 Sgt. Justice Has Left the Building
Connie Justice from our Criminal Investigation Division retired in August after 28 years with the Memphis Police Department and 7 ½ years in this office. We miss her already.
With MPD, Connie worked uniform patrol in various precincts, felony response, and, for her last 10 years, in homicide where she and other detectives became TV regulars on the A&E true-crime show The First 48 that filmed here from 2005 to 2008.
“People would recognize us all over the city,” she says, “and they still do. I was getting out of my car not long ago and these two ladies just started screaming. They wanted selfies with ‘Sgt. Justice.’ The other day I was at a gas station and a man said, ‘Hey, Miss First 48!’”
Connie said the recognition sometimes helped while working cases for our office when she went into high-crime areas to serve subpoenas and interview witnesses prior to trial.
“A lot of times they knew me from the show and knew what we did, and they’d be more cooperative,” she says. “Solving homicides was a heavy responsibility that we took very seriously. You want to bring peace to the victims’ families and that’s a heavy weight on your shoulders.”
When Connie started out as a rookie officer, she had never fired a pistol or a shotgun.
“Our duty weapon then was a 38-cal. Smith and Wesson,” says Connie, who became an expert marksman. “I had no shooting skills when I started, so I had no bad habits to overcome.”
She now plans to relax around the house with her husband Andy, tend to their many flowerbeds, and dote on their African gray parrot, Magellan, and their cat, C.B.
Well-deserved retirement, Sgt. Justice. Thank you for your service.
Speaker Cameron Sexton and State Representatives Join Us to Discuss Tennessee’s Sentencing Laws
Earlier this month, Speaker Cameron Sexton visited Memphis to discuss public safety — specifically Tennessee’s sentencing laws and what can be done to improve them. We hosted the meeting here and heard from a variety of stakeholders — including Mayor Strickland, Sheriff Bonner, Chief Davis, Judge John Campbell and several of our West Tennessee State Representatives.
The main topic of discussion: the need for Tennessee to have truth in sentencing. Victims of crime, as well as those convicted of crimes, deserve it. Let me explain:
You get home to find your front door kicked in, house ransacked and your televisions, computers and jewelry stolen. You call the police. They arrive and conduct an investigation. A few weeks later, you learn an arrest has been made and our office is prosecuting the person for Aggravated Burglary. We tell you this offender has a lengthy record and has been on probation several times in the past for a variety of crimes. Because he refuses to stop victimizing citizens in our community we are seeking prison time for him. You attend the sentencing hearing and hear the judge sentence him to seven years at the penal farm. The prosecutor will then tell you that under current Tennessee law, he won’t do seven years. We don’t know how long he will do — we can just assure you it will be a small fraction of seven years — probably less than two years.
The reasons for this gap in sentences rendered and sentences served are Tennessee’s complex sentencing laws. This same scenario plays out daily in our state’s criminal courts — creating uncertainty and confusion for offenders, victims and the courts.
One of the more disturbing recent cases was the re-traumatization to a victim of an attempted murder who received notice that her assailant (sentenced to 30 years) was getting a parole hearing after four years of his sentence.
For some of the most horrific crimes, an offender will do all of the time they are sentenced to. That is the good news. But all victims — all offenders — deserve an accurate and clear sentencing system. There are several ways to accomplish this. And I appreciate Speaker Sexton and other members of the legislature for opening the lines of communication on this important issue.
Nuisance Properties in North Memphis, Hickory Hill Shut Down
Thanks to the hard work of the Multi-Agency Gang Unit, two Memphis neighborhoods are a bit safer this month after the closures of several properties gangs had used for their drug operations.
Three residences on Standridge Street near Chelsea and North Hollywood were boarded up and closed as public nuisances under civil statute, as was a duplex on Apple Blossom Drive near Clarke Road south of Winchester Road.
In both cases, lengthy investigations by MGU showed that the residences were being used by gangs for daily trafficking of cocaine, marijuana and ecstasy/MDMA from sunrise to after midnight. Illegal weapons also were recovered.
At the Standridge residences, members of the Vice Lords and their rival Gangster Disciples worked cooperatively as both groups were taking in cash proceeds from illegal drug sales. Some 40 defendants were indicted from that investigation, including one suspect who was arrested with cocaine, more than a pound of marijuana and $3,649 in cash.
The Hickory Hill duplex also was a hub for criminal activity. In the past 18 months, police had received 2,698 calls for service within just a quarter-mile radius of the duplex where 17 arrests were made related to aggravated assaults, stolen vehicles and drug trafficking.
In one suspect’s backpack, more than $17,000 in cash was seized as suspected proceeds from illegal drug sales.
Owners of the properties can clean up or be closed permanently, depending on what they present in hearings before Environmental Court/General Sessions Division 14 Judge Patrick Dandridge in the coming months.
Grateful residents of the two areas thanked officers for restoring some measure of peace and safety to their neighborhoods.
Well done by MGU, including federal partners at ATF and MPD’s Organized Crime Unit. These long-term investigations are difficult and dangerous, but the results mean a better, safer life for all Memphians, especially those vulnerable neighbors.
In the News
Driver Convicted in Road Rage Shooting
Grandson Indicted in Raleigh Woman’s Murder Extradited This Week from San Diego
Party Crasher Indicted in Murder Case
Sex-Offender Convicted in Rape of Student
Our Second Largest Unity Walk to Date
This past weekend over 510 people walked in our 5th Unity Walk against Gun Violence. We were particularly honored to have Coach Penny Hardaway participate and speak to the importance of this critical issue.
Many people have asked us how a walk can help reduce violence. Obviously, a walk can’t. But if you care enough to show up, you care enough to go home and do something that will help reduce violence. We won’t see results from the walks or anything else that is being done daily unless and until the entire community steps up and gets involved. What can you do? Here is a list of ideas — in no particular order:
- Start a Neighborhood Watch program for your street – or join one if it already exists.
- If you are a parent — know where your kids are. Know who they are with and what they are doing.
- If you see something suspicious, call 545-COPS (2677).
- Is there a gun in your home?
- Do not leave your keys in your car. Too often a violent, deadly horrific chain of events is traced back to an unattended car with keys in it.
- If you live in the city, know what precinct you live in. Introduce yourself to the colonel of the precinct and ask about ways to get involved in your community.
- Know who your state representatives and senators are and their position on public safety issues
- Become a mentor.
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