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Rondell Trevino
A local Latino man said he was “terrified” when he was racially profiled by a Memphis Police Department (MPD) officer while on a walk through his neighborhood.
On Rondell Treviño’s Tuesday evening walk in the Berclair area, he said he was accosted by an MPD officer who asked for his documentation. Trevino, who is the founder of the Immigration Project (a faith-based organization aimed to improve immigrant relations with the church), told the officer he is an U.S. citizen and works at a local church.
After the officer insisted that he still needed to show documentation, Trevino gave the officer his Social Security card.
“Wow, I thought you’d be an illegal alien because you’re Latino,” the officer responded, according to Trevino.
1) Started going on walks to gradually get back in shape—on my walk today, a cop pulled up next to me and asked me, “Can you stop for a moment?” I stopped walking. He then got out of the car and asked me to show my documentation. I told him I’m a US citizen and on staff at a…
— Rondell Treviño (@Rondell_Trevino) April 25, 2018
Latino Man Says Officer Racially Profiled Him, Asked for Documentation
When asked to respond to this incident, MPD Lt. Karen Rudolph said there is no record of it occurring, however it is “absolutely not” standard procedure for the department.
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“Memphis Police Officers are not instructed to inquire on any person’s citizenship,” Rudolph said. “The Memphis Police Department does not enforce immigration laws.”
