Five Memphis police officers who were fired in relation to the death of black motorist Tyre Nichols have been taken into custody on second-degree murder and other charges. Mr Nichols, a 29-year-old father, died in hospital on January 10, three days after sustaining injuries as he was arrested by the officers during a traffic stop.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy held a news conference about the case on Thursday afternoon, local time.
He said police would release body cam and aerial footage of the traffic stop after 6pm on Friday.
Second-degree murder is a class A felony punishable by 15 to 60 years in prison under Tennessee law.
The officers also face two counts of official misconduct, one count of aggravated assault and two counts of aggravated kidnapping.
"While each of the five individuals played a different role in the incident, the actions of all of them resulted in the death of Tyre Nichols and they are all responsible," Mr Mulroy said on Thursday.
Each had served with the department for between two-and-a-half and five years.
They were dismissed from the force last Saturday for violating multiple departmental policies, including using excessive force, failing to intervene and failing to render aid.
Other Memphis officers remain under investigation for policy infractions, Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said earlier.
In a video posted on YouTube, she also asked for calm when the body cam footage is made public.
"I expect you to feel what the Nichols family feels," she said.
"I expect you to feel outrage in the disregard of basic human rights.
"I expect our citizens to exercise their First Amendment right to protest, to demand action and results, but we need to ensure our community is safe in this process."
The Nichols family viewed the police footage on Monday with their attorney, Ben Crump.
He said Mr Nichols was shocked, pepper-sprayed and restrained in the traffic stop near his home after returning from a suburban park where he had taken photos of the sunset.
Mr Mulroy on Thursday declined to comment on the legality of the traffic stop.
Mr Crump also represented the family of black man George Floyd, whose 2020 death at the hands of police fuelled nationwide protests and prompted a $35 million payout in a civil lawsuit.
He compared the beating to the 1991 Los Angeles police assault on Rodney King that was caught on video and sparked protests and police reforms.
"He was defenceless the entire time," Mr Crump's co-counsel Antonio Romanucci said.
"He was a human pinata for those police officers."
The last words heard on the video were Mr Nichols calling for his mother three times, Mr Crump said.
Mr Nichols's parents had pushed for first-degree murder charges but his step-father Rodney Wells said they were "fine with" the charges laid and happy that the authorities moved so quickly.
Story by: AP/Reuters
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