One of the cops involved in the brutal beating and resulting death of Tyre Nichols reportedly took a picture of the victim on his phone and texted it to others. According to the New York Times, in a document released by the state on Feb. 7, the Memphis Police Department said one of the officers snapped a photo of Nichols and sent it to “at least” five people.
The document was sent to the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission in January as a part of efforts to decertify the five officers involved in the beating. The officers were fired and charged with second-degree murder.
Decertification would make the officers ineligible to work as police officers in Tennessee.
The said officer who admitted to sending the photo was Demetrius Haley. Haley sent the photo to two fellow officers, a civilian employee of the department and a “female acquaintance.” A sixth person also received the image, according to the records.
Memphis Police Department policy doesn’t allow officers to use their personal cellphones while performing patrol duties, such as driving a cop car, taking calls for service or conducting traffic stops. The documents showed Haley used a personal cellphone to take the picture.
The traffic stop, which led to Nichols’ murder, occurred on Jan. 7. Haley approached Nichols’ car shouting obscenities and pulled him out of the vehicle while the officers yelled conflicting orders at him. Haley tried to pepper spray Nichols, who ran away as another officer fired his taser at him. When he was less than 100 yards from his mother’s house, the officers caught up with Nichols and repeatedly beat him for nearly three minutes. He died on Jan. 10.
Many national figures were in attendance at Nichols’ funeral on Feb. 1, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Rev. Al Sharpton, and family members of George Floyd, Eric Garner and Breonna Taylor.
