Tyre Nichols - updates: 20 hours of video missing as pressure grows on Biden over police reform
The funeral for Tyre Nichols was held in Memphis on Wednesday, more than three weeks after the 29-year-old Black man was fatally beaten by a group of police officers on 7 January. He died in hospital three days later.
During the service at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church, Nichols’ family, civil rights leaders, and Vice President Kamala Harris all led calls for police reform and urged Congress to take action by finally passing the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
In his euology, Rev Al Sharpton condemned the actions of the Black officers who are charged with Nichols’ murder, arguing that the sacrifies of civil rights leaders like Dr Martin Luther King Jr paved the way for their public service.
“People had to march and go to jail and some people lost their lives to open the doors for you. How dare you act like that sacrifice was for nothing?” he said.
Up to 20 hours of video related to Nichols’ deadly arrest is yet to be released by Memphis officials.
Shelby County prosecutor Steven Mulroy said it includes audio of what officers said in the aftermath, as he revealed he is considering bringing more charges in the case.
Key points
Mourners demand police reform at funeral for Tyre Nichols
Up to 20 hours of video yet to be released
Kamala Harris speaks at Tyre Nichols’s funeral
Four of five police officers charged with murder had previous infractions
Memphis ‘preparing’ release of more complete footage
Up to 20 hours of Tyre Nichols police video has yet to be released, revealing what was said after beating
18:24 , Josh Marcus
Up to 20 hours of additional footage from the deadly beating of Tyre Nichols by a group of Memphis Police Department officers has yet to be released, according to a law enforcement official in Tennessee.
Unreleased footage from the attack on 7 January includes audio of what was said among emergency responders and officers in the aftermath of the beating and after Nichols was moved to a local hospital, Shelby County prosecutor Steven Mulroy told CNN.
Nichols died in hospital on 10 January, three days after the attack.
It will be up to Memphis officials to determine whether to publicly release any additional footage, following the release of roughly one hour of footage from four separate videos on 27 January.
Alex Woodward reports.
The video at the heart of the Tyre Nichols scandal
17:53 , Josh Marcus
Like police scandals that have come before it, officer bodycam video is a central part of illuminating what happened to Tyre Nichols, a Black motorist who was severly beaten by Memphis police officers earlier this month before dying in hospital.
Memphis police have released footage of the brutal arrest, which shows a gang of officers punching, tasing, and kicking the 29-year-old until he’s barely conscious.
Here’s our report on what the footage reveals.
Footage reveals Tyre Nichols six-word plea to Memphis police officers
What was Tyre Nichols pulled over for?
17:30 , Josh Marcus
On 27 January, Memphis officials released video footage of the violent arrest of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who died three days after being severely beaten during a traffic stop.
The young man’s death has caused deep pain for the Nichols family, and has sparked a city-wide scandal.
Five Memphis Police Department officers – Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr, and Justin Smith – were fired from the department and now face second-degree murder charges.
Vice President Kamala Harris and members of Congress attended his funeral on 1 February, where the Rev Al Sharpton delivered a eulogy. Members of Nichols’ family are slated to attend President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address as guests of the Congressional Black Caucus.
Body-worn camera footage shows officers dragging Nichols from his car and firing a taser weapon at him before he fled the scene on foot.
Here’s what we know about why he was stopped.
What was Tyre Nichols pulled over for?
President Biden addresses Tyre Nichols death at National Prayer Breakfast in call for unity
17:00 , Alex Woodward
At the bipartisan National Prayer Breakfast event in Washington DC on Thursday morning, President Joe Biden condemned the “violence in our communities,” pointing to recent mass shootings in California and the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols in Memphis.
“Justice is long overdue,” he said. In his remarks, the president said that “in our politics and our lives, we too often see each other as opponents and not competitors.”
“We see each other as enemies, not neighbors. And as tough as these times have been, if we look closer, we see the strength, the determination that has long defined America,” he added.
The president, invoking his “soul of the nation” theme that he has threaded throughout his campaign and administration, said that his prayer for the event that the nation begins “to see each other again, look at each other again, travel with each other again, argue like hell with each other again but then still go to lunch together.”
