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      Atlanta shooting part of alarming US crackdown on environmental defenders

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      Atlanta shooting part of alarming US crackdown on environmental defenders Twenty states have enacted laws restricting rights to peaceful protest, as environmentalists are increasingly criminalized The shooting of Manuel Esteban Paez Terán, believed to be the first environmental defender killed in the US, is the culmination of a dangerous escalation in the criminalization and repression of those who seek to protect natural resources in America, campaigners have warned.The death of the 26-year-old, who was also known as “Tortuguita” or “Little Turtle,” in a forest on the fringes of Atlanta was the sort of deadly act “people who have been paying attention to this issue assumed would happen soon, with no sense of joy”, according to Marla Marcum, founder of the Climate Disobedience Center, which supports climate protesters.“The police and the state have a callousness towards the lives of those on the frontline of environmental causes and I hope this is a wake-up call to those who didn’t know that,” she said. “I hope people take the time to notice what’s going on, because if this trajectory of criminalization continues, no one is going to be safe.”Terán was shot and killed by police as officers from an assortment of forces swept through the small camp of a loose-knit activist group defending the urban forest on 18 January. Police say Terán shot and injured a Georgia state trooper with a handgun first, but the Georgia bureau of investigation has said the shooting was not recorded on body cameras, prompting calls for an independent investigation.Locator map of Atlanta, Georgia with South River forest colored in red.State and local authorities have reacted aggressively to protesters trying to stop 85 acres of the forest being torn down to build a sprawling, state-of-the-art, $90m police training complex – dubbed “Cop City” by opponents as it will feature a mock city for “tactical” exercises.Nineteen forest defenders have been charged with felonies under Georgia’s domestic terrorism laws since December. Authorities have detailed the alleged acts of so-called terror by nine of those facing charges, which include trespassing, constructing a campsite and sitting in the trees of the woodland, a 300-acre wedge of land that once contained a prison farm but is now one of the largest urban forests in the US.Brian Kemp, the Georgia governor who declared a state of emergency and mobilized 1,000 members of the national guard over the protests, has blamed “out-of-state rioters” and a “network of militant activists who have committed similar acts of domestic terrorism across the country” for the troubles.Georgia’s response to the protests follows an alarming pattern of environmental and land rights defenders across the US being threatened, arrested and charged with increasingly drastic crimes, including terrorism, for opposing oil and gas pipelines or the destruction of forests or waterways, advocates claim.‘Assassinated in cold blood’: activist killed protesting Georgia’s ‘Cop City’Read more“This was meant as a chilling deterrent, to show that the state can kill and jail environmental defenders with impunity. It reflects a trend towards escalation and violence to distract from the real issue of advancing corporate interests over lands,” said Nick Estes, author of Our History Is the Future: Standing Rock Versus the Dakota Access Pipeline, and the Long Tradition of Indigenous Resistance.The current crackdown on environmental and land rights defenders can be traced back to the aftermath of 9/11 and the expansion of the definition of terrorism which sparked a wave of arrests known as the “green scare” targeting so-called eco- terrorists.This then spurred the subsequent proliferation of state legislation criminalizing – or at least attempting to criminalize – all kinds of civil disobedience including Black Lives Matter protests and opposition to fossil fuel projects like gas pipelines, defined as critical infrastructure, essentially to protect business interests over environmental and Indigenous sovereignty concerns.“The criminalization of land and water protectors and Indigenous nations using critical infrastructure security laws can be traced back to the Patriot Act. This has contributed to the current escalation as it allows the definition of terrorism to be more vague and expansive, which is intended to have a chilling effect on peaceful protesters,” said Kai Bosworth, author of Pipeline Populism and assistant professor of geography at Virginia Commonwealth University.The 2016-17 uprising against the Dakota Access oil pipeline (DAPL), which cut through the Standing Rock reservation in North and South Dakota and threatened tribal lands, burial sites and water sources, sparked a brutal response by authorities that can be seen as a before and after in how environmental defenders are policed.Law enforcement used automatic rifles, sound cannons, concussion grenades and police dogs against protesters, leading to hundreds of injuries as personnel and equipment poured in from over 75 agencies across the country. Indigenous leaders and journalists were among hundreds of arrests – including 142 on a single day in October 2016 – with scores facing felony charges and hefty fines.Cartogram of the US, with the 20 states that have enacted laws restricting the right to protest peacefully highlighted in red.Since then, a total of 20 states have enacted laws that impose harsh penalties for impeding “critical infrastructure”, such as making trespass a felony offense, or have brought in vaguely defined domestic terrorism laws that have been used to target environmentalists and Indigenous communities. Overall, 45 states have considered legislation restricting peaceful protests, and seven currently have laws pending.These laws have “been successful in really tamping down dissent and sowing fear among people”, said Marcum. Much of this fear has been fueled by the labeling of protestors as “terrorists” by senior elected figures such as Kemp, according to Elly Page, senior legal advisor at the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law, which has tracked the anti-protest bills.