Tyre Nichols arrest video released by city of Memphis

A pair of Democratic state lawmakers intend to file police reform legislation ahead of the Tennessee General Assembly’s Tuesday filing deadline, the lawmakers said Saturday.

The announcement comes the morning after officials released video of Tyre Nichols' deadly police encounter.

The bills will seek to address mental health care for law enforcement officers, hiring, training, discipline practices and other topics, Rep. G.A. Hardaway, who represents a portion of Memphis and Shelby County, said. 

Rep. Joe Towns Jr., who also represents a portion of Memphis, said legislation could pass through the state house as early as April or May. 

While Democrats hold the minority with 24 representatives compared to the Republican majority of 99 representatives, Towns said this legislation is not partisan and should pass on both sides of the legislature.

Hardaway addressed some of the unanswered questions remaining after watching the video of Nichols’ violent traffic stop and beating. 

The lawmaker said he thinks there’s more to the story, and that the citizens of Memphis and Shelby County deserve to know the “whole story as soon as possible.”

Both Hardaway and Towns praised the peaceful nature of local protests Friday night, which is what Nichols’ mother asked for ahead of the video release. 

Protesters across the US are preparing to march and rally Saturday, one day after the release of video showing the horrific police beating of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee.

The graphic video of Nichols' violent arrest drew outrage from across the country. Protests formed Friday night, with people in several cities taking to the streets and raising signs bearing Nichols’ name.

Saturday’s marches and rallies are expected in Memphis; Boston; Baltimore; Pittsburgh; Salt Lake City; Athens, Georgia; Los Angeles; San Francisco; Sacramento; Portland and Columbus, Ohio, among other cities. Most will occur in the afternoon or evening.

Friday's demonstrations: In Memphis, protesters shut down the Interstate 55 bridge near downtown, chanting, “no justice, no peace,” according to a CNN team on the scene. There were no arrests stemming from the night's demonstration, police said.

Protesters near Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta repeated Nichols’ name and demanded justice.

In New York, skirmishes broke out between several protesters and police officers as demonstrators crowded Times Square, video posted to social media shows. Three demonstrators were arrested, one of whom was seen jumping on the hood of a police vehicle and breaking the windshield, the New York Police Department said.

Protesters also gathered in Washington, DC, at Lafayette Square to demand justice for Nichols, according to social media video.

Along the West Coast, protesters marched in Portland, Oregon, and San Francisco, California, carrying signs that read, “Justice for Tyre Nichols” and “jail killer cops.” Demonstrations were also held in downtown Los Angeles.

Tyre Nichols was a father, a man who loved his mama and a free-spirited soul who was looking for a new life in Memphis, Tennessee, loved ones say.

That life was tragically cut short earlier this month after a violent arrest by five officers with the Memphis Police.

Now, as attention turns to charges for the officers involved, Nichols’ family wants the world to know the man he was.

The 29-year-old was the baby of his family, the youngest of four children. He was a “good boy” who spent his Sundays doing laundry and getting ready for the week, his mother, RowVaughn Wells, said.

Above all else, Nichols loved being a father and loved his son, his family said.

Nichols was someone who brought everyone joy.

“When he comes through the door, he wants to give you a hug,” Crump said, speaking on behalf of Nichols’ family.

Nichols’ daily life was ordinary at times, as he worked and spent time with family, but he also made time for his passions, his mom said.

Nichols worked the second shift at FedEx, where he had been employed for about nine months, she said.

He came home during his break to eat with his mom, who would have dinner cooked.

Nichols loved his mom’s homemade chicken, made with sesame seeds, just the way he liked it, Wells said.

When he wasn’t working, Nichols headed to Shelby Farms Park to skateboard, something he had been doing since he was 6 years old. He would wake up on Saturdays to go skate or sometimes, he’d go to the park to enjoy the sunset and snap photos of it, his mom said.

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Memphis City Council member Michalyn Easter-Thomas said it's possible that protests in the city remained calm after the release of the Tyre Nichols video last night because there is more optimism about the legal process unfolding.

Easter-Thomas commended police for pausing the specialized unit — which at least two of the officers charged in Nichols’ death were members of — called SCORPION, or Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods. CNN reported Friday that the unit has been inactivated during a review process by the Memphis Police Department.

She said she has asked staff to draft up legislation to disband the unit altogether.

The city council meets in one week, Easter-Thomas added.

"I know that will be a very robust meeting, as we need make sure we review these policies to ensure that the police department knows that we support them, but also want to make sure that they are doing their job with the utmost fidelity," she said.  

She added that "it hurts to see" the former officers beat Nichols in the video released Friday evening.

"It hurt, but it allowed us to really look deeper into what we can really do to change the course of how we are developing and progressing our police department for the entire city of Memphis," she continued.  

The newly released video of the violent arrest of Tyre Nichols is difficult to watch — but it may also be hard to avoid. Some people might even feel duty-bound to watch it as a way to pay tribute to Nichols, who died three days after the confrontation with officers.

