Former Memphis police officer changes plea to guilty in Tyre Nichols beating death

A second former Memphis police officer changed his plea to guilty on Friday in connection to alleged civil rights violations that ended in the beating death of Tyre Nichols. A change of plea for former officer Emmitt Martin was entered in the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Mark Norris in Memphis, with prosecutors saying they’ll ask for a 40-year-sentence. Back in November, another former Memphis officer, Desmond Mills Jr., changed his plea to guilty to federal charges of excessive force and obstruction of justice. “It was good to finally hear him admit the guilt,” the victim’s mother, RowVaughn Wells, told reporters outside court. The grieving mother said she recently found an old text message, the last one she ever exchanged with Nichols. I have four children, one of my kids is gone now because of the Memphis Police Department,” Wells said. Memphis Police Department via AP The 29-year-old Nichols died in the hospital several days following a traffic stop on Jan. 7, 2023. Several Memphis police officers were recorded on cameras kicking, punching and hitting him with a baton. Martin’s defense lawyer, Stephen Ross Johnson, said his client is accepting responsibility for his actions. “Emmitt Martin was driven by anger when on Jan. 7 of 2023, he admits that he violated Mr. Nichols’ civil rights and used excessive force,” Johnson said. The other officers — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith — have pleaded not guilty to federal and state charges connected to Nichols, who was Black. All five officers, who are also Black, were put on administrative leave before they were eventually fired. Officers reportedly pulled over Nichols for reckless driving, but Memphis police later said there was no evidence to support a stop. Nichols fled on foot and when officers caught up with him, the young man was just a block away from where his mother and stepfather live. Despite extensive video, Crump said he’s never confident there will be convictions against police. “You know, this is not something we ever take for granted that police officers will be held accountable and sentenced to real prison time for killing Black people in America,” he said. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-memphis-police-officer-set-change-plea-tyre-nichols-beating-dea-rcna167992