(CNN) [Breaking news update, published at 1:09 p.m. ET]
Release of additional audio and video related to the police beating of Dyer Nichols in Memphis will be delayed amid a court-ordered legal challenge.
Allison Fuchs, a spokeswoman for the Memphis mayor’s office, told CNN that a hearing will be held Wednesday afternoon after a plea was filed by an attorney for one of the former officers charged in Nichols’ death.
The order comes in response to a petition filed by Desmond Mills Jr.’s attorney, Blake Ballin.
[Previous story, published at 12:43 p.m. ET]
Planned and released hours of additional video from the traffic stop that led to the deadly police beating Dyer Nicholas Charges in Nichols’ death have been put on hold amid a legal challenge by one of the former officers.
A hearing on the matter is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon after the former officer’s attorney, Allison Fuchs, a spokeswoman for the Memphis mayor’s office, filed a statement with CNN.
Authorities expect to release another 20 hours of footage from the night of the early January beating, along with some recordings from the city’s just-completed internal investigation into 13 police officers and four fire department personnel, a Memphis official said Wednesday.
The official released on Tuesday A seventh police officer has been fired and others have been suspended or left the force after the deadly encounter in the west Tennessee city. previously, Six officials said Fired, five of them Accused.
The city’s internal investigation into the beating is complete, so the city plans to release additional video footage Wednesday afternoon, Memphis Chief Legal Officer Jennifer Singh told a City Council committee Tuesday morning.
The unreleased footage includes audio of Nichols being spoken to after he was beaten and taken to the hospital by ambulance, and could play an investigative role as his office considers additional charges. The The district attorney previously told CNN.
News of the defense attorney’s legal challenge came Wednesday after the Justice Department announced a review of the Memphis Police Department in the wake of Nichols’ death.
The review, requested by the Memphis, Tennessee mayor and the city’s police chief, will cover “policies, procedures, training, data and processes related to the use, expansion and special units of the MPD.” A press release from the Office of Community Policing Services.
A public report outlining the office’s findings and recommendations will be made public at the end of the review, the release said. The Memphis announcement came shortly before the DOJ released a Harsh criticism of the Louisville Metro Police Department It follows a separate two-year review by the agency after the attack that killed Brona Taylor.
Footage released earlier contradicted police reports
Nichols, a 29-year-old black man, was punched and kicked multiple times by Memphis police officers on Jan. 7 following a traffic stop and brief pursuit. Nichols was hospitalized for the beating and died three days later.
Five black police officers were fired following an internal investigation and indicted on criminal charges on January 26.
Body camera videos and surveillance footage of the detainee Posted on January 27, showed the severity of the beatings to the public and drew widespread condemnation from residents and police officials. The video shocked a nation long accustomed to videos of police brutality — particularly against people of color — and sparked protests. and awareness In Memphis and other major US cities.
The video was released in January It happened contrary to what the authorities said Nichols said in the initial police report filed after the beating, the district attorney said, and prompted a renewed national debate about justice in policing and reform.
The Memphis City Council on Tuesday passed several public safety ordinances related to police. One of them established an “annual independent review” of the police department’s training academy, and the other established an independent review process for use-of-force incidents, as well as deaths or serious injuries to people in custody.
Shelby County Prosecutor Steven Mulroy told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer of the video in early February. Posted in January Programs”Related parts“The beating after the initial stop and foot chase, but still unreleased footage, may play a role in the investigation.
Erica Williams, a spokeswoman for Mulroy’s office, said possible allegations of “false reporting” related to the initial police report are being investigated. told CNN At the same time.
Asked whether anyone new would face criminal charges now that the city’s investigation is over, Williams said Tuesday: “Not at this time.” Before Mulroy’s office told CNN The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation will wait to complete an investigation before making a decision on additional charges.
The city attorney says a 7th officer has been fired and may even have retired
The city will also release some records Wednesday related to internal investigations of 13 police officers and four fire department employees, including documents indicating why they are being investigated, Sink said.
Other investigative files contain information that needs to be redacted and will be posted online once it’s done, he added, without giving a timeframe.
But Sink already announced the lows on Tuesday: Seven police officers were fired, three were suspended, one retired and two had their investigations dropped as a result of the investigations, he said.
It’s the first time the city has announced that a seventh officer has been fired. Details about the man’s name and what the officer was charged with were not immediately released.
Also, the retired officer may have been fired, Sink said, without elaborating on what the officer was accused of doing.
The city previously said three Memphis Fire Department employees — two emergency medical technicians and a fire lieutenant — responded to the scene. Deleted, although no one has been criminally charged. On Tuesday, Sink said, a fourth fire department employee was suspended. Sink did not elaborate.
The two fired EMTs did not perform a primary examination on Nichols for the first 19 minutes, and the lieutenant remained in the fire truck. According to A State Board of Emergency Medical Services.
A council member asked Singh if anyone who attacked Nichols was still part of the police or fire department.
“No. All those officers … criminally charged,” Sink said.
Those five former Memphis police officers were indicted in January He was arraigned on the criminal charges on February 17.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr. They each face charges of second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression. Second-degree murder in Tennessee is a Class A felony punishable by 15 to 60 years in prison.
Their lawyers entered not guilty pleas on their behalf. They are scheduled to appear in court again on May 1.
The five accused officers were part of the department’s special Scorpion unit Launched in 2021 for rising violent crime in Memphis. Memphis police announced the unit would be permanently shut down shortly after video of Nichols’ arrest was released in January, and the DOJ said Wednesday it would separately review special units across the U.S. and create a guide to supplement its review of Memphis. Police.
Shortly after the video of Nichols’ arrest was released in January, Memphis police announced that the unit would be permanently decommissioned as a sign that the department was taking “proactive steps in the process of healing all victims.”
Police identified a sixth officer who was fired in February. Preston Hemphill, who is white, says he was accused of violating department policies including those involving personal conduct and truthfulness.
Seven officers — in addition to the six who were fired at the time — faced disciplinary action Sink said on Feb. 7 for policy violations. Tuesday’s announcement included disciplinary decisions for all 13.
In addition, two Shelby County Sheriff’s Office Deputies at the scene were suspended Each was without pay for their parts in the case for five days, according to a Sheriff’s Office news release obtained by CNN affiliate WHBQ.
CNN’s Pamela Kirkland, Shimon Procubeks and Nick Valencia contributed to this report.
