Artis Whitehead
(Left) Beale Street sign, where B.B. King’s Blues Club is located
During the morning of May 9, 2002, a robbery occurred at B.B. King’s Blues Club on Beale Street in Memphis, Tennessee. The robbery lasted approximately an hour, during which the victims were held at gunpoint in a small basement office.
Witnesses described the perpetrator as a black male, between 5’4” and 5’8” tall, wearing a hat and sunglasses. Witnesses further stated that the man had a “slim build” and was approximately 140-160 lbs. The perpetrator fled the scene before the police arrived.
Following the robbery, Memphis Police broadcasted the assailant’s description. One individual was picked up and then almost immediately released. It is unknown who this person was or why they were not detained. While Memphis Police Department (“MPD”) created various photo arrays shown to witnesses, none identified the perpetrator.
On January 24, 2003, over eight months after the crime occurred, a Crime Stoppers tip named Artis Whitehead as the perpetrator. MPD contacted five witnesses – only those who were employees of B.B. King’s at the time of the incident – to view a new photo array containing Mr. Whitehead’s photo. Of these five people, two could not make an identification and one was never shown the array. Based on a single eyewitness identification in a photo lineup, Mr. Whitehead was arrested.. After his arrest, one other witness identified Mr. Whitehead. This witness later testified at trial that so much time had passed since he was last called in that he was “optimistic” that the person responsible had finally been caught.
These two witnesses remained the only identifications throughout the proceedings, with both testifying that the robber’s looks had changed from the time of the robbery to the time of trial. One of these two witnesses has since shared that she felt she erred in making a positive identification.
Mr. Whitehead is over six feet tall and over 200 lbs. An avid weightlifter, those who know him describe him as a “large man.” No evidence connected Mr. Whitehead to the robbery. Fingerprints and palm prints found on items at the scene did not match Mr. Whitehead. Additionally, he had an alibi that was never presented to the jury: he was attending a mandatory first day of work training the day of the robbery.
In November 2003, a Shelby County jury convicted Mr. Whitehead of five counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, two counts of aggravated assault, two counts of especially aggravated robbery, two counts of aggravated robbery, and one count of attempted robbery. The trial court sentenced Mr. Whitehead to consecutive sentences totaling 249 years.
December 15, 2023, Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Jennifer Fitzgerald issued a written order vacating Artis Whitehead’s wrongful conviction after a hearing in September. On January 31, 2024, exactly 21 years from his arrest date, Artis Whitehead was exonerated.