“We have to start treating each other in ways different than we have, in my humble opinion,” he said.
‘Why can’t they see the humanity in Tyre?'
16:01 , Alex Woodward
A program for his funeral – a Celebration of Life for Tyre Nichols – said that he “loved skateboarding, watching the sunset, photography and most of all helping people”.
“He had the most infectious smile,” it said.
It prominently features a quote that was on his photography website: “My vision is to bring my viewers deep into what I am seeing through my eye and out through my lens.”
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump issued a plea for justice for Nichols as both a son to grieving parents and father to a 4-year-old boy. “But most of all, the human being”, he said.
Video footage of police officers beating Nichols did not include “one ounce of humanity”, Mr Crump said.
“Why can’t they see the humanity in Tyre?” he asked.
More from the funeral service on Wednesday:
Mourners demand justice at funeral for Tyre Nichols
ICYMI: Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints, records reveal
15:30 , Alex Woodward
Four of the five former Memphis Police Department officers charged for the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols were suspended or reprimanded in prior incidents while working for the department, according to recently unveiled personnel files.
Two of the officers were written up after failing to fill out required reports about the use of force during arrests. Two other officers were suspended without pay for traffic accidents, and one of those officers was suspended for failing to file a report about an incident of domestic abuse.
The officers faced little if any consequences, according to reviews of the officers’ records, and they were praised in at least two instances, with other officers describing their actions as one-time events.
Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to meet with Congressional Black Caucus on police reform
14:50 , Alex Woodward
One day after the funeral of Tyre Nichols, as mourners demanded Congress take action on national police reform legislation, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will meet with members of Congress on Thursday afternoon to discuss their options.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters on Wednesday that the meeting with members of the Congressional Black Caucus will be a “real conversation about police reform” but she did not detail a path forward or potential executive actions if a Republican-controlled House and deadlocked Senate fails to advance a bill.
In a statement on 29 January, caucus chair Steven Horsford said that members are “calling on our colleagues in the House and Senate to jumpstart negotiations now and work with us to address the public health epidemic of police violence that disproportionately affects many of our communities.”
“The brutal beating of Tyre Nichols was murder and is a grim reminder that we still have a long way to go in solving systemic police violence in America,” he added.
President Biden intially gave Congress a deadline to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act in 2021 on the one-year anniversary of that man’s death.
The White House also quietly abandoned plans that year for a national commission on police oversight to focus on the legislation. In April of 2021, Domestic Policy Council director Susan Rice said a commission would not be the “most effective way” to implement those reforms, based on “close, respectful consultation” with civil rights groups.
WATCH: Tyre Nichols’ godsister reads heartbreaking poem at funeral
14:00 , Rachel Sharp
At Tyre Nichols’ funeral on Wednesday, his godsister LaToya Yizar read out a heartbreaking poem echoing some of the final words of the 29-year-old Black man as he told officers: “I’m just trying to go home.”
Watch the touching moment below:
Initial Memphis police report falsely claims Tyre Nichols ‘fought’ officers
13:30 , Rachel Sharp
A leaked incident report on Tyre Nichols’ arrest and fatal beating by Memphis police officers contains glaring inaccuracies that were later exposed after the release of bodycam and surveillance footage.
The report, written two hours after Nichols’ beating on 7 January, claimed that the 29-year-old was “irate” and refused lawful detention, tried to start a fight with officers, and also attempted to take an officer’s gun, during an initial traffic stop.
Video evidence released on 27 January told a very different story, showing officers swarming Nichols’ car and dragging him out, shouting contradictory commands and using pepper spray and a taser on him while he was trying to comply.
The Independent’s Bevan Hurley has the full story:
Initial Memphis police report falsely claims Tyre Nichols ‘fought’ officers
Today: Biden to meet with Congressional Black Caucus on police reform
13:00 , Alex Woodward
President Joe Biden will meet with members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Thursday to have a “real conversation about police reform,” according to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.
She told reporters at a press briefing on Wednesday that the administration will continue to push for congressional passage of the bill, which passed in the formerly Democratically controlled House of Representatives in 2021 but stalled in the Senate.
Ms Jean-Pierre did address whether the White House would consider executive actions.
