Great indignation has been aroused by the video of a severe beating that five American police officers gave to a young man in Memphis, in the state of Tennessee, who ended up dying three days later due to the severity of his injuries.
Tire Nichols, a 29-year-old African-American, was arrested in Memphis on January 7 for a traffic violation just a few minutes from his home. Police initially said that "a confrontation occurred," that he ran away and then there was another confrontation when officers captured him.
However, the video of the event that was made public by the Memphis Police Department on Friday refutes the officers' version and reveals an act of extreme police brutality.
A representative of Nichols' family, prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump, said the police beat him like a "human piñata" for three minutes. Another jurist described the images as "wild" and without justification of any crime.
The images, taken from the police body camera and a surveillance camera on a pole, show five officers, also black, savagely beating the young man while shouting obscenities at him.
In the video you can see how one abruptly pulls him out of his car, while Nichols says: "I haven't done anything." Then the group begins to wrestle with him to throw him to the ground.
"Hit him with the taser," an officer is heard shouting.
Moments later, already on the ground, the police continue yelling at him and he responds: "Man, I'm on the ground." Immediately someone else is heard threatening to hit him.
Nichols manages to get away and runs, while an officer shoots him with the stun gun.
You can then see how the agents chase him, capture him and begin to hit him with a baton, kick him and spray him with pepper spray while he, on the ground, tried to cover his face with his hands and shouts "mom, mom! ".
Finally, the man ends up collapsing.
The five officers were identified as Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Desmond Mills Jr, Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith. All were expelled from the Police Department.
They were arrested and charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, ethical misconduct, and oppression. Four of them were released after paying bail.
Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis called the video of the incident "horrible, alarming, disappointing, sad."
For his part, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland issued a statement stating that the officers clearly violated department policies, and that he has initiated a review of the training, policies and operations of the specialized units.
"I am sad and angry for Tire Nichols' family. I am also angry for the many good men and women of the Memphis Police Department who dedicate their lives to serving our citizens," he said.
Lawyer Antonio Romanucci, who represents the victim's family, stressed that the agents "acted together... to inflict harm, terrorism, oppression of freedom, oppression of constitutional rights, which led to a murder."
The publication of the video of Nichols' beating sparked protests in New York.
More are expected to happen over the weekend, and therefore law enforcement in cities like Philadelphia, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. They have prepared for possible demonstrations.
The mother and stepfather of the deceased urged the population not to create problems.
"We don't want any kind of riot. We don't want any kind of disturbance. We want peaceful protests," said Rodney Wells, the young man's stepfather.
Tire Nichols was the father of a four-year-old boy and worked at the shipping and courier company FedEx.
His relatives allege that due to the beatings he suffered a heart attack and kidney failure that caused his death.
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