Five Memphis police officers have been relieved of their duties following the death of 29-year-old Tyre Nichols, due to a traffic stop that went tragically wrong.
The names of the officers have been released from the Memphis Police Department:
- Tadarrius Bean
- Demetrius Haley
- Emmitt Martin III
- Desmond Mills Jr.
- Justin Smith
Tyre Nichols was stopped on January 7 for alleged reckless driving, and he died three days later from his injuries.
The police say he ran off after a confrontation with officers.
Reportedly, a second altercation occurred after he was caught and detained.
His family said that the police beat him so badly that he was unrecognizable at the hospital.
Attorney Ben Crump spoke on Tyree’s condition at the hospital and what he and the Nichols family have heard about the body cam video:
They took photographs of him in the hospital that showed him with huge contusions and abrasions on his face and head that they believed was part of the reason why Tyree is dead today, that brutal encounter with the police.
Them being fired means that they did something horribly wrong on that video.
The only thing that we’ve heard are the rumors that it’s horrific, and it’s akin to the Rodney King video.
He was a good father, had a four-year-old son whose going to grow up in this world asking why did the police kill my daddy.
An internal investigation revealed that the officers violated the following department policies:
- EXCESSIVE USE OF FORCE
- DUTY TO INTERVENE
- DUTY TO RENDER AID
The body camera and surveillance videos are expected to be shown to the Nichols family Monday morning (January 23) and then released to the public.
In response to the tragic traffic stop, the Memphis Police Department said it:
…is committed to protecting and defending the rights of every citizen in our city. The egregious nature of this incident is not a reflection of the good work that our officers perform, with integrity, every day.
The FBI and Justice departments have also started a civil rights investigation into the incident.
Watch the ‘GMA‘ report below:
All five officers need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
We send our sincere condolences to the Nichols family.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the convo on our socials. (Facebook, Instagram).
