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The top cop behind the SCORPION unit – disbanded after its officers were charged in the death of Tyre Nichols – previously led another controversial unit that too was shut down.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis launched the ‘elite’ team SCORPION unit in 2021, which was made up of 40 officers.
But the unit was deactivated after three of them were involved in the violent beating and death of Tyre Nichols, 29, on January 7.
DailyMail.com can reveal Davis was previously in charge of the infamous REDDOG Unit while working at Atlanta Police, where she was also embroiled in a child pornography scandal.
It was disbanded over accusations of ‘excessive force’ and ‘police brutality’.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis led another controversial cop unit that was disbanded over accusations of ‘excessive force’ and ‘police brutality’
She was previously in charge of the infamous REDDOG Unit while working at Atlanta Police before she was fired and then rehired
Davis boasts on her profile on the Memphis Police website that she was in charge of the ‘Special Operations Section’.
The REDDOG unit, which stands for ‘Running Every Drug Dealer Out of Georgia’, was one of at least 11 run by Davis when she was Commander.
It has many similarities to the SCORPION unit in Memphis – which was made up of 40 officers split into four teams who patrolled ‘high crime hotspots’ throughout the city.
REDDOG was disbanded in 2011 by Mayor Kasim Reed after officers raided a gay bar and used ‘excessive force’ – while others were accused of assaulting a man they pulled over in a traffic stop.
During the raid, those in the bar complained that they were treated with aggression and forced to lay on the floor for over an hour as officers swore and used racist and homophobic slurs.
The City of Atlanta settled a federal lawsuit with those affected by the raid in December 2010 for $1.025 million – which included reforms to APD’s operating procedures.
The SCORPION unit was deactivated after three of them were involved in the violent beating and death of Tyre Nichols, 29, on January 7
Activist Hunter Dempster says that it shouldn’t have taken the death of Tyre Nichols, pictured, for something to be done
Protestors say that Davis is just paying ‘lip service’ by disbanding the unit and the entire Organized Crime Unit needs an overhaul
Davis boasts on her profile on the Memphis police website that she was in charge of the ‘Special Operations Section’
It demanded that there should be no more illegal search and seizures and an internal investigation into all the officers involved.
Tyre Nichols is pictured in hospital after the incident. The 29-year-old from Memphis died on January 10 from cardiac arrest and kidney failure, three days after he was pulled over for reckless driving by police in unmarked cars
At least ten complaints were formally lodged against the department alleging misconduct during the raid and turned over to the agency’s Office of Professional Standards, or internal affairs unit.
Activist Hunter Dempster, who is an organizer with Decarcerate Memphis, said that there were many similarities between the REDDOG squad and the SCORPION Unit.
He told DailyMail.com: ‘They are literally an oppression force. The trust between the citizens and the police in Memphis is about as bad as you could ever imagine in a Metropolitan city.
‘They are unchecked doom squads which can do whatever they want. Davis’ REDDOG unit was disbanded, so how are you going to take the same premise of a disbanded unit to your new job?
‘Davis is doing her best to say all the best social justice buzzwords and accountability – but she is just giving lip service and empty promises and trying to make herself look good.
REDDOG was disbanded in 2011 by Mayor Kasim Reed after officers raided a gay bar and used ‘excessive force’ – while others were accused of assaulting a man they pulled over in a traffic stop
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmit Martin III, Desmond Mills and Justin Smith (L-R) were all seen beating and kicking the FedEx driver as he lay on the floor
At least 10 complaints were formally lodged against the department alleging misconduct during the raid and turned over to the agency’s Office of Professional Standards, or internal affairs unit
‘It shouldn’t take someone dying for something to happen. They are violent bullies who pull you over, wave a gun in your face and beat you up. The terrorize poor black and brown communities.
The REDDOG unit was created in 1987 and named after the football move of ‘blitzing’ a quarterback, with the intention to ‘pressure drug dealers, users and criminals associated with drug violence.’
Davis was promoted to Deputy Chief in 2014, after REDDOG was disbanded, and oversaw Strategy and Special Project Division.
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The unit was also responsible for the death of Kathryn Johnston, 92, who was shot dead during a ‘no-knock’ raid in 2006.
