5 Memphis Police Officers Fired Over Death Of Tyre Nichols

Following a traffic stop in Tennessee this month that resulted in the hospitalization and death of a 29-year-old man, five Memphis police officers were fired on Friday, the chief alleging they had broken departmental standards.

Police Chief C.J. Davis said in a statement that an administrative investigation by the Memphis police revealed that the officers were accused of breaking several rules during the traffic stop of Tyre Nichols on Jan. 7. These rules included the use of excessive force, the duty to intervene, and the duty to render aid.

Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr., and Justin Smith were the officers' names. They were employed from 2017 to 2020.

“The Memphis Police Department is committed to protecting and defending the rights of every citizen in our city,” Davis said. “The egregious nature of this incident is not a reflection of the good work that our officers perform, with integrity, every day.” On Friday, attempts to contact the officers were unsuccessful.

Lt. Essica Cage-Rosario, president of the Memphis Police Association, declined to comment on the officers' termination in a statement sent by email and cited an ongoing criminal investigation into Nichols' murder.

“The citizens of Memphis, and more importantly, the family of Mr. Nichols deserve to know the complete account of the events leading up to his death and what may have contributed to it,” she said.

The family's attorneys said in a statement that the officers' termination was a first step toward bringing Nichols and his family justice.

Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, two attorneys, issued a joint statement in which they said, "They must also be held accountable for robbing this man of his life and his son of a father."

According to the authorities, on Jan. 7, officers pulled over Nichols for driving recklessly. According to the department at the time, there was a "confrontation" that occurred, and when Nichols escaped on foot, officers followed him.

The department claims that, Nichols complained of shortness of breath during an attempt to apprehend him after another altercation.

Three days later Nichols died.

Information concerning the incident has not been released by the authorities.

In a picture sent by his stepfather, Nichols was seen in the hospital with blood on his face and what seemed to be a swollen eye.

The Department of Justice, which revealed earlier this week that it had started a civil rights investigation into the matter, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation are also looking into it as well, reports Nbcnews.