5 police officers fired after Memphis man’s arrest, death

Authored by apnews.com and submitted by getBusyChild
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A portrait of Tyre Nichols is displayed at a memorial service for him on Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023 in Memphis, Tenn. Nichols was killed during a traffic stop with Memphis Police on Jan. 7. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Five Memphis Police Department officers were fired for excessive use of force, failure to intervene and failure to render aid stemming from an arrest during a traffic stop of a man who later died in a hospital, officials said Friday.

The police chief said Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills, Jr. and Justin Smith were involved in the Jan. 7 arrest of Tyre Nichols, 29, who was Black.

The Memphis Police Department conducted an internal investigation into the arrest of Nichols, who died three days later, and the discipline came after the probe’s conclusion, authorities said.

The five officers who were fired are all Black, according to the Memphis police public information officer.

The U.S. Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation also is looking into the force used in the arrest.

Nichols’ family, along with protesters who rallied at a police station and the National Civil Rights Museum, have pushed for the release of police body camera footage and called for officers to be charged.

Relatives have accused police of beating Nichols and causing him to have a heart attack. Authorities said Nichols experienced a medical emergency.

Nichols was arrested after officers stopped him for reckless driving, police said. There was a confrontation when officers approached the driver and he ran before he was confronted again by the pursuing officers, who arrested him, authorities said. He complained of shortness of breath and was hospitalized.

Officials said a cause of death has not yet been determined.

Relatives have said the officers who pulled over Nichols were in an unmarked vehicle and that he experienced cardiac arrest and kidney failure from the officers beating him.

Memphis Chief of Police Cerelyn “CJ” Davis and Mayor Jim Strickland said video footage of the arrest will be released after the police department’s investigation is completed and the family can review it.

The city leaders are arranging a meeting early next week with Nichols’ family, according to a joint statement from Strickland and Davis.

Attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, who represent Nichols’ family, issued a statement Friday saying they support the department’s decision to fire the officers.

“This is the first step towards achieving justice for Tyre and his family. They must also be held accountable for robbing this man of his life and his son of a father,” the statement said.

The attorneys said they “will continue to demand transparency and accountability” and plan to review video footage to seek additional clarity about the circumstances leading to Nichols’ death.

traumatized_shark on January 21st, 2023 at 10:00 UTC »

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A woman told WREG she saw video footage of the confrontation between Tyre Nichols and MPD officers.

The woman, who wants to remain anonymous, says she saw a video of the alleged attack taken by her concerned neighbor.

“The whole scene was a little disturbing, all of these officers out here, lights out, they were out here for hours,” she said.

The scene came after a pursuit initiated by Memphis Police, who claim Tyre Nichols was driving recklessly. As officers went to detain him, they say two confrontations broke out, leaving the 29-year-old severely injured. 

“I just saw him lying still. Lifeless, I couldn’t tell —but he was not moving,” said the neighbor. “Based on what [my neighbor] said, the officers weren’t able to catch him, and then once they did catch him, they ensued on beating him.”

Three days later, Nichols died, sparking investigations by the FBI, TBI, and the Department of Justice. His death is sparking calls for video of the arrest to be released to the public, which the City of Memphis has vowed to do. 

The neighbor believes there will be outrage. “When they see things like that, it gets them in an uproar. I don’t think it’s going to be perceived very well. Not based on what my neighbor said, I don’t think it’s going to be perceived well. Not at all.”

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crazypyro23 on January 21st, 2023 at 03:21 UTC »

They fired them before public outrage had time to build. The video is going to be horrific and the evidence damming.

Ace_Ranger on January 21st, 2023 at 03:13 UTC »

Relatives have accused police of beating Nichols and causing him to have a heart attack. Authorities have said that Nichols experienced a medical emergency.

Getting severely beaten by law enforcement is most definitely a medical emergency.