“We see autocrats around the world use rhetoric like that to clamp down on dissent,” Page said. “The widespread demonization of protestors we’ve seen from politicians who call them terrorists or a mob is incredibly harmful. I think that creates an environment where violence against protestors is not unlikely and that more of these tragedies will take place.”This lawyer should be world-famous for his battle with Chevron – but he’s in jail | Erin BrockovichRead moreMany of the states’ legislation shares language drafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council (Alec), a rightwing group backed by fossil fuel companies.In Florida, South Dakota and Oklahoma, for example, a “riot” is considered to be any unauthorized action by three or more people, while in Florida, Oklahoma and Iowa drivers who injure protestors blocking traffic, a common tactic used by environmental activists, are given legal immunity.In Arkansas, an “act of terrorism” is considered to be anything that causes “substantial damage” to a public “monument”, which could include graffiti. Across 17 Republican-controlled states, protesters face up to 10 years in prison and million-dollar fines for offences.The broad application of these laws, as well as accompanying legislation that criminalize people and organizations that support allegedly dangerous protestors, “chill activism and make it riskier for people to be involved in their right to protest”, said Page.“Many of the laws have language so broad it makes constitutionally-protected speech illegal,” she said. “It gives authorities discretion to apply the law to an activity they don’t like … We know fossil fuel interests are promoting these sorts of laws.”As the criminalization of peaceful protesters has spread, so has the rollout of new fossil fuel projects projects under both Democrat and Republican administrations – despite the escalation of costly and destructive extreme weather events caused by the climate breakdown.“There have been no effective federal efforts to help protesters or defend against criminalization,” said Charmaine Chua, assistant professor of global studies at the University of California. “If you’ve been paying attention at the way cops indiscriminately kill people and the virulent antipathy towards protest movements trying to solve climate change, it’s hard to be surprised at Manuel’s death but still it does feel unprecedented.”Indigenous tribes tried to block a car battery mine. But the courts stood in the wayRead moreSabine von Mering, one of around 900 protestors who were arrested for opposing the Line 3 pipeline that moves oil through Minnesota, said she was “deeply shocked” to hear of Terán’s killing but that she hoped it will galvanize more people to get involved in climate activism. “Any criminalization of protest is an attack on our democracy,” said von Mering, an academic at Brandeis University.“At Line 3 there were several cases of police being extremely aggressive and violent, it was traumatizing to witness it and I’m an old white lady – I didn’t experience the worst of it. The charges were used to intimidate and quell protest.”To critics of the fossil fuel industry, the Line 3 protests are a prime example of its ability to shape the law enforcement that is increasingly cracking down on its opponents. In 2021 it emerged that Enbridge, the Canadian company behind the pipeline, reimbursed US police $2.4m for arresting and surveilling hundreds of Line 3 demonstrators. The payments covered officer training, police surveillance, wages, overtime, meals, hotels and equipment.Steven Donziger, an attorney who was embroiled in a long-running legal battle with Chevron on behalf of Indigenous people in Ecuador, said the payments are part of a “dangerous trend” of fossil fuel influence over the functions of government and the law.“As we get closer to tipping point of no return on climate change, the effort to silence advocacy to have clean energy transition is intensifying,” Donziger said. “To attack young people who are trying to preserve a forest with a military-style assault is totally inappropriate but is unfortunately a sad reflection of where the country has gone.“For weeks these people were called terrorists, which is a complete misuse of the word. The police have been conditioned to believe these people are terrorists and what do you do with terrorists? In the US you kill them. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.”TopicsEnvironmental activismUS policingAtlantaGeorgiaUS politicsnewsReuse this content More

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      Tyre Nichols officers used force in prior cases and failed to document it

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      Tyre Nichols officers used force in prior cases and failed to document itTwo officers were reprimanded for failing to document incidents and two others were suspended for infractions, records show Two of the since-fired Memphis police officers charged with murdering Tyre Nichols failed to document their use of force in prior cases, and a pair of others were suspended from the department for other infractions, according to personnel records released on Tuesday evening.Two of the officers charged in connection with Nichols’s beating death received written reprimands in 2021 for failing to fill out a department-required form after an instance in which force was needed to detain someone who was purportedly resisting arrest. Another officer had been twice suspended, once after a gun was discovered in the backseat of his squad car and another time for failing to submit paperwork. A fourth officer was suspended after being involved in a car accident in 2021 in an unmarked police vehicle.