Top Official Fired for Allegedly Covering Up Child Abuse

The death of Tyre Nichols has focused the nation’s attention on Memphis, Tennessee. As a result, several first responders have lost their jobs, and five officers have been charged with murder. According to new allegations, the police chief was sacked from her prior post in Atlanta.

Cerelyn “CJ” Davis was appointed chief of the Memphis Police Department in 2021. In 2008, thirteen years before her promotion, the Atlanta Police Department fired her for reportedly ordering two detectives not to pursue Terrill Marion Crane, Sgt. Tanya Crane’s husband.

Davis’ purported order was issued after police discovered images of Terrill Crane with underage minors. When nothing transpired in the case, an investigation pointed to Davis as the cause. Crane was later indicted by a federal grand jury for child pornography, to which he pleaded guilty.

Davis was demoted from major to lieutenant, but the city’s Civil Service Board finally decided her acts merited removal. She’d been with the Atlanta Police Department since 1986, beginning as a patrol officer. However, she was eventually restored and worked for the agency until 2016, when she departed to become the chief of the Durham, North Carolina, police department.

Davis led the creation of the Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods (SCORPION) unit to address rising crime after becoming Memphis chief. That unit is essential to the Nichols case. For years, activists have accused SCORPION officers of employing excessive force. Nichols was confronted by the unit, and the cops involved are accused of beating him. He died as a result of his injuries.

Chief Davis has stated that she has no plans to quit from her current post. In fact, she is being praised for taking swift action against the officers. Despite the news of her prior firing and reinstatement, her position appears to be secure for the time being – but nothing is certain.

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