TN Court of Appeals rules in governor’s favor in National Guard deployment to Memphis

The Tennessee Court of Appeals has ruled that the seven state and local Democratic officials lacked standing in their case to block Gov. Bill Lee from deploying the state National Guard in Memphis.

The ruling dealt a significant setback to efforts to stop the National Guard from operating in Memphis after Lee, a Republican, deployed the state military unit in October 2025 as part of the Memphis Safe Task Force created by President Donald Trump.

Court of Appeals hears arguments over Tennessee National Guard presence in Memphis

Seven state and local officials, led by Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris, sued Lee over the deployment, arguing he can only do so in “circumstances amounting to a rebellion or invasion.”

Initially, a Davidson County judge ruled in favor of the Democratic officials, temporarily blocking the deployment. The judge ruled that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed in arguing Lee violated the Tennessee Military Code by deploying the National Guard to assist the task force.

An appeals court blocked the judge’s decision allowing the National Guard to remain in Memphis while the case was heard by a three-judge panel earlier this year.

The panel of judges did not rule on the merits of the case, but held that the elected officials could not prove they were harmed by the deployment and lacked standing to challenge Lee’s decision.

The ruling

Majority Opinion- M2025-01915-COA-R9-CV