DOJ opens civil rights investigation after Black man is killed following a Tenn. traffic stop
Wednesday’s announcement by the FBI and Department of Justice was made in connection with a civil rights inquiry. traffic stop in Memphis, TennesseeThat was before the death of a Black person.
Tyre NicholsThe 29-year-old died three days following his Jan. 7 hospital stop. According to the Memphis Police Department, the case was referred the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation on the following day and an internal investigation into the incident was opened.
Wednesday’s announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Tennessee stated that the FBI’s Memphis branch office and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice are also investigating the Nichols’s death.
Kevin G. Ritz U.S. Attorney for the District stated, “As this investigation is open, we are unable to provide additional commentary or release any further information at this point.”
Nichols’ relatives retained Ben Crump, civil rights attorney. They have requested the release of all body cameras and surveillance footage taken during the stop.
“Nobody should ever die from a simple traffic stop — the footage is the only way to discern the true narrative of why and how that happened to Tyre,” Crump said in a statement Monday.
Crump did not respond immediately to NBC News’s request for comment about Wednesday’s civil rights probe.
Memphis officials, including Chief C.J. Davis and Mayor Jim Strickland. said Tuesday the footage would be released after the conclusion of the internal investigation. According to the police department, it expects this to happen by the end the week.
NBC News Wednesday asked for comment but neither the mayor’s offices nor the police department responded immediately.
Police said a “confrontation” between Nichols and the officers occurred when they approached his car on Jan. 7. Police said that he fled and the officers pursued him.
“While attempting to take the suspect into custody, another confrontation occurred; however, the suspect was ultimately apprehended,” the police department said in the statement Jan. 8. “Afterward, the suspect complained of having a shortness of breath, at which time an ambulance was called to the scene.”
The confrontation was not described by police. Rodney Wells provided a photo of Nichols at the hospital. It showed him with blood on his skin and what looked like a swelling eye.
Wells also shared his story with NBC affiliate WMC Nichols was transferred to the hospital’s dialysis machine in Memphis.
The police department said in its initial statement the district attorney’s office had been contacted and the state’s bureau of investigation had been asked to investigate. The officers were not identified and were removed from duty until the outcome was known.
On Tuesday, Nichols’ family and friends held a memorial ceremony. There were many fond memories shared by his family about the 29-year old Nichols who was a “goofy” kid who grew up to be a caring man.
“From the first day that I met Tyre, I was Pops. I was Dad,” Wells said at the service. “He embraced me. The first Father’s Day, he brought me a Father’s Day present, and he was so happy. … Tyre is a great person.”
LaToya Yiza, whose mother was Nichols’ godmother, remembered Nichols as a baby. She claimed they grew up together, walking to school together while Nichols was in elementary.
“He was just a happy kid, just so goofy,” Yiza said, getting emotional. “You’d walk in and he’d just be saying the craziest thing. … I’m gonna miss him. To see the man he turned out to be — he was a good man. He did not deserve this.”
This article was originally published by NBCNews.com