Gillespie asks TN AG for its opinion on MPD’s pretext stop policy

State Rep. John Gillespie is asking the Tennessee Attorney General to provide an opinion on the Memphis Police Department’s pretext stop policy.

Gillespie, a Memphis Republican, sponsored a bill prohibiting municipal governments from forcing police departments to adopt policies limiting their ability to conduct traffic stops. This bill was signed into law by Governor Bill Lee in late March.

“Unfortunately, it appears that the Memphis Police Department is continuing to enforce its ban on pretext traffic stops,” Gillespie wrote in a press release. “I am calling on Memphis Police Department leaders to reverse course by giving officers full authority to follow state and federal laws.”

In April 2023, the Memphis City Council passed a series of police reform ordinances after Tire Nichols, a 29-year-old Black motorist, was arrested and fatally beaten by Memphis police officers. One of those orders prohibited police from arresting someone solely for what were called secondary violations.

Gillespie’s bill was criticized by Nichols’ advocates and parents, but passed without much difficulty by the Republican-dominated General Assembly.

These secondary violations included a registration that had expired less than 60 days previously; if a temporary beacon is in the wrong place, but clearly visible; if a registration plate is not securely attached to a vehicle, but is clearly visible; if only one brake light, headlight or parking light is broken; and if the car is missing or its bumper is loose.