Task Force driving down suburban crime, officials say
Members of the National Guard walk through a Memphis Target on Dec. 8, 2025. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian file)
While the Memphis Safe Task Force’s efforts are based in the major city, law enforcement agencies across Shelby County are noting the impact.
In the fall, a Collierville resident expressed fear to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen that the Memphis Safe Task Force might drive crime to the suburban community.
He wasn’t alone.
“I was concerned there could be displacement when they put that many resources in (Memphis),” said Dale Lane, Collierville chief of police.
The Memphis Safe Task Force moved into the area last fall, directed at curbing violent crime in the city. About 1,450 guardsmen were sent to Shelby County for the operation with the federal government under President Donald Trump covering the cost. The guardsmen are under the direction of Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee.
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Abigail Warren
Abigail Warren is an award-winning reporter and covers Collierville and Germantown for The Daily Memphian. She was raised in the Memphis suburbs, attended Westminster Academy and studied journalism at the University of Memphis. She has been with The Daily Memphian since 2018.
Michael Waddell
Michael Waddell is a native Memphian with more than 20 years of professional writing and editorial experience, working most recently with The Daily News and High Ground News.
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