Nashville police to search Jocques Clemmons' social media

Nashville police will scour the social media accounts of a man who was fatally shot by an officer last month, looking for information they say could help their ongoing investigation.

Detectives requested search warrants in the week after the Feb. 10 fatal shooting of 31-year-old Jocques S. Clemmons in the James A. Cayce Homes, copies of the warrants obtained by The Tennessean show.

Police leaders say the information is being sought as part of the department's thorough inquiry into the shooting, which is ongoing and separate from an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. A representative of Clemmons' family says the information is not relevant and the requests were driven by an ulterior motive.

"I think they’re just trying to find something they can use against him," said Joy Kimbrough, a Nashville lawyer working with the family. "It wasn’t enough that they gunned him down.

"They just want to further assassinate his character."

Metro police officials say the information may answer lingering questions about Clemmons' encounter with Officer Josh Lippert.

"Some have asked why we think Mr. Clemmons made certain decisions during the encounter with Officer Lippert," police spokesman Don Aaron said. "It is unknown whether social media posts or cellphone information might provide some insight. Seeking information or the preservation of information is part of the overall investigative process."

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On a Friday afternoon in February, Lippert stopped Clemmons for running a stop sign in the East Nashville public housing complex, police said. Clemmons fled and there was a confrontation after Lippert gave chase, according to police. Authorities said Clemmons had a handgun that he refused to drop, leading Lippert to open fire. Clemmons was shot three times — twice in the back and once in the hip — and later died during surgery, authorities said.

It's not unusual for police to search cellphones and social media accounts. According to warrant returns filed since Jan. 1, Nashville police have sought access to more than 80 cellphones or cellphone records belonging to defendants and victims. There were six warrants in that time, not including those related to Clemmons, to search the social media accounts of victims and suspects, the records show.

In the past decade, police have increasingly turned to social media as an investigative tool, according to Adam Scott Wandt, an academic technology scholar, police trainer and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City. In a 2014 national survey, eight of 10 law enforcement officers said they actively used social media in investigations. But the survey also showed a gap: More than half of officers said there was no formal training on how to use social media tools.

Wandt said the information found online could help justify an officer's actions or potentially illuminate wrongdoing. He said police should look to gather every piece of information possible, especially when investigating the use of lethal force by one of their own.

"It’s important that the state get to the bottom of what happened here," he said. "I’m not taking sides. ... It really does make sense to go through and get social media and get all the facts you could."

Police might want the information for another reason, Wandt said. If the searches reveal information including, for example, anti-police sentiments, that could be used to defend the officer or the city against a civil lawsuit, he said.

The warrants related to Clemmons are for:

• Data including call, text message and picture information from Clemmons' cellphone. The warrant obtained Feb. 15 was signed by General Sessions Judge Gale Robinson. Police officials said they were unable to access the phone. 
• All data withinhis Instagram and Facebook social media accounts. These warrants were obtained Feb. 17 and signed by General Sessions Judge Melissa Blackburn.

Detective Danny Satterfield, who has been an investigator in Nashville for more than 22 years, sought the warrants. To obtain search warrants, police must establish probable cause that a crime occurred. Satterfield provided a brief summary of the traffic stop and subsequent confrontation, writing that he is investigating the aggravated assault of Lippert.

Asked specifically what action could be an aggravated assault, Aaron cited the following in Satterfield's narrative: “Mr. Clemmons was able to recover and maintain control of his handgun from the location on the parking lot where the handgun fell. At this point, Mr. Clemmons held his handgun in his right hand and Officer Lippert felt threatened by Mr. Clemmons who was armed with the handgun.”

Police say getting the information quickly was key.

"Social media accounts can be deleted quickly," Aaron said. "The MNPD sought to preserve the social media information until it could be reviewed and a determination made whether it contained any information that was germane to the investigation."

Aaron said the department has turned over to the TBI all information it gathered between the Feb. 10 shooting and Feb. 16, when District Attorney General Glenn Funk and TBI officials announced the launch of a separate, independent investigation. Aaron said the law enforcement agencies are not working together on the investigations. He said if the social media accounts yield germane information, the TBI would be alerted.

A TBI spokesperson said the agency's investigation is ongoing.

Reach Stacey Barchenger at sbarchenger@tennessean.com or 615-726-8968 and on Twitter @sbarchenger.