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Two deadly shootings involving members of the Memphis Safe Task Force in less than four days are raising new questions about the federal crime operation and renewing debate over the Tennessee National Guard’s role in Memphis.

The first shooting involved members of the National Guard, a branch of the U.S. military, who shot and killed a man in downtown Memphis on Sunday.

Three days later, federal agents shot and killed a wanted fugitive inside an East Memphis hotel.

The U.S. Marshals Service identified the man killed Wednesday at the Extended Stay America on Poplar Avenue as Alfonso Ivy. The agency said members of the Memphis Safe Task Force went to the hotel to serve an arrest warrant on Ivy, who was wanted on felony drug charges out of Shelby County.

According to the Marshals Service, officers issued numerous verbal commands for Ivy to surrender before making a forced entry into the building. The agency said additional commands were given before Ivy pointed a handgun at task force members.

Drug Enforcement Administration agents responded to what the Marshals Service described as an immediate threat by opening fire.

Officers immediately provided first aid until emergency medical personnel arrived, but Ivy died. No law enforcement officers were injured.

The shooting remains under investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The deadly encounter came less than four days after a separate shooting involving members of the Tennessee National Guard in downtown Memphis.

The two shootings are renewing concerns from state Rep. Gabby Salinas, D-Memphis, who was among a group of local and state leaders who sued Gov. Bill Lee last year over his deployment of the National Guard to Memphis.

“This really concerns me because any operation should be thought of before the deployment takes place,” Salinas said. “What does the beginning look like? What are our goals? What are our objectives? There should be a middle and an end. We don’t have any of that for this deployment.”

The lawsuit argued Lee’s deployment of the National Guard violated state law. An appeals court later ruled the plaintiffs did not have legal standing and restored the governor’s authority to keep the Guard in Memphis.

Salinas said questions raised during the legal fight about the deployment’s mission, oversight and long-term goals have not been fully answered.

“This process has not been transparent,” Salinas said. “We have been lied to multiple times.”

The Memphis Safe Task Force includes federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, along with members of the Tennessee National Guard.

The U.S. Marshals Service said the task force will remain in Memphis because dangerous criminals remain on the streets. The agency said the operation has made the city safer by arresting wanted people, driving down crime and locating missing children.

Salinas acknowledged Memphis has long faced challenges with violent crime but said she wants clearer goals and greater accountability for how the operation is carried out.

“Memphis has a crime problem. No one is denying that,” Salinas said. “But if there was an executive order that said we have this amount of outstanding warrants, let’s put all the resources behind getting those people off the streets. But that’s not what’s happening.”

Supporters of the Memphis Safe Task Force point to a significant reduction in violent crime since the operation began.

Memphis’ murder rate has fallen nearly 43% since the task force launched, a decline supporters say shows the operation is saving lives and improving public safety.

The TBI is investigating both deadly shootings.

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