Seven months after the horrific beating death by police of Memphis, Tennessee, motorist Tyre Nichols, the Justice Department, on July 27, 2023, launched a civil rights investigation into allegations the Memphis Police Department routinely used excessive force and, on a systemic basis, discriminated against Black residents.
Although Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said during a press conference that the investigation of the department and city of Memphis is “not based on a single incident or event,” she also said, “In January of this year, the nation witnessed the tragic death of Tyre Nichols at the hands of Memphis police.”
