As rape survivors pursue a lawsuit accusing the Memphis Police Department of negligence, the city is asking a judge to exclude testimony of a former sex crimes detective who claims MPD failed to properly investigate numbers of cases.
In a legal twist in Memphis’ rape kit lawsuit, victims cite new evidence about DNA testing that could have been used to solve sexual assaults by strangers.
City of Memphis asks to dismiss rape victim Franklin’s lawsuit, saying MPD had no duty to investigate her case as she wanted and denies failure to arrest accused rapist Henderson led to the death of Fletcher.
A lawsuit includes a claim that had a 2021 rape been properly investigated and had Cleotha Henderson been arrested, the abduction and murder of Eliza Fletcher could have been avoided.
The officers terminated in connection with the death of Tyre Nichols were affiliated with a special Memphis Police Department unit called SCORPION, an initiative that attempts to reduce crime in the city.
With credibility on the line for members of the Memphis Police Department’s now-disbanded SCORPION unit, attorneys anticipate mass dismissals of criminal cases filed against citizens arrested by the unit.
A lieutenant who oversaw the Memphis Police Department officers accused of killing Tyre Nichols was suspended for alleged domestic violence and gave testimony causing a judge to dismiss charges in a drug case.