‘He was robbed of his life’: in Memphis, tributes to Tyre Nichols – and a call to actionRead moreThe records offer new insight into the five officers who are suspected of murdering Nichols and had been part of the police department’s Street Crimes Operation to Restore Peace in Our Neighborhoods – or Scorpion – unit, described as an elite group in the agency that was supposed to crack down on violent criminals.Local criminal justice experts said the records alluded to wider allegations of routine overuse of force and highlighted how the department prioritized disciplinary matters.“The files look pretty routine and indicate a department that’s more concerned with the police officers damaging their car than using excessive force,” Memphis criminal defense attorney Claiborne Ferguson remarked. “And the incidents of excessive force are exactly what our clients tell us about [concerning] their interaction with the Memphis police department.”All of the officers – Desmond Mills, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Justin Smith, and Tadarrius Bean – were fired last month, and Scorpion has been disbanded. Two additional police officers have been put on desk duty indefinitely, and three fire department members who were accused of failing to medically evaluate Nichols properly after the fatal beating have been fired.Mills drew the department’s attention after an evening in March 2019 during which he went to help two officers who were trying to arrest a woman who had a damaged car and was suspected of drunk-driving.Officers said the woman resisted arrest, and one of them struck her with a baton. Mills grabbed the woman’s arms, took her to the ground, and handcuffed her. The woman received bruises and facial abrasions during the encounter, records show.The case should have prompted Mills to fill out a department-required form documenting his use of force. Even though Mills was aware of that requirement, he failed to fill out the form, later telling investigators he did not think it applied in that specific instance. More than two years later, in August of 2021, the department handed him a written reprimand.Haley was involved in a similar case in February 2021. One evening, he was helping other officers investigate a report of shots fired at a Walgreens. One of the other officers saw two women laughing in a car parked nearby and decided to detain them. When police said one of the women resisted getting out of the car, Haley helped put handcuffs on her. The woman, who was arrested for disorderly conduct, said her shoulder was dislocated in the process.After the encounter, Haley should have filled out the form documenting his use of force but failed to do so. He later told investigators he was “mistaken as to the use of force necessary” to require him to fill out the form. A lieutenant who was also present at the hearing told investigators Haley was “a hard working officer who routinely makes good decisions” and “he was sure this was a limited event”. The lieutenant also was issued a written reprimand.Additionally, the records reveal that Martin, who joined the police force in March 2018, was suspended on two occasions. Martin – who moved to the Scorpion unit full-time on 16 November 2022 – was first suspended without pay in 2019 for three days after a loaded revolver was found wedged in the back of his patrol car at the end of a shift.Tyre Nichols death: white officer’s belated suspension raises questionsRead moreThe files show that the gun was eventually found by another officer and that Martin and his patrol partner had been involved in two arrests during their shift. The suspects, therefore, could have used the weapon to harm the officers without them ever realizing it was in the car.Martin later confessed that he had not performed adequate inspections of the vehicle before and after his shift. The officer was warned “this violation could have risen to the level of neglect of duty” but was charged with a lesser offense nonetheless.Martin was suspended again in February 2021, following a September 2020 case in which he failed to submit a report over a domestic disturbance complaint and therefore breached department protocol.The records show that Martin’s superiors spoke in his defense at a disciplinary hearing, describing Martin and his partner as “two of the … top producers” on their shift. Martin was still disciplined and received a one-day suspension without pay.The officer’s file also shows that Martin – who was this week accused of a separate instance of brutality for allegedly threatening to shoot two Memphis residents in the face during an arrest – received high marks in his most recent annual performance review. The department described Martin as exceeding expectations in a section on “dealing with the public”.“He is continually a top leader in arrest and calls, and not one person he has arrested has complained,” the report notes.The records furthermore show that Smith, who joined the department in 2018 and moved to the Scorpion unit in October 2020, was also suspended for two days over a January 2021 case. The officer acknowledged his role in a car crash while driving an unmarked police vehicle with “excessive speed”.A hearing summary noted that Smith “advise [sic] his memory is somewhat unclear due to his minor head injury caused by the deployment of the airbag”.Bean, who joined the police department in 2020 and moved to the Scorpion unit in August 2022, is the only one of the five officers charged in relation to Nichols’s death not to have received any previous departmental discipline.Nichols’s death three days after officers beat him on 7 January has reignited nationwide calls for reforms to American law enforcement less than three years after a Minneapolis police officer murdered George Floyd. Among other things, there have been calls for the creation of national standards that would aim to increase police accountability while stripping away qualified immunity shielding officers from civil liability for misconduct.TopicsTyre NicholsMemphisUS politicsUS policingnewsReuse this content More

