Tyre Nichols Funeral Plans Revealed As Memphis Cops Avoid Criminal Charges

The funeral plans have been announced for a young Black man who died from injuries sustained during a violent encounter with police officers during a traffic stop earlier this month in Memphis, Tennessee.

Tyre Nichols will have his homegoing service held in Memphis on the first day of Black History Month, according to a press release sent to NewsOne on Wednesday afternoon. The funeral plans were revealed one day after autopsy results confirmed Nichols was the victim of a “severe beating” before he succumbed to those injuries. They also came as the five officers involved in the traffic stop — all Black men — have avoided any criminal charges for their roles in the police brutality alleged that officials and Nichols’ family saw this week via bodycam video footage.

It was in that context that Nichols’ funeral is scheduled to be held at Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church at 10 a.m. on Feb. 1.

The Rev. Al Sharpton is scheduled to deliver the eulogy while civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who represents Nichols’ family, is slated to deliver a call to action.

Nichols’ friends and family held a public memorial last week to commemorate his life. During the service, Nichols’ stepfather called for the officers to be arrested.

“We are not going down without a fight. We need justice, we need [the Memphis Police Department] charged with [first degree murder], no involuntary manslaughter, none of that,” Rodney Wells said.

What happened to Tyre Nichols?

Nichols, a 29-year-old father of a young son, died on Jan. 10, more than two days after he was pulled over under the reported suspicion of reckless driving.

Nichols’ mother said the bodycam video is evidence that the Memphis Police Department “murdered” her son.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Tyre Nichols' mother says he was two minutes from home when police officers "murdered him."

— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) January 23, 2023

Crump said the officers treated Nichols like “a human piñata” and compared the police violence to the infamous Rodney King beating in 1991.

“Regrettably, it reminded us of (the) Rodney King video,” Crump told reporters on Monday. “Regrettably, unlike Rodney King, Tyre didn’t survive.”

Attorney Ben Crump says video of Tyre Nichols’ traffic stop will be released in 1-2 weeks. Crump calls video “appalling, deplorable, heinous, troublesome, and violent.” He says it reminded him of the Rodney King video. pic.twitter.com/lsrnJHZmsz

— Brittani Moncrease (@BMoncreaseTV) January 23, 2023

 

The bodycam video footage is expected to be made public in the next couple of weeks, at which time the arrests and indictments of the officers involved could come.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s Office suggested criminal charges could take time.

“Our office is committed to transparency and understands the reasonable request from the public to view the video footage. However, we must ensure we abide by applicable laws and ethical rules so that we do not jeopardize an ongoing investigation or prosecution,” the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. “We’re working with the appropriate agencies to determine how quickly we can release the video, and will do so as soon as we can. We’ll be sure to update the public throughout this process.”

‘… the days of Emmett Till…’

Nichols’ older brother likened the death to Emmett Till.

“Knowing the history of police interactions with the Black community throughout time, these men took a position of power and instead of doing something to better the future and honor the past, they became no better than the days of Emmett Till,” Jamal Dupree said in a joint statement with friend Angelina Paxton. “They have let us all down. Justice will be served to them.”

The Memphis Police Department (MPD) has pledged transparency and swiftly fired the five officers involved. MPD said “a confrontation occurred” during the traffic stop when officers approached Nichols, who “fled on foot.” A second unspecified “confrontation” occurred when MPD tried to take Nichols into custody, police said.

Supporters and Activists protest the death of Tyre Nichols, 29, who died days after being arrested by Memphis Police who say “he was driving recklessly.”You shouldn’t be on a dialysis machine, because of a traffic stop. via @3onyourside #WeAreTheBlackMedia #FirstThem pic.twitter.com/923WI1BA58

— #FirstThem NEWS (@FirstThemNEWS) January 15, 2023

“Afterward, the suspect complained of having a shortness of breath, at which time an ambulance was called to the scene. The suspect was transported to St. Francis Hospital in critical condition,” MPD said in a press release admitting the officers “violated multiple departmental policies, including excessive use of force, duty to intervene, and duty to render aid.”

In addition to the police officers, two Memphis firefighters have been “relieved of duty” for their roles during the traffic stop in an indication that the investigation into the brutality is widening in scope.

SEE ALSO:

Tyre Nichols Bodycam Video Footage Is ‘Disgusting’ And ‘Damaging’ To Cops, Memphis Councilman Says

Tyre Nichols’ Death Shows Black Cops Can Also Be ‘Faces Of White Supremacy’

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