The final count came in at 191. That’s how many people were killed in Memphis during 2019, up from 186 the year before and 180 in 2017. Three straight years of increases. Three straight years of the wrong kind of momentum.
For anyone running security operations in Shelby County, that number isn’t just a headline. It’s the number that shapes budgets, staffing decisions, and contract negotiations for the next twelve months. And if you’re a property manager or business owner trying to figure out how much to spend on security in 2020, the answer just got more expensive.
Where the Violence Concentrated
The homicide numbers don’t hit Memphis evenly. They never have. In 2019, the heaviest concentrations showed up in the same areas that have topped the list for years: Whitehaven, Frayser, Hickory Hill, and parts of South Memphis along the Elvis Presley Boulevard corridor. Orange Mound and Binghampton saw clusters too, especially during the summer months when temperatures and tempers both ran hot.
What changed in 2019 was the spread. Cordova saw more violent incidents than in previous years. East Memphis, traditionally one of the safer areas in the city, had a string of armed robberies near the Poplar and Perkins intersection that rattled business owners who’d never given much thought to security before. When crime moves into areas that consider themselves immune, the phone starts ringing at security companies.
MPD Director Michael Rallings pointed to guns as the primary driver. More guns on the street, more shootings. The department recovered thousands of firearms in 2019, and Rallings made no secret of his frustration with repeat offenders cycling through the court system and landing back on the same corners within weeks.
The Private Security Response
Memphis has always been one of Tennessee’s biggest markets for private security, and 2019 only reinforced that. The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance processed a steady stream of new guard registrations throughout the year. Finding people to fill those positions was another story.
The staffing crunch hit hardest in the armed guard category. Tennessee’s Private Protective Services requires armed guards to complete firearms qualification and a background check through TBI and FBI databases. The pipeline works, but it doesn’t move fast. Companies that needed armed officers for overnight shifts at warehouses along the I-40 corridor or distribution centers in the Oakhaven area spent weeks waiting for qualified candidates.
Phelps Security, one of Memphis’s oldest firms with roots going back to 1960, stayed busy throughout the year. Their Park Avenue office handled a mix of corporate and residential contracts. Imperial Security, headquartered on Poplar Avenue and active in transportation and logistics since 1968, expanded its local footprint. National players like Allied Universal and Securitas continued to pick up large commercial accounts, particularly in the medical district and around the University of Memphis.
Smaller firms found their niche too. Shield of Steel, a veteran-owned company operating out of 2682 Lamar Avenue, carved out space in the statewide market with competitive pricing and GPS-tracked patrol vehicles. Their pitch to mid-size businesses was straightforward: armed officers with law enforcement and military backgrounds at rates below what the national chains charge. The trade-off is scale. A company like Shield of Steel can’t match Allied Universal’s bench depth, and if you need 50 guards for a large-scale event, you’re probably looking at a bigger outfit. For a warehouse in Whitehaven or a strip mall in Raleigh that needs two to four officers on rotating shifts, though, outfits like that can be a solid option.
What 2020 Might Look Like
Predicting crime trends in Memphis is a bit like predicting the weather along the Mississippi. You can look at the patterns, study the data, and still get caught off guard when a heat wave rolls in.
That said, some things are fairly clear. MPD is still short on officers. Rallings has said publicly that the department needs closer to 2,500 sworn personnel, and they aren’t there yet. Every unfilled MPD position is a potential opening for private security companies to fill the gap, and that’s exactly what’s been happening. Businesses that used to rely solely on police response are contracting with private firms for on-site presence.
The commercial real estate market in Memphis is active heading into 2020. Downtown development continues to push forward, and every new project along Union Avenue or in the Crosstown area means new security needs. The industrial corridor along Lamar and the logistics hubs clustered near Memphis International Airport remain busy. FedEx alone drives a massive security footprint across the region.
Property crime is the other piece. Auto theft ran hot in 2019, with Dodge Chargers and Chrysler 300s topping the stolen vehicle list (Shelby County’s favorites among car thieves, apparently). Catalytic converter theft picked up toward the end of the year too. These aren’t crimes that grab headlines like homicides do, but they’re the ones that cost businesses and residents real money on a daily basis.
The Regulatory Side
Tennessee’s security licensing framework didn’t see major changes in 2019, and nothing dramatic is expected for 2020. The Private Protective Services Act (T.C.A. 62-35-101 et seq.) still governs the industry. Unarmed guards need 16 hours of training and a registration card through TDCI. Armed guards need the firearms qualification on top of that, plus a clean background check. Contract security companies need their own separate license.
The system works reasonably well, but it has gaps. TDCI’s enforcement capacity is limited, and unlicensed operators remain a persistent problem in Memphis. If you’ve ever driven past a gas station on Lamar or a corner store in Frayser and seen someone in a security uniform who doesn’t quite look official, you’ve probably spotted the problem. Legitimate companies lose contracts to unlicensed operators who undercut on price and skip the training requirements. It’s been an issue for years, and 2020 won’t be the year it gets solved.
What This Means for Businesses
If you’re a Memphis business owner reading this on the first business day of 2020, here’s the practical takeaway: don’t wait until something happens to think about security. The companies that fill contracts fastest are the ones that start conversations early. The armed guard pipeline has a built-in delay because of licensing requirements. If you need armed personnel by spring, start the process now.
Get quotes from at least three providers. Ask about turnover rates, because high turnover is the silent killer of security quality. A guard who’s been at your site for six months knows the property, knows the tenants, and knows which parking lot camera has a blind spot near the loading dock. A guard on his first week doesn’t know any of that.
Check TDCI’s website to verify that any company you’re considering actually holds a valid contract security company license. It takes about five minutes and could save you a lawsuit.
The Bigger Picture
Memphis enters 2020 with a familiar set of problems and no easy fixes. Violent crime is elevated. Property crime is steady. The police department is understaffed. The private security industry is growing to fill the space, but growing fast comes with its own problems: quality control, training consistency, and the ever-present risk of hiring someone who shouldn’t be carrying a badge.
The 191 families who lost someone to homicide in 2019 don’t care about market analysis or industry trends. They care about whether the city can do better. For the rest of us, the question heading into 2020 is more specific: are we spending enough, in the right places, on the right people, to keep our businesses and neighborhoods safe?
I don’t have a confident answer. Nobody in Memphis does right now. What I do know is that the numbers from 2019 don’t leave much room for optimism unless something changes. And change, in this city, never comes cheap or easy.