MEMPHIS, Tenn. — National civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who's recently taken on a number of high-profile cases in Memphis involving police brutality, including the death of Tyre Nichols, announced Tuesday morning he's representing another Memphian who died while in police custody Friday.
Crump announced he has been retained by the family of Courtney Ross, a 19-year-old man who died after being taken into custody by the Memphis Police Department.
On Friday, August 11, a property owner made a call to the police about Ross going through boxes that may have contained poison. Other nearby residents made calls about Ross looking into cars and going through mailboxes.
Ross ran from police when they arrived on scene, MPD said. When officers apprehended him, they placed him in the back of the squad car. After noticing he was short of breath, they called for an ambulance which transported him to a hospital where he would later die.
The involved officers have been placed on leave.
Crump called on MPD and the City of Memphis to release footage of the incident.
“Another young Black man in Memphis has lost his life following an interaction with local police, and we are once again left with more questions than answers," Crump said. "Nothing can bring this young man back, but the truth about what happened that day can bring the family and community some measure of peace. The Memphis Police Department must immediately release the body and dash cam footage so this family, and this city’s residents, know the truth about what happened to Courtney. Accountability and transparency are paramount – Memphis can not move forward without it.”
In addition to the families of Ross and Tyre Nichols, Crump is also representing the family of Gershun Freeman, a man who died after an altercation with correctional officers in the Shelby County Jail in 2022, and Jadarrius Rose, a Memphis truck driver who was attacked by a police dog in Ohio in July.