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Not Guilty — But Not Forgotten: Tyre Nichols Verdict Sparks Outrage
Description
Not guilty. That’s the verdict delivered by an all-white jury in Tennessee for three former Memphis police officers in the brutal 2023 beating of Tyre Nichols.
Nichols, a 29-year-old unarmed Black man, died just days after being kicked, pepper-sprayed and pummeled by officers from a now-disbanded special unit.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith were all cleared of state charges: second-degree murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping and official misconduct — despite graphic body cam footage and expert testimony labeling their force excessive and unnecessary. His only crime was allegedly fleeing a traffic stop.
Civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci called the acquittal a "devastating miscarriage of justice." The Rev. Al Sharpton, who eulogized Nichols and spoke with his parents after the verdict, blasted the decision and questioned why a jury was brought in from outside Memphis.
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