3 former Memphis cops found not guilty of killing Sacramento-born Tyre Nichols

A Tennessee jury on Wednesday acquitted three former Memphis police officers of all state charges stemming from the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man born and raised in Sacramento whose 2023 death intensified calls for police accountability across the U.S.

The jury, described by the Associated Press as appearing all-white, found Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith not guilty of second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. The verdict followed a nine-day trial in Memphis. The jury, described by The Commercial Appeal newspaper as “a mostly-white jury from Hamilton County” — 250 miles east near Chattanooga — spent roughly 8½ hours deliberating after more than a week of testimony at the Memphis trial before returning the verdict.

Nichols died on Jan. 10, 2023, three days after he was pulled over near his home in East Memphis and brutally beaten by multiple officers, an encounter captured on surveillance and body camera footage. Nichols fled after being pulled from his car and was later subdued and struck repeatedly with fists, boots, a Taser and a baton. The beating continued even after he was restrained and crying out for his mother. Paramedics arrived more than 20 minutes after the beating ended.

Footage of the beating captured by a police pole camera, according to the AP, also showed the officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggled.

Prosecutors argued the officers used excessive force and failed to intervene or report the assault to medical personnel.

“Nobody is saying that it’s not a dangerous job,” prosecutor Tanisha Johnson said in closing arguments, as reported by The Washington Post on Wednesday. “But because it’s a dangerous job does not mean that you are immune from making criminal decisions.”

Defense attorneys contended that the officers acted within department policy and used force only after Nichols resisted arrest. They argued that another officer, Emmitt Martin III — who has pleaded guilty in federal court — delivered the most violent blows and was responsible for escalating the incident.

Desmond Mills Jr., another former officer who also pleaded guilty and testified for the prosecution, admitted he failed to stop the beating. He told the court he struck Nichols with a baton out of anger and described fellow officers yelling commands like “hit him” and “beat that man,” according to The Commercial Appeal, the newspaper in Memphis.

All five officers involved were previously convicted on federal charges related to the incident. Despite the acquittals in the state trial, all three officers still face prison time at the federal level, where parole is not an option.

Sentencing in those cases is pending. Haley was found guilty of excessive force and other federal charges, which could result in a life sentence. Bean and Smith face up to 20 years for witness tampering, The Commercial Appeal reported.

The trial was the latest legal chapter in a case that has drawn national attention to issues of police brutality and accountability, especially in Memphis, a majority-Black city. The five officers involved — including Bean, Haley and Smith — were part of the Memphis Police Department’s now-disbanded SCORPION Unit, which had been tasked with crime suppression.

After the jury’s verdict was read, according to the AP and others, the defendants hugged their lawyers as relatives of the former officers cried. One relative yelled, “Thank you, Jesus!”

Nichols’ death reverberated in Sacramento, where family members and community activists have held vigils and called for justice. Nichols, an avid skateboarder, had spoken in past interviews about his life in California and his love for photography and the outdoors.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Nichols’ family, issued a statement expressing outrage at the 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,” the statement said, according to the AP.

This story was originally published May 7, 2025 at 1:18 PM.