Criminal Justice System

Since late September, a Trump-ordered Memphis Safe Task Force with federal, state, local officers and National Guard troops has made more than 2,800 arrests and issued over 28,000 traffic citations in Memphis, Tennessee, officials said. The surge is overwhelming Shelby County’s criminal courts and jail—where average daily population exceeds capacity—prompting talk of night and weekend court sessions and inmate transfers as the DA and county leaders warn of months of backlogs.