2:33 p.m.: Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy spoke with WREG after the verdict came down.
Mulroy was asked if the verdict was surprising, considering the jury was given a list of lesser charges to choose from.
“Was I surprised that there wasn’t a single guilty verdict on any of the counts or any of the lesser included offenses, given the overwhelming evidence that I think that we presented? Yes, I was surprised. Do I have an explanation for it? No,” said Mulroy.
He said the videos speak for themselves, and they were a big part of the state’s case. But he says the state brought witnesses’ testimony, “very effective” cross-examination of the defense’s witnesses, along with “compelling” opening and closing arguments.
“The state did a hell of a job… You just can’t predict what a jury will do,” said Mulroy. “It’s a bitter pill to swallow, particularly in a case like this. But like I said, we can strongly disagree with the jury’s verdict, but we nonetheless respect the jury.”
Mulroy says Nihcols’ family is “devastated” and “outraged” by the result.
“They quite understandably decided that they need to go home and process all of this. And we are going to give them that respect and respect their privacy,” he said.
Civil rights attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, who are representing Tyre Nichols’ family in a lawsuit against the city and police department, released a statement in response to the jury’s verdict.
“Today’s verdicts are a devastating miscarriage of justice. The world watched as Tyre Nichols was beaten to death by those sworn to protect and serve. That brutal, inhumane assault was captured on video, yet the officers responsible were acquitted.
Tyre’s life was stolen, and his family was denied the justice they so deeply deserve. We are outraged, and we know we are not alone. We thank the Memphis community and people across the nation who have stood by Tyre’s family, lifted their voices, and demanded accountability.
Your solidarity has been a beacon of hope in this painful journey. We remain fiercely committed to civil justice and ask for your continued support as we press forward with the civil trial and push for meaningful, lasting reforms needed to stop the cycle of police brutality.
Let this be a rallying cry: we must confront the broken systems that empowered this injustice and demand the change our nation — and Tyre’s legacy — deserves.”
1:57 p.m.: The jury has a verdict in the case.
All three former officers were found ‘not guilty’ on all charges in the state trial accusing them in the beating death of Tyre Nichols.
Tadarrius Bean:
- Count 1 – Not Guilty
- Count 2 – Not Guilty
- Count 3 – Not Guilty
- Count 4 – Not Guilty
- Count 5 – Not Guilty
- Count 6 – Not Guilty
- Count 7 – Not Guilty
Demetrius Haley:
- Count 1 – Not Guilty
- Count 2 – Not Guilty
- Count 3 – Not Guilty
- Count 4 – Not Guilty
- Count 5 – Not Guilty
- Count 6 – Not Guilty
- Count 7 – Not Guilty
Justin Smith:
- Count 1 – Not Guilty
- Count 2 – Not Guilty
- Count 3 – Not Guilty
- Count 4 – Not Guilty
- Count 5 – Not Guilty
- Count 6 – Not Guilty
- Count 7 – Not Guilty
1:25 p.m.: The jury began deliberating at 9:30 a.m. They have been in the jury room going over evidence and video from the case for over eight hours, including yesterday’s deliberations.
The jury consists of eight women and four men. Here are some of the jury instructions they have been given:
- They must use only the law and evidence to determine their verdict. No sympathy.
- For Second-Degree Murder, they must decide if the defendants unlawfully and intentionally killed Tyre Nichols.
- For Aggravated Kidnapping, they must decide if the officers knowingly removed or confined Tyre Nichols, interfering with his liberty, causing him bodily injury.
- As for the misconduct charge, they must prove that the defendants were public servants who refrained from performing a public duty imposed on them by law.
We are still awaiting updates in the case.
***
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The jury began deliberating on Tuesday and will continue into Wednesday in the trial for three former Memphis Police officers accused of beating Tyre Nichols to death in 2023.
The jury began their deliberations around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday and were released for the day a little over four hours later. They will return and continue at 9 a.m. Wednesday.
Each defendant — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith — is charged with seven counts:
- Count 1 – Second Degree Murder (15-25 years)
- Count 2 – Aggravated Assault – Act in Concert (8-12 years)
- Count 3 – Aggravated Kidnapping (8-12 years)
- Count 4 – Aggravated Kidnapping (8-12 years)
- Count 5 – Official Misconduct (1-2 years)
- Count 6 – Official Misconduct (1-2 years)
- Count 7 – Official Oppression (1-2 years)
Each defendant faces the highest charges possible for the crimes, but the jury may also choose from a list of lesser charges for each count or find them not guilty of the charges.
The traffic stop that led to Tyre Nichols’ death happened Jan. 7, 2023, when video shows officers punching and kicking Nichols on the ground near his family’s southeast Memphis home. He died in a hospital three days later.
On Jan. 20, five Memphis Police officers were fired: Desmond Mills, Emmitt Martin, Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith.
Body camera and SkyCop video of the beating were released to the public Jan. 27. The Scorpion Unit the officers were part of was disbanded by MPD the next day.
On Oct. 2, 2024, a federal jury released a mixed verdict for the officers, finding them guilty on some charges and not guilty on others.
The state criminal trial for Bean, Haley, and Smith began on April 28. The jury began deliberating on Tuesday.
Nichols’ family still has a $550 million civil lawsuit pending against the city of Memphis.
The post NOT GUILTY: Jury returns verdict in Tyre Nichols trial appeared first on WHNT.
