A new case of police violence shocked the United States, after the authorities of Memphis (Tennessee) published this Friday a series of videos in which several policemen can be seen beating up the African-American Tire Nichols, who died in a hospital after the clash with the agents.
The event happened on January 7 after an alleged traffic violation and Nichols’ death occurred three days later. Between the beating and her transfer to the hospital, about half an hour elapsed, according to international media.
The 29-year-old man died likely from internal injuries from blunt force trauma, as they commented medical experts to the chain CNN.
The five officers, also black, have been separated from police, are in custody and face various criminal charges in Nichols’ death.
The testimony of the family, what happened to the police officers and the fatal fate of Tire Nichols: this is what we know and what we still don’t know about the case that moves the United States: https://t.co/ADfzixoaFV
— CNN in Spanish (@CNNEE) January 28, 2023
The most graphic video is the one captured by a surveillance camera on a lamppost, where it is seen from above how the agents kicked, some of them in the head, and hit Nichols with a baton, review the agency EFE.
Another three of the recordings correspond to cameras that the agents carried attached to their bodies. In one of them you can see how Nichols is taken out of his car by some policemen who try to immobilize him on the ground until the man manages to get away and runs away.
At that moment, the police request reinforcements to search for the young African-American, the Spanish media specifies.
In another video, Nichols appears when he is finally captured by the officers, who beat him several times with force, while the victim yells “mom, mom” and “give me a minute.” In this recording you can hear how the troops insult the detainee while they try to immobilize him again, he adds EFE.
Another of the recordings begins with somewhat confusing scenes in which there is a struggle. Immediately afterwards Nichols appears handcuffed on the ground next to a police car and the arrival of an ambulance can be seen.
?? | Shock in the US over the beating of five policemen who caused the death of Tire Nichols. The victim’s arrest was for a traffic violation. pic.twitter.com/pS7XA93voQ
– World Alert (@ AlertaMundial2) January 28, 2023
After the publication of the videos, the reactions and protests in various locations, including in front of the White House, did not wait.
President Joe Biden said he was “outraged and deeply pained” after seeing the images of the beating, while New York Mayor Eric Adams commented that the event is “an abomination.”
The attorney general of the United States, Merrick Garland, promised this Friday that there will be an investigation into the death of Nichols at the hands of the police and asked that the protests for this event be peaceful.
Meanwhile, Memphis City Councilwoman Michalyn Easter-Thomas said the protests in the city may have remained calm after the release of the Tire Nichols video because there is more optimism about the development of the legal process.
“I think we saw a very peaceful and direct sense of protest last night in the city of Memphis, and I think it’s because maybe we have faith and hope that the system will get it right this time. And I know that my colleagues and others that are at the county and state level will really make sure that we do everything in our power to make sure that this is prevented, that the culture is diminished, and that we don’t see an incident like that again. this one in Memphis and hopefully not anywhere else either,” said to CNN.
The death of Nichols is a new episode of an unfortunate phenomenon, which has gained greater visibility in the United States after the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis in 2020. His death, at the hands of a group of law enforcement officers, generated a wide wave of protests and fueled the debate on racism and police violence in the North American country.
