek face additional offenses in separate cases.

The 20 hours of additional video related to Tyre Nichols’ beating will no longer be released Wednesday, March 8, after a judge signed off on a motion ordering that the release be delayed.

The U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday it will create a nationwide guide on special police units after Tyre Nichols’ death in Memphis. 

A large part of the area’s current juvenile crime issue centers on car thefts and thefts of property from vehicles.

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Minor Offenders, Major Offenses

No ‘more pressing’ issue in Memphis community than juvenile crime

Violence intervention, several national experts said at a conference Monday in Memphis, requires much communication and collaboration if success is to be achieved and sustained. 

The entire 20 hours of the remaining video and audio of the Tyre Nichols case is set for release Wednesday afternoon, March 8.

The Daily Memphian has been working to dive deeper into the pressing issue of juvenile crime. It’s complex and uncomfortable, with outsize effects on the city, its citizens and its very future.

In the 1980s, juvenile offenses were mostly crimes like shoplifting, petty theft and auto thefts. Now, children currently held in detention are accused of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, carjacking, rape of a child and other crimes.

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Minor Offenders, Major Offenses: A series by The Daily Memphian

The business and philanthropic leader kicked off his mayoral bid Monday, March 6, in South Memphis straddling the issues of crime and police reform.

It’s difficult to measure success when there’s no way to quantify violence that doesn’t occur, but those behind the Memphis Allies initiative believe their lofty goals are worth the effort.

Gibbons is executive director of the University of Memphis Public Safety Institute and leads Memphis Shelby Crime Commission. Former Memphis Police Department director Chapman is executive director of CrimeStoppers.

The Shelby County District Attorney General’s office recused itself from the Gershun Freeman investigation, and on Feb. 17, Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk’s Office took over.

The Nichols case has intensified the national debate on using highly aggressive tactics to battle violent crime and the pretexts that are often used. Most of the stops identified and mapped out by The Daily Memphian were made in the most impoverished areas of the city.

The court allowed the highest penalty based on the level of fraud.

The protests of proposed state laws that would outlaw drag various forms of drag shows came as Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee attended the Wednesday, March 1, opening of the Whitehaven YMCA.

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Back in the swim of things: $11.5M YMCA opens in Whitehaven

The unit consists of 10 newly appointed sergeants who are on temporary assignments. 

Intervening early can be the key to success, and Memphis Allies’ SWITCH Youth program seeks to do just that.