BRUTALITY

Feds Indict Five Memphis Cops in Tyre Nichols’ Death

Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr., and Justin Smith are also facing separate state charges.

A federal indictment was filed Tuesday against five former cops from the Memphis Police Department over the death of 29-year-old Black man Tyre Nichols. The pending charges include two counts of depriving civil rights and two counts of tampering with a witness, victim, or informant. Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr., and Justin Smith are all facing second-degree murder charges in a separate Tennessee state criminal case. Those officers were among a group of cops who tased and severely beat Nichols after carrying out an unfounded traffic stop on Nichols on Jan. 7 for what they claimed was reckless driving. Nichols died three days later from injuries suffered in the horrific beatdown. The officers were part of Memphis’ SCORPION unit, which was organized to locate crime areas and suppress them with additional patrols. The feds are also investigating MPD as a whole, including whether traffic stops using excessive force “may focus disproportionately on the Black community.” The defendants will make appearances at the Shelby County Criminal Court and federal court on Friday, September 15.