Shelby County District Attorney's Office

10/19/2026

CASE OF THE DAY:

The defendant was held to state as charged following a first-degree murder preliminary hearing in General Sessions Court Division 15.

Held to state means the judge found probable cause for the case to proceed to the grand jury.

The case stems from a shooting in which the defendant allegedly shot and killed his roommate inside the home they shared.

Bond was set at $499,000.

10/19/2026

Please join us in welcoming Assistant District Attorneys Lorri Fentress and Evan Thiele to the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office!

Ms. Fentress joins our Justice Review Unit. She earned her B.S. from Howard University and her J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law. Her previous experience includes serving as a judicial law clerk and policy advisor for Juvenile Court and as a federal judicial law clerk for the Honorable John T. Fowlkes, Jr.

Mr. Thiele earned his B.A., B.S. and J.D. from the University of Memphis, including the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law. Before joining our office, he worked as a Sanctions Compliance Specialist with PwC Legal Services.

We welcome both to the team and look forward to their contributions to the work of our office and the people of Shelby County.

10/15/2026

Happy Hispanic and Latino Heritage Month! This month, we recognize and celebrate the history, cultures, contributions, and achievements of Hispanic and Latino communities. We honor the individuals and families whose contributions continue to shape and strengthen our community and our nation.

10/15/2026

WEST TN DTF INTERUPTS FENTANYL DELIVERY TO ATLANTA FROM EAST L.A.

SHELBY COUNTY, TENN. – A routine stop Thursday morning led to the seizure of 2.2 pounds (1 Kilogram) of fentanyl.

During the morning hours of 10/08/26, Agents with the West Tennessee Violent Crime and Drug Task Force (DTF) conducted a routine stop that led to the search of a backpack found to contain the drugs.

Further investigation revealed the drugs were being transported from East Los Angeles, California to Atlanta, Ga. Agents arrested a 39 year old L.A. native and charged him in Shelby County with possession of a Schedule II controlled substance with intent to deliver.

The value of the Fentanyl is approximately $23k wholesale and the street value is at approximately $100k.

“"Fentanyl is the leading cause of overdose deaths. It often appears in other drugs unlabeled, so people don't even realize what they're taking. Hats off to the DTF for preventing distribution of this poison.” - Shelby County D.A. Steve Mulroy

“The DTF remains laser focused on making west Tennessee a safer place and we will continue to target those that victimize our citizens through violence, drugs or both.” - DTF Director Johnie Carter.

The West Tennessee Drug Task Force operates by agreement between the District Attorney’s General for the 28th, 29th and 30th Judicial Districts. All state charges will be prosecuted by the Office of the District Attorney General for the 30th Judicial District, Steve Mulroy.

The West Tennessee Violent Crime and Drug Task Force is a law enforcement agency that operates by agreement between the 28th, 29th and 30th District Attorneys General of Frederick Agee, Danny Goodman and Steve Mulroy. The V.C.I.F. Unit operates out of the 30th District and is made up of full time employees of the Drug Task Force. These Task Force Agents, are assigned to work fulltime in the nine most dangerous zip codes in Memphis under the Governor’s Violent Crime Initiative Fund grant (V.C.I.F.).
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Johnie Carter
Director

10/12/2026

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A Shelby County jury found Edward “Eddie” Wurl guilty as charged of first-degree murder and being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun following a trial in the killing of Blake Rhea. Jurors deliberated for just eight minutes on Saturday before returning guilty verdicts on both counts.

Chief prosecutor Atina Stavropoulos and Assistant District Attorney Missy Branham prosecuted the case, presenting extensive surveillance footage and digital evidence. With support from their prosecution team, they introduced collective exhibits containing at least 18,000 individual items. That work included frame-by-frame video analysis, preparation of an enlarged video montage and review of thousands of relevant pieces of evidence across multiple phones.

The killing occurred on November 6, 2024, outside Louis Connelly’s bar on South Cleveland Street. Memphis Police officers responding shortly after 1 a.m. found Rhea in his parked vehicle suffering from gunshot wounds and lacerations. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Surveillance footage captured Wurl following Rhea across the street to his vehicle while holding an object consistent with a knife behind his back. Wurl leaned into the open driver’s door and appeared to struggle with Rhea. After backing away, Wurl raised his right hand toward Rhea, and the footage showed several flashes consistent with gunfire. Wurl then walked away.

