TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Dec 16, 2024

A man wrongfully convicted in the early 2000s for a robbery he says he did not commit has filed a lawsuit against the city of Memphis, the Memphis Police Department and the officers who worked his case in federal court. Arits Whitehead was convicted and sentenced to 249 years in prison after a police investigation stalled for more than eight months. A year ago, he was released from prison after nearly two decades behind bars when a judge found evidence that Whitehead was wrongfully convicted. According to the Commercial Appeal, Whitehead claims he was inadequately represented and that the police knowingly relied on a shaky informant — later concealed behind a CrimeStoppers tip — to arrest him. The lawsuit does not request a specific amount in damages, instead seeking compensatory damages, attorneys' fees, court costs and punitive damages.