Memphis shooting videos show aftermath, not National Guard gunfire

Tennessee National Guard members pointed their handguns at Tyrin Johnson as he lay on a Memphis sidewalk after they shot him, newly released video shows. The footage does not show the shooting itself, leaving a central question unresolved: what happened just before the 20-year-old was fatally wounded in the back?

The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office released police body-camera video, stationary-camera footage and a bystander’s cellphone video on Monday as the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation continues to investigate Johnson’s July 5 death. District Attorney Steve Mulroy said he has not decided whether to file charges.

Johnson, who was armed, died at the scene from a single gunshot wound, investigators said. An autopsy report shared by his family found that he was shot in the back. Police and National Guard accounts said he was facing guard members with a gun when they fired. None of the released videos shows Johnson’s initial encounter with the guard members, the moments immediately before the shooting or the gunfire itself.

“This investigation must stay focused on the moment the guardsman fired the fatal shot and whether that action was reasonable,” André C. Wharton, an attorney for Johnson’s family, said. Wharton said investigators must establish what happened immediately before Johnson was shot and asked the public for patience while his team seeks further evidence.

Authorities said guard members and local police responded to reports of gunshots around 4 a.m. and pursued an armed man who was running. Stationary-camera footage shows a person dressed in dark clothing firing through an empty parking lot at three people walking on a sidewalk. Body-camera video shows two Memphis officers heading toward the sound of gunfire and reporting by radio that they are pursuing a man with a gun. Blurred footage captures shouting, one gunshot and several more gunshot noises.

A Tennessee National Guard report obtained by The Associated Press through a public records request says two guard members responded to the police radio call, got out of their vehicle and approached a suspect who “rounded on them and pointed a tan handgun at them.” Both fired their M17 handguns, the report says, and police arrived shortly afterward.

Police body-camera footage shows guard members shouting “Hands!” and “Turn over!” while aiming their weapons at a man lying on his back. At least six guard members are visible at the scene. One moves a handgun on the ground until a police officer tells him to leave it alone. An officer calls for an ambulance and asks, “Hey, you guys got a medical kit or anything?” A guard member begins cutting off the man’s shirt before the video ends.

The guard members were part of a federal task force created by President Donald Trump, with Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee deploying the Guard to support it. The task force was involved in four fatal shootings between May and July. An attorney for the two guard members, Ed Yarbrough, said they had no comment; a National Guard spokesperson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Johnson was the father of a young child and was preparing to help lead his family’s construction business, his grandfather, Evaniel Johnson, said.