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January 26, 2023 - 5 former officers indicted in death of Tyre Nichols

By Adrienne Vogt, Aditi Sangal, Elise Hammond, Tori B. Powell and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN

Updated 1:33 a.m. ET, January 27, 2023

23 Posts

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5:31 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

Specialized SCORPION police unit involved in death of Tyre Nichols, district attorney says

A Memphis police special unit focused on curbing violent crime was involved in the arrest, and ultimate death of Tyre Nichols, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said Thursday.

The Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods unit, or SCORPION for short, was launched in November 2021.

It is made up of teams of officers whose "primary focus will be violent crime reduction and the saturation of hot spot areas throughout the city," the police department said in a Facebook video announcing the new unit.

Asked by a reporter if the former officers that were charged in Nichols' death were members of the SCORPIONs, Mulroy only said that the violent crime unit was involved, but did not confirm the former officers were on that team.

"I think it's already been reported publicly that SCORPION unit was involved," he said.

At a later news conference, attorneys for Desmond Mills Jr. and Emmitt Martin confirmed that their clients were members of the SCORPION unit.

3:20 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

DA hopes incident will lead to broader discussion about need for police reform

The Tyre Nichols case should shepherd new discussions about policing in the US, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said Thursday.

"It's my hope that if there is any silver lining to be drawn from this very dark cloud, it's that perhaps this incident can open a broader conversation about the need for police reform," Mulroy said, speaking at a news conference.

"The world is watching us, and we need to show the world what lessons we can learn from this tragedy. I'm hopeful that we can show them who I know us to be: a community working toward positive change here in Memphis and Shelby County," the district attorney added.

4:09 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

"This was criminal." Tennessee Bureau of Investigation head says he was sickened by what he saw on video

David Rausch, Director of TN Bureau of Investigation (WHBQ)

The head of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation called the death of Tyre Nichols "appalling" and "criminal."

"Simply put, this shouldn't have happened. I have been policing for more than 30 years. I have devoted my life to this profession, and I'm grieved. Frankly, I'm shocked. I'm sickened by what I saw," David Rausch, the director of the TBI, said at a news conference Thursday.

Memphis police and the TBI have been investigating the use of force in Nichols’ arrest. He said that what officials learned so far is "appalling."

"What happened here does not at all reflect proper policing. This was wrong. This was criminal. The depth and breadth of the charges announced today speaks to the deliberate and thorough investigation that this case has received, and our work is not finished," Rausch said.

Watch Here:

5:28 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

City of Memphis will release video of arrest Friday, district attorney says

The city of Memphis will release the video of Tyre Nichols' fatal arrest Friday after 6 p.m. local time, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said Thursday.

He said the city will also make a statement sometime later this afternoon about the timing of that release.

"The actual release will be up to the city of Memphis, but my understanding is it'll be a combination of pull-cam video, SkyCop video and body cam video."

5:28 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

All 5 officers indicted are responsible for the death of Tyre Nichols, district attorney says

From CNN’s Jamiel Lynch

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said that the five officers indicted are all responsible for the death of Tyre Nichols.

A grand jury returned indictments against Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Desmond Mills, charging each with:

One charge of second-degree murder
One charge of aggravated assault
Two charges of aggravated kidnapping
Two charges of official misconduct
One charge of official oppression

"While each of the five individuals played a different role in the incident in question, the actions of all of them resulted in the death of Tyre Nichols, and they are all responsible," Mulroy said during a news conference Thursday.

The officers are currently in custody, he added.

Mulroy went on to explain why there are charges of aggravated kidnapping in Nichols' case.

"Kidnapping is any unlawful confinement of another which substantially restrains someone's liberty. At a certain point in the sequence of events, it is our view that this, if it was a legal detention to begin with — it certainly became illegal at a certain point and it was unlawful detention. The aggravated nature of the charge is because if that kidnapping resulted in bodily injury, that's one grounds for saying that it is aggravated kidnapping. If the persons involved in that unlawful restraint of liberty possessed weapons, that is another ground for saying that the kidnapping was aggravated," he said.

Nichols died three days after he was pulled over for alleged reckless driving by Memphis Police Department officers, as CNN previously reported.

In a statement, police claimed confrontations ensued between Nichols and the officers. After he was taken into custody, police said, Nichols complained he was having shortness of breath and was taken to a local hospital, where he later died.

3:11 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

District attorney says he met with family of Tyre Nichols to go over ex-officers' charges

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said he met with the family of Tyre Nichols, the man who died three days after a traffic stop, to tell them the charges against five former Memphis police officers.

"We have previously met with the family of Tyre Nichols to go over what these charges were going to be, and that meeting with the family I think went rather well," he said.

The former officers are currently in custody, he added.

3:09 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

Officials worked to expedite investigation into death of Tyre Nichols, district attorney says

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said officials worked to expedite the investigation into the death of Tyre Nichols because of the "extraordinary nature of the case."

Speaking at a news conference Thursday, after news of charges against five former Memphis officers, Mulroy said his office immediately called in the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to make sure there was an independent voice looking into the fact.

He said officials worked “swiftly but also fairly," while also ensuring prosecutors “have a strong case.”

“We’re here today because of a tragedy that wounds one family deeply, but also hurts us all," Mulroy said, adding that he met with Nichols' family "several times" this week.

2:56 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

"We will keep saying his name until justice is served." Nichols family attorneys release statement on charges

From CNN’s Shawn Nottingham

The attorneys for the family of Tyre Nichols, Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, have issued a statement following news of charges against five former Memphis police officers.

The statement reads:

"The news today from Memphis officials that these five officers are being held criminally accountable for their deadly and brutal actions gives us hope as we continue to push for justice for Tyre. This young man lost his life in a particularly disgusting manner that points to the desperate need for change and reform to ensure this violence stops occurring during low-threat procedures, like in this case, a traffic stop. This tragedy meets the absolute definition of a needless and unnecessary death. Tyre’s loved ones’ lives were forever changed when he was beaten to death, and we will keep saying his name until justice is served.”

Crump and Romannuci say they will hold a news conference along with the Nichols family on Friday at noon ET.

4:44 p.m. ET, January 26, 2023

Indictment details charges against officers in Tyre Nichols' death

From CNN’s Mark Morales and Nick Valencia

An indictment in Shelby County Criminal Court details charges of second-degree murder, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, official misconduct and official oppression against the five former Memphis officers charged in the death of Tyre Nichols.

In addition to laying out the justification for the charges, the grand jury indictment states the officers intentionally did “refrain from performing a duty that was imposed by law that was clearly inherent in the nature of the office or employment.”

Notably, the Memphis Police Department amended its duty to intervene policy after the death of George Floyd in 2020, according to a copy of the policy sent to CNN by the department. The newer policy says that "any member who directly observes another member engaged in dangerous or criminal conduct or abuse of a subject shall take reasonable action to intervene.”

Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy told CNN’s Don Lemon on CNN that the investigation is ongoing, and this indictment “does not preclude” the possibility of charges against other people.