A timeline of accused Huey’s gunman’s recent arrests
Chase Harris is accused of shooting at an off-duty police officer April 30 at Huey’s in East Memphis (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)
The man accused of shooting at an off-duty police officer Sunday, April 30 at Huey’s in East Memphis appeared in court Thursday, May 25 and was assigned a public defender.
Chase Harris, 19, was arraigned in Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court Division 15 before judicial commissioner Mischelle Best, who presided in place of Judge Christian Johnson.
Harris, who remains in custody, is due back in Johnson’s courtroom court June 1.
Jim Strickland
Harris’ most recent charges include burglary and evading arrest. But he has racked up several other charges for events dating back to December, and he also has a juvenile delinquent history that includes three alleged acts involving deadly weapons.
Felicia Hogan, media affairs coordinator for the Shelby County Juvenile Court Clerk’s office, confirmed Friday, May 26 that Harris was found guilty of aggravated robbery at age 14 and aggravated kidnapping and especially aggravated kidnapping at age 17. Further details were not provided and those incidents are not included in the timeline below.
His cases have received a lot of attention from the public and from local government officials.
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland used his May 19 weekly Friday e-mail to lament Harris’ ability to bond out of jail multiple times. Strickland also wrote in his email last week that no motions had been filed by the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office to revoke or increase bail.
Steve Mulroy
Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy also sounded off, using his office’s Twitter account to post three updates on Harris’ charges and to call out inconsistencies in the mayor’s comments.
Mulroy told The Daily Memphian that his office has sought pretrial detention on Harris since the Huey’s shooting.
“And we did obtain pretrial detention fairly quickly as these things go,” Mulroy said. “He did not, in fact, to our knowledge reoffend during that period of time, because as you know, all the subsequent arrests are backdated to relate it back to pre-existing offenses that occurred prior to the Huey’s incident.”
In Strickland’s May 26 weekly update, he corrected his previous statements, saying, “While I appreciate the DA’s office filing a motion to revoke the bond on May 17, it should have been filed earlier, especially after the third arrest which was for shooting at multiple people at a local restaurant.”
Mulroy said Harris could be facing incarceration for his alleged acts but wouldn’t elaborate on sentencing.
Asked how one can rehabilitate a repeat offender such as Harris, Mulroy said: “What you need to do is do an individualized assessment to see if there are services you could provide that would give this person a realistic alternative to life on the street.”
The Daily Memphian has put together this timeline of Harris’ alleged crimes, arrest dates, bail amounts and the judicial commissioners involved in each of his initial bail screenings.
Dec. 20, 2022
On Dec. 20, officers responded to Chase Harris’ uncle’s residence after getting a call about a suspicious vehicle.
Officers located the vehicle behind the house with a car cover over it. Harris, 18 at the time, confessed to stealing it and was apprehended.
Dec. 21
Harris was released on his own recognizance (ROR) Dec. 21 after being charged for a theft of a 2017 Dodge Charger.
According to the clerk’s office, Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court Division 12 Judge S. Ronald Lucchesi set the ROR.
The case was disposed April 18. But after the DA’s office filed a motion to revoke or increase his bond, a motion hearing for June 1 was set.
Jan. 17
On Jan. 17, Harris allegedly stole a woman’s 2019 Land Rover Evoque from Orangetheory Fitness, 4615 Poplar Ave. Police located the vehicle at Ridgeway Commons Apartments, 6091 Quince Road.
Feb. 14
Latent fingerprints from the Land Rover were matched to Harris, who was previously accused of car theft in December.
He was charged with theft of property $10,000-$60,000 and booked in jail on April 20.
Judicial commissioner Kathy Kirk-Johnson set his bail at $5,000 on April 21, and he posted bond the same day. The case was disposed days later on April 28.
On May 23, Harris was indicted on the original theft charge, plus a theft of property of $2,500-$10,000. A copy of the indictment says the value is attributed to the victim’s purse and Apple AirPods.
A grand jury recommended a $210,000 bail for Harris to the criminal court. Shelby County Criminal Court Division VIII Judge Chris Craft signed off on the bail May 25.
If Harris posts bond, Mulroy said his office will file a motion for a source hearing to determine the source of the bond money.
March 23
Harris was charged March 23 with burglary from a motor vehicle; vandalism $1,000 or less; evading arrest; and criminal attempt of theft of property $1,000-$2,500.
April 2
According to an affidavit, Harris allegedly stole a woman’s 2016 Infiniti Q50 from Tannoor Grill, 830 N. Germantown Parkway, on April 2.
He was charged with theft of property $10,000-$60,000 and given a $50,000 bail, set by judicial commissioner Kathy Kirk-Johnson. He bonded out on that charge May 13.
April 3 car theft
According to the affidavit, on April 3, officers spotted a stolen Infiniti Q50 in a shopping plaza at 7911 E. Shelby Drive. As deputies approached the vehicle, they observed a Black male get out of the car, jump into an Infiniti G37 through the sunroof and speed away.
Officers made contact with the owner of the Infiniti G37, valued at $9,100. Deputies processing the scene recovered a Glock 19 BTRV600 handgun with an extended magazine and 28 live rounds with another round chambered. They also recovered a Topdon key reprogrammer, which is used to reprogram key fobs in stolen vehicles.
The deputies processed fingerprints on the items, which positively identified Harris.
