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MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Relatives of Tyre Nichols, George Floyd and Eric Garner — three Black men killed in violent confrontations with police officers — expressed frustration Friday with politicians who have failed to pass police reform legislation or have worked to invalidate laws intended to reduce chances that citizens' encounters with police end in death. Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, told an audience at a police violence symposium in Memphis that the time has come for Congress to pass a federal law that would ban certain police tactics such as chokeholds and no-knock warrants. The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, proposed after Floyd died in Minneapolis in May 2020 after a white police officer pressed his knee to his neck for more than nine minutes, was passed by the House in 2021, but the Senate failed to reach a consensus. “You need to know your politicians ... because these are people that are not applying pressure to help,” Floyd said. Nichols' parents said they are seeking to meet with Lee, who has never vetoed a bill.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, George Floyd, Eric Garner —, —, Philonise Floyd, Floyd, ” Floyd, “ I'm, Nichols, RowVaughn Wells, Rodney Wells, Gwen Carr, Garner, Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin, United, Bill Lee, Republican Donald Trump, Lee, it's, ” Fulton, George Zimmerman, She's, Florida's, Fulton, Ron DeSantis, “, Carr, Eric Garner, Garner's, ”, Weeks, Michael Brown, Andrew Cuomo, “ It's, There's Organizations: George Floyd Justice, House, Senate, National Civil Rights Museum, Black Memphis, City Council, Republican, Tennessee General Assembly, Tennessee Gov, Florida's Republican Gov, Gov Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Memphis, Minneapolis, Black, Tennessee, Florida, New York, Ferguson , Missouri

☆ Republicans Move to Block a Policing Change Made After Tyre Nichols’s Death
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Emily Cochrane | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The NewsTennessee Republicans moved on Thursday to overrule a change to the policing of Memphis traffic laws that was a direct response to the death of Tyre Nichols, who was fatally beaten by officers last year during a traffic stop. A new Memphis law, supported by Mr. Nichols’s family and seen by many as a crucial reform in the weeks after his death, had prevented the police from intervening over more minor traffic offenses, such as a broken taillight. BackgroundThe legislation does not directly name Memphis or the law, which was overwhelmingly approved by the City Council after Mr. Nichols’s death last January. But the Memphis Republicans who led the push to override the ordinance explicitly criticized it as an impediment to controlling crime. It remains unclear why Mr. Nichols was stopped.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Nichols’s, Bill Lee, Nichols Organizations: News Tennessee Republicans, Republican, Gov, City, Memphis Republicans, Police, Memphis Police Department Locations: Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge on Thursday pushed back for four months the federal court trial of four former Memphis police officers charged with civil rights violations in the beating death of Tyre Nichols. Officers caught up with Nichols and punched him, kicked him and hit him with a police baton, video showed. An autopsy report showed Nichols died from blows to the head, and that the manner of death was homicide. Along with Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith were fired after Nichols’ death. Norris ruled last week against Haley's motion to exclude expert testimony at the federal trial.

Persons: —, Tyre Nichols, Mark Norris, Norris, Stephen Ross Johnson, Emmitt Martin, ” Johnson, “, yanked Nichols, Nichols, Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr, Justin Smith, Mills, Black, Michael Stengel, Stengel, ” Organizations: Memphis, District, Memphis ’, Memphis Police, U.S . Department Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Memphis, United States

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The city of Memphis released hours of additional video and audio on Tuesday in the case of five fired police officers charged with the violent beating and death of Tyre Nichols last January. Police video released weeks after the killing showed the five officers beating Nichols as he yelled for his mother just steps from his house. That video also showed the officers milling about and talking with each other as Nichols sat on the ground, struggling with his injuries. The four who remain charged face federal trial in May and state court trial in August. Prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed that most police personnel records that pre-dated Nichols’ beating could be released.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Desmond Mills Jr, Mills, — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin, Justin Smith —, Nichols, Black, Shelby, James Jones Jr, Garrity, Nichols ’ Organizations: Police, Associated Press, “, ”, Prosecutors, U.S . Department of Justice, Memphis Police Department, Justice Department Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Memphis

Officials have not yet released body camera footage of the most recent shooting, which occurred Tuesday afternoon, but residents of the southwest Baltimore neighborhood expressed outrage over what they called an unnecessary loss of life. The man, later identified as Hunter Jessup, started running and allegedly pointed a gun at police during the ensuing chase. The group said DAT officers treat them with disdain and routinely initiate negative interactions. Police leaders often commend officers for getting illegal firearms off the streets, and Baltimore gun violence overall has been trending downward in recent months. Daniel Webster, a professor at Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Gun Violence Solutions in Baltimore, said the success of specialized gun units often hinges on a focused approach.

