Show me the video. Until you show me that, I'm gonna fight.
In the early hours of a July morning in Memphis, a twenty-year-old man named Tyrin Johnson was shot and killed by National Guard soldiers during a foot pursuit, becoming at least the third person to die in connection with a federally deployed crime task force operating in a city that never asked for its presence. He was a father, a student, a grandson being groomed for a family business — a young life carrying the ordinary weight of plans and protection in a city long acquainted with violence. His death arrives at the intersection of federal authority, local resistance, and the enduring American question of when force becomes too much, and who gets to decide.
- A grandfather who spent his career inside correctional institutions now finds himself outside the system, demanding video evidence before he will accept any official account of how his grandson died.
- The task force has made over ten thousand arrests since October, but three fatal shootings in that span are drawing intensifying scrutiny to the gap between crime reduction and the cost of the methods used.
- Johnson carried a gun for protection after being jumped — a detail his family says reframes the encounter entirely, raising the question of whether a young man fleeing danger looked, in the dark, like a young man posing it.
- Memphis's Democratic mayor objected to the deployment, a court dismissed the legal challenge to it, and now the city waits on a state bureau investigation while police decline to say what footage exists or when it might surface.
- The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is reviewing the shooting, but no timeline has been given, no footage released, and no word on whether the soldiers involved have been placed on administrative leave.
On a Sunday morning in early July, two Tennessee National Guard soldiers shot and killed Tyrin Johnson, twenty years old, during a foot pursuit in downtown Memphis that began around four in the morning. The soldiers, deployed as part of a federal crime task force called Memphis Safe, said Johnson had turned toward them with a weapon. He was struck twice in the chest. Guard medics attempted first aid at the scene, but he did not survive.
The task force arrived in Memphis under the Trump administration, sent to cities the president described as crime-ridden and Democratic-run. Tennessee's Republican governor supported the deployment; Memphis's Democratic mayor did not request it but acknowledged he could not stop it. A legal challenge was dismissed in April when a state appeals court ruled opponents lacked standing. Since October, the task force has logged more than ten thousand arrests — and now at least three fatal shootings.
Tyrin Johnson had attended Tennessee State University, was raising a young child, and was being prepared by his grandfather, Evaniel Johnson, to help run the family's real estate development business. A project had already been lined up for him to oversee in the coming weeks. On the Fourth of July, the family gathered in Nashville to play cards; Tyrin was in Memphis, spending the holiday as many young people do.
His grandfather, a former correctional officer, says Johnson carried a gun because he had recently been jumped and feared being targeted again. He disputes that his grandson would have fired at soldiers and questions whether deadly force was warranted if the young man was running away. 'He was no hoodlum,' the grandfather said. Court records show no significant criminal history — only traffic violations and a single failure-to-appear charge.
Evaniel Johnson has asked to see video of the shooting before accepting any version of events. 'Show me the video,' he told reporters. 'Until you show me that, I'm gonna fight and advocate for my grandson until there's no breath in me.' Memphis Police declined to say what footage exists or when it might be released. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is reviewing the incident. The mayor called it 'unfortunate' and said he would wait for results. The grandfather waits too — for the video, for answers, for some accounting of a future that will not arrive.
On a Sunday morning in early July, two Tennessee National Guard members opened fire on a twenty-year-old man in downtown Memphis, killing him during a foot pursuit that began around four in the morning. The soldiers, part of a federal task force deployed to the city by the Trump administration, said the man—identified as Tyrin Johnson—had turned toward them with a weapon. He was shot twice in the chest. Medical specialists from the Guard attempted first aid at the scene, but Johnson died there.
The National Guard presence in Memphis is itself a political artifact. President Trump sent federal troops and agents to cities he characterized as crime-ridden and Democratic-run. Tennessee's Republican governor, Bill Lee, supported the deployment. Memphis Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat, never requested the troops but acknowledged they were coming regardless of his position. The task force, formally called Memphis Safe, has operated since October, making more than ten thousand arrests according to the U.S. Marshals Service. It has also been involved in at least three fatal shootings, including Johnson's.
