Friends, advocates continue fight for justice for Tyre Nichols after federal convictions of Memphis cops
SACRAMENTO — Three former Memphis police offers were found guilty Thursday in federal court, convicted of at least one federal crime each in the 2023 fatal beating of Sacramento native Tyre Nichols.
The men, however, were acquitted of the harshest charges they faced for a death that sparked national protests and calls for broad changes in policing.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith were found guilty of witness tampering related to the cover-up of the beating that followed a traffic stop, but Bean and Smith were found not guilty of civil rights charges.
Haley was acquitted of violating Nichols' civil rights causing death, but convicted of the lesser charge of violating his civil rights causing bodily injury.
Family and attorneys of Nichols said there is justice in Thursday's verdict; one of his childhood friends, Ryan Wilson, tells CBS13 that still, there is also disappointment in it.
"In the end of the day, he's no longer with us," Wilson said. "At least for right now, they are being charged with something. They are facing jail, prison, so I guess that gives people some more time to continue the fight. Because the fight is not over."
Five officers total were charged in Nichols' death, but two pleaded guilty and testified against members of their now-disbanded crime suppression unit at the Memphis Police Department.
"He always had a way of making the best out of things. No matter how life was going you could hardly tell. He always had a smile on his face. That's something I always try to carry with me today, that kind of mindset," Wilson said.
Wilson has a wall at his home dedicated to his longtime friend's memory and said he will never forget his sweet spirit and constant smile.
"He was one of the kindest, most selfless people I knew. It's difficult," Wilson said.
The Natomas skate park that the two boys stopped by daily during their childhood is now named the Tyre Nichols Skate Park in his honor.
"Me and Tyre were always there. We were inseparable," Wilson remembered.
Emmitt Martin, one of two officers who took a plea deal with prosecutors and testified in the trial, told the court that Nichols was "helpless" while officers pummeled him, and that afterward the officers understood "they weren't going to tell on me, and I wasn't going to tell on them."
Sacramento community advocate Leia Schenk, founder of Empact, said Thursday's verdict is what many have been waiting for.
"I think it's a powerful message. That officers that commit crimes like this will be held accountable," Schenk said. "Yes they are gonna do some time. Yes they are now all convicted and that's great. But that is what is supposed to happen. We shouldn't have to beg for that, that is how it should be."
Schenk says Nichol's death should place a microscope on police tactics in every community across our country -- starting dialogue to help spark change.
"These are the conversations that we have to have. They are difficult but they are necessary," Schenk said. "It's a step in the right direction is what we say. But ultimately they did take someone's life and they should be held accountable for that."
Each of the five former officers also have been charged with second-degree murder in Tennessee state court, where they pleaded not guilty, although Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas.
"You took a man's life for absolutely nothing," Schenk said. "Progress is to not have to talk about this anymore. To know this is not going to happen anymore. That's progress for us, that's what we want to see. We don't want to lose anymore lives."
A trial date in state court has not yet been set.