Persons: “ They’re, ”, Rashawn McNeil, “, ” McNeil, Hunter Jessup, McNeil, Richard Worley, Jessup, ” Worley, Freddie Gray’s, Tyre Nichols, Daniel Webster, Webster, there’s, Lindsey Eldridge, ” Eldridge, Rashad McNeil, ” Rashawn McNeil, “ It’s Organizations: BALTIMORE, Baltimore Police Department, Police, Force, of Justice, Johns Hopkins University’s Center, Gun Violence Solutions, Webster’s, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Baltimore Locations: Baltimore, Jessup, Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A judge has set an August trial date for four former Memphis police officers charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after a traffic stop in January. During a short hearing on Monday, Shelby County Criminal Court Judge James Jones Jr. announced the Aug. 12 trial date in the cases of Emmitt Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith. A fifth officer charged in the case, Desmond Mills Jr., pleaded guilty last week to federal charges of excessive force and obstruction of justice. The five former officers who were charged also are Black. The federal trial date for the four other officers is May 6.

Persons: —, Tyre Nichols, James Jones Jr, Emmitt Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith, Desmond Mills Jr, Mills, Nichols, Jan Organizations: Memphis, Prosecutors, U.S, Memphis Police Department Locations: MEMPHIS, Tenn, Shelby

☆ Former Memphis Officer Agrees to Plead Guilty to Murder in Tyre Nichols Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( Mariah Timms | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The former Memphis police officers accused of murder in the death of Tyre Nichols appeared with attorneys at a February hearing. Photo: Brandon Dill/Associated PressA former Memphis police officer agreed to plead guilty to murder charges in the fatal police beating of Tyre Nichols in January as part of a deal reached Thursday with federal and state prosecutors. Desmond Mills Jr ., 33, accepted a plea deal on second-degree murder charges in the case against him and four other officers involved in the traffic stop that left Nichols beaten beyond recognition. He was also charged with aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression in the state case.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Brandon Dill, Desmond Mills Jr, Nichols Organizations: Memphis, Associated Press

Desmond Mills Jr., one of five former Memphis police officers charged in connection with the brutal beating and death of Tyre Nichols, pleaded guilty in federal court on Thursday to two felony charges of obstruction of justice and excessive force. He is the first of the five officers indicted on federal charges by a grand jury in September to plead guilty. His cooperation is expected to include pleading guilty to at least some of the state charges, and potentially testifying against the other officers. The remaining four officers have all pleaded not guilty to both federal and state charges. Five Black officers from the department’s elite Scorpion unit, including Mr. Mills, were soon fired for their roles in the beating.

Persons: Desmond Mills Jr, Tyre Nichols, Mills, Nichols Organizations: Memphis, Prosecutors, Scorpion

[1/2] Desmond Mills Jr. with attorney Blake Ballin stand as five former Memphis police officers who have been charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols attend an arraignment hearing at Shelby County courthouse in Memphis, Tennessee, U.S., February 17, 2023. REUTERS/Karen Pulfer Focht/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 1 (Reuters) - One of the five former Memphis police officers charged in the death of Black motorist Tyre Nichols has asked a U.S. District Court judge to change his plea of not guilty in the federal civil rights case, court records showed on Wednesday. The Daily Memphian, citing an interview with Ballin, said the plea would affect the state case against him. The officers also face a federal civil suit filed by civil rights lawyer Ben Crump on behalf of the family. The other officers charged in the case are Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean.