Harris was charged March 23 with burglary from a motor vehicle; vandalism $1,000 or less; evading arrest; and criminal attempt of theft of property $1,000-$2,500.
Harris was issued a $100,000 bail, which was set May 25 by judicial commissioner Zayid Saleem, according to the clerk’s office. He has not yet posted bond.
April 3 burglary
Harris is accused of breaking into vehicles at Waffle Cream and Urban Outfitters in the Midtown area on April 3.
He is charged with two counts of burglary from a motor vehicle for these incidents.
His $10,000 bail, which he posted along with the Huey’s crime, was issued by Judicial Commissioner Kenya Smith.
April 18
Harris’ charges for a theft of a 2017 Dodge Charger was disposed. But after the DA’s office filed a motion to revoke or increase his bond, a motion hearing for June 1 was set.
April 20
Harris was charged with theft of property $10,000-$60,000 and booked in jail for the Jan. 17 alleged theft of a Land Rover.
April 21
After Harris was booked in jail April 20 for the alleged Land Rover theft and charged with theft of property $10,000-$60,000 and booked in jail on April 20, Judicial Commissioner Kathy Kirk-Johnson set his bail at $5,000 on April 21, and he posted bond the same day.
April. 28
The Land Rover theft case was disposed.
April 30, 4:30 p.m.
An April 30 police report details an incident that occurred hours before the Huey’s shootout.
Court records do not show Harris has been charged for this event, but he’s listed as a suspect for a theft from a motor vehicle that occurred at a Kroger fuel center, 9025 U.S. Highway 64, at about 4:30 p.m. on April 30.
Harris allegedly stole a woman’s purse and its contents while she was pumping gas into her Jeep Grand Cherokee, according to the report.
When she reentered her vehicle, she noticed it was not registering her key fob. That’s when she realized her Lululemon purse — with her key fob, house keys, ID, cash, credit cards and prescription medicine — was taken from the passenger seat.
The victim later realized other belongings had been taken. She was missing a black backpack, Lego Darth Vader Lightsaber set and a Dell laptop.
April 30, 7:18 p.m.
Harris is accused of shooting at an off-duty officer at Huey’s, 4872 Poplar Ave. in East Memphis, at 7:18 p.m. on April 30 after the officer caught him and at least one other person breaking into a Dodge Charger.
The officer was uninjured, but Harris was wounded. He was airlifted to Regional One Health after he was transported to St. Francis Hospital in East Memphis.
Harris was booked in jail May 9 for the Huey’s shooting and two other unrelated car burglaries. He posted bond the next day after he was issued a $45,000 bail for the Huey’s event and a $10,000 bail for car burglaries in Midtown. Bond fees are typically set up to 10% of the full bail amount.
Judicial Commissioner Kenya Smith set these bonds May 1, according to an associate at the Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court Clerk’s Office.
May 9
Harris was booked in jail May 9 for the Huey’s shooting and two other unrelated car burglaries. He posted bond the next day after he was issued a $45,000 bail for the Huey’s event and a $10,000 bail for car burglaries in Midtown. Bond fees are typically set up to 10% of the full bail amount.
Judicial Commissioner Kenya Smith set these bonds May 1, according to an associate at the Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court Clerk’s Office.
May 10
Judicial Commissioner Kenya Smith set the bond of $45,000 bail for the Huey’s event and a $10,000 bail for the April 30 car burglaries in Midtown, according to an associate at the Shelby County General Sessions Criminal Court Clerk’s Office.
May 23
On May 23, Harris was indicted on the original charge related to the Jan. 17 Land Rover theft, plus a theft of property of $2,500-$10,000. A copy of the indictment says the value is attributed to the victim’s purse and Apple AirPods.
A grand jury recommended a $210,000 bail for Harris to the criminal court. Shelby County Criminal Court Division VIII Judge Chris Craft signed off on the bail May 25.
May 25
Harris was also issued a $100,000 bail, which was set May 25 by Judicial Commissioner Zayid Saleem, according to the clerk’s office. He has not yet posted bond. This was related to the March 23 charges of burglary from a motor vehicle; vandalism of $1,000 or less; evading arrest; and criminal attempt of theft of property $1,000-$2,500.
May 26
Harris remains in custody.
Aarron Fleming and Ben Wheeler contributed to this report.
Topics
Chase Harris Subscriber OnlyAre you enjoying your subscription?
Your subscription gives you unlimited access to all of The Daily Memphian’s news, written by nearly 40 local journalists and more than 20 regular freelancers. We work around the clock to cover the issues that impact your life and our community.
You can help us reach more Memphians.
As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, we provide free news access at K-12 schools, public libraries and many community organizations. We also reach tens of thousands of people through our podcasts, and through our radio and television partnerships – all completely free to everyone who cares about Memphis.
When you subscribe, you get full access to our news. But when you donate, you help us reach all Memphians.
Pay it forward. Make a fully tax-deductible donation to The Daily Memphian today.
Thank you for reading the local news. Thank you for investing in our community.
Julia Baker
A lifelong Memphian, Julia Baker graduated from the University of Memphis in 2021. Other publications and organizations she has written for include Chalkbeat, Memphis Flyer, Memphis Parent magazine and Memphis magazine.
Public Safety on demand
Sign up to receive Public Safety stories as they’re published.
Enter your e-mail address
Want to comment on our stories or respond to others? Join the conversation by subscribing now. Only paid subscribers can add their thoughts or upvote/downvote comments. Our commenting policy can be viewed here.