Image Credit: John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout
***Note from The Tennessee Conservative – this article posted here for informational purposes only. Per The Tennessee Lookout’s Republishing Guidelines, this article has been edited for writing style & length.***
By Sam Stockard [Tennessee Lookout -CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] –
The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Davidson County Chancery Court against the Tennessee Highway Patrol, claiming its practice of roadway stops violates people’s constitutional rights.
The lawsuit alleges the Highway Patrol is ordering troopers to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to “deliberately and systematically” pull over people in search of civil immigration violations.
The lawsuit alleges the “tag-team” enforcement tactic violates the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable seizures and the Equal Protection Clause’s prohibition on racial profiling. It also claims this type of enforcement is outside the scope of the THP’s statutory powers.
“The THP’s programmatic use of this tactic has essentially turned some state roadways into immigration checkpoints and it has wasted THP resources that should be spent to make those roadways safer,” TIRRC senior counsel Mike Holley said in a statement.
The Highway Patrol’s troopers, working with ICE agents, used the profiling tactic in a sweep of South Nashville neighborhoods with large immigration populations in May 2025 and continues to employ the practice daily in Memphis, Holley said. THP’s presence in Shelby County was increased dramatically in September 2025 as part of the Memphis Safe Task Force, a combination of local, state and federal agencies ordered by President Donald Trump.
Seven plaintiffs, including community leaders, activists and citizens, say in the lawsuit they are “disturbed” that the Highway Patrol’s use of “systematic” traffic stops has intimidated immigrant communities and torn apart families, in addition to hurting the nation’s reputation for fairness.
The lawsuit asks the court to declare the law enforcement practices illegal and prohibit the Highway Patrol from directing troopers to make traffic stops for immigration investigations.
“Regardless of race, immigration status, or where we live in the state, all of us are guaranteed the rights granted to us in the Constitution and we will continue to defend our community in the streets and in the courts when our rights are violated,” said Lisa Sherman Luna, executive director of TIRRC.
5 Responses
If you are here illegally, you have NO Constitutional rights – period! Never forget, these are the very same people who wanted to violate law-abiding, American citizens’ 4th Amendment rights when they refused to wear masks and get the poison jab…
AMEN!!
Thanx. Lucifer’s accursed dimmercraps, champions of illegality.
When many of a race are illegals/criminals, they NEED stopped.
Dwayne, the issue is illegal entry and enforcement of immigration law, not race. Plenty of legal immigrants and citizens of every background drive on TN roads without issue. Painting it as a ‘race’ problem hands ammunition to the open-borders side and distracts from the real point: states have every right to assist federal immigration enforcement on legitimate traffic stops. Focus on rule of law, not group generalizations. It also paints Tennessee Conservative as a supporter of a potentially racist post by allowing your words to be posted.
Once again the Tennessee Lookout has neglected to complete the story, only providing the liberal line. What was the response from the THP? Are they suggesting THP is sitting by the side of the road checking to see it passing drivers “look” foreign? Then when they see someone they suspect is not from this country, they pull them over with no other reason? They weren’t speeding? Their vehicle wasn’t improperly registered? Journalism is non-existent today. It’s all opinion pieces with no research. Tennessee Conservative … please stop republishing these articles without additional research into the full story.