TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Aug 9, 2024

A state law barring local governments from forcing police departments to adopt policies limiting their ability to conduct traffic stops might not actually impact Memphis' pretextual stop policy, according to a legal opinion sent to Memphis Mayor Paul Young by a top attorney of the NAACP's Legal Defense Fund. The letter, dated July 31 and shared with The Commercial Appeal, argues that the state law passed in March is preventative, but does not work retroactively. Though disputing the interpretation, the group does acknowledge that the Tennessee Attorney's General office issued an opinion on July 17 that affirmed the ordinance in Memphis, and the subsequent policy change enacted, violates the state law.