Current:Home > StocksEx-officer testifies he beat a ‘helpless’ Tyre Nichols then lied about it-LoTradeCoin
Ex-officer testifies he beat a ‘helpless’ Tyre Nichols then lied about it
View Date:2024-12-23 19:26:03
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A former Memphis police officer testified Tuesday that he punched a “helpless” Tyre Nichols at least five times while two colleagues held his arms and said “hit him,” then lied to his supervisor about their use of force in a beating that proved fatal.
Emmitt Martin III testified that he was at the traffic stop on Jan, 7, 2023, when Nichols was pulled over and yanked from his car. Nichols fled, but Martin has said Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith gave chase and were punching the 29-year-old man without their handcuffs out when Martin caught up with them.
“They were assaulting him,” Martin said Tuesday.
Bean, Smith and Demetrius Haley have pleaded not guilty to charges that they deprived Nichols of his civil rights through excessive force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering.
The four men, along with Desmond Mills Jr., were fired by the police department after Nichols’ death. The beating was caught on police video, which was released to the public. The officers were later indicted by a federal grand jury. Martin and Mills have taken plea deals and are testifying against their former colleagues.
Jurors watched video clips as Nichols’ mother and stepfather, RowVaughn and Rodney Wells, sat outside the courtroom. RowVaughn Wells has never seen the video. Nichols’ brother watched the video inside.
Martin said he was angry that Nichols had run from the traffic stop, and that the team had not yet made any arrests that night.
“I figured that’s what he should get,” Martin said.
Prosecutor Kathryn Gilbert asked Martin whether officers were allowed to use force because they are angry.
“No ma’am,” he said, adding that he should have intervened.
Martin said he threw his body camera on the ground.
“I didn’t want to show what we were doing,” he said “We were assaulting Mr. Nichols.”
Martin said he kicked Nichols, while Mills hit him with a baton. Then Martin said he punched Nichols at least five times while Bean and Smith held his arms and urged Martin on. Officers were holding his arms while also giving him commands to give them his hands.
“He was helpless,” Martin said of Nichols.
Martin said he did not tell Lt. Dewayne Smith, his supervisor, about their use of force. Martin said he told Smith that Nichols was high, without evidence, and that officers lied about Nichols driving into oncoming traffic and taking a swing at them during the traffic stop.
Martin testified that while he felt pressure on his gun belt at the scene of the traffic stop, he never saw Nichols put his hands on his gun. Yet, Martin said, he told his supervisor that Nichols had his hands on his weapon.
“I exaggerated his actions to justify mine,” Martin said.
He said colleagues understood that, “they weren’t going to tell on me, and I wasn’t going to tell on them.”
Martin said they violated department policy with their use of force and lying about it.
Nichols, who was Black, was pepper sprayed and hit with a stun gun during the traffic stop, but ran away, police video shows. The five officers, who also are Black, caught up with Nichols and beat him about a block from his home, as he called out for his mother.
Video shows the officers milling about and talking as Nichols struggles with his injuries. Nichols died Jan. 10, 2023, three days after the beating.
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 also have been charged with second-degree murder in state court, where they pleaded not guilty, although Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas. A trial date in state court has not been set.
___
Associated Press reporter Jonathan Mattise contributed from Nashville, Tennessee.
veryGood! (38938)
Related
- Democrat Janelle Bynum flips Oregon’s 5th District, will be state’s first Black member of Congress
- Trump skips Iowa evangelical group's Republican candidate event and feuds with GOP Iowa governor
- Amazon Prime Day Is Starting Early With This Unreal Deal on the Insignia Fire TV With 5,500+ Rave Reviews
- In a Bold Move, California’s Governor Issues Ban on Gasoline-Powered Cars as of 2035
- Biden funded new factories and infrastructure projects, but Trump might get to cut the ribbons
- 'New York Times' stories on trans youth slammed by writers — including some of its own
- More than 300,000 bottles of Starbucks bottled Frappuccinos have been recalled
- Northwestern fires baseball coach amid misconduct allegations days after football coach dismissed over hazing scandal
- 'Squid Game' creator lost '8 or 9' teeth making Season 1, explains Season 2 twist
- Donald Trump’s Parting Gift to the People of St. Croix: The Reopening of One of America’s Largest Oil Refineries
Ranking
- What is best start in NBA history? Five teams ahead of Cavaliers' 13-0 record
- Inside Clean Energy: The New Hummer Is Big and Bad and Runs on Electricity
- Amazon Prime Day Is Starting Early With This Unreal Deal on the Insignia Fire TV With 5,500+ Rave Reviews
- Louis Tomlinson Devastated After Concertgoers Are Hospitalized Amid Hailstorm
- FBI raids New York City apartment of Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan, reports say
- Your Super Bowl platter may cost less this year – if you follow these menu twists
- Your Super Bowl platter may cost less this year – if you follow these menu twists
- Race, Poverty, Farming and a Natural Gas Pipeline Converge In a Rural Illinois Township
Recommendation
-
Traveling to Las Vegas? Here Are the Best Black Friday Hotel Deals
-
Federal Trade Commission's request to pause Microsoft's $69 billion takeover of Activision during appeal denied by judge
-
An activist group is spreading misinformation to stop solar projects in rural America
-
Missing Titanic Submersible: Former Passenger Details What Really Happens During Expedition
-
Louisiana man kills himself and his 1-year-old daughter after a pursuit
-
Sarah Jessica Parker Teases Carrie & Aidan’s “Rich Relationship” in And Just Like That Season 2
-
Indian authorities accuse the BBC of tax evasion after raiding their offices
-
Temple University cuts tuition and health benefits for striking graduate students