A man who spent more than 20 years behind bars before he was exonerated of robbing a Memphis music club is suing the city and 10 police officers, alleging they made up evidence that led to his wrongful conviction and a lengthy prison sentence.
The federal lawsuit filed Thursday by Artis Whitehead, 61, says Memphis Police Department officers fabricated evidence that led to charges of armed robbery and kidnapping in the 2002 robbery of B.B. King’s Blues Club on Beale Street.
Whitehead, who is Black , was tried, convicted and sentenced in 2003 to 249 years in prison. But Whitehead’s conviction and sentence were thrown out in December 2023 and he was released from prison. A Memphis judge determined that no physical evidence connected Whitehead to the robbery and that police fabricated information about the crime, including false identifications of Whitehead by club employees who had been held hostage and robbed.
The fake evidence included an anonymous tip made by phone against Whitehead by a man detained for two different armed robberies, the lawsuit says. It claims the man who made the call was coerced by officers working the case.