A jury has reached a verdict in federal court against three former Memphis police officers accused of killing Tire Nichols.
Jurors began deliberating on Thursday.
Nichols was struck after fleeing a traffic jam in January 2023 in Memphis and died three days later. Prosecutors said the officers wanted to punish him for fleeing, while defense attorneys said they followed department policy.
A photo of Tire Nichols is displayed outside the sanctuary during a church service at the Cathedral CME Church of Mt. Olive on January 29, 2023 in Memphis, Tennessee.
Joshua Lott/The Washington Post via Getty Images, FILE
Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean were charged with violating Nichols’ civil rights for using excessive force, unlawful assault, failure to intervene in the assault and failure to render medical aid. The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted, according to the US Department of Justice. The officers pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr., two other officers also charged in the case, have pleaded guilty to some of the federal charges and testified during the week-long trial.
Federal prosecutor Kathryn Gilbert said during her closing arguments that the officers laughed and bragged about beating Nichols and didn’t call medics to the scene because they wanted to distance themselves from what they had done and protect themselves.
“He wanted to be a beatdown,” Gilbert told a jury of three former officers.
“You’re the one in between and avoid it,” he added.
John Perry, Bean’s attorney, argued during the closing saying that the force his client used in his interactions with Nichols was “not excessive.”
Both Perry and Haley’s attorney, Stephen Leffler, argued in closing arguments that their clients did not violate Memphis Police Department policy.
Leffler admitted that Haley said “beat that guy” and delivered a kick to Nichols, but said “beat that guy” was only a verbal command and not a physical encounter.
Smith’s attorney, Martin Zummach, said during the closing that Smith did not see Martin and Haley kick Nichols because he was blinded by the pepper spray and scared. Zummach denied Smith covered up “excessive force” and said Smith reported the kick to his supervisor.
“He’s not perfect but imperfect is not a crime,” Zummach said.
This composite order photo provided by the Shelby County, Tenn., Sheriff’s Office shows, from left, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith.
Shelby County Sheriff’s Office via AP
The three former officers on trial did not testify.
Both Martin and Mills testified for the government during the trial about the beating.
Martin said angry Nichols fled during the traffic stop. “I wanted some kind of revenge. I saw red,” he said.
He admitted to kicking and punching Nichols several times. The former officer, who was caught throwing away his body camera, said he didn’t know about the Skycop camera recording the incident above until he saw it on the news, according to WATN, the ABC affiliate in Memphis that covered the courtroom case.
Mills testified that he was angry that he intentionally sprayed himself with pepper spray, and that he used too much force on Nichols, according to WATN.
He broke down in tears on the stand at one point.
“I wish I had stopped the punches. It hurts to watch. It hurts so much,” said Mills, crying during his testimony, according to WATN. “It feels terrible every time the picture on the screen knows that I was a part of it. I made his son fatherless. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I know ‘sorry’ won’t bring him back. But I pray that his son has everything needed to grow.”
Mills pleaded guilty to two of the four counts in the indictment – excessive force and failure to intervene, as well as conspiring to cover up the illegal use of force, according to the DOJ. The government said it would recommend a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison, based on the terms of Mills’ plea agreement.
Martin pleaded guilty to excessive force and failure to intervene, as well as conspiracy to tamper with a witness, according to court records. The other two charges will be dropped at sentencing, which is scheduled for Dec. 5, according to court records.
Body camera footage shows Nichols fleeing after police pulled him over on Jan. 7, 2023, for allegedly driving recklessly, then was shocked with a Taser and pepper sprayed.
Officers allegedly later beat Nichols minutes after tracking him down. After the police encounter, Nichols was transferred to the hospital in critical condition.
Nichols, 29, died at the hospital on Jan. 10, 2023. Footage shows officers walking around, talking to each other as Nichols is wounded and lying on the ground.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said she could not prove that Nichols was driving recklessly. The incident sparked protests and calls for police reform.
The medical examiner’s official autopsy report for Nichols indicated that he “died of brain injury from blunt force trauma,” the district attorney’s office told Nichols’ family in May 2023.
The five former officers charged in the case are all members of the Memphis Police Department’s SCORPION unit — a crime-suppression unit that was disbanded after Nichols’ death. All of those officers were fired for violating MPD policy.
