A former Main Event security guard has been sentenced to 30 years in prison for shooting and killing a coworker during an argument at the Cordova entertainment venue in July 2024. Richard Lewis pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the death of James Earl Redmon, who was working alongside him as a security guard at the time of the shooting.
According to Action News 5, Lewis was sentenced in Shelby County Criminal Court after pleading guilty to the lesser charge, down from the original first-degree murder count he faced following a grand jury indictment. Memphis Police said the shooting followed an argument between the two men, who had known each other for several years. Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said Redmon “went to work that evening and should have made it home,” adding that Lewis’s guilty plea holds him accountable for Redmon’s death.
Responding officers found Redmon dead at the scene on Appling Farms Parkway after police were called to the Cordova venue, according to a report from WREG, which places the shooting at 7:15 p.m. on July 22, 2024. The station reported that Lewis shot Redmon twice in the head after the heated argument, and that he is expected to serve out the entirety of his 30-year sentence.
What Sparked the Deadly Argument
Court documents said the dispute between Lewis and Redmon centered on the use of metal detectors for visitors entering the business, per the same station's earlier reporting. A witness told investigators that Lewis warned the other guard not to come near him before opening fire. Afterward, according to an affidavit, Lewis told his general manager, “He came at me, and I had to do it.”
The Cordova Main Event location reopened the day after the shooting, according to Local Memphis, which reported the venue resumed operations the following Tuesday. Lewis was later held on a $5 million bond as the case moved to a grand jury, WREG reported in its earlier coverage.
Guard's License Had Lapsed Before the Shooting
Tennessee licensing records reviewed at the time showed Lewis was not presently licensed as a security guard, Action News 5 reported in its original coverage of the case. His security license had expired in February 2024, and while he applied for reinstatement that June, the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance said he did not meet the training requirements and officially closed the reinstatement request on July 8, two weeks before the shooting, according to Local Memphis. TDCI officials said at the time that a complaint had been opened and an investigation was underway.
District Attorney Mulroy said his thoughts remain with Redmon's family, who he said live with the loss every day. The case closes out more than two years after the shooting first drew scrutiny to security licensing practices at the Cordova venue, where Lewis and Redmon had both been working as armed guards when the argument turned fatal.
