Memphis police release images of fatal assault by officers

Police in the US city of Memphis have released video footage of the beating by officers that killed a 29-year-old black man earlier this month. The release follows the day after the announcement that the five officers involved, who are also black, are being charged with manslaughter.

The images come from both a bodycam and a still remote camera. You can see and hear how the man, called Tire Nichols, is forcibly removed from his car by officers. He was charged with reckless driving.

The police force him to the ground cursing and threaten more violence. Nichols says several times that he has done nothing and manages to run away after some time. The officers go after him and tase him from a distance.

Footage from a few minutes later shows the officers mistreating Nichols lying on the floor. The images are chaotic and shocking. Nichols is, among other things, beaten with a baton and kicked, apparently also to the head. He shows hardly any signs of defiance and calls out for his mother.

Eventually, the officers drag Nichols into a police car. A few days later he died in a hospital.

The five officers involved were fired last week after an initial investigation. The Memphis police chief then spoke of acting “horrific, reckless and inhumane”.

The five are free after posting bail. Soon they will be brought before the court for the first time.

After the release of the images, protesters took to the streets in several American cities to protest against police brutality against black people. Cities had prepared themselves for large-scale protests, but that does not seem to be the case.

In Memphis, dozens of protesters block a bridge and highway. Small-scale demonstrations are also underway in New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Sacramento, among others. As far as we know they are peaceful. Beforehand, Nichols’ mother had called on protesters to calm down.

President Biden also says he hopes that protests will be peaceful. After seeing the videos, he speaks of “terrible images” that outrage and deeply hurt him.

Biden says his thoughts are with the relatives of Nichols, with whom he spoke earlier in the day. They deserve “a prompt, full and transparent investigation” into the events, the president said.