Privacy, Surveillance and Technology

From the DOJ Report to the No Kings Rally — MPD’s Pattern of Conduct Demands Answers 

There is no emergency that merits sending federal forces and the National Guard into Memphis, and the presence of these forces will only make our city less safe and less secure. The action may result in violations of basic rights and liberties, including violations of the Kendrick Consent Decree which further protects Memphians from illegal surveillance.

On April 1, 2026, the ACLU of Tennessee sent a letter to Independent Monitor Edward L. Stanton III urging him to investigate whether the Memphis Police Department’s conduct on March 28 during the No Kings rally violated the Kendrick Consent Decree. The decree is a landmark federal court order that places limits on how MPD can surveil, monitor, and intimidate people who are exercising their constitutional rights. During the rally, MPD officers grabbed protest marshals from behind, pepper-sprayed Memphians at close range, and arrested peaceful demonstrators. In the letter, the ACLU-TN urged an investigation into whether: 1) MPD’s forcible intervention interfered with First Amendment activity and was intended to deter future protest; 2) MPD failed to seek required director authorization before intervening, as the decree stipulates; and 3) photographs, body-worn camera footage, or other intelligence gathered at the march were preserved or shared in ways that violate the decree’s strict restrictions on surveillance and information sharing. The city responded on April 15 by confirming an independent investigation. That same day, the state dropped charges against the three peaceful demonstrators arrested during the march.

ACLU-TN has had an ongoing concern over police surveillance of Memphis residents engaging in protected free speech activities for many decades.