The Memphis authorities will release the video of the arrest of Tyre Nichols. Yesterday five police officers were charged in the death of the young African American, which occurred on January 7 following a roadside check. The 29-year-old Nichols was hospitalized due to injuries sustained during the arrest and died three days later. The family’s lawyer, Ben Crump, described the arrest as a brutal and prolonged assault, which “will in many respects resemble Rodney King», in reference to the police beating in Los Angeles in 1991, which sparked a series of violent protests in the city and nationwide.
But Cerely Davis, the woman who leads the Memphis police, did not mince words: she declared that the images of the beating of Nichols are “perhaps worse” than those of the beating of Rodney King. In an interview given to Cnn, a few hours before the release of the video described as “shocking and inhumane” by the victim’s lawyers and family members who saw it, “you will see actions that defy humanity”, warned the police chief who, despite fears that these images could cause violent protests, will publish the video tonight.
“I was already in the police at the time of the Rodney King case – he added, speaking of the beating of the African American by the police, whose video sparked a riot in Los Angeles in 1991 – and it is a very similar behavior, if no worse.” Davis underlined how it seems to emerge from the video that the agents’ violence against the 29-year-old stopped for a road check is a sort of “group thought”.
Memphis, indicted for murder five officers who killed a boy
by our correspondent alberto simoni
Meanwhile, for fear of a wave of indignation and protests that the dissemination of the video could trigger, the authorities have launched an appeal for calm, demanding that every demonstration take place peacefully. The Washington Capitol Police has strengthened vigilance around Capitol Hill: according to Politico reports, police departments not only in Washington, but throughout the country, are strengthening security measures, to prevent any violent protests.