Global Courant 2023-05-03 00:51:09
No criminal charges will be brought against a Memphis police officer who was fired for his involvement in the traffic control that led to the death of Tire Nichols, the Shelby County District Attorney said Tuesday.
Nichols, a 29-year-old black man, was brutally assaulted after being pulled over for alleged reckless driving on January 7 and died three days later. On Tuesday, Shelby County DA Steve Mulroy shared an update on the investigation into Nichols’ death, explaining why criminal charges against former Memphis police officer Preston Hemphill were not warranted.
Hemphill was at the scene of the traffic control but never attended the later scene where Nichols was seen on video being beaten and beaten with a stick, the prosecutor said.
“We do not in any way endorse Officer Hemphill’s behavior at that first traffic stop,” Mulroy said. “But we don’t believe criminal charges are appropriate.”
Band Nichols.Courtesy of Ben Crump Law
He added that officials watched CCTV footage of the body for hours and conducted hours of interviews with the officer, who fired a stun gun at Nichols as he ran away from the first traffic stop.
Hemp wax terminated for multiple violations that included using a Taser, police said in February.
On Tuesday, Mulroy said that when reviewing and analyzing body camera footage, Hemphill attempted to deploy the stun gun “because he saw that Nichols was not fleeing to the neighborhood, but was actually heading for an open police car door.”
“That had to factor into our assessment of his decision,” he said.
Mulroy said his office consulted family and attorney Ben Crump, who said they supported the decision not to press charges.
He read a statement from Crump on behalf of Nichols’ family that said: “We understand that this individual has fully cooperated with the investigation and has pledged to provide substantial cooperation in the future. In light of this, we will not support any charges for this individual.”
“It is our deepest hope and expectation that justice will be fully served and that everyone who played a part in this senseless tragedy will be held accountable,” the statement said.
A spokesperson for the Memphis Police Department was unavailable Tuesday for the department’s response to the district attorney’s decision.
Lee Gerald, a lawyer for Hemphill, said the no-charge announcement “came as no surprise to us”.
“While preparing a defense for what we thought might be charges, during our investigation we discovered evidence that Agent Hemphill did not violate Tennessee or federal law,” he said. team was that Officer Hemphill tried more than once to de-escalate the confrontation in the first scene.”
Hemphill will continue to cooperate with the investigation and “uphold his oath to uphold the laws of Tennessee and the U.S. Constitution,” Gerald said. However, it was unclear whether Hemphill plans to seek reassignment as an officer.
Also Tuesday, Mulroy said Nichols’ autopsy is nearing completion.
“We expect it to confirm that Mr. Nichols has died as a result of the injuries sustained in the beating,” he added.
Videos of the police check and beating of Nichols shocked and dismayed people across the country. FBI Director Christopher Wray said he was “appalled” and President Joe Biden said he was outraged and called the video horrifying.
Five Memphis police officers were fired and charged with first-degree murder and other charges following the traffic stop and beating.
The Officers – Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith – pleaded not guilty to the charges in February.
Four of them can no longer work as law enforcement officers in Tennessee. The Peace Officer Standards & Training Commission, or POST, voted at a March meeting to decertify Haley, Martin and Smith. It also approved a decision by Mills to surrender his certification.
Bean, Hemphill and Dewayne Smith have not yet had their decertification hearings before the committee. Smith, the supervising lieutenant who arrived on the scene after the beating, retired rather than be fired.
Smith and a seventh police officer who was not named after being relieved of duty have not been charged in the investigation.
