Memphis civil rights volunteer arrested while recording federal agents, group calls for transparency

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Concerns are growing in Memphis after a volunteer with a civil rights observation group was arrested while recording federal agents Tuesday night, Oct. 28, in Orange Mound.

Carlos Ochoa, with the local advocacy group Vecindarious 901, said the arrest happened near Carrington Road and South Prescott Road, where the volunteer was monitoring what appeared to be an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest.

Ochoa told ABC24 that federal agents instructed the volunteer to cross the street if they planned to record. According to Ochoa, the volunteer complied and was 25 feet away from federal officials, but was then tackled and detained.

“Once they crossed the street, they were violently attacked [and] tackled by other federal law enforcement agents unnecessarily,” Ochoa said.

According to Ochoa, the volunteer was later charged with resisting official detention. He told ABC24 that all V901 members are trained legal observers, not interventionists, and regularly monitor ICE activity across the city.

“They are not deterred at all by what’s happening. This is only strengthening the amount of volunteer requests that we have coming in,” he said. “People are seeing this with their own eyes, and they are really disgusted at what the federal government is doing.”

A nearby resident who asked to go by Marlon told ABC24 he was shocked to see federal agents operating in his typically quiet neighborhood.

“When I seen the people recording, I was like something got to be going on,” Marlon said. “I was just like, ‘wow.’ I thought they were supposed to be in, like, the inner city. I didn’t know they were doing residential stuff. It’s kind of shocking.”

Ochoa raised a separate concern, alleging that federal law enforcement officials had not activated their body cameras since arriving in Memphis. He believes this issue prevents accountability and limits transparency.

“[Body cameras should be activated] so that people can see the horrors, the terror, that these people are inflicting on our communities,” Ochoa said.

According to Ochoa, concerns about federal agents not using or turning on body cameras are also occurring outside Tennessee.

“This is something that’s happening in Chicago with the Midway Blitz,” Ochoa said. “If you’re following the news in Chicago, you know that the ICE officials there, [and] Homeland Security, they are not wearing their body cameras as instructed by a judge.”

He urged elected officials to host “Know Your Rights” seminars to help residents understand constitutional protections and federal limits.

“This is really a public educational moment. We need to know what our rights are,” Ochoa said. “We need to know that the amendments in the Constitution are there for a reason. They are there to protect us from federal overreach, and that federal overreach is happening right now.”

Ochoa said V901 is waiting for an update on the volunteer’s legal status. In the meantime, he said V901’s team remains committed to observing and documenting federal activity in Memphis.