MEMPHIS,Tenn – Three former Memphis police officers were acquitted Wednesday of state charges, including second-degree murder, in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols after he fled a traffic stop in 2023.
After a nine-day trial in Memphis state court, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith were found not guilty on all charges by a jury that appeared to be entirely white. After the jury’s verdict was read, the defendants hugged their lawyers, while relatives of the former officers sobbed. One relative exclaimed, “Thank you, Jesus!”
The three defendants still face years in prison after being convicted of federal charges last year, despite being acquitted of the most serious charges at the time.
Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, fled a traffic stop after being yanked out of his car, pepper sprayed, and Tasered. Five Black officers apprehended him and punched, kicked, and hit Nichols with a police baton while attempting to handcuff him as he called out for his mother just steps away from his home. Nichols died on January 10, 2023, three days after the beating.
A police pole camera captured footage of the beating, which showed officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggled. His death sparked nationwide protests, increased calls for police reform in the United States, and drew intense scrutiny of police in Memphis, a predominantly Black city.
Prosecutors said the officers beat Nichols out of frustration
Former Memphis police officer Desmond Mills Jr., who was also charged in Nichols’ death, testified for the prosecution.
Mills and another officer involved in the beating, Emmitt Martin, agreed to plead guilty to the state charges and did not face trial as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors. They also pleaded guilty in federal court, and all five officers’ sentences are pending.
The officers were charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct, and oppression.
The officers were accused of using excessive force in the arrest of Nichols. They were frustrated, angry, and full of adrenaline after Nichols fled the traffic stop, according to prosecutor Paul Hagerman’s opening statements.
They were “overcome by the moment,” the prosecutor stated.
“Nobody is going to call them monsters,” Hagerman insisted. “It does not take monsters to kill a man.”
Prosecutors claimed that the officers used excessive, lethal force in attempting to handcuff Nichols and were criminally responsible for one another’s actions. They also claimed that the officers had a duty to intervene, stop the beating, and notify medical personnel that Nichols had been hit repeatedly in the head, but they failed to do so.
Defense attorneys said Martin was responsible for the most violence
Defense attorneys attempted to refute claims that the officers used excessive force to apprehend Nichols and followed police policies and standards. According to defense attorneys, the officer who acted most violently was Martin, who kicked and punched Nichols several times in the head but is not on trial.
The defense also appeared to win points with its use-of-force experts, who testified that the officers on trial followed police department policies and widely accepted law enforcement standards. Attorneys for Bean and Smith called character witnesses who testified that the men were good men and officers who did their jobs correctly.
Mills testified that he regrets failing to stop the beating, which resulted in Nichols’ death from blunt force trauma. Dr. Marco Ross, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy, testified in court that Nichols had tears and bleeding in his brain.
Mills attempted to pepper-spray Nichols while he was struggling with Bean and Smith, who were holding him down, but he ended up spraying himself, he said.
After taking a step back to recover, Mills approached Nichols and struck his arm three times with a police baton. Mills told prosecutor Paul Hagerman that he hit Nichols with the baton because he was upset about the pepper spray.
The defense argued that Nichols was resisting arrest
Mills admitted on the stand that he had a duty to intervene and stop the beating, but did not.
However, Mills claimed that Nichols was actively resisting arrest and refused to present his hands to be cuffed.
During the trial, defense attorney John Keith Perry asked Mills if he would have hit Nichols with the baton if Nichols had simply placed his hands behind his back. Mills said no.
Martin Zummach, Smith’s attorney, questioned Mills about an officer’s safety if a suspect is not handcuffed and searched for a weapon. Mills said they were not safe in that situation. Nichols was not searched before he fled the traffic stop.
Mills acknowledged that the officers were scared and exhausted, but claimed that some of the tactics used on Nichols were in accordance with police department policies, such as using wrist locks and hitting with a baton.
Zummach stated in closing arguments that credit and debit cards that did not belong to Nichols were discovered in his car when it was searched following the beating, which is likely why Nichols fled the traffic stop. Defense attorneys have argued that the fatal beating would not have occurred if Nichols had simply allowed himself to be handcuffed.
“This is Emmitt Martin’s and Tyre Nichols’ doing,” Zummach said.
The defense also claimed Nichols was on drugs, giving him the strength to fight off five powerful officers. A TBI agent testified that he also discovered mushrooms containing the hallucinogenic psilocybin in his car. However, a toxicology report revealed that Nichols only had alcohol and a small amount of marijuana in his system.
Mills admitted that Nichols never punched or kicked one of the officers.
Bean and Smith, according to defense lawyers, were blinded by pepper spray and had tunnel vision while attempting to restrain Nichols, so they could not see the strikes to his head.
However, prosecutors called into question that claim by citing comments made by the defendants following the beating. According to video footage from the scene, Bean claimed Nichols was “eating” the blows, while Smith claimed they hit him with “so many pieces,” or punches. Smith also said “hit him” and Haley said “beat that man,” according to prosecutor Tanisha Johnson.
The United States Justice Department announced in December that a 17-month investigation had revealed that the Memphis Police Department uses excessive force and discriminates against Black people.