Five former Memphis police officers have pleaded not guilty to the second-degree murder of Tyre Nichols during a traffic stop last month.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith also entered not guilty pleas to charges of aggravated assault and kidnapping as they made their first appearance with lawyers at the Shelby County Criminal Court on Friday, the Associated Press reported.
Nichols’ mother RowVaughn Wells, stepfather Rodney Wells, and their lawyer Ben Crump were in court.
Nichols died in hospital three days after he was beaten and tased during a traffic stop in Memphis on 7 January.
Police initially claimed the 29-year-old father of one had been pulled over for reckless driving and had resisted arrest and tried to grab an officers’ gun.
But bodycam footage later showed the officers deliver an unprovoked, prolonged and brutal assault on the defenseless FedEx driver.
The five officers were later fired and the tactical police unit they belonged to was disbanded.
Judge James Jones Jr told the five former police officers that “there may be some high emotions in this case”, according to the AP.
“Be patient. Work with your attorneys,” he told the accused.
The five former officers have been released on bond, and are due to make their next appearance on 1 May.
Another officer involved in the traffic stop has been fired, a second has been suspended, and six more are facing disciplinary action. Three Memphis fire officials – two EMTs and a lieutenant – were fired over their failure to administer adequate medical care to Nichols.
Nichols was pulled over for an alleged traffic violation before being dragged from his car, and punched and tased by members of Memphis police’s Scorpion crime-suppression unit.
He ran away towards his mothers’ home, before police caught up with him and took turns at kicking and punching him.
Four videos from the officers’ bodyworn cameras and a surveillance camera showed officers delivering the brutal assault, before standing around and casually discussing the beating as Nichols lay dying.
The release of the video cast renewed focus on police brutality against Black men, and led to a period of national mourning and peaceful protests.
Community leaders, Nichols’ family and activists have called for lawmakers to pass police reform legislation, that stalled in Congress after the death of George Floyd in 2020.
