A stream of more than 20 vehicles jammed Mount Moriah and American Way intersections on Saturday afternoon, with people wearing black and red shirts as they marched and chanted “Justice for Jaylin.”
The caravan had made its first stop after leaving the Mount Moriah compound and people were protesting on their way to American Way Park, where a rally for the deceased 20-year-old Jaylin McKenzie would take place.
Ashley McKenzie-Smith, Jaylin’s mother, and her friends and family were calling on the Memphis Police Department to release the names of officers involved in the fatal shooting and video of the incident.
McKenzie was shot and killed by an MPD officer following a traffic stop in December 2022. His death was part of a series of five police shootings in Memphis that capped the last five weeks of last year.
Little information has been provided by authorities about the shooting, with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation stating that on December 16 ― the day of the shooting ― police attempted to stop a car and “three individuals exited the suspect vehicle and ran in different directions”.
“Initial information from the scene indicates that officers pursued one of the men down a side street,” the TBI statement said. “An officer and the subject exchanged fire, resulting in the death of the individual.”
Law enforcement later identified this individual as McKenzie. He was visiting extended family in Memphis from his home in Atlanta, his mother told The Commercial Appeal.
McKenzie-Smith, who also lives in Atlanta, traveled to Memphis for the protest on Saturday, hoping the disruption would help her get closer to finding out what exactly led to her son’s death.
“I do [think our message is getting out]”, she said. “I think the protest was very disruptive – and I appreciated it – because what we need is attention. So he did his job. Whether or not people know what was going on or not, they will go to Google [Jaylin McKenzie] now because they have seen his name.”
In the six months since her son’s death, McKenzie-Smith’s attorney, managing director of Chicago-based civil rights law firm Action Injury Law Group Andrew M. Stroth, said that there had been no communication about what had happened to his son.
Stroth accused MPD of “hiding behind the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation” and said they also recently sent a letter to the mayor requesting the release of video of the shooting.
“There was no accountability. We don’t know the name of the officer. We don’t know any of the facts surrounding the case. The only thing the family knows is the account that was given by police. And if you look at George Floyd in Minnesota… you look at Tire Nichols here in Memphis, and the SCORPION unit, you can’t believe what people are saying. We need to see the objective video evidence and the family received nothing [as of] today,” Stroth said.
After the shooting in December, the MPD said McKenzie shot officers, who then returned fire and shot McKenzie. He died at the scene, police said. However, McKenzie-Smith said he was told no weapons were recovered from the scene. MPD and TBI did not say whether or not a firearm was recovered from the scene.
Law enforcement officials have not announced any charges against other passengers in the car McKenzie was in before the traffic stop.
Stroth said the account made public left him and his family unresponsive, and he said the release of body camera footage, particularly following the beatings of Tire Nichols at the hands of officers of the MPD, should be standard practice.
“If the story tweeted by the police department says they were responding to shots being fired at police, where is the gun? Where are the gun casings? Where is the objective evidence that supports this story? There is no objective evidence to support that it was a shooting,” he said. “If there is no weapon, there is no imminent threat.”
The MPD reported to TBI to comment on the shooting and said it would check to see if the officers had been suspended from duty on Monday. TBI has not responded to the same questions, as well as a question about the status of the TBI investigation, at the time of this article’s publication.
Protests lead to Jaylin McKenzie celebration at American Way Park
McKenzie was shot and killed near the protesters’ destination, American Way Park. As cars pulled into the parking lot, some adorned with streamers and red flags, smoke from the gates filled the air. Music from a separate drum line and speakers also started playing.
In addition to food and music, yoga mats were lined up next to a stall selling jewelry and crystals, two things McKenzie-Smith said her son enjoyed.
“I wanted Jaylin’s rally to be about who he was,” she said. “That’s why we have yoga and meditation, he was into all that with crystals and sage and all that. You’ll see there’s vegan food here because he was doing these fasts where he didn’t eat meat, he only did fruits and vegetables. There’s also, of course, music. He was a budding rapper. All of those things are things he did, and That’s what it’s about.
McKenzie-Smith said it was tough when she arrived, but hearing the music, seeing the food and the yoga lifted her spirits.
“When I came here, it was a little difficult. But now that the people are here, and there is music, it’s a little lighter,” she said. “Because my son wouldn’t want you to be angry or sad. He would want you to have fun and party.”
Lucas Finton is a criminal justice reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com and followed on Twitter @LucasFinton.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: A mother, family and friends protest the killing of a 20-year-old by Memphis police