When the topic is crime in Memphis, people in Middle and East Tennessee too often tend to shrug their shoulders and ignore the debate. After all, driving down the crime rate in our own communities is challenging enough.
But a state senator in Shelby County, Brent Taylor, wants to remove the local district attorney because of a tired, old label that is factually false. The DA, he says, is “soft on crime.” That errant call has now been joined by House Speaker Cameron Sexton, and their constant social media posts calling for the DA’s removal are part of an effort by lawmakers to set a dangerous precedent that could impact prosecutors here in Southeast Tennessee and across the state.
This isn’t a debate we in Hamilton and surrounding counties should ignore. We need to see this for what it is — meddling.
The district attorney facing heat is Steve Mulroy, who was elected by more than 80,000 Shelby County voters to this constitutional office in 2022. He is a reform-minded prosecutor who came into office pledging to focus on the community’s most violent crimes — 1st and 2nd degree murder, aggravated robbery and assault, carjacking, violent sexual assault and similar violent crimes.
His efforts have yielded results. Violent crime is down in Memphis. There have been 300 fewer gun-related crimes than the same period in 2022. Major violent crimes are down 19%, property crimes are down more than 34%.