Police brutality and misconduct

Tyre Nichols: Ex-Officers Plead Not Guilty

FEB 17 2023·Updated FEB 19 2023

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Image credit: AP [via Forbes]

The Facts

On Friday, five former Memphis, Tenn., police officers charged in the January death of 29-year-old Black man Tyre Nichols pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder.
The New York Times
They also pleaded not guilty to aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct, and official oppression. They have been released on bond, with their next hearing scheduled for May 1.
Restoring America
The officers — who are themselves Black — were taken into custody on Jan. 26 after bodycam footage appeared to show them pepper spraying, kicking, and punching Nichols after he was pulled over for alleged reckless driving. The 29-year-old died in the hospital three days later.
BBC News
The officers were assigned to a specialized street crime unit called Scorpion, formed in 2021 to combat rising crime rates. Though Memphis' mayor credited the unit with a drop in crime, it was disbanded following Nichols' death.
The New York Times
Along with the defendants, a sixth officer was terminated from the department, and a seventh was relieved of his duties as well. Additional officers could receive administrative punishment, and the district attorney said additional charges could be filed.
ABC News

Sources Split

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The Spin

Left narrative

As with George Floyd, Freddie Gray, Breonna Taylor, and countless others, the original police report failed to include Nichols' injuries from the taser, pepper spray, and multiple baton strikes to his body. When it comes to unarmed black victims, the police have a pattern of lying about the threat the so-called suspects posed and then continuing to lie after the fact. This is clearly part of a far larger and deadly pattern in policing in the US.

wapo

Right narrative

According to some of the nation's most influential newspapers, the reason behind Tyre Nichols' death is racism — an erroneous and senseless diagnosis that promotes dangerous solutions, such as the abolition of police. Those responsible should undoubtedly be held accountable, but the justice system should be left to do this without media extortion that peddles further division.