Unanswered questions from the Tyre Nichols’ footage
12:30 , Rachel Sharp
Horrifying footage of the brutal and deadly beating of a Black man at the hands of law enforcement officers in Memphis has caused outrage across America and reignited demands for an overhaul of policing as we now know it.
Tyre Nichols, 29, was pulled over for a traffic stop on the night of 7 June.
He died three days later in hospital, with an independent autopsy by Nichols’ family finding that he suffered “extensive bleeding caused by a severe beating”.
Damning footage – taken from the police officers’ bodyworn cameras and a police pole camera – was finally released to the public on Friday.
It shows a group of Memphis police officers punching, kicking and tasering Nichols and beating him with batons.
The 29-year-old is then left slumped up against a police car – limp, disorientated and struggling to sit upright from his injuries.
One of the most chilling parts of the footage captures the officers laughing and boasting about the beating they rained down on the Black man, with one officer heard saying he was “hitting him with straight haymakers, dog”.
Before paramedics arrive on the scene sometime later and take him to hospital, the officers fail to administer him any medical aid.
The deadly beating – coming almost three years on from the murder of George Floyd and echoing the police beating of Rodney King three decades earlier – led to protests across America over the weekend demanding justice and an end to police brutality.
The five Memphis Police officers – Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr, and Justin Smith – were fired by department and charged with second-degree murder.
On Monday, two other officers were also relieved of their duties while three Memphis Fire Department officials – two emergency reponders and a lieutenant – were fired.
Footage captured Tyre Nichols being beaten by Memphis police officers
However, the hour-long footage has still left several questions still unanswered.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp reveals what we still don’t know:
These questions remain unanswered after video exposed police beating Tyre Nichols
Four videos, 56 minutes, seven Memphis police officers, one deadly arrest
12:00 , Alex Woodward
Nearly an hour of footage showing Memphis police officers pepper spray, baton, punch, kick and tase Tyre Nichols helped bring swift murder charges against the officers involved in the attack. The Independent’s Bevan Hurley explains what was captured in four videos and what questions remain about the case after their release:
Four videos, 56 minutes, one deadly arrest: What the Tyre Nichols footage shows
After Tyre Nichols funeral, Biden faces pressure on policing
11:30 , Rachel Sharp
When Vice President Kamala Harris was called to the pulpit at the funeral for Tyre Nichols, she said the White House would settle for nothing less than ambitious federal legislation to crack down on police brutality.
“We should not delay. And we will not be denied,” Harris said to applause in Memphis, Tennessee. “It is non-negotiable.”
Back in Washington, however, progress appears difficult, if not unlikely. Bipartisan efforts to reach an agreement on policing legislation stalled more than a year ago, and President Joe Biden ended up instead signing an executive order named for George Floyd, whose murder at the hands of Minneapolis police set off nationwide protests nearly three years ago.
Now, with a new killing in the headlines, Biden and Harris will meet with members of the Congressional Black Caucus on Thursday to explore whether it’s possible to get legislation back on track.
After Tyre Nichols funeral, Biden faces pressure on policing
Watch: Al Sharpton calls Tyre Nichols’s attackers ‘punks’ in eulogy
11:00 , Alex Woodward
Mourners demand justice at funeral for Tyre Nichols as family calls on Congress to combat police violence
10:30 , Rachel Sharp
In their remarks, faith leaders struck a delicate balance urging support for a grieving family while reflecting the sadness and anger of a nation days after witnessing yet another attack against a Black American by police.
His family “endured the unsolicited .... and unjustifiable burden of grieving their loved one and at the same time demanding justice,” senior pastor J Lawrence Turner said.
“We’re praying for you that God will continue to give you strength, because your strength has held us steady, and helped us constructively channel our outrage and turn our anger into action,” he added.
Mourners demand justice at funeral for Tyre Nichols
Up to 20 hours of video involving arrest yet to be released
10:00 , Rachel Sharp
Up to 20 hours of video related to Tyre Nichols’ deadly arrest is yet to be released by Memphis officials.
Shelby County prosecutor Steven Mulroy told CNN on Wednesday that the footage includes audio of what officers said in the aftermath of the fatal beating and after Nichols was rushed by ambulance to hospital – where he never recovered.
