MEMPHIS, Tenn — After the U.S. Department of Justice’s top civil rights investigator said they've seen enough evidence to justify a major investigation into the Memphis Police Department some are coming forward hoping their stories of police brutality and misconduct will finally be heard.
Barabra Buress says she was beaten by Memphis police in September of 2018 and her case has been stalled for five years.
Now she and others say the feds' investigation is long overdue. In fact, they've been calling for a so-called "pattern or practice" investigation into Memphis police for years.
Some may know Buress from the protests that erupted after the death of Tyre Nichols, but Buress says it's her own experience with law enforcement that pushed her into advocating against police brutality here in Memphis.
"I would not be an activist in the city of Memphis if it had not been for the Montavious Banks shooting,” Buress said.
Buress joined frustrated protesters in September of 2018 as they demanded answers after the shooting of Montavious Banks.
Still, during that demonstration, in an attempt to break up their protest, Barbara alleges that she was beaten by officers. She said they rushed toward her and that’s when she says the attack occurred.
“All of sudden I see these dark figures coming towards me and when they were feet away, I took off running around a car,” Buress said.
According to court documents, Buress "ran around a parked car," for safety, she says the officer pursuing her at some point "clotheslined" her.
"You take your arm and you, you know, clothesline around the neck and I flipped over backwards,” Buress said. “Causing a concussion, rocks being stuck inside of my cheek. Rocks and gravel inside my mouth and I wasn't taken immediately to the hospital.”
It's now been nearly five years since the incident, and she says she still deals with it every day.
“[There’s been] nothing but anxiety. I’ve been living in fear, believe it or not, I’ve been afraid,” Buress said. "I’m a nurse for a living. I took an oath to care and advocate for people. They take an oath to protect and serve the people. If I did what they did. I would be in jail, to my patients, I would be in jail."
Her friend Karen Spencer-McGee said she was there that night.
"We need oversight here in Memphis and we've needed it for a very long time,” McGee said. “And it's about time that we clean up Memphis."
When Buress was asked “What do you hope comes out of this DOJ investigation?” she said she "hope the truth comes out."
"We’ve been screaming about these cases where people have been targeted for the color of their skin; obsessive force, people being injured,” she said.
The DOJ said they are opening a dialogue with the public and encourage those with relevant information about possible discriminatory practices to contact them via email at Community.Memphis@usdoj.gov or by phone at 888-473-3730.