National Guard members on patrol in Memphis fatally shoot man during pursuit

Two Tennessee National Guard soldiers on the Trump administration's crime-fighting mission in Memphis shot and killed an armed man early Sunday after he turned his weapon toward them during a downtown foot chase, authorities said.

The soldiers, responding with local police to reports of gunfire around 4 a.m., pursued the fleeing man on foot and opened fire when he turned toward them with his gun, the police department said. No officers were injured.

The soldiers serve on the Memphis Safe Task Force, launched last fall to confront violent crime in a city long plagued by assaults, carjackings and homicides. Memphis is among six Democrat-run cities where the president has deployed the Guard — over local Democratic objections, but with Gov. Bill Lee's support and an April appellate ruling clearing the deployment.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation identified the man as Tyrin Johnson, 20, and is investigating. Guard medics attempted first aid, but Johnson died at the scene.

Johnson's family disputes the official account. A cousin described him as a hardworking young father and questioned why he was shot twice in the chest. The TBI declined to comment on her account.