Video shows Tennessee guard members aiming guns at wounded man after Memphis shooting

Tennessee national guard members pointed handguns at a man lying fatally wounded on a Memphis sidewalk after a guard member shot him, according to footage released Monday by county prosecutors. Tyrin Johnson, 20, died at the scene following the 5 July encounter, which remains under investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Investigators said Johnson had been armed and died from one gunshot wound. An autopsy report provided by his family found that the bullet struck his back, conflicting with accounts from police and the national guard that he was facing troops with a gun when they opened fire. The released recordings do not show his initial encounter with the guard members or the shooting itself.

The Shelby county district attorney’s office made public recordings from police body cameras, stationary cameras and a bystander’s cellphone. District attorney Steve Mulroy has not decided whether to bring charges. The Tennessee national guard did not immediately answer requests for comment by phone and email. Ed Yarbrough, a lawyer representing the two guard members, said they had no comment at this time.

Authorities said troops and local police were responding to reports of gunfire around 4am when they pursued an armed man on foot. Street camera footage shows someone dressed in dark clothing shooting across an empty parking lot toward three people on a sidewalk. A police body camera records two officers hearing nearby shots, then walking and running toward them while reporting over the radio that they are chasing a man carrying a gun.

The moving officer’s blurred recording captures shouting, one gunshot and then several more gunshot sounds. A national guard report obtained by the Associated Press through a public records request said two guard members answered the police radio call, got out of their vehicle and approached the suspect. According to that report, he turned toward them and aimed a tan handgun at them. Both fired their M17 service handguns, the report said.

Body camera footage from the aftermath shows troops aiming their weapons at Johnson while ordering him to show his hands and turn over. At least six guard members were present immediately after the shooting. One moved a handgun on the ground before a police officer told him to stop. An officer requested an ambulance and asked about medical supplies. Near the recording’s end, a guard member began cutting off Johnson’s shirt.

The troops belonged to a federal taskforce established by Donald Trump, who sent troops and federal agents last year to Democratic-run cities he described as overwhelmed by crime. Tennessee’s Republican governor, Bill Lee, deployed guard members to support that effort. The taskforce was involved in four fatal shootings from May through July.

André C Wharton, a lawyer for Johnson’s family, stressed that the videos omit the shooting and the moments directly preceding it. He said investigators must focus on whether firing the fatal shot was reasonable. Johnson’s grandfather, Evaniel Johnson, said his grandson had a young child and was preparing to help lead the family’s construction business.