‘Still healing’: Memphis mayor, police chief call for unity after Tyre Nichols verdict
MEMPHIS, TN — After a blanket not-guilty verdict was handed down by a jury for former police officers in the Tyre Nichols state criminal trial on May 7, Memphis Mayor Paul Young and Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis voiced sympathy for the family and encouraged the city to heal together.
“Today, my prayers are with the Nichols family and our entire city,” Young said in a joint video statement with Davis on X. “I understand the pain we’re feeling as a life was lost at the hands of officers whose actions don’t reflect the values of our Memphis Police Department. Memphis is still healing, and healing demands that we work together.”
Young added that the city is dedicated to enhancing trust in the police with the community. Davis said the verdict had a “profound impact” on Nichols’ family, the Memphis Police Department, the city, and “our entire nation.”
“Policing in Memphis should always be ever-evolving and continuously improving, and I am confident that our team is ready to further the work in ongoing change,” Davis said. “As I have said before, we believe in improved policing, in training and in progress we are seeing daily. We recognize the pain and grief this incident has caused. The men and women of the Memphis Police Department remain committed to rebuilding trust and working together toward a stronger, safer Memphis for all.”
Ben Crump on the verdict: ‘Devastating miscarriage of justice’
The verdicts followed a week and a half of testimony and arguments from attorneys. Ben Crump, the attorney representing Nichols’ family, called the verdicts “a devastating miscarriage of justice” and affirmed that he would pursue justice through the civil lawsuit.
The three former officers who stood trial — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith Jr. — were convicted of various charges in the federal trial last fall. Despite not facing prison time in the state case after their acquittals, they could face federal time.
Haley could be sentenced to life in prison; Bean and Smith face up to 20 years. There is no parole in the federal system, meaning they will serve the entirety of their sentences.
‘Tyre Nichols and his family deserve true justice’
Several elected officials and advocates spoke out following the state verdict.
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) President and CEO Derrick Johnson shared his dissatisfaction with the non-guilty verdict, encouraging U.S. Congress to take a stronger stance on police reform.
“Tyre Nichols and his family deserve true justice — not only in the courtrooms, but in Congress, by passing police reform legislation once and for all,” Johnson said on social media. “Traffic stops should not be a death sentence, and a badge should never— ever — be a shield to accountability.”
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said the death of Nichols “created a wound in our community.”
“While I respect the judicial process, I also recognize today’s verdict pours salt on that wound,” Harris said on X. “We must support reforms to the system to ensure this won’t happen again.”
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, whose office prosecuted the case, said he disagreed with the not guilty verdicts. He also refused to “Monday morning quarterback” and discuss what strategies did not work in his office’s prosecution of the three former officers.