Carrying on Beale street in Memphis?

[stringer57]

Flying into Memphis soon for a little R&R with the wife. Staying on Beale street, only hanging out on Beale street, then back to the airport in about a 48 hour period. My research indicates as of 2013, all merchants on Beale had no gun signs posted and that police bar handguns walking in the street and have metal detectors. Seems hard to believe! My states CCW is valid in TN. Can anyone give me some more current info? I may not go through hassle of checking it if I can't carry it at all. Appreciate all comments.

 

[missoak]

I've only been down there once. Beale Street should be very safe. I wouldn't be concerned with NOT carrying there. We left the guns in the motel we stayed in. There may be a couple neighborhoods you may want to avoid, but if you stay with the crowds, you'll be ok.
I did see one guy open carrying & eating ribs on the hood of his car behind the Rendezvous.

 

[bofh]

I haven't been to Memphis for a while, but I wouldn't consider any area in Memphis safe. Just google 'Memphis mob attack' and you understand what I mean. This happened just less than two miles away from Beale Street last September. There were a number of other recent mob and 'knockout game' attacks. The violent crime rate in Memphis is extremely high. Memphis is #4 in The 10 Most Dangerous U.S. Cities - Forbes. Also, from Memphis murder rate soars in 2014 | WREG.com:

About 130 murders, 320 rapes, 6,900 aggravated assault calls, and 3,000 robberies. The most shocking is the murder rate, which is up 17 percent from last year. In fact, the only violent crime that dropped was rape.

“This is a war zone,” Iris Johnson told WREG.

Johnson lives in Whitehaven where a teenager was shot in her neighborhood Tuesday. She was frustrated by late arrival by police.

“They will show up 45 minutes, an hour later. It’s all over then. What good are they?” she said.

Read http://handgunlaw.us/states/tennessee.pdf about the carry laws in TN. You do not have to inform a LEO immediately on contact, and in Memphis you really shouldn't based on my personal opinion. The state preemption law (39-17-1314) is clear as well:

39-17-1314. Local regulation of firearms and ammunition preempted by state regulation -- Actions against firearms or ammunition manufacturers, trade associations or dealers.

(a) Except as provided in § 39-17-1311(d), which allows counties and municipalities to prohibit the possession of handguns while within or on a public park, natural area, historic park, nature trail, campground, forest, greenway, waterway or other similar public place that is owned or operated by a county, a municipality or instrumentality thereof, no city, county, or metropolitan government shall occupy any part of the field of regulation of the transfer, ownership, possession or transportation of firearms, ammunition or components of firearms or combinations thereof; provided, that this section shall be prospective only and shall not affect the validity of any ordinance or resolution lawfully enacted before April 8, 1986.

Public roads can not be declared a gun-free (fire-free) zone. As Memphis is a Democratic enclave, its local parks are all posted: Link Removed. State and national parks are not posted, by the way. The TN legislature is pushing to remove the state preemption exemptions.

That whole metal detector thing is an urban myth However, if a LEO wants to search me with a metal detector while walking on a public road, I will declare that I do not consent to any search or seizure and I am invoking my right to remain silent, immediately call my lawyer, and STFU. If the local PD wants to play Stasi, I will certainly use that chance and cash out a big settlement sum.

 

[missoak]

I haven't been to Memphis for a while, but I wouldn't consider any area in Memphis safe. Just google 'Memphis mob attack' and you understand what I mean. This happened just less than two miles away from Beale Street last September. There were a number of other recent mob and 'knockout game' attacks. The violent crime rate in Memphis is extremely high. Memphis is #4 in The 10 Most Dangerous U.S. Cities - Forbes. Also, from Memphis murder rate soars in 2014 | WREG.com:



Read http://handgunlaw.us/states/tennessee.pdf about the carry laws in TN. You do not have to inform a LEO immediately on contact, and in Memphis you really shouldn't based on my personal opinion. The state preemption law (39-17-1314) is clear as well:



Public roads can not be declared a gun-free (fire-free) zone. As Memphis is a Democratic enclave, its local parks are all posted: Link Removed. State and national parks are not posted, by the way. The TN legislature is pushing to remove the state preemption exemptions.

