Memphis authorities release video in Tyre Nichols’ death

Video showing five Memphis officers beating a Black man was made public Friday, one day after they were charged with murder in the death of Tyre Nichols.

The footage shows Nichols being held down, struck by the Black officers and screaming for his mother as the police savagely beat the 29-year-old FedEx worker for three minutes. The Nichols family legal team has likened the assault to the infamous 1991 police beating of Los Angeles motorist Rodney King.

Cities across the country braced for large demonstrations. Nichols’ relatives urged supporters to protest peacefully.

“This young man, by definition of the law in this state, was terrorized. Not by one, not by two, but by five officers who we now know ... acted in concert with each other,” said attorney Antonio Romanucci, who represents Nichols’ family.

The officers “acted together ... to inflict harm, terrorism, oppression of liberty, oppression of constitutional rights, which led to murder,” Romanucci said.

Memphis Police Director Cerelyn Davis described the officers’ actions as “heinous, reckless and inhumane,” and said that her department has been unable to substantiate the reckless driving allegation that prompted the stop.

She told The Associated Press in an interview that there is no video of the traffic stop that shows Nichols recklessly driving.

During the initial stop, the video shows the officers were “already ramped up, at about a 10,” she said. The officers were “aggressive, loud, using profane language and probably scared Mr. Nichols from the very beginning.”