CBS News
Jury returns mixed verdict in trial of 3 former Memphis officers related to fatal beating of Tyre Nichols
Three former Memphis police officers have been found guilty on some charges in a federal trial stemming from the death of Tyre Nichols in a beating that proved fatal, an incident that sparked national outcry.
All three were charged with violating Nichols’ federal civil rights through excessive force and deliberate indifference to medical needs, but only Demetreus Haley was found guilty of two counts of deprivation of rights resulting in bodily injury, a lesser charge, as well as conspiracy. Haley, Taddarius Bean and Justin Smith were found guilty of obstruction of justice. Bean and Smith were exonerated on the other charges.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys presented closing arguments in the trial of the three men, who were among the five officers fired from the Memphis Police Department after the January 2023 beating, on Wednesday. The jury, made up of four White men, three White women, four Black women and a Black man, began deliberating earlier Thursday after a nearly monthlong trial.
Throughout the trial, jurors repeatedly watched clips of graphic police video of the beating and traffic stop that preceded it. The video shows officers using pepper spray and a Taser on Nichols, who was Black, before the 29-year-old ran away. The five officers, who also are Black, then punched, kicked and hit him about a block from his home, as he called out for his mother.
As they held Nichols, officers said “hit him” and “beat that man,” prosecutor Forrest Christian said during closing arguments.
“This was not a fight. This was just a beating,” Christian said.
Nichols died three days later. An autopsy report shows Nichols — the father of a boy who is now 7 — died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, and cuts and bruises on his head and elsewhere on his body.
The five officers were part of the Scorpion Unit, which looked for drugs, illegal guns and violent offenders. It was disbanded after Nichols’ death.
Two of the officers, Emmitt Martin and Desmond Mills Jr., pleaded guilty to depriving Nichols of his civil rights and testified for prosecutors. Haley, Bean and Smith pleaded not guilty to federal charges of excessive force, failure to intervene, and obstructing justice through witness tampering.
Defense lawyers sought to portray Martin as a principal aggressor. They also suggested without evidence that Nichols may have been on drugs — something Christian called “shameful.” The autopsy report showed only low amounts of alcohol and marijuana in his system.
Bean’s attorney, John Keith Perry, told jurors that Nichols ignored commands such as “give me your hands” and said his client followed department policies, saying that “the force was not excessive.”
After the beating, the officers did not tell medical professionals on scene or at the hospital that they had punched and kicked Nichols in the head, witnesses said. They also failed tell their supervisor on the scene and write in required forms about the amount of force used, prosecutors argued.
Martin testified that Nichols was no threat to officers, and discussed an understanding between members of the Scorpion Unit to not tell on each other after they used excessive force. Martin said members of the unit would justify their use of force by exaggerating the person’s actions against them. He also described feeling pressure to make arrests to accumulate “stats” to be able to stay on the street with the unit.
The five officers also have been charged with second-degree murder in state court, where they pleaded not guilty. Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas. A trial date in state court has not been set.
A child in Canada has died from rabies after being exposed to a bat in their room, health officials said this week.
Dr. Malcolm Lock, the chief medical officer from Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit in Ontario, said Wednesday the child was exposed to the virus in their room from a bat.
“They woke up with a bat in their room,” Lock said, as quoted by Canadian media. “The parents looked, didn’t see any signs of a bite or scratches or saliva, and didn’t seek getting a rabies vaccine, so unfortunately, that child is now deceased.”
The child was hospitalized in early September, according to a statement by Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer, confirming the first domestically acquired case of human rabies in the province since 1967.
“Brant County Health Unit has received laboratory confirmation of a human case of rabies in a resident of Brantford-Brant. The illness is suspected to have been acquired from direct contact with a bat in Ontario.” Dr. Moore said.
No other details, including the child’s age and gender, have been released.
“Due to reasons of personal health information and patient confidentiality, I cannot comment further on the case mentioned,” a spokesperson from Health Ontario told CBS News in an email.
How is rabies spread and what are the symptoms?
Rabies is a deadly viral infection that attacks the nervous system in humans and animals, causing brain and spinal cord inflammation. It is typically spread to humans through direct contact with the saliva of an infected animal through scratching or biting.
Rabies is commonly found in bats, raccoons, foxes, skunks and some household pets. Without proper and prompt treatment after symptoms appear, rabies is nearly 100 percent fatal in both animals and humans, according to Haldimand and Norfolk Health Services, where the child was admitted. Bats pose a unique risk because their scratches can be hard to notice due to their small teeth, and bats cannot be vaccinated through provincial programs, health officials said.
If bitten by an animal suspected of carrying the virus, health officials advise washing the wound thoroughly with soap and water for 15 minutes and immediately seeking medical attention.
According to the CDC, the incubation period of rabies may last from weeks to months, depending on the location of exposure, severity of exposure and age.
“The first symptoms of rabies, called prodrome, maybe like the flu, including weakness, discomfort, fever, or headache. There also may be discomfort, prickling, or an itching sensation at the site of the bite. These symptoms may last for several days,” the CDC says.
In Canada, there have been 28 known cases of rabies in humans since reporting began in 1924, according to the federal government’s data. All the cases were fatal.
Just last week, a U.S. citizen died due to rabies exposure after being exposed to a bat in western Minnesota in July.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
Watch CBS News
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.