That whole metal detector thing is an urban myth However, if a LEO wants to search me with a metal detector while walking on a public road, I will declare that I do not consent to any search or seizure and I am invoking my right to remain silent, immediately call my lawyer, and STFU. If the local PD wants to play Stasi, I will certainly use that chance and cash out a big settlement sum.

So according to you, Memphis is a NO-GO-ZONE? You would tell the millions of visitors that come from all over the world, that Memphis is too dangerous to visit there for 48 hours?
I still say, if you go, stay with the crowds, don't go into places where a visitor wouldn't normally go. & you'll be fine.

bofh, you are a great ambassador for tourism in your state.

How much of the violence you report was directed at visitors? In Detroit, most crime is in the neighborhoods. Not where any visitor should be going.

Have been to Atlantic City many times. Very violent city. Stay on the Boardwalk there & you'll be fine. 2 blocks away from the ocean, enter at your own risk.

 

[bofh]

So according to you, Memphis is a NO-GO-ZONE? You would tell the millions of visitors that come from all over the world, that Memphis is too dangerous to visit there for 48 hours?
I still say, if you go, stay with the crowds, don't go into places where a visitor wouldn't normally go. & you'll be fine.

bofh, you are a great ambassador for tourism in your state.

How much of the violence you report was directed at visitors? In Detroit, most crime is in the neighborhoods. Not where any visitor should be going.

Have been to Atlantic City many times. Very violent city. Stay on the Boardwalk there & you'll be fine. 2 blocks away from the ocean, enter at your own risk.

Memphis is not as bad as Chicago, yet millions of visitors come from all over the world to visit Chicago. Most tourists are oblivious to crime that happens in the city they visit. In contrast to Chicago, where most of the crime happens outside the Loop, away from the tourist attractions, Memphis does not have that clear separation of "unsafe" and "safe" areas. As I mentioned, one of the high crime neighborhoods is just a few blocks away from Beale Street. Also, Beale Street itself is not necessarily safe either: Man beaten on Beale Street wants to know why no one helped him | WREG.com.

I am an ambassador for tourism in my state, just not necessarily for Memphis. In fact, I highly recommend to visit this year's 2015 NRA Annual Meeting & Exhibits in Nashville, the Smoky Mountain Air Show in Knoxville, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

 

[missoak]

The great majority of big cities in this country are run by liberals. Most large cities are inhabited by liberals or their minions that benefit from their liberal policies. With that comes folks that are unemployed,& uneducated. Thus the inner-city crime.
I've been to L.A.,Chicago, Nashville & a lot of other big cities. There is crime in all of them. So unless you live between 2 mountains in a holler somewhere , 30 miles from the nearest Interstate, sitting on your front porch with a shotgun between your legs, you will experience crime.
And like I said, he was drunk, at a time when most visitors should be in their motels. He was an easy target. I have walked unarmed down Beale St. at all times of the day & night. But with me being aware of my surroundings, I never felt threatened.

 

[tcox4freedom]

I've only been down there once. Beale Street should be very safe. I wouldn't be concerned with NOT carrying there. We left the guns in the motel we stayed in. There may be a couple neighborhoods you may want to avoid, but if you stay with the crowds, you'll be ok.
I did see one guy open carrying & eating ribs on the hood of his car behind the Rendezvous.

Tell that to the guy in the above article-
So what if he was drunk & out late? He was on Beale Street for goodness sake! That's what people have done there forever!

I'm from Memphis and have lots of friends & family still there. I was in LE there and I have friends & family who still are. They would all tell you these very words-

"Memphis is a VERY dangerous place! Beale Street is no different. I suggest staying in a group and following other rules for safety."​

This is another link you may want to check out-

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One more thing- I don't suggest leaving you gun in the motel either unless you have a portable safe. (or a in-room safe) My wife travels to Memphis regularly and I can tell you from my time there- motel personnel can be just has crooked as any street thug out there.



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[missoak]

"Memphis is a VERY dangerous place! Beale Street is no different. I suggest staying in a group and following other rules for safety"

In so many words, that is exactly what I said.

Stop making excuses for the guy that got the snot beat out of him. I would bet in his drunken state he did something to piss somebody off, & probably deserved to get whipped.

When I get a taste for DRY RUB, I will go there & do everything I can to keep myself safe. But I will not be intimidated into staying away.

