MEMPHIS, Tenn. (NBC, KYMA) – National Guard troops were spotted in Downtown Memphis Friday morning alongside Memphis Police officers. Military police were also seen.
However, questions remain about what exactly the Guard will be doing while stationed in the city.
The first sightings of boots on the ground in Memphis.
Over a dozen National Guard were seen walking alongside officers with the Memphis Police Department while others were escorted around the city in patrol cars.
“I kind of felt like, ‘Wow, here’s our military walking through pro shop, you know, doing the same thing I’m doing.’ I didn’t feel intimidated or anything like that, but I just felt like it was just a waste,” said Reggie Pena, who, along with his wife, is visiting from California.
Pena stopped to speak with the soldiers at Bass Pro. His wife even took a picture with one of them.
Pena says they were hesitant to come to Memphis knowing about crime issues and the fact the military would be here.
“That kind of makes you feel uneasy. We’re not used to that. You know, we’re used to being, walking in a city with police officers. That’s about it, you know, you’re not going to have these heavy guns and military personnel around because you don’t need them. Their, we’re not the enemy, you know, we’re civilians,” he explained.
Pena says seeing the National Guard around doesn’t make him feel any safer.
Others, like Memphis resident Frank Gottie, agrees and says there are still too many questions surrounding what the Guard will be doing.
“Are they going to be doing road blocks? Are they just going to be, you know, making sure everybody’s safe? Or are they going to do like the state troopers, ICE, and everybody else been doing lately? You know, bullying the neighborhoods because I’m seeing these folks get torn out cars, they locking people up,” Gottie expressed.
Memphis Police Chief CJ Davis said earlier this week she hopes troops help direct traffic and have a presence in retail corridors, but not be used to operate check points or anything similar.