Tyre Nichols death: Kamala Harris to attend funeral as seven Memphis officers suspended after beating video released

Five officers involved in the brutal beating of Tyree Nichols – Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr, Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith – were fired on January 20 and have since been charged with second-degree murder.

Another officer, Preston Hemphill, was suspended, along with a seventh officer who has not been identified.

Here’s what we know about them:

Nearly an hour of footage showing Memphis police officers pepper-spraying, batting, punching, kicking and charging Tyree Nichols helped quickly indict the officers involved for murder. The independentBevan Hurley explains what the video captured:

The only known white officer involved in the brutal beating and subsequent death of Tyree Nichols was “shielded and protected” by the Memphis Police Department, the family’s attorneys said in a statement.

The former president addressed the fatal beating of Tyree Nichols in remarks to The Associated Press during a campaign rally in South Carolina, a day after gruesome footage emerged showing a group of Memphis police brutally beating the 29-year-old.

Rev. murder.

They will address the media from the historic Mason Temple in Memphis, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his final speech before his assassination.

They will be joined by other alleged victims of the now disbanded SCORPION unit. The union, which began in November 2021, included 40 officers in four teams patrolling “high-crime centers” across the city, but had faced a wave of accusations of excessive use of force and civil rights violations.

The press conference is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. central time.

Two Memphis residents told NBC News that one of the police officers accused of killing Tyree Nichols had pulled a gun on them and threatened to shoot them in an unrelated incident.

Glenn Harris, 24, and Demarius Hervey, 27, claimed they were surrounded by police cars outside a petrol station in August 2020 and then tried to flee in Mr Harris’ car because they feared arrest for possession of cannabis.

One officer, Emmitt Martin III, allegedly pinned Mr. Harris to the pavement with a knee to his neck and threatened to “wipe your face off.”

An affidavit obtained by NBC News that appears to be from the same incident shows that the men were arrested after Mr. Harris crashed a car and after a brief chase. Mr. Harris was charged with possession of a weapon while under the influence, reckless driving, driving while suspended, license revoked or revoked, leaving the scene of an accident and evading arrest. No charges were brought against Mr. Hervey.

Vice President Kamala Harris will attend Tire Nichols’ funeral in Memphis on Wednesday, the White House confirmed.

Attorney Ben Crump, who represents the Nichols family, said in a statement that Mr. Crump, Nichols’ mother RowVaughn Wells and stepfather Rodney Wells spoke with Ms. Harris “for over thirty minutes about the tragic loss of Tyre.”

“Vice President Harris and Ms. Wells spoke exclusively and during this emotional time, the Vice President was able to comfort Ms. Wells and even help her smile,” he added. “Tyre’s parents invited Vice President Harris to the funeral tomorrow and were delighted that he accepted their invitation. Mr. and Mrs. Wells are grateful that Vice President Harris reached out with them at this heartbreaking time and for her sensitivity to the call.”

The Republican Ohio lawmaker has faced criticism for arguing that there was no law that could have prevented the beating by police that led to the death of Tyree Nichols.

The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee told NBC Meet the press on Sunday that he wasn’t sure “any law, any education, any reform” could have prevented the attack that took place during the traffic stop.

His comments come as the Biden administration, congressional Democrats and the Congressional Black Caucus hope to revive bipartisan police reform legislation that stalled over GOP objections after the killing of George Floyd.

Rev Al Sharpton, attorney Ben Crump, NAACP Memphis Chapter President Van Turner and the family of Tire Nichols will discuss the latest developments in the case of his death and recently announced disciplinary action involving seven Memphis police officers and three other emergency workers necessity.

They will address the media from the historic Mason Temple, where Dr Martin Luther King Jr delivered his final speech before his assassination.

They will be joined by other alleged victims of the now disbanded SCORPION unit.

The press conference is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. central time.