MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Since the death of Tyre Nichols, many people have called for officers to stop using unmarked vehicles for traffic stops.
One Memphis woman told FOX13 that her husband is facing serious charges after he had an encounter with law enforcement in an unmarked car.
Queninsila Davis said she’s helping her husband fight for his freedom based on the traffic stop that led to it all.
”My husband pulled off because they were shooting him,” Davis said. “He was in fear of his life.”
A June 2021 surveillance video shows an unmarked car, lights flashing, trying to pull over a car.
According to a statement made by the deputy, he turned on his sirens to get the driver’s attention.
Next, the video shows the deputy pulling in front of the driver and jumping out.
Davis said the deputy immediately fired his gun at her husband.
”Next thing he knows, a bullet comes through his window and hits him in the knuckle,” said Davis.
Davis said that prompted her husband to drive off. In the video, it appears the deputy shoots again before the car hits him.
”He shot two more times in the wrist and again in the arm,” Davis said.
Now, her husband faces several charges, including attempted first-degree murder, after allegedly hitting the deputy with his car.
Records show the initial traffic stop was over tinted windows.
Davis said it was a stop that never should have happened in an unmarked vehicle.
”There should be a pause on these unmarked vehicles,” said Bennie Cobb, a retired detective with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. “The citizens are up in arms. They’re afraid. They’re cautious about who they’re dealing with.”
Cobb said a person impersonating an officer is a valid concern.
”There are many, many law enforcement impersonators,” Cobb said. “You can get these lights off eBay or Amazon, some of the other online places. And there are people pretending to be police.”
That’s why Cobb advises verifying who pulled you over.
”Call local dispatch, even if it is 911,” Cobb said. “Say there is an unmarked vehicle attempting to stop me. I need to know if it is the police.”
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