Digital evidence also included an internet search on Wurl’s phone a week before the killing asking, “If I haven’t fired my gun in years will it work?” Facebook records showed repeated visits to Rhea’s profile in the months leading up to the killing.

Wurl took the stand during the trial and was cross-examined by Branham before the jury deliberated and returned a verdict in less than 10 minutes.

Sentencing is forthcoming.

News Release: https://www.scdag.com/news-releases/man-found-guilty-in-2024-homicide-case

10/09/2026

10/08/2026

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A Shelby County jury found Nelly Ruguaru guilty of Aggravated Assault following a two-day trial stemming from a 2024 domestic incident involving her spouse.

Officers responded to a home on Yale Road after an argument between Ruguaru and her spouse became physical. According to the case, Ruguaru grabbed a hatchet from the top of a refrigerator and swung it at the victim during the altercation.

Ruguaru testified in her own defense during the trial. After hearing testimony and evidence from both sides, the jury returned a guilty verdict on the Aggravated Assault charge.

Assistant District Attorneys Alicia Walton and Justlynn Russell prosecuted the case on behalf of the State.

News Release: https://www.scdag.com/news-releases/woman-convicted-in-aggravated-assault-trial

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A Shelby County jury found Nelly Ruguaru guilty of Aggravated Assault following a two-day trial stemming from a 2024 domestic incident involving her spouse. Officers responded to a home on Yale Road after an argument between Ruguaru and her spouse became physical. According to t

10/08/2026

DA Mulroy attended the Memphis Bar Association’s Annual Bench Bar Conference, where he earned CLE credit and joined a panel discussion on sentencing in criminal cases.
The panel also included Criminal Court Judge James Jones and criminal defense attorney Blake Ballin, with General Sessions Judge Greg Gilbert serving as moderator.

10/07/2026

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Following a four-day trial, a Shelby County jury found Adrian Pegues guilty of multiple felony offenses Friday in connection with the kidnapping, physical assault and sexual assault of his former girlfriend.

Jury selection began Monday, with the trial beginning Tuesday and concluding Friday. Assistant District Attorneys Regina Lucreziano and Steven Shirley prosecuted the case on behalf of the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office.

The jury found Pegues guilty as charged of aggravated r**e, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault and domestic assault. On two additional counts of aggravated r**e, jurors found Pegues guilty of the lesser-included offense of r**e.

During the trial, prosecutors presented testimony from five witnesses, including the victim, who testified about the violence and sexual assaults she endured. Jurors also heard from the responding Memphis Police officer, two r**e crisis nurses who treated the victim, and a DNA analyst who testified regarding forensic evidence in the case.

The charges stemmed from an August 2022 incident. According to the Memphis Police Department arrest report, the victim reported that Pegues arrived unannounced at a home in the 1000 block of Woodbury in Memphis, where he assaulted her before taking her cellphone and driving her to another location.

The victim told investigators that Pegues repeatedly assaulted her, sexually assaulted her multiple times and prevented her from leaving over the course of approximately two days. She also reported that he threatened to kill her if she attempted to alert her family or law enforcement. Pegues eventually dropped her off at Baptist Hospital on August 21 after she pleaded to receive medical treatment.

When investigators met with the victim the following day, they observed severe bruising to her face, eyes and nose. She had also suffered fractures to her nose in two places. The victim later identified Pegues in a photographic lineup as the person responsible for the assaults and kidnapping.

“This verdict holds the defendant accountable for a prolonged and violent attack that no one should ever have to endure,” said Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy. “We are grateful to the survivor for the courage it took to come forward, participate in this prosecution and see this case through to a verdict.”

Sentencing is forthcoming.

10/07/2026

Our Victim/Witness Coordinators and other members of our office recently participated in the YWCA’s Domestic Violence Awareness Month Bridge Lighting and attended the Crime Victims & R**e Crisis Center’s Annual Garden of Lights Memorial honoring homicide victims.

We appreciate the opportunity to join our community partners in supporting victims, survivors and their families.