The United States has been on edge for the past 24 hours after the city of Memphis released videos of police stopping traffic and beating Tire Nichols, a 29-year-old black man. Five police officers have been fired and charged with second-degree murder in his death.
Here is a timeline of the events.
Jan. 7: Officers pull over Nichols on suspicion of reckless driving around 8:30 p.m. Police said in a statement that a confrontation ensued, Nichols fled on foot, officers pursued him and another confrontation ensued. Subsequently, Nichols “complained of having difficulty breathing,” the statement said. An ambulance was called and Nichols was taken to hospital.
January 8: Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy asks the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation to conduct an investigation into the use of force surrounding the arrest, the office announced less than 24 hours after the incident. Memphis is in Shelby County.
January 10: Nichols “succumbed to his injuries,” the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said.
Jan. 14 – Nichols’ family holds a memorial event where they display a photograph of Nichols showing him intubated and with his face severely beaten, the Memphis Commercial Appeal reported. A subsequent protest takes place at a police station.
January 16 – The family hires civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, known for representing families in some of the most complicated cases in the United States, including those of Trayvon Martin and George Floyd. Crump immediately calls for video of the encounter with Nichols captured by police body cameras and dash cameras to be released.
January 20: The Memphis Police Department fires all five officers involved.
January 23: The family of Crump and Nichols view the police video. Crump then says that he reminded him of the video of the Rodney King beating.
January 24 – The City of Memphis announced that two firefighters involved in the incident have been relieved of their duties pending an internal investigation.
January 25: Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis releases a video statement calling Nichols’ treatment “a basic lack of humanity.”
January 26: All five officers are charged with second degree murder.
January 27: Police video of the incident is released showing officers pepper-spraying, punching and kicking Nichols, and beating him with a baton. At one point, Nichols, 29, cries: “Mom! Mom!” After the beating, several officers stood talking as he lay motionless on the ground.
January 27 – President Joe Biden issued a statement saying he was “outraged and deeply hurt” after viewing video released Friday night of the fatal beating of Tire Nichols by police officers in Memphis, Tennessee. “It is yet another painful reminder of the deep fear and trauma, pain and exhaustion that black and brown Americans experience every day,” Biden said in a statement.
January 27 – Protests erupted in Memphis, with citizens and police unions condemning the police after the public release of a video showing five officers savagely beating Tire Nichols, who later died. Protesters gathered in a park near the White House, in Memphis and other cities when the video was posted. In Memphis, protesters chanted: “Say her name! Pull Nichols!” and several dozen protesters blocked a busy bridge on Interstate 55 which is one of two main stretches connecting Arkansas and Tennessee over the Mississippi River.