To date, 56 minutes of footage has been released to the public as four separate videos.
Three of the videos are from bodycam footage of Memphis police officers, while the fourth is taken from a security camera mounted on a streetpole.
Mr Mulroy said that it falls to the city of Memphis and Memphis police to decide when to share the full footage with the public, as he revealed the prosecutor’s office is considering bringing more charges in the case.
Full story: Kamala Harris speaks at Tyre Nichols funeral in Memphis calling on Congress to pass police reform legislation
09:00 , Alex Woodward
Vice President Kamala Harris urged Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, bipartisan police reform legislation that passed the House of Representatives in 2021 but stalled in a deadlocked Senate with Republican opposition.
The bill, named in honour of the Black man who was murdered by Minneapolis police officers in 2020, was co-authored by then-Senator Harris.
“Let the memory of Tyre shine a light on the path toward peace and justice,” Ms Harris said in her brief remarks.
Kamala Harris calls on Congress to pass police reform bill at Tyre Nichols funeral
‘We mourn with you’: Kamala Harris gives passionate speech at Tyre Nichols’s funeral
08:00 , Alex Woodward
Vice President Kamala Harris was invited to attend the funeral of Tyre Nichols by his mother and stepfather, and the Rev Al Sharpton invited her to address the congregation gathered in Memphis on Wednesday.
She told his parents that “the people of our country mourn with you” and praised them for their “strength, courage, and grace”.
‘Blood on their hands’: Tyre Nichols’ mother warns lawmakers against blocking George Floyd bill
07:00 , Alex Woodward
Wednesday’s funeral for Tyre Nichols in Memphis saw a re-energised call for the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, federal legislation that was passed by the House of Representatives in 2021 but has otherwise stalled in Congress.
‘The police are not always telling the whole truth'
05:00 , Alex Woodward
“Police are partisan actors just like everyone else in power,” writes The Independent’s Josh Marcus, reflecting on his coverage of policing and criminal justice. “It’s vital to take their claims with a grain of salt.”
Tyre Nichols’ death shows us the police are not always telling the truth | Voices
‘Elite’ police units in spotlight after brutal killing by Scorpion officers
03:00 , Alex Woodward
Memphis Police Department’s now-disbanded SCORPION unit – which stands for “Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods” – was introduced in October 2021. It was dissolved in the aftermath of Tyre Nichols’s death.
The Independent’s Graeme Massie examines several similar controversial units in departments across the US that have been accused of abuse and excessive force.
‘Elite’ police units in spotlight after brutal Tyre Nichols killing by officers
Marjorie Taylor Greene compares Tyre Nichols’ beating to shooting of Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt
02:00 , Alex Woodward
Far-right congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene invoked the fatal shooting of Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt after the mention of Tyre Nichols, who was fatally beaten by police.
She then suggested that people who have been jailed for their roles in the insurrection are facing “civil rights abuse” in jail.
Ms Greene went on to say that Congress was doing nothing to address the treatment of other participants in the attack, many of whom remain incarcerated ahead of their respective trials.
There’s a simple reason for that: Ms Babbitt was part of a crowd that was actively trying to breach a door that had been barricaded in a restricted area. She was shot by an officer while attempting to climb through a window that her fellow rioters had broken. Federal prosecutors have closed the case and the officer was cleared of wrondoing.
Marjorie Taylor Greene equates police killing of Tyre Nichols with Ashli Babbitt
Initial Memphis police report falsely claims Tyre Nichols ‘fought’ officers
01:00 , Alex Woodward
A leaked incident report on Tyre Nichols’ arrest and fatal beating by Memphis police officers contains glaring inaccuracies that were later exposed after the release of bodycam and surveillance footage.
The report, written two hours after Nichols’ beating on 7 January, claimed that the 29-year-old was “irate” and refused lawful detention, tried to start a fight with officers, and also attempted to take an officer’s gun, during an initial traffic stop.
Initial Memphis police report falsely claims Tyre Nichols ‘fought’ officers
ICYMI: Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints, records reveal
00:00 , Alex Woodward
Four of the five former Memphis Police Department officers charged for the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols were suspended or reprimanded in prior incidents while working for the department, according to recently unveiled personnel files.
