A judge in Tennessee has postponed the release of 20 hours of footage depicting the police beating and arrest of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who died in January following his deadly encounter with police officers. The judge cited the need for lawyers representing five Black Memphis police officers charged with Nichols’ death to review the tapes as a reason for the delay.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Justice Department announced an investigation into the special police unit that arrested Nichols. The delay of the footage has been met with criticism from civil rights leaders, including Rev. Al Sharpton, who issued a statement calling for the immediate release. He said, “delaying the release of this footage is delaying justice for Tyre Nichols and his family.”
The statement continues: “From the start, we said this needs to be a transparent process. To tell the public you will release more evidence and then pull it back at the 11th hour only causes more frustration for a city still reeling from this senseless killing.”
Nichols’ death has sparked nationwide protests against police brutality.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