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      Tyre Nichols funeral: Kamala Harris condemns ‘violent act not in pursuit of public safety’ – latest

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      “We are here to celebrate the life of Tyre Nichols … Mrs Wells, Mr Wells, you have been extraordinary in terms of your strength, your courage and your grace,” Harris said to Tyre Nichols’ parents in an address at the funeral..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“We mourn with you and the people of our country mourn with you. We have a mother and a father who mourned the life of a young man who should be here today. They have a grandson who now does not have a father…
      When we look at this situation, this is a family that lost their son and their brother through an act of violence at the hands and feet of people who had been charged with keeping them safe…
      “This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety… When we talk about public safety, let us understand what it means in its truest form. Tyre Nichols should have been safe…
      We demand Congress pass the George Floyd Policing Act … Joe Biden will sign it … It is non-negotiable,” she added.“There is no substitute for federal legislation,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said as she told reporters on Thursday that president Joe Biden will continue urging Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. The George Floyd Justice in Policing Act would combat police brutality, racial profiling and excessive force by police officers.At White House briefing. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre: The president told Tyre Nichols’ family he would keep pushing Congress to send the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to his desk. “There is no substitute for federal legislation.” pic.twitter.com/lfiWG4kvQW— David Smith (@SmithInAmerica) February 1, 2023
      The funeral service of Tyre Nichols has concluded with Nichols’ family exiting the ceremony first while other attendees stood and waited for their turn.Flower arrangements were also removed.Singers sang the 1964 song A Change Is Gonna Come by American singer-songwriter Sam Cooke, as well the 2009 song Oh How Precious by American gospel musician Kathy Taylor.“Tyre was a beautiful person and for this to happen to him is just unimaginable,” said Tyre Nichols mother RowVaughn Wells as she wept at the podium while delivering her address..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“The only thing that’s keeping me going is the fact that I really truly believe my son was sent here on an assignment from God and I guess now his assignment is done. He’s been taken home…”
      “I want to thank all the community activists for being there for my family…the chief of police for acting swiftly, the district attorney, the state of Tennessee…I want to thank my lawyers…
      I just need…that George Floyd bill…passed. We need to take some action because there should be no other child that should suffer the way and all the other parents here that lost their children. We need to get that bill passed because if we don’t, the next child that dies, their blood is going to be on their hands.”Nichols’ stepfather Rodney Wells similarly called for justice for Tyre Nichols, saying, “We have to fight for justice. We cannot continue to let these people brutalize our kids…”.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“What’s done in a dark will always come to the light, and the light of day is justice for Tyre, justice for all the families that have lost loved ones to brutality of police or anybody,” he added.One of Tyre Nichols’ sisters recited a poem she wrote at the funeral service called “I’m Just Trying To Go Home.”“I’m just trying to go home.Is that too much to ask?I didn’t break any laws along this path.I’ve skated across barriers designed to hold me back.I’m just trying to go home where the love is loud and the smiles are warm like the sunsets that comfort me in the coldest of my storms.I’m just trying to go home.I hear the sirens,I hear the flashing lights.The directions are clear.Black skin go left, blue skin go right.I’m just trying to go home.Don’t I deserve to feel safe?Batons, badges, blue lights against my face.I’m just trying to go home.Does anyone hear the pain in my cry, the struggle in my breath?God replied, ‘Come home my son, now you can rest.’”Attorney Ben Crump said that Texas Democratic congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee has pledged to introduce a Tyre Nichols clause to the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act that seeks to combat police brutality and racial bias in policing.Tyre Nichols and Breonna Taylor were born on the same day and the same year – June 5, 1993 – civil rights attorney Ben Crump said in his address.Crump asked the crowd of attendees to acknowledge Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor who was killed on March 13, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky by police during a botched raid.“I want to acknowledge Tamika Palmer… I know you said it brought back so many memories and pain so if you would stand up so let us at least acknowledge Breonna Taylor’s mother,” Crump said as the crowd clapped and stood up.Civil rights attorney Ben Crump calls for “equal justice” in his address at Tyre Nichols’ funeral..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“It really is a plea for justice…it is a plea for Tyre Nichols the son…for Tyre Nichols the brother…for Tyre Nichols the father but most of all, it is a plea for justice for Tyre Nichols the human being,” Crump said.