Johnson was a twenty-year-old who had attended Tennessee State University from August 2023 through May 2024. He was the father of a young child. His grandfather, Evaniel Johnson, a former correctional officer in Nashville, was training him to take a larger role in the family's real estate development business and had lined up a project for him to oversee in the coming weeks. On the Fourth of July, the family had gathered on the grandfather's back porch in Nashville to play cards. Tyrin Johnson was in Memphis instead, trying to enjoy the holiday like many others.
According to his grandfather, Johnson carried a gun for protection. He had been jumped recently in Nashville and was wary of being attacked again, possibly over a dispute that had begun on social media. His grandfather disputes the account that Johnson would have fired at National Guard members and questions whether deadly force was necessary if his grandson was running away. "He was no hoodlum," Evaniel Johnson said. Court records show Tyrin Johnson had no significant criminal history—only traffic violations and a May arrest for failing to appear at a hearing for driving without a license in Wilson County, from which he bonded out.
The grandfather has demanded to see video of the shooting before accepting any narrative about what happened. "Show me the video," he told the Associated Press. "Please show me that—and then I'm OK. Until you show me that, I'm gonna fight and advocate for my grandson until there's no breath in me." He spoke of the future his grandson would not have: buying homes, living life, taking care of his child. "His future was gone now," he said.
Memphis, a city of more than six hundred thousand, has long struggled with violent crime—assaults, carjackings, homicides. Both Democratic and Republican officials have noted that some crime categories decreased last year, a trend that preceded the federal deployment and mirrors patterns across American cities. The decision to send National Guard troops generated mixed reactions from residents and sparked a lawsuit, though it did not trigger widespread protests. In April, the Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled that state and local Democratic officials lacked standing to block the deployment.
Memphis Police declined to comment on what footage existed or when it would be released. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is reviewing the shooting. The National Guard did not immediately respond to questions about whether the two members involved had been placed on leave. Mayor Young called the incident "unfortunate" and said he was waiting for the TBI investigation results before commenting further. The grandfather waits too—for the video, for answers, for some accounting of why his grandson will not come home.
Citas Notables
Show me the video. Please show me that—and then I'm OK. Until you show me that, I'm gonna fight and advocate for my grandson until there's no breath in me.— Evaniel Johnson, Tyrin Johnson's grandfather
He was down there like all the rest of the people trying to enjoy the Fourth of July. His future was buying homes, living life, taking care of his little baby. He had a future. It's gone now.— Evaniel Johnson
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does it matter that the National Guard was there at all? Couldn't Memphis police have handled a foot pursuit?
The Guard's presence is the whole story. Trump sent them to Democratic-run cities he said were overrun with crime. The mayor didn't ask for them. So when a young man dies in a confrontation with federal troops, it raises a question about whether that deployment itself created the conditions for this moment.
The grandfather says his grandson was running away, not attacking. How do we know what actually happened?
We don't yet. The TBI is investigating. But there's no video released, and the grandfather is demanding to see it. That's the tension—the family has to trust an official account they haven't been able to verify, and they're not willing to do that.
What was Johnson doing in Memphis that morning?
He was just there for the Fourth of July. His family had urged him not to go. He'd moved to Nashville to get away from crime in Memphis. But he came back anyway, and he was carrying a gun because he'd been jumped recently and was afraid of being attacked again.
So he had a gun. Doesn't that change things?
It complicates things. The grandfather says he carried it for protection, not to use it. And even if Johnson had the gun, the question remains: was he turning it toward the Guard, or was he running? The grandfather says if his grandson was fleeing, deadly force wasn't justified.
What was Johnson's life supposed to look like?
He was supposed to go back to university. His grandfather was training him to take over parts of the family real estate business. There was a project waiting for him in Nashville. He had a young child. The grandfather had plans for him. Now none of that happens.
Has this happened before with this task force?
At least twice before. Three people have died in four shootings involving officers tied to the federal task force. So this isn't an isolated incident. It's part of a pattern.