The officers faced little if any consequences, according to the city’s records of their cases, and they were praised in at least two instances, with other officers describing their actions as one-time events.
Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints
Watch: Daughter of Rodney King reacts to video of Tyre Nichols
Wednesday 1 February 2023 23:45 , Alex Woodward
‘I’m Just Trying to Go Home'
Wednesday 1 February 2023 22:41 , Alex Woodward
LaToya Yizar, who says her mother was Tyre Nichols’ godmother, read a poem at his funeral invoking the words he told officers the night he was beaten.
From the lectern at Mississippi Boulevard Baptist Church in Memphis, she read “I’m Just Trying to Go Home”.
In his eulogy, the Rev Al Sharpton said that “home is not just a place.”
“Home is where you are at peace. Home is where you don’t have to keep your dukes up. Home is where you’re not vulnerable,” he said. “Home is where everything is all right.”
Full story: Mourners demand justice at funeral for Tyre Nichols as family calls on Congress to combat police violence
Wednesday 1 February 2023 22:30 , Alex Woodward
Soft purple light surrounded a closed casket beneath a wooden cross inside Mississippi Boulevard Baptist Church in Memphis, where hundreds of people gathered to celebrate the life of Tyre Nichols in a ceremony marked by the weight of his loss and a raging fury against police violence.
The 29-year-old Black man was fatally beaten by a group of Memphis Police Department officers in January, and horrific footage of the incident released last week has revived an international, urgent demand for reform.
Reflecting the far-reaching shock of his death, those in attendance at his funeral on 1 February included Vice President Kamala Harris, filmmaker Spike Lee and members of Congress, with a eulogy from the Rev Al Sharpton. There was also a “call to action” from civil rights attorney Ben Crump demanding “swift justice” against police who commit violence against Black Americans.
Mourners demand justice at funeral for Tyre Nichols
Tyre Nichols’s mother and stepfather speak at son’s funeral
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:59 , Alex Woodward
In her remarks at her son’s funeral, Tyre Nichols’s mother RowVaughn Wells urged members of Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, federal police reform legislation aimed at addressing police misonduct and holding officers accountable for police violence.
“If we don’t, that next child that dies, that blood will be on their hands,” she said through tears.
“We’re looking forward to passing some bills. We’re looking forward to getting justice for all of the families over there, not just ours,” Nichols’s stepfather Rodney Wells said. “We cannot continue to let these people brutalize our kids.”
‘All I want is my baby brother back'
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:51 , Alex Woodward
Keyana Dixon, the oldest sister of Tyre Nichols, fondly remembered growing up with her younger brother as she addressed a massive congregation gathered for his funeral.
“I see the world showing him love and fighting for his justice, but all I want is my baby brother back,” she said, speaking through tears. “Even in his demise, he was still polite: He asked them to ‘Please stop.’”
Ben Crump issues a ‘plea for justice' in funeral remarks
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:28 , Alex Woodward
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who has represented the families of several Black Americans killed by police, including the family of Tyre Nichols, issued a “plea for justice” during his funeral service.
His plea for justice for Nichols as a son and father “but most of all, the human being.”
Video footage of police officers beating Nichols did not include “not one ounce of humanity,” Mr Crump said.
“Why can’t they see the humanity in Tyre?” he asked.
Watch: Al Sharpton calls Tyre Nichols attackers ‘punks’ during fiery speech at funeral
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:24 , Alex Woodward
Watch in full: Kamala Harris speaks at the funeral of Tyre Nichols
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:20 , Alex Woodward
Al Sharpton condemns officers charged in Nichols’s death as he delivers eulogy
Wednesday 1 February 2023 20:20 , Alex Woodward
Rev Al Sharpton condemned the actions of the Black officers who are charged with the murder of Tyre Nichols, arguing that the sacrifies of civil rights leaders like Dr Martin Luther King Jr paved the way for their public service.
“People had to march and go to jail and some people lost their lives to open the doors for you. How dare you act like that sacrifice was for nothing?” he said.
Mr Sharpton visited the Lorraine Motel – where Dr King was killed – the morning before the service.