      “Why couldn’t they see the humanity in Tyre?” Crump said of the five Memphis police officers who beat Nichols to death.
      “We have to make sure they see us as human beings and once we acknowledge that we are human beings worthy of respect and justice, then we have have the God given right to say ‘I am a human being and I deserve justice not just any justice but equal justice.’”“All he wanted to do was get home,” Reverend Al Sharpton said of Tyre Nichols..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“Home is not just a physical location. Home is where you are at peace. Home is where you’re not vulnerable. Home is where everything is alright…
      “He said, all I want to do is get home. I come to Memphis to say the reason I keep going is, all I’m trying to do is get home… I want to get where they can’t treat me with a double standard — I’m trying to get home. I want to get where they can’t call me names no more — I want to get home. I want to get where they can’t shoot and ask questions later — I’m trying to get home. Every black in America stands up every day trying to get home.”“You don’t fight crime by becoming criminals yourself,” Reverend Al Sharpton said of the five Black police officers who beat Tyre Nichols to death..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“Why do they go ahead? Because they feel that there is no accountability. They feel that we are going to angry a day or to and then we’re going to go onto something else. But some of us do this everyday. Some of us believe…the dream has to come true. Some of us are going to fight…
      I don’t know when, I don’t know how, but we won’t stop until we hold you accountable,” Sharpton said as he called for the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to be passed.
      “We’re not asking for anything special… we’re asking to be treated equal. And to be treated fair.”“In the city where they slayed the dreamer… what has happened to the dream?” Reverend Al Sharpton said, referring to Martin Luther King Jr who famously delivered his “I Have A Dream” speech. “What is happening to the dream in the city where the dreamer laid down and shed his blood?” Sharpton said.“The reason…[why] what happened to Tyre is so personal to me, it was that five Black men that wouldn’t have had a job in the police department, would not ever be thought of to be in elite squad…in the city that Dr. King lost his life…you beat a brother to death,” said Reverend Al Sharpton who visited the Lorraine Hotel earlier this morning where Martin Luther King Jr. was killed 55 years ago..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“There’s nothing more insulting and offensive to those of us that fight to open doors that you walked through those doors and act like the folks we had to fight for to get you through them doors. You didn’t get on the Police Department by yourself. The police chief didn’t get there by herself. People had to march and go to jail, and some lost their lives to open the doors for you. And how dare you act like that sacrifice was for nothing,” Sharpton said.“We are here to celebrate the life of Tyre Nichols … Mrs Wells, Mr Wells, you have been extraordinary in terms of your strength, your courage and your grace,” Harris said to Tyre Nichols’ parents in an address at the funeral..css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“We mourn with you and the people of our country mourn with you. We have a mother and a father who mourned the life of a young man who should be here today. They have a grandson who now does not have a father…
      When we look at this situation, this is a family that lost their son and their brother through an act of violence at the hands and feet of people who had been charged with keeping them safe…
      “This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety… When we talk about public safety, let us understand what it means in its truest form. Tyre Nichols should have been safe…
      We demand Congress pass the George Floyd Policing Act … Joe Biden will sign it … It is non-negotiable,” she added.Reverend Al Sharpton has called on vice president Kamala Harris to share a few words at the funeral.Reverend Al Sharpton has opened up his address by recognizing the families at the funeral who have lost their children to police brutality, including those of Eric Garner, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd.Vice president Kamala Harris is seen greeting and joining the family of Tyre Nichols at the funeral.@VP Kamala Harris joins the parents of Tyre Nichols here at the funeral in Memphis. #TyreNichols pic.twitter.com/SjQMAAdXnx— Reverend Al Sharpton (@TheRevAl) February 1, 2023 More

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      Sixth Memphis police officer removed from duty after Tyre Nichols death

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      Sixth Memphis police officer removed from duty after