Three former Memphis, Tennessee, police officers, Demetrius Haley, Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith, were found guilty Oct. 3 on charges of federal witness tampering in the brutal beating death of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old FedEx worker. Haley was convicted of several other charges, including violating Nichols’ civil rights by causing bodily harm.
All three were acquitted of the more serious charge of violating his civil rights by causing his death.
Two other cops, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr., had pleaded guilty and testified against the others.
“All of them have been convicted of something and they’re going to jail,” said RowVaughn Wells, Nichols’ mother, after the trial. “We’re happy that they have all been convicted.”
“What they did to my brother was wrong,” said Kenyana Dixon, his older sister. “To see them be held accountable was anything and everything that my family could ask for.”
Haley is being held without bail and Bean and Smith are on supervised release until sentencing Jan. 22. All three could face up to 20 years in prison. Bean and Smith have filed motions to reverse their convictions, claiming there wasn’t sufficient evidence.
Memphis is 64% African American and both Nichols and the cops who beat him to death are Black.
The five cops also face state charges of second-degree murder and other felonies. Charges were brought after a video from a security camera on a nearby streetlight pole and audio from the cops’ body cameras were publicly released.
Working people in Memphis and around the world were angered by the brutality and callous disregard for life that was shown in the video. Protests took place in a number of cities following its release. In a move to prevent larger protests, the authorities moved quickly to fire and charge the five cops. A sixth cop, Preston Hemphill, who is Caucasian and was part of the initial traffic stop, was suspended.
The video and testimony at the trial give a stark picture of the culture of brutality inside the Memphis, and other, police forces.
Nichols was driving home from work on Jan. 7, 2023, when he was stopped by members of the Memphis cops’ Scorpion unit, a specialized “crime suppression” outfit that has since been disbanded. With no explanation, he was dragged out of his car by one cop who yelled, “Get the f–k out!” Over the next 13 minutes cops shouted confusing and contradictory commands at him while they shocked him with a Taser, pepper sprayed, kicked and punched him. Later the cops claimed Nichols was stopped for “reckless driving.”
He didn’t resist. At one point during the cops’ brutal attack he managed to break free and run, in fear for his life.
Second beating a ‘run tax’
After chasing him down, the cops exacted what they refer to as the “run tax,” a special beating while in custody that no one would report.
After the second beating, the cops handcuffed Nichols, dragged him to the side of a squad car and sat him up. They left him there for nearly half an hour, showing no concern for any injuries. Instead, one of them complained of having hurt his knee during the chase. Another blamed Nichols for getting pepper spray in the cops’ eyes.
Haley took a couple pictures of Nichols and sent them to at least five people, including his ex-girlfriend, police officer Brittany Leake. She responded with a text saying, “Oh my God, he needs to go to the Med.” Leake testified that Haley had sent her similar pictures after brutalizing others.
Emergency medical technicians arrived but didn’t provide any aid to Nichols. In the video you can see him writhing on the ground in pain while eight to 10 cops and medical personnel casually walk around talking to each other. Three EMTs have been fired for failure to provide aid to Nichols.
Jesse James Guy III, a former paramedic, testified that no one told him Nichols had been punched, kicked or struck in the head. Instead, the cops claimed Nichols was on drugs. Guy said, “It felt like he was lifeless.” Nichols died three days later in a hospital. His death was ruled a homicide due to blunt-force injuries to the head.
“Most of the community is as satisfied as it can be with a conviction,” Kermit Moore, Memphis NAACP branch president and a longtime union member, told the Militant, “We all saw the video. I saw more than obstruction. I saw civil rights violations. I saw human rights violations.
“We are standing with the family. The family is happy to have a conviction. They don’t want to see an uproar or unrest. We respect the family.”