Records: Former Memphis Police Officers Lied About Details of Tyre Nichols Traffic Stop

Documents from Tennessee’s law enforcement regulatory and training agency are shining more light on the concerning conduct of the former Memphis Police officers involved in the Jan. 7 traffic stop that body cam video shows ended in the brutal beating of Tyre Nichols. 

A report filed with the Tennessee Peace Officers Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Commission that sought the officers’ decertification includes a statement from Officer Justin Smith, who insists he used departmental training during Nichols’ arrest.

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Transparency Troubles Dog Memphis Police Department Again in Tyre Nichols Case

On January 15, the Memphis Police Department issued a statement on its “internal investigation” into the death of Tyre Nichols — five days after the 29-year-old black man died. MPD said it “was important to take swift and deliberate action to maintain transparency, accountability, public trust, and legitimacy amongst our community.” 

But the troubled police department has had a host of transparency troubles surrounding the brutal beating of Nichols at the hands of five black police officers  – and a history of closed government offenses. 

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Memphis PD on Claims Tyre Nichols Was Targeted and Former Officers Charged with Murder Were Gang Members: ‘There Is No Evidence That Indicates That Either of These Claims Are True’

Memphis Police Department Public Information Officer Major Karen Rudolph told The Tennessee Star in an emailed statement on Tuesday, “There is no evidence that either of these claims are true,” in response to two questions posed to her by The Star.

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Law Enforcement Concerned About New Wave of Riots in Wake of Tyre Nichols’ Death

Protesters gathered in Milwaukee over the weekend to condemn police brutality following the release of video showing the brutal beating of Tyre Nichols by Memphis Police officers. 

Unlike the scenes of looting, violence and whole city blocks in flame that accompanied the anti-police protests during the long, hot summer of 2020, the demonstrations in Milwaukee and elsewhere were mostly peaceful. 

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