The former Memphis Police officer who took a plea deal in the brutal beating death of Tyre Nichols admitted to repeatedly striking the 27-year-old black man, among other criminal conduct, according to court records.
Desmond Mills Jr, 33, one of five former officers charged in the January homicide, on Thursday pleaded guilty to two felony counts against him — offering his full cooperation with prosecutors in exchange for a recommendation that he serve no more than 15 years in federal prison. Mills was the first of his fellow fired colleagues to agree to a plea, which was offered in both the state and federal cases.
But U.S. District Court Judge Mark Norris for the Western District of Tennessee has discretion in sentencing, so there are no guarantees for a disgraced former police officer who has admitted to violently striking a defenseless man.
In September, a federal grand jury in Memphis returned a four-count indictment against Mills and his co-defendants — Emmitt Martin III, 31; Tadarrius Bean, 24; Demetrius Haley, 30; and Justin Smith, 28.
The former detectives with the controversial SCORPION (“Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods) unit were indicted on federal charges, including using excessive force resulting in the death of Nichols, aiding and abetting each other in using that excessive force, failing to intervene to stop the excessive force, failing to render medical aid, and conspiring or taking action to cover up their misconduct.
The former officers fired and charged in the state case shortly after Nichols’ death are also black.
According to his plea deal, Mills admitted to:
- Repeatedly and unjustifiably striking Nichols with a baton and to failing to intervene in other officers’ use of force against Nichols. Mills said he watched another officer repeatedly punch Nichols in the head while two other officers restrained Nichols.
- Not providing any medical aid to Nichols after the beating, though he knew that Nichols had a serious medical need. He did not alert MPD or Memphis Fire Department EMTs that Nichols had been struck in the head and body.
- Participating in conversations with other officers in which they discussed, using force against Nichols, hitting Nichols to make him fall, and believing they were on the verge of killing Nichols when they saw that Nichols did not fall from the blows.
- Making false statements in connection with the arrest of Nichols, including telling his supervisor that they had done “everything by the book” and providing false information in his statements to an MPD detective tasked with writing the incident report.
- Submitting an MPD report that provided a false account of the force used on Nichols, including a claim that Mills saw Nichols “aggressively resisting” officers. Instead of admitting that he had seen an officer repeatedly punch Nichols in the head while Nichols was restrained by two other officers, Mills reported only that “Nichols was eventually put into custody.”
The plea deal describes in detail what Mills said happened on that January night when a badly beaten Nichols called out in agony for his mother, who lived just down the block from where he was being beaten. The arresting officers would give him no quarter, according to the court records.
Mills “drew his baton, and expanded it. Defendant Mills stepped towards Nichols and warned Martin, Smith, and Bean to ‘watch out.’ Defendant Mills then told Nichols ‘I’m about to baton the f—k out of you.’ With Nichols still on the ground and surrounded by four police officers, defendant Mills yelled ‘Give me your f—cking hands’ and stepped toward Nichols. Two officers, including Smith, immediately responded ‘hit him.’ As Smith pulled Nichols’ left arm and handcuffed wrist, it appeared to defendant Mills that Nichols was coming up from the ground; defendant Mills struck Nichols’ right arm with his baton. Smith continued to hold Nichols’s left arm as defendant Mills repeatedly used his baton to strike Nichols in the area of his right arm,” the record states.
The plea deal continues:
Martin and Bean stood close by and did nothing to stop Mills from striking Nichols. As he struck Nichols with the baton, defendant Mills continued to shout: “give us your hands!” Defendant Mills did not give Nichols an opportunity to comply with his commands as he continued his baton strikes. Defendant Mills struck Nichols with the baton even though he knew that the use of the baton under the circumstances was inconsistent with MPD training and policy. Nichols’ passive resistance did not justify defendant Mills’ use of the baton to strike Nichols.
After the baton strikes, Mills disengaged with Nichols. However, Bean and Smith restrained Nichols’ arms and appeared to lift Nichols to his feet following the baton strikes by defendant Mills. Again, an officer said “hit him.” Martin repeatedly punched Nichols in the head without any justification. Bean and Smith continued to restrain Nichols as Martin repeatedly punched Nichols in the head.
Mills and his compatriots all pleaded not guilty to the charges. Mills is the only one thus far to take a deal.
The remaining four also face several charges in Shelby County, including second-degree murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated kidnapping following the brutal beating death. Nichols died days after the traffic stop in which the members of the SCORPION team claimed that Nichols was driving recklessly. Investigators have said there was no evidence to back up those charges.
Mills’ plea deal includes the state charges as well, so he will serve his 15-year prison sentences concurrently in a federal prison.
That is, if the judge agrees to the prosecution’s recommendations. Norris, weighing Mills’ involvement in the beating death, could decide to give him a stiffer sentence.
Mills isn’t expected to be sentenced until May 24, 18 days after the four remaining defendants are expected to stand trial on May 6. They could still face life in prison if convicted on all of the charges against them.
U.S. Attorney David Pritchard said the death penalty was an option in the case, but the Department of Justice decided to stick with a maximum life sentence.
Asked whether any more plea deals are in the offing, U.S. Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Tiffany Thomas-Turner declined to comment on an ongoing case.
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M.D. Kittle is the National Political Editor for The Star News Network.