 

[bofh]

Stop making excuses for the guy that got the snot beat out of him. I would bet in his drunken state he did something to piss somebody off, & probably deserved to get whipped.

Please read the full story. I highlighted the important parts that you apparently missed:

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A man recorded in a cellphone video while passed out in a pool of blood on Beale Street told WREG his side of the story.

Jonathan Parker said he doesn’t remember much, but is disgusted no one helped him after a beer bottle was smashed over his head.

Instead, people took pictures and videos, and stole his wallet, phone, even the clothes he was wearing.

“It’s frustrating to see people leave me there like I’m kind of animal or something,” said Parker. “Where is everybody to help me? I mean, one or two people can carry me somewhere.”

Parker wants to know why no one helped him while he laid in the middle of Beale Street.

“I am so lost for words. It saddens me that a lot of people say they saw me on video on the ground for 20 to 30 minutes,” said Parker.

Parker admits he got too drunk Saturday night and wishes he remembered more.

He told WREG his friends were nowhere close when someone hit him in the head.

“I heard a lot of people were stomping on me and spitting on me. They stole my watch, my wallet, my phone,” he said.

Someone even stole the shirt Jonathan was wearing, but the worst part is that MPD says no one called 911.

Police showed up on their own.

“I know I had a picture with the officer in the background while I was on the ground. I don’t know why they didn’t help me up. It’s kind of frustrating,” he said.

Parker woke up in the hospital with a fractured skull, and cuts and bruises all over his body. Doctors told him it is a miracle he’s alive.

Parker said right now, he doesn’t know if he has any permanent damage, or if any injuries could have been prevented if someone helped him sooner.

MPD investigators said they are looking through footage from security cameras on Beale Street hoping they can figure out how this whole thing started.

Downtown Memphis Commission President Paul Morris said crime stats show downtown Memphis is the safest area in the city, and violent crime is down compared to last year.

He said downtown has the most police officers and security cameras in the city.

Morris said most crime in downtown happens Sunday mornings between two and four.

Morris said he takes every incident seriously, and he and the city will continue to combat crime, especially during the morning hours.

Not only was Jonathan Parker the victim of an assault, but bystanders robbed him afterwards and no-one called 911. Police showed up by chance 30 minutes or more later. This happened in the "safest" part of Memphis during its worst crime hours. One would expect LEOs to be present on Beale Street during this time. Not so much.

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[missoak]

I did read the full story, where does it say what prompted the attack? Someone just decided to whip his ass for fun?

 

[bofh]

I did read the full story, where does it say what prompted the attack? Someone just decided to whip his ass for fun?

Does it matter what prompted the initial attack (smashing a beer bottle over his head)? The issue is that a person was knocked out and helplessly laying in the middle of Beale Street in a pool of his own blood in the "safest" part of the city with no LEOs in sight and bystanders using the situation to clean him out and to video tape him for 20-30 minutes. No-one called 911. That's Memphis folks, right there.

 

[Robert Security]

I'm don't send them to Nashville during an event! 4th of July it took police 3 hours to respond to a shooting on the the side walk of Broadway a mile form the police station.

Sent from my SM-T337V using USA Carry mobile app

 

[JimTh]

I did read the full story, where does it say what prompted the attack? Someone just decided to whip his ass for fun?

I am not sure I understand your position. Are you saying that if someone deserves to get the snot beat out of him so be it? Do you understand that is exactly what happens...that tourists are targeted and do get the snot beat out of them for fun! You need to spend more time actually reading the news or one day someone is going to stomp you ass just for the hell of it.

 

[Dave Nowlin]

My 21 year old grandson who lives in Memphis was recently beaten up on Beale Street and his wallet and cell phone were stolen. Memphis is a very violent place. That is why I quit my job with the public utility company there in 1975 and moved to Savannah Tennessee. My home was broken into 3 times in the last 18 months I lived there. I still have family in the area but wouldn't live there today if you gave me a house there. I was born in Memphis.

 

[Wild Dog]

I'm almost tempted to head on down to Beale Street and let my presence be felt. Once they here this dog howl, they'll be crapping their pants. I won't even bring a gun. I figure with my advanced hand to hand skills, if anyone pulls a gun on me it's mine for the taking.