He invoked Dr King’s “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech that Dr King delivered from the Mason Temple in Memphis the day before his murder.
“Let us all be mountain climbers,” he said.
Kamala Harris addresses Tyre Nichols funeral
Wednesday 1 February 2023 19:53 , Alex Woodward
Rev Al Sharpton invited Vice President Kamala Harris to address a congregation at Tyre Nichols’s funeral service.
“You have been extraordinary,” she said of his mother RowVaughn Wells and stepfather Rodney Wells.
“We have a mother and a father who mourn the life of a young man who should be here today. They have a grandson who now does not have a father. His brothers and sisters will lose the love of growing old withtheir baby brother,” she continued.
Nichols died following “an act of violence at the hands and the feet of the people who have been charged with keeping them safe,” she said.
“This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety. It was not in the interest of keeping the public safe,” she continued. “Was he not also entitled to the right to be safe?”
She urged Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, bipartisan police reform legislation that passed the House of Representatives but stalled in a deadlocked Senate with Republican opposition.
Mother of Black man killed by Houston police officer calls on mothers to ‘stop all of this'
Wednesday 1 February 2023 19:42 , Alex Woodward
Tiffany Rachal, the mother of Jalen Randle, a Black man who was killed by a Houston police officer last year, addressed the family of Tyre Nichols during his funeral before singing “Lord I Will Lift My Eyes to the Hills.”
Randle, like Nichols, was 29 years old when he died.
“I pray that God bless you. I pray that God heal your broken heart,” she said.
Addressing mothers who have endured police shootings, she said that “we are fighting together and all of the mothers all over the world need to come together and stop all of this.”
Kamala Harris arrives in Memphis
Wednesday 1 February 2023 19:17 , Alex Woodward
Vice President Kamala Harris has arrived in Memphis to attend the funeral of Tyre Nichols.
The program for the ‘Celebration of Life for Tyre Nichols’
Wednesday 1 February 2023 19:27 , Alex Woodward
A program for the funeral of Tyre Nichols – a “Celebration of Life for Tyre Nichols” – reads that he “loved skateboarding, watching the sunset, photography and most of all helping people.”
“He had the most infectious smile,” it reads.
It prominently features a quote of his that was on his photography website: “My vision is to bring my viewers deep into what I am seeing through my eye and out through my lens.”
Senior pastor begins funeral service
Wednesday 1 February 2023 19:15 , Alex Woodward
In opening remarks, Senior Pastor Rev J Lawrence Turner said the fmaily of Tyre Nichols has “endured the unsolicited .... and unjustifiable burden of grieving their loved one and at the same time demanding justice.”
“We’re praying for you that God will continue to give you strength, because your strength has held us steady, and helped us constructively channel our outrage and turn our anger into action,” he said.
Watch: Funeral service begins in Memphis for Tyre Nichols
Wednesday 1 February 2023 18:58 , Alex Woodward
The Rev Al Sharpton will deliver a eulogy at the funeral for Tyre Nichols at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis this afternoon.
Vice President Kamala Harris and members of the families of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor are expected to attend. Pastor J Lawrence Turner expects as many as 2,500 in attendance.
The service begins at 1pm central time.
Funeral for Tyre Nichols begins soon
Wednesday 1 February 2023 18:20 , Alex Woodward
Mourners are beginning to gather for a funeral service for Tyre Nichols at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis.
The service will begin at 1pm central time.
Church pastor expects 2,500 in attendance
Wednesday 1 February 2023 17:30 , Alex Woodward
The senior pastor of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church told USA Today that he expects the church to be “at capacity” for the afternoon funeral service for Tyre Nichols.
“I think there will be north of 2,500 persons there,” the Rev J Lawrence Turner said. “Our staff and a committed team of volunteers are working together in coordination with the team from [Ben Crump’s law firm] and the National Action Network to accommodate everyone who is coming to celebrate Tyre Nichols’s life.”
The Rev Al Sharpton, founder of the National Action Network civil rights organisation, said that he was invited by Nichols’s family to deliver a euology at the service.
“They asked me if I would come do a eulogy,” he told The Memphis Commercial Appeal. “I told them I’d be honored to do it.”
