Michael Rallings
Director of the Memphis Police Department, Rallings undoubtedly owes his appointment to the calming leadership he demonstrated as MPD interim director in 2016 during the mass protest demonstrations that temporarily shut down the I-40 bridge over the Mississippi River. He has since had to deal with numerous other edgy situations involving police relations with the African-American community. He has also seen the restructuring of the MPD command staff, Multi-Agency Gang Unit, and Organized Crime Unit. An Army veteran, Rallings joined the police force in 1990 as a patrolman and came to hold such roles as deputy chief, Mt. Moriah station commander, training academy commander, and firearms training unit commander.
