Five ex-Memphis cops charged with murder of Tire Nichols

Jan 26 (Reuters) – Five former Memphis police officers were charged on Thursday with murdering Tire Nichols, a black motorist who was injured in a violent encounter after a traffic stop, prosecutors said.

Father Nichols, 29, died while in hospital on January 1. 10, three days after a standoff during which he was arrested by five police officers.

Officials are expected to release police body camera video of the incident Friday night, which a lawyer for the Nichols family has likened to infamous footage of Los Angeles police beating black motorist Rodney King more than 30 years ago .

“We are here today because of a tragedy that deeply hurts one family, but it hurts all of us,” Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said at a news conference announcing the charges.

The five officers, all black, were each charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression, Mulroy said.

On Friday, the Memphis Police Department identified them as Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills, Jr. and Justin Smith. They range in age from 24 to 32 and have each served about 2 1/2 to five years in the department.

They were fired on Saturday after an internal investigation found they violated multiple department policies, including excessive use of force, failure to intervene and failure to provide assistance. They were taken into custody Thursday morning, county jail records show.

Despite the murder charges, the district attorney has released few more details about the circumstances of Nichols’ fatal encounter with police.

After Nichols was pulled over, there was an “argument” in which police pepper sprayed the driver and Nichols tried to flee on foot, Mulroy said, describing what happened next in very cryptic terms.

“Mr Nichols was involved in another altercation at a nearby location and Mr Nichols was seriously injured,” the prosecutor said.

An ambulance was called because Nichols “complained of shortness of breath,” and he was taken to the hospital in critical condition, the Memphis Police Department’s initial statement on the death said.

Mulroy said he would not comment on the legality of the original traffic stop. He said the investigation would continue and that additional charges could not be ruled out.

“It’s a crime”

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch said at a news conference that he was sickened by what he saw in the body camera video.

“What’s going on here doesn’t reflect proper policing at all,” he said. “It’s wrong. It’s a crime.”

The former official could not be reached for comment.

Blake Ballin, an attorney representing Mills, said at a separate news conference that his client was “shocked to find out that he has been charged with a crime.”

Ballin was joined by William Massey representing Martin. Both lawyers said they have not seen the video and are still conducting their defense. Their clients each posted bail and will be released Thursday, they said.

Both Mills and Martin intend to plead not guilty, their attorneys said. Baring said it could take another two weeks for the defendants to appear in court for the first time because they are indicted by a grand jury.

Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said other Memphis officers are still being investigated for policy violations. In a statement posted on YouTube, she asked for calm when the police video was made public.

“I hope you feel what the Nichols family felt,” she said. “I want you to be outraged by the disregard for basic human rights.”

“Painful Reminder”

In a statement, U.S. President Joe Biden said Nichols’ death “is a painful reminder that we must do more to ensure our criminal justice system delivers on fair justice, equal treatment and promise of dignity.”

Nichols’ death marks the latest in a string of high-profile police officers accused of using excessive force in recent years in the deaths of black people and other minorities, sparking public concern over systemic racial segregation in the U.S. criminal justice system. violent protests.

Following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, protests against racial inequality erupted across the globe. A black man died after a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for more than nine minutes after George Floyd was arrested for allegedly trying to pass forgery bills.

The Nichols family watched the police footage Monday with their attorney, Ben Crump, who compared it to the 1991 footage of Rodney King being beaten by four police officers who were killed the following year His acquittal on criminal charges sparked days of unrest in Los Angeles.

“The loss of this young man in a particularly sickening manner demonstrates the urgent need for change and reform to ensure that this type of violence ceases to occur during low-threat procedures, such as in this case, traffic stops,” said Graeme. Rupp and colleague Antonio Romanucci said in a statement.

The last words heard in the video were Nichols calling for his mother three times, Crump said.

Reporting by Tyler Clifford in New York and Brendan O’Brien in Chicago; Additional reporting by Jonathan Allen; Editing by Lisa Shumaker, Daniel Wallis, Grant McCool and Leslie Adler

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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