Members of the Biden administration to attend funeral
Wednesday 1 February 2023 17:00 , Alex Woodward
At least three members of President Joe Biden’s administration will attend Tyre Nichols’s funeral in Memphis on Wednesday afternoon, including Vice President Kamala Harris, who spoke with his family earlier this week.
A statement from their attorney Ben Crump said his mother RowVaughn Wells and stepfather Rodney Wells invited her.
Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms – who is a senior advisor and director of the White House Office of Public Engagement – also is expected to attend.
So is former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu, who now serves as a senior White House adviser overseeing the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
Memphis police ‘SCORPION’ unit had $28m annual budget
Wednesday 1 February 2023 16:33 , Alex Woodward
The now-dissolved unit involved with the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols operated with a $28m annual budget from the time of its creation in 2021 until it was disbanded after the release of video footage of the officers brutally attacking the 29-year-old Black man.
The Memphis Police Department’s now-former unit – Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods, or SCORPION – was among highly armed and armoured local police details across the US deployed in “high crime” areas that have faced waves of criticism, scandal and allegations of abuse.
The Independent’s Graeme Massie explains:
‘Elite’ police units in spotlight after brutal Tyre Nichols killing by officers
Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints, records reveal
Wednesday 1 February 2023 16:00 , Alex Woodward
Four of the five former Memphis Police Department officers charged for the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols were suspended or reprimanded in prior incidents while working for the department, according to recently unveiled personnel files.
Two of the officers were written up after failing to fill out required reports about the use of force during arrests. Two other officers were suspended without pay for traffic accidents, and one of those officers was suspended for failing to file a report about an incident of domestic abuse.
They faced little if any consequences, according to reviews of the officers’ records, and they were praised in at least two instances, with other officers describing their actions as one-time events.
Four of five officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols had prior complaints
Who is attending Tyre Nichols’s funeral?
Wednesday 1 February 2023 15:30 , Alex Woodward
Those in attendance at today’s service will include the Rev Al Sharpton, who will deliver a euology, and Vice President Kamala Harris.
The former mayors of Atlanta and New Orleans – Keisha Lance Bottoms and Mitch Landrieu, both of whom now work in President Joe Biden’s administration – will also attend.
What time is Tyre Nichols’ funeral and who is attending?
Memphis prepares to lay Nichols to rest
Wednesday 1 February 2023 15:15 , Alex Woodward
A funeral for Tyre Nichols will begin later this morning inside Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church in Memphis.
Winter weather had delayed the service, which will take place three weeks after Nichols’s fatal beating by Memphis Police Department officers.
The service will begin at 1pm central time.
Memphis is ‘preparing’ release of more complete footage
Wednesday 1 February 2023 14:37 , Alex Woodward
The city of Memphis is responding to calls for the full release of footage related to the arrest and death of Tyre Nichols, including audio and video footage, which could be releaed within the “next few weeks,” according to a city spokesperson.
Jennifer Sink, Chief Legal Officer for the city, said that the “premature release of the video and audio could compromise our administrative investigation” into his fatal beating.
“The City is preparing to release these recordings publicly upon completion of the administrative investigation, which is expected to occur in the next few weeks,” she added. “Mr Nichols’ family and attorneys have been afforded an opportunity to view the entirety of the audio and video footage privately until it can be released publicly. We request the public’s patience while we complete our investigation”.
A question central to the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols: Why was he even being pulled over?
Wednesday 1 February 2023 14:00 , Alex Woodward
Footage of the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols has directly contradicted initial police reports, and an initial claim that he was pulled over for “reckless driving” was effectively retracted by officials in the wake of his death.
“I’m going to be honest with you about the stop itself. What was said was there was witnessing of what was considered reckless driving,” police chief Cerelyn Davis told CNN on Friday.
“We’ve looked at cameras. We’ve looked at body worn cameras. Even if something occurred prior to this stop, we’ve been unable to substantiate it,” she said.
All told, according to the Memphis Police Department, two different altercations occurred between Nichols and officers over the course of the stop, the latter taking place just blocks from Nichols’s home.
Here’s what we know so far:
