Nichols was beaten Jan. 7, 2023, after a traffic stop that was caught on video, and he died three days later.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — This story will be updated.
The jury in the state trial for three former officers of the Memphis Police Department, accused in relation to the death of Tyre Nichols, unanimously declared the defendants not guilty on every charge.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith were charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, two counts of official misconduct, and official oppression. All three entered not guilty pleas on the trial’s opening day and were acquitted of all the charges.
The incident occurred on January 7, 2023, when Nichols was beaten following a traffic stop, with the event recorded on video. Nichols succumbed to his injuries three days later. According to the autopsy report from May 4, 2023, sustaining blows to the head caused his death, classified as a homicide.
Two other former officers, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills, pleaded guilty to federal charges and testified at the federal trial in 2024. They also pleaded guilty to state charges, but Martin’s state plea deal has not been set in stone like Mills.
The state trial began April 28, 2025. With attorneys previously predicting the case to last around three weeks, Shelby County prosecutors surprised some when they rested their case during day three of the state trial after calling just five witnesses.
More than 20 witnesses were called in total over the course of a week and a half — including Nichols’ mother, Mills and another MPD officer who was fired but not charged for the incident. Martin did not testify. You can read ABC24’s coverage of the trial here.
In the federal trial, Bean, Smith and Haley were all found guilty of obstruction. Bean and Smith were acquitted for three other counts.
Haley was found guilty of obstruction, conspiracy to commit obstruction and lesser charges of the first two counts, deprivation of civil rights and deliberate indifference resulting in serious bodily injury.
