MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The Memphis police chief on Saturday disbanded the unit whose officers beat to death Tyre Nichols as the nation and the city struggled to come to grips with video showing police pummeling the Black motorist.
Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis said she listened to Nichols' relatives, community leaders and uninvolved officers in making the decision.
Keep scrolling for a complete timeline of Tyre Nichols' arrest, death
“It is in the best interest of all to permanently deactivate the Scorpion unit,” she said in a statement. She said the officers currently assigned to the unit “agree unreservedly" with the step.
Protesters march down the street Friday, Jan. 27, 2023, in Memphis, Tenn., as authorities release police video depicting five Memphis officers beating Tyre Nichols, whose death resulted in murder charges and provoked outrage at the country's latest instance of police brutality.
The footage released Friday left many unanswered questions about the traffic stop involving the Black motorist and about other law enforcement officers who stood by as he lay motionless on the pavement.
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The five disgraced former Memphis Police Department officers, who are also Black, have been fired and charged with murder and other crimes in Nichols’ death three days after the arrest.
The recording shows police savagely beating Nichols, a 29-year-old FedEx worker, for three minutes while screaming profanities at him in an assault that the Nichols family legal team has likened to the infamous 1991 police beating of Los Angeles motorist Rodney King. Nichols calls out for his mother before his limp body is propped against a squad car and the officers exchange fist-bumps.
The five officers — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith — face up to 60 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder.
Davis has said other officers are under investigation, and Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner said two deputies have been relieved of duty without pay while their conduct is investigated. Read the full story here:
Here is the timeline of events in the arrest and death of Tyre Nichols — and what's followed
Jan. 7, 2023
Jan. 7: Tyre Nichols is pulled over by police for an alleged traffic violation after photographing a sunset, according to accounts his family would give later. A confrontation ensues, and he is brutally beaten by five Memphis police officers in an encounter that is recorded by police body cameras.
Jan. 8
Jan 8: Memphis police say in a statement that officers attempted to stop a man for reckless driving on Jan. 7 and he was taken to a hospital in critical condition after two confrontations. The first description of what happened says one confrontation occurred when officers approached the vehicle and the suspect fled on foot. Officers pursued, and another confrontation occurred when they took him into custody, police said. The subject complained of shortness of breath and was taken to a hospital. Due to his condition, police contacted the Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office, which asked the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to conduct a use-of-force investigation.
Jan. 15
Jan. 15: Police Chief Cerelyn Davis says she has reviewed information on the encounter and has decided to take immediate action by serving notice of policy violations to the officers involved.
Jan. 16
Jan. 16: Civil rights attorney Ben Crump announces he is representing Nichols’ family and calls on police to release body camera and surveillance video from the traffic stop. Meanwhile, protesters gather at the Civil Rights Museum to push for the release of police video and call for officers to be charged.
Jan. 18
Jan. 18: The U.S. Justice Department announces that it has opened a civil rights investigation.
Jan. 20
Jan. 20: The five officers involved in the arrest are fired after an internal investigation finds they used excessive force, failed to intervene and failed to render aid. They are identified as Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith. All five are Black.
Jan. 23
Jan. 23: Nichols' family views the police video with their attorneys, who say it shows Nichols being beaten for three minutes in a “savage” encounter reminiscent of the infamous 1991 police beating of Los Angeles motorist Rodney King. The video shows Nichols was shocked, pepper-sprayed and restrained after he was pulled over minutes from his home while returning from a suburban park where he had taken photos of the sunset. Crump says the family has agreed to investigators’ request to delay making the video public so as not to risk compromising the criminal investigation.
Jan. 24
Jan. 24: Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy says the release of police video will be carefully timed to avoid the chance that suspects or witnesses tailor their statements to what they saw in it and asks the public for patience. The timetable rankles activists who had expected the video to be released after Nichols’ family viewed it. Meanwhile, the Memphis Fire Department says two employees involved in the initial care of Nichols the night of his arrest have been removed from duty while the agency conducts an investigation.
Jan. 25
Jan. 25: Davis, the police chief, calls the officers' actions “heinous, reckless and inhumane” and makes a plea for people to protest peacefully when the video is made public. She says in a statement issued on social media that other officers are still being investigated for violating department policy and that “a complete and independent review” will be conducted of the department’s specialized units.
Jan. 26
Jan 26: The five officers are charged with murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. Mulroy says they each played different roles in the killing but “they are all responsible.” Mulroy also announces that video of the traffic stop will be released to the public the following evening. Nichols' parents say they are satisfied with the charges against the officers. At an evening candlelight vigil, Nichols' mother pleads with supporters to “protest in peace” when the “horrific” video footage is released.
Jan. 27
Jan. 27: Memphis authorities release video footage showing Nichols being beaten by five officers who repeatedly strike him with their fists, boots and batons as he screams for his mother. The video is filled with violent moments showing the officers, who are also Black, chasing and pummeling Nichols and leaving him on the pavement propped against a squad car as they fist-bump and celebrate their actions. Protesters gather for mostly peaceful demonstrations in multiple cities including Memphis, New York and Washington.
Jan. 28
Jan. 28: The Memphis police chief disbanded the city's so-called Scorpion unit after some of its officers beat to death Tyre Nichols, reversing an earlier statement that she would keep the unit intact. The unit is composed of three teams of about 30 officers who target violent offenders in areas beset by high crime. It had been inactive since Nichols' Jan. 7 arrest.