Persons: Desmond Mills Jr, Blake Ballin, Tyre Nichols, Karen Pulfer Focht, Black, Mark Norris, Mills, Nichols, whacked, Ballin, Ben Crump, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith, Tadarrius Bean, cuffed, Daniel Trotta, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Memphis, REUTERS, U.S, of, Police, The Memphis Police Department, Memphis Fire Department, Thomson Locations: Shelby County, Memphis , Tennessee, U.S, Western, of Tennessee

☆ Gershun Freeman: Nine Memphis deputies charged in death of Black man
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( Brendan O'Brien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The parents of another man beaten in Memphis, Tyre Nichols, are in the center. "Let me be clear, no actions by any Shelby County Sheriff's Office employee caused Mr. Freeman's death ... I stand with these officers," Bonner said during the news conference, adding that the medical examiner determined that Freeman died from a pre-existing heart condition. The case has garnered more national attention since the Jan. 7 beating death of another Black man, Tyre Nichols, by Memphis police officers who are now charged with murder. Nashville-Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk is handling the case against the officers after Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy recused himself.

Persons: Ben Crump, Gershun Freeman, Tyre Nichols, Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner, Bonner, Freeman, Black, Glenn Funk, Steve Mulroy, Mulroy, Brendan O'Brien, Chizu Organizations: Shelby County Sheriff, Sheriff's, Memphis, Nashville, Thomson Locations: Shelby, Memphis , Tennessee, U.S, Memphis, Shelby County, Davidson, Chicago

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A group photo of about two dozen law officers in tactical gear posing with escaped murderer Danelo Cavalcante minutes after his capture Wednesday in southeastern Pennsylvania drew criticism from policing reform advocates and some members of the public. Policing experts said the celebratory moment after the grueling 14-day search for the armed suspect was inappropriate and dehumanizing. Photos of Cavalcante immediately after being arrested, with the police dog pinning him down, circulated widely on social media Wednesday in the hours after the arrest was announced. The photos did not include information about who took them, but they were taken inside the secured perimeter where only law enforcement officers were allowed. If I was on the scene as the public affairs officer representing a law enforcement agency, I would have discouraged it.”

Persons: Danelo, George Bivens, “ They’re, ” Bivens, “ I’m, ”, Adam Scott Wandt, John Jay, “, ” Wandt, Cavalcante, Tyre Nichols, Demetrius Haley, Nichols, Wilson, ” Wilson, that's, ” Leonard Sipes, ” Sipes Organizations: PHILADELPHIA, KYW, Pennsylvania, Police, John, John Jay College of Criminal, Pennsylvania State Police, State Police, Associated Press, U.S . Marshals Service, U.S . Customs, Border Protection, Drug Enforcement Agency, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, Explosives, Memphis, Niles, Center for Policing Equity, Civil Locations: Pennsylvania, U.S, Newark , New Jersey

☆ Federal Grand Jury Indicts Five Former Officers Involved in Tyre Nichols’s Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Mariah Timms | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones, 71fd4ef7

☆ Five former Memphis police officers indicted in Tyre Nichols killing
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The five officers, all of whom are Black, were fired from the department. According to Tuesday's indictment, they have been charged with four federal counts including "Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law: Excessive Force and Failure to Intervene." The indictment says the five former officers provided "false and misleading information" and "intentionally omitted material information" in their communications with the Memphis Police Department in the reports about Nichols' arrest, the filing added. In July, the Justice Department opened an investigation into whether the Memphis Police Department has an unconstitutional "pattern or practice" of using excessive force and racial discrimination. The Justice Department said it had received multiple reports of Memphis officers using excessive force and reports they may use force against people who are already restrained or in police custody.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Nichols, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin, Desmond Mills Jr, Justin Smith, Eric Beech, Kanishka Singh, Caitlin Webber Organizations: Memphis, Mason, : Church of God, Police, Force, Memphis Police Department, Justice Department, Thomson Locations: Memphis , Tennessee, U.S, WASHINGTON

