A homicide suspect who bolted into the woods near Goodlett Farms Parkway and Whitten Road on Feb. 24 did not stay hidden for long. Shelby County deputies say it was one of their own drones, piloted by Deputy Joshua Keith, that finally picked the man out of the trees.
Keith launched a Shelby County Sheriff’s Office unmanned aircraft after Memphis police radioed an active search for a homicide suspect who had taken off on foot. For that work, he was later named the patrol Deputy of the Month for February and received the award at the Arlington substation on April 15.
According to a Facebook post from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, Memphis Police Department drone crews were not able to spot the suspect before Keith put his own unit in the air and detected the man hiding in a wooded area. The office said Keith’s work "contributed to the safe apprehension" of the suspect and highlighted his initiative, coordination and clear communication. The account was shared on April 16, the day after he received the patrol deputy award.
Drone as a first responder
National research backs up what played out in those trees. Drones can dramatically speed up searches in open or wooded terrain by giving officers a fast aerial view of the scene, according to a 2025 report from the National Institute of Justice. That review details the technical, operational, and governance issues agencies need to think through when they use drones as first responders.
Those findings line up neatly with what the sheriff’s office described in the Feb. 24 search, where a deputy-operated drone helped bridge the gap between officers on the ground and a suspect trying to stay out of sight in thick cover.
How local agencies have used drones
The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office has already been putting aerial tools to work in other operations. Local reporting on a major multi‑agency operation last year noted that drones were part of the surveillance toolkit during neighborhood crackdowns and coordinated sweeps.
The department’s own newsletter from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office regularly spotlights deputies who are recognized for fieldwork and lifesaving actions, a mix that shows how aerial gear is being folded into long-standing patrol work rather than replacing it.
What the sheriff’s office said
"We commend Deputy Joshua Keith for his initiative, coordination, clear communication, and tactical proficiency," the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office wrote, crediting him with helping deputies bring the suspect into custody. The post notes that Keith has been with the agency since 2023 and works the morning shift. The department also thanked its multi-agency partners whose broadcast helped kick off the search.
Whether the suspect will face formal charges is up to the arresting agencies and prosecutors, and those details were not included in the sheriff’s Facebook account. For now, the incident stands as another example of how small department-operated drones are becoming routine tools for local searches in wooded and hard-to-reach terrain.
