Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris has consistently voiced his opposition to the National Guard deployment in Memphis, arguing that it violates Tennessee law. Now, he and a coalition of county, city and state elected officials are taking Gov. Bill Lee to court.

Filed Thursday, Oct. 16, in Davidson County Chancery Court, the lawsuit contends that Lee overstepped his constitutional authority when he ordered the Tennessee National Guard to Memphis at the request of President Donald Trump. 

The 23-page complaint argues that the move “trampled on Tennessee law by unilaterally deploying Tennessee National Guard members in Memphis as a domestic police force” without legislative approval or a formal request from local government officials.

“The deployment is patently unlawful,” the lawsuit states. “Defendants have exceeded the authority provided to the governor by Article III, Section 5 of the Tennessee Constitution.”

In addition to Harris, the plaintiffs include Shelby County Commissioners Erika Sugarmon and Henri Brooks, Memphis City Councilmember J.B. Smiley Jr., and state lawmakers G.A. Hardaway, Gabby Salinas and Jeff Yarbro. Named as defendants are Lee, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, and Maj. Gen. Warner Ross III, adjutant general of the Tennessee National Guard.

The suit hinges on two key provisions of state law: one that limits the governor’s power to mobilize the Guard to cases of “rebellion or invasion” and another that allows deployment only in emergencies such as riots, natural disasters or attacks — or when local authorities formally request help. The plaintiffs argue that none of those conditions apply to Memphis.

“There is neither rebellion nor invasion in Tennessee,” the complaint says. “The General Assembly has not declared that public safety requires a military deployment. The Governor acted at the request of President Trump but not at the request of any Memphis or Shelby County officials.”

The legal challenge marks the most significant pushback yet against the Guard’s presence, which began visible operations in Memphis around Oct. 10. It also underscores the widening split between local and state leadership over the “Memphis Safe Task Force,” the multi-agency crime initiative Lee announced in mid-September.

The lawsuit makes no mention of other federal law enforcement agencies operating in Memphis, focusing solely on the governor’s authorization of the Tennessee National Guard.

Read the full text of the lawsuit here: https://www.nilc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Harris-v.-Lee_Complaint.pdf

City of Memphis not a plaintiff

Noticeably absent from the list of plaintiffs is the City of Memphis itself, which has adopted a markedly different posture — one of cooperation and careful coordination rather than confrontation.

Mayor Paul Young and Police Chief C.J. Davis have repeatedly said they did not request the Guard, but both insist the city’s priority is to ensure that any outside forces operate within Memphis’s established public-safety strategy. Their approach centers on defining clear roles, maintaining communication, and keeping the focus on the specialized federal resources already on the ground.

“We want to make sure our community members understand that the Memphis Police Department is the primary public-safety agency in the city of Memphis,” Davis said at a Sept. 30 town hall. “Ideally, we’ll have a memorandum of understanding so we’re all on the same page about who’s doing what.”

Speaking again on Oct. 10, Davis said the deployment was far smaller and less consequential than many feared.

“We don’t have a level of concern about the National Guard because we plan to try to utilize the National Guards in ways that are not law-enforcement related,” Davis told the TSD at the recent EDGE Awards breakfast. “There are commanders here looking for lodging, looking for staging areas — just handling the business of what deployment looks like. We will probably have less than 200 Guards here in Memphis. They had 1,500 in D.C., so it’s going to look a little bit different.”

Davis added that the more meaningful impact on local policing is coming from the influx of federal agents.

“People should be more focused on making sure they aren’t encountered with the other federal entities that are here in the city, because we have more eyes on our city right now,” she said. “Anyone committing crimes — especially violent crime — should know there’s an influx of support for the Memphis Police Department right now.”

What the suit seeks

The plaintiffs are asking the court to block the Guard deployment, declare it unconstitutional and vacate any orders authorizing the Guard to engage in civilian law enforcement. They also request legal fees and costs.

The complaint asserts that the deployment “usurps local control” of public safety, threatens to overwhelm the county’s already burdened jail and court systems, and “diverts Guard personnel from legitimate disaster-response duties elsewhere in Tennessee.”

It also quotes a 1961 Supreme Court opinion: “Nothing can destroy a government more quickly than its failure to observe its own laws.”

What they’re saying

Harris, an attorney by profession, has consistently challenged the deployment’s legality since it was announced.

“We’ve been clear from the beginning. We don’t need a military deployment in Memphis,” he told reporters at a Sept. 29 Regional One event. “The governor has plenty of ways to support Memphis that don’t involve soldiers or Humvees. We’re asking for alignment, not occupation.”

State Rep. Gabby Salinas made her stance crystal clear in a letter to Gov. Bill Lee that accompanied the lawsuit filing:

“We are either a state with laws or we are not. No one should be above the law not even the governor or the president. By not coming to the legislature, the Governor abandoned his oath to uphold the Constitution of Tennessee. The deployment of the National Guard to Memphis is an abuse of power…”  

State Rep. G.A. Hardaway echoed the legal concerns:

“The Tennessee National Guard is not adequately trained and not adequately experienced in the various state statutes and local ordinances of Memphis and Shelby County … I will not violate my oath of office or the Tennessee Constitution by failing to speak out and work against the unconstitutional deployment of National Guard personnel into Memphis and Shelby County.”  

Legal representation for the plaintiffs is being provided by the National Immigration Law Center, among others, signaling the broader civil-rights and constitutional implications the suit raises.  

What happens next

The case was filed in Davidson County Chancery Court, which handles suits against the state. No hearing date had been set as of publication time.

Lee’s office defended the initiative Friday, Oct. 17, in a written statement to multiple media outlets, saying the deployment “is about supporting Memphis and keeping communities safe.” Attorney General Skrmetti’s office declined to comment, citing ongoing litigation.

Meanwhile, Guard units remain in Memphis under a joint operations plan that also includes the FBI, DEA, ATF, U.S. Marshals and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. State officials have described the mission as “temporary and supportive.”

—  Mayor Harris along with State Sen. Jeff Yarbro, a national expert in government accountability, and Attys. Skye Perryman and Yenisey Rodriguez, will provide a community update on the lawsuit Wednesday, Oct. 22, at 1:30 p.m., at 160 N. Main St., in the  5th floor Richards Conference Room.