MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Four Memphis residents filed a federal lawsuit Monday against the Memphis Safe Task Force, alleging the multi-agency law enforcement operation systematically retaliated against civilians for exercising their First Amendment right to film and observe immigration and law enforcement activity, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.
The Task Force is a 31-agency law enforcement operation comprising Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.
“In the midst of the occupation in Memphis and the lack of transparency from this administration, it’s important for people to bear witness to what’s actually happening in our community,” plaintiff Hunter Demster said, as quoted by the ACLU.
“The Memphis Safe Task Force is causing real harm to my friends and neighbors, and recording their abuses is one way to seek accountability and justice,” Demster continued, the press release states.
“The fact that I’ve been followed, threatened, and retaliated against for exercising my rights should concern everyone who cares about the First Amendment,” he added, according to the ACLU.
Since September 2025, thousands of federal, state and local agents have flooded Memphis streets as part of the Task Force, conducting mass traffic stops and large-scale immigration arrests, the ACLU reported.
The lawsuit outlines what plaintiffs describe as a disturbing pattern of retaliation against civilians attempting to observe and record Task Force activity, according to the complaint.
Allegations include Task Force agents tackling an observer attempting to record their activity, pinning her down and jailing her for 27 hours, the filing states.
Other allegations include agents swerving at or boxing in observers with their vehicles, shining bright lights at observers’ faces and cameras to obscure filming, and repeatedly identifying and taunting observers by name despite never having met them, the press release states.
Observers have also reported noticing unmarked vehicles with tinted windows and individuals in tactical vests outside their homes after observing Task Force activity, according to the ACLU.
“Recording publicly visible law enforcement activity is a core First Amendment right,” said Scarlet Kim, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, as quoted by the ACLU.
“In response, the Memphis Safe Task Force has relentlessly subjected these individuals to intimidation, harassment, and retaliation,” Kim said. “We are going to court to seek relief against this egregious suppression of First Amendment-protected activity,” the press release states.
The lawsuit also challenges the Task Force’s application of Tennessee’s “Halo Law,” which criminalizes approaching law enforcement within 25 feet after one warning, according to the complaint.
Task Force agents have repeatedly used the law to prevent non-obstructive observers from gathering information and recording their operations, the filing states.
“Sunlight is a powerful disinfectant for a government that abuses its power in darkness,” said Zee Scout, staff attorney at the ACLU of Tennessee, as quoted by the ACLU.
“Memphis has a long history of peaceful resistance in response to systemic government violence, and it will not be cowed by this latest attempt,” Scout added, the press release states.
Faith E. Gay of Selendy Gay PLLC, one of the law firms representing the plaintiffs, emphasized that courts have consistently upheld the right to record law enforcement in public spaces, according to the ACLU.
“Exercising First Amendment rights should not result in arrests, intimidation, or surveillance, and yet that is exactly what is happening to people in Memphis,” Gay said, as quoted by the ACLU.
“The pattern of unconstitutional retaliation is severe and chilling, and our brave clients are standing up to these unlawful intimidation tactics to defend their neighbors and the First Amendment,” she added.
Matthew Borden of BraunHagey & Borden LLP, also representing the plaintiffs, pointed to the broader stakes of civilian recording for democratic accountability, the press release states.
“The footage of the killings of George Floyd, Renee Good, and Alex Pretti prove that civilians’ ability to document abuses and speak truth to power using their camera phones can act as a fundamental check on government power,” Borden said, as quoted by the ACLU.
“This suit seeks to stop the government from monopolizing the marketplace of ideas through armed intimidation and a ‘Halo Law’ that prevents people from exercising their right to record,” he concluded, according to the filing.
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