TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Aug 18, 2023

Five former Memphis Police Department officers facing charges in the death of Tyre Nichols appeared in court last week. Shelby County Criminal Court Judge James Jones Jr. scheduled a Sept. 15 date to consider motions from three officers — Desmond Mills Jr., Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean — requesting separate trials. Mills is the most recent former officer to make this request; Smith and Bean filed their motions in June. The officers are charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and oppression. While some expect a federal criminal case against the officers, pretrial motions and a trial date are yet to be set, pending the judge's ruling on the release of additional documents and video footage related to the case. The Daily Memphian has the story.