☆ Five Former Officers Indicted on Federal Charges in Tyre Nichols Case
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Emily Cochrane | More About Emily Cochrane | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Five former Memphis police officers accused of brutally beating Tyre Nichols have been indicted on federal criminal charges in connection with Mr. Nichols’s death in January, the Justice Department announced on Tuesday. The four charges, handed up by a grand jury in the Federal District Court in Memphis, accuse each of the five men of various civil rights, conspiracy and obstruction offenses. The indictment says that the two offenses led to Mr. Nichols’s severe injuries and death. If convicted, the men could face up to life in prison on those two counts alone. The remaining two counts — both related to witness tampering and obstruction — are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Nichols’s, Nichols Organizations: Memphis, Justice Department, Court Locations: Federal, Memphis

☆ Justice Dept. Opens Civil Rights Investigation of Memphis Police
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Rick Rojas | More About Rick Rojas | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Justice Department said on Thursday that it had begun a sweeping civil rights investigation into policing in Memphis, examining allegations of pervasive problems with excessive force and unlawful stops of Black residents that were amplified by the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols in January. In announcing the investigation, officials specifically cited the death of Mr. Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, whose beating by Memphis police officers on Jan. 7, 2023, was captured by body camera and surveillance footage. The case stoked outrage across the country and directed intense scrutiny onto how the Memphis Police Department operates. The investigation, officials said, intends to explore those broader concerns and whether there has been a pattern or practice of violating civil rights. Kristen Clarke, the assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, said on Thursday that though Mr. Nichols’s death was a factor in the investigation, the inquiry was “not based on a single incident or event.”

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Nichols, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Kristen Clarke, Nichols’s, ” Organizations: Memphis, Memphis Police Department, Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division Locations: Memphis, Minneapolis, Louisville, Ky

☆ U.S. Justice Department investigating Memphis police for civil rights violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Jonathan Allen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 27 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into whether the Memphis Police Department has an unconstitutional "pattern or practice" of using excessive force and racial discrimination, department officials announced on Thursday. Earlier this year, the Justice Department agreed to join city officials and other agencies in a review of the Memphis Police Department after its officers fatally beat Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, in the Tennessee city in January. The federal investigation announced on Thursday is not tied to any specific incident, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said at a press conference, though she noted Nichols' "tragic death" in her remarks. "City and police department leaders recognize the need to scrutinize the police department's practices to prevent such incidents from ever happening again," Clarke said. Reporting by Jonathan Allen in New York; Editing by Aurora EllisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Kristen Clarke, Nichols, Clarke, Jonathan Allen, Aurora Ellis Organizations: U.S . Department of Justice's Civil, Memphis Police Department, Justice Department, Thomson Locations: Tennessee, New York

☆ Murders, on the Decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( German Lopez | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

And with less confidence in the justice system, some Americans resort instead to violence to resolve conflicts. Between 2014 and 2016, murders also increased after widely publicized police killings of Black men in Ferguson, Mo. This year, Memphis is among a minority of big cities where murders have increased — and Memphis is also where officers were charged in the beating and killing of Tyre Nichols in January. Crime is an incredibly complicated topic, involving personal disputes, the economy, social services, the political system and more. A few decades, much less a couple of years, is typically too little time to explain a trend definitively.

Persons: Tyre Nichols, Jeff Asher Organizations: Baltimore Banner Locations: Ferguson, Mo, Baltimore, Memphis

☆ Autopsy Shows Tyre Nichols Died of Head Injuries From Police Beating
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Emily Cochrane | Jessica Jaglois | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

An autopsy report released on Thursday confirmed that Tyre Nichols died as a result of blunt force injuries to his head after a group of Memphis police officers brutally kicked and bludgeoned him. Shelby County medical examiners formally declared his death on Jan. 10 a homicide, describing severe injuries to Mr. Nichols’s head and neck as well as bruises and cuts all over his body. The report also found that on the day of the beating, Jan. 7, Mr. Nichols had a blood alcohol concentration of .049 percent — well below the legal limit for driving in Tennessee — despite insinuations from the police that he had been pulled over for driving while intoxicated. The formal assessment of what killed Mr. Nichols, about four months after a routine traffic stop turned violent, comes as prosecutors are continuing to investigate the beating. The brutality of the attack captured on body camera and surveillance footage, fueled a national outcry and drew scathing criticism over how frequently law enforcement in Memphis used excessive force and intimidation tactics.

