Demonstrators in cities across the country expressed sorrow, anger and exhaustion at watching the video images of Nichols. The protests remained largely nonviolent, though the police in New York City did detain three protesters and a demonstrator smashed the windshield of police cruiser.
The charges: Before the video’s release, the five officers involved in the beating, who are all Black, were indicted on charges of second-degree murder, kidnapping and other crimes. “No one out there that night intended for Tyre Nichols to die,” a lawyer for one of the officers said. All five posted bail and have been released from jail.
The officers have been fired from the Memphis Police Department. They had served in a specialized unit, called Scorpion, which stands for “Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods” and was formed to crack down on serious crimes. The unit has been inactive since the traffic stop that killed Nichols, Mayor Jim Strickland said.
Two county sheriff’s deputies who were on the scene after the beating were also relieved of duty pending an investigation.
Policing overhauls: Nichols’s family has called for changes to the Memphis police force and for the department to disband the Scorpion unit. From 2016 to 2022, police used force against Black residents nearly three times more frequently that against white residents, according to city data.
After the 2020 demonstrations over George Floyd’s murder, state and local officials around the country implemented changes including bans on chokeholds, restrictions on the use of force and requirements that officers wear cameras. But activists argue that the steps have fallen short of holding the police accountable and have failed to prevent unnecessary violence.
What’s next: Protesters planned more demonstrations today in Memphis.
Commentary
-
Americans abandoned the issue of police reform and should be ashamed, Charles M. Blow writes.
-
It’s not especially surprising that the five officers indicted in Nichols’s death are Black, the journalist Wesley Lowery tweeted. “In tracking police violence, we never found that race of the officer made much difference.”
-
Automated speed cameras, license-plate readers and other technology can better and more safely enforce traffic laws than the police, Sarah Seo of Columbia Law School has written for Times Opinion.
For more
THE LATEST NEWS