Psychologists say the best approach to care for mental health is to know your limits – and possibly to avoid watching the video altogether.

Research shows that frequent exposure to violent news events can cause negative stress reactions. Even witnessing vicarious violence can raise a person’s sense of anxiety and fear and, in some cases, lead to post-traumatic stress disorder.

Dr. Erlanger Turner, a psychologist and assistant professor of psychology at Pepperdine University, said it’s good to do a self-assessment before watching such videos.

Talking to kids: Parents and others who care for children may need to prepare for their questions.

Parents should try to anticipate their kids’ response to seeing or hearing about the video and how to talk about it, Turner said. Will the child be numb to it after seeing so many violent images? Will they be upset? Are they going to be afraid for their parents or for themselves?

Here are some places you can find immediate help:

For resources specific to Black wellness:

The Memphis Police Association put out its first statement since officials released video of the violent police beating of Tyre Nichols, expressing condolences to his family and saying the union never condones mistreatment.

"The Memphis Police Association is committed to the administration of justice and NEVER condones the mistreatment of ANY citizen nor ANY abuse of power. We have faith in the Criminal Justice System. That faith is what we will lean on in the coming days, weeks, and months to ensure the totality of circumstances is revealed," it said in a statement on Facebook.

"Mr. Nichols’ family, the City of Memphis, and the rest of the country deserve nothing less. We pray for justice, healing, and eventual closure for all involved," it added.

Some of the five former Memphis police officers accused in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols were members of a recently created unit that was tasked with tackling rising crime in the city.

When it was launched in 2021, the SCORPION unit – which stands for Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods – was heralded as a direct response to some of the city’s worst crime. Mayor Jim Strickland championed the unit, mentioning it during an address to the city in January 2022 and proudly pointing to 566 arrests – 390 of which were for felonies – and more than $103,000 in cash seized.

“Statistically, crime was off the hook. Tactically, it was the logical move for a police department to create SCORPION,” according to CNN chief law enforcement and intelligence analyst John Miller. “These units are sent to areas where the police are tracking upticks in violent crime.”

Miller said “targeted deployments can have a good impact” but noted there could be issues:

Unit inactivated in wake of Nichols' death: At least two of the officers charged in Nichols’ death were members of SCORPION, and CNN reported Friday that the unit has been inactivated during a review process by the Memphis Police Department.

Police Major Karen Rudolph told CNN that the unit "has not been disbanded" and that the review encompasses 10 such specialized units "that work similar" to SCORPION.

In a weekly letter to the Memphis community, Strickland also commented on the review.

“It is clear that these officers violated the department’s policies and training. I want to assure you we are doing everything we can to prevent this from happening again. We are initiating an outside, independent review of the training, policies, and operations of our specialized units. Since this event happened, the SCORPION Unit has been and remains inactive,” the mayor wrote.

Nichols' family attorney Antonio Romanucci has called on Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn "CJ" Davis to disband the unit immediately.

You can read more about the Memphis SCORPION unit here.

CNN's Don Lemon and Jamiel Lynch contributed reporting to this post.

The attorney for former Memphis police officer Desmond Mills Jr. put out a statement following the release of video Friday night that showed the traffic stop and violent police confrontation that led to the death of Tyre Nichols.

Attorney Blake Ballin said the videos “produced as many questions as they have answers,” specifically regarding his client’s involvement during the fatal encounter, adding that Mills arrived later than other officers and that his vision was impaired by the pepper spray used during the traffic stop.

Mills is one of the five former Memphis officers indicted on murder and kidnapping charges in connection with Nichols’ death. All five officers were also fired for the actions during the incident.

“We are confident that the questions of whether Desmond crossed the lines that others crossed and whether he committed the crimes charged will be answered with a resounding no,” Ballin said.

A group of protesters shut down the Interstate 55 bridge near downtown Memphis, Tennessee, on Friday night, according to a CNN team on scene. 

The group of about 200 protesters marched from Martyrs Park, on the southern end of downtown, to the bridge. The structure connects the city to the state of Arkansas.

By about 7 p.m. local time (8 p.m. ET), the group had blocked all lanes on the bridge.

Memphis police asked drivers to avoid the area of I-55 and the Arkansas Bridge. Officers had trouble approaching the group because of long lines of traffic separating law enforcement from the demonstrators. Several big rigs were stuck, sitting idle as protesters blocked the lanes.

The demonstration came as CNN and other news outlets publicly played video of Tyre Nichols' beating by police for the first time.

The crowd could be heard chanting, "No justice, no peace," and "They're taking our lives, we're taking their money."

By about 11 p.m., the crowd had diminished to around 100 people, and they seemed to be dispersing, according to Memphis Police Department spokesperson Louis Brownlee.

Brownlee said no arrests stemmed from the demonstration.