May 3 (Reuters) - An autopsy showed Tyre Nichols had a legal amount of alcohol and a trace amount of marijuana in his blood when Memphis police beat the Black man to death after a traffic stop in January, ABC News reported on Wednesday, undermining police claims that Nichols was high. Nichols' death provoked widespread outrage after police video showed officers beating and kicking Nichols, 29, as he cried out for his mother near his family home in Tennessee. Nichols' blood alcohol level was .049%, well below the .08% legal limit in Tennessee, and he had trace amounts of marijuana in his system, ABC reported. The video showed the first emergency medical technician to treat Nichols first asked him, "What'd you have? Crump and Romanucci are representing Nichols' family in a $550 million federal lawsuit against the city of Memphis.

CNN —Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man who was violently beaten by Memphis police officers in January, died from blunt force trauma to the head and his death has been ruled a homicide, his autopsy results revealed Thursday. Nichols was repeatedly punched and kicked by five Memphis Police Department officers on January 7 following a traffic stop and brief foot chase. A toxicology report performed on Nichols detected the presence of chemicals associated with marijuana and alcohol use, the report says. CNN has contacted the Shelby County medical examiner to obtain a direct copy of Nichols’ autopsy report. The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office told CNN on Tuesday that it will not pursue criminal charges against Hemphill.

"We're not endorsing what happened, but we do not believe that criminal charges are appropriate," Mulroy told reporters. An autopsy will be available soon and is expected to confirm that Nichols died of injuries from the beating, Mulroy added. Police video of the incident showed officers kicking, punching and beating Nichols with a baton on Jan. 7. Hemphill, along with those accused of murder and a seventh officer, were relieved of their duties by the Memphis Police Department. Prosecutors will not charge any other officer who arrived after the beating but are still investigating fire department staff, Mulroy said.

☆ Tyre Nichols’s Mother Sues Memphis, Police Chief and Officers Involved in Son’s Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Cameron Mcwhirter | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Photo: Brandon Dill/Associated PressThe mother of Tyre Nichols, the Memphis man who died in January after being beaten by police during a traffic stop, on Wednesday sued the city of Memphis, its police chief and others, including the former officers now facing murder charges in Mr. Nichols’s death. In the 139-page complaint, RowVaughn Wells said her 29-year-old son was killed in “a gruesome, barbaric display of police brutality on the streets of a quiet neighborhood in Memphis.” The complaint stated that Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis exercised poor training and oversight of officers and fostered an attitude among officers that they were above the law.

☆ Tyre Nichols’s Mother Sues Memphis, Police for at Least $500 Million After Son’s Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Cameron Mcwhirter | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

April 19 (Reuters) - Lawyers for Tyre Nichols' family filed a lawsuit on Wednesday in federal court seeking damages from those responsible for the beating death of the 29-year-old Black man at the hands of Memphis police. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump said in a tweet that the lawsuit would seek to hold the Tennessee city, the Memphis Police Department and individual officers accountable for Nichols' death in January. Nichols' death on Jan. 10 came three days after his beating by police during a traffic stop and triggered a nationwide outcry and protests, leading to the arrest and indictment for second-degree murder of five police officers. Police and fire department responders left a mortally wounded Nichols on the ground, his hands cuffed behind his back, and intermittently propped him against a patrol car. Besides seeking damages for wrongful death, Crump's legal team is also suing Memphis police for intentional infliction of emotional distress for lying to his mother.

☆ Memphis council suspends extra police reforms after protests
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Andrew Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 11 (Reuters) - Memphis' city council voted on Tuesday to indefinitely postpone extra police reforms in response to Tyre Nichols' beating death after protests the proposals watered down ordinances passed in March. "It is in the best interest to allow previous ordinances on criminal justice reform advocated for by Council members and constituency groups to stand alone," Council Vice Chair JB Smiley told the council. Audience members cheered and chanted "Justice for Tyre" after the council approved Smiley's motion to indefinitely table consideration of the proposed reforms. The death of Nichols, 29, prompted outrage and calls for change. Reporting by Andrew Hay, additional reporting by Dan Trotta; Editing by Richard ChangOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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