5 Memphis officers fired for involvement in death of Tyre Nichols
One of the five Memphis police officers fired in connection with the death of Tyre Nichols was accused of beating a prison inmate years earlier, according to reports.
A lawsuit unearthed this week alleged former officer Demetrius Haley participated in an assault on an inmate in May 2015. The suit, filed in 2016, was ultimately dismissed for procedural reasons.
Last week, Mr Haley was fired from the Memphis Police Department over his involvement in a January 10 traffic stop in which Nichols, 29, was allegedly beaten. The Black man died days later.
An independent autopsy released by the family has since revealed Nichols suffered “extensive bleeding” before his death.
The US Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, Kevin Ritz, on Wednesday vowed to carry out a complete and thorough civil rights investigation.
He noted that the highly-anticipated release of body camera footage showing the traffic stop will be left up to state and local authorities.
Nichols’ family met with police earlier this week to review the video, which civil rights lawyer Ben Crump described as “appalling, heinous, violent and troublesome”.