Police officers from the Narcotics Unit – which was later rebranded – burst into her home and shot her five times after reports of drug dealing at the property.
It is unclear if she was in charge of the unit at the time in 2006, with three former police officers charged with voluntary manslaughter and making false statements.
Davis was promoted to Deputy Chief in 2014, after REDDOG was disbanded, and oversaw Strategy and Special Project Division
Preston Hemphill has been suspended and is on administrative leave, though it is currently unclear how he was involved in the January 7 arrest
Prosecutors have said that the officers regularly presented false information to obtain warrants and that they cut corners to make more time for lucrative side jobs providing additional security to businesses, often while on duty, and receiving cash payments.
It comes as the five officers involved in the murder of Nichols have been released on bail, with three of the cops part of the SCORPION unit.
Emmit Martin III, Justin Smith, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Desmond Mills were all seen beating and kicking the FedEx driver as he lay on the floor – after they pepper sprayed him in the face.
Haley, a former Shelby County Corrections Officer, was a member of the hand-picked SCORPION team, along with Mills and Martin.
A sixth officer has been ‘relieved of duty’ by Memphis Police following the incident after being part of the investigation just a day after the brutal assault.
Preston Hemphill, who joined the force in 2018, could be facing further charges after his suspension.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy confirmed charges against five officers in the death of Nichols last week
Mulroy has now said that other officers who arrived on the scene and failed to take appropriate action to ensure the welfare of Nichols – and more charges may be filed
His bodycam footage was released on Friday, showing Hemphill pulling Nichols from his car forcefully and pulling him to the ground.
The video shows him hitting him on the ground with a Taser and making chase when Nichols escaped but lost him – adding, ‘I hope they stomp his a**.’
The SCORPION team was created in November 2021 as part of a crackdown on violent crime by Davis.
Initially, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland boasted of the unit’s effectiveness, claiming the unit was responsible for 566 arrests, 390 of them felony arrests, seized $103,000 in cash, 270 vehicles and 253 weapons between October 2021 and Jan. 23, 2022.
He said at the time of its conception: ‘ It’s important to us that each member of the community feels they can go to the grocery store or live in their house without their house being shot or shooting frequently occurring on the streets and on the roadways.’
The locations chosen by the police were determined based on the number of 911 calls and included 40 officers split into four teams.
MPD Assistant Chief Sean Jones told reporters during the launch that SCORPION officers would focus on auto thefts, gang-related crimes and drug-related crimes.
A paramedic is seen leaning over Nichols asking, ‘What’d you have? We’re trying to get you straight, what’d you have?’ He is unable to respond and makes a gurgling noise
Days after sickening footage was revealed of the brutal beating of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee, several questions remain including why he was pulled over in the first place and what was ultimately his cause of death
In the statement announcing the unit’s deactivation, the Memphis Police Department said it ‘remains committed to serving our community and taking every measure possible to rebuild the trust that has been negatively affected’ by Nichols’ death.
They added: ‘While the heinous actions of a few casts a cloud of dishonor on the title SCORPION, it is imperative that we, the Memphis Police Department take proactive steps in the healing process for all impacted.’
The recordings show police savagely beating Nichols, a 29-year-old FedEx worker, for three minutes while screaming profanities at him
Lawyers for Nichols family said in a statement that the disbanding of the unit was ‘both appropriate and proportional to the tragic death of Tyre Nichols, and also a decent and just decision for all citizens of Memphis.’
Davis was also fired from Atlanta Police in 2008 after becoming embroiled in a child pornography case involving another officer.
She was involved in the botched investigation of sergeant Tonya Crane’s husband Terrill Marion Crane – who later turned out to be guilty.
Two detectives on the case accused Davis – who was deputy chief at the time – of urging them not to dig into the claims against Crane after the unit received pictures of him with underage middle school girls.
Crane’s wife, who was a sergeant working with Davis, also admitted to ‘finding and burning’ some of the child porn photographs her husband had taken of the victims.
Davis was demoted from major to lieutenant before ultimately being fired, before challenging the decision and being reinstated.
She then retired from the force in 20166 – and took up a role as police chief in Durham, North Carolina, calling for sweeping police reform – despite her previous botched job in Atlanta.
