Four Former Officers Charged In Tyre Nichols Death Out On Bond

Four former Memphis police officers charged in the death of Tyre Nichols have been released on bond.

Records show Justin Smith, Desmond Mills Jr., Emmitt Martin III and Tadarrius Bean, who were fired along with one other officer after Nichols’ death, were released on bond after they were booked into the Shelby County Jail Thursday morning.

Demetrius Haley is still in jail with a $350,000 bond.

All five men were charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, two counts of official misconduct, and official oppression.

At this time, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said the investigation is ongoing.

Nichols, 29, died on Jan. 10, three days after a traffic stop by Memphis Police that ended with Nichols being severely injured in a hospital.

During Thursday’s press conference, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy said Nichols was bloody and bruised in the hospital and was pepper-sprayed when he was beaten yards away from his home in Hickory Hill.

The officers were fired for violation of policy on Jan. 20.

During the press conference, we pressed Mulroy about the charges.

“At a certain point in the sequence of events, it is our view that this – if it was a legal detention to begin with –  it certainly became illegal at a certain point and it was an unlawful detention,” he said.

Mulroy said his office acted swiftly and fairly to ensure a strong case. Noting the weight of the tragedy, Mulroy thanked his family for their patience.

“We met several times this week with the family of Tyre Nichols they described an almost perfect son.. a cheerful and happy person who enjoyed skateboarding and sunsets over Shelby Farms park,” he said.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch called the police beating sickening and appalling.

“Let me be clear: What happened here does not at all reflect proper policing. This was wrong. This was criminal,” he said.

As the world braces for the release of the violent video of Tyre’s death and protesters gather, we set out to find what the top leaders have planned for possible unrest.

“We’re not preparing for things to get violent because we’re not hoping that things get violent.. sure we have to do some personnel equipment.. things like that but it’s no large scale,” said Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner.

The City of Memphis is expected to release video of the traffic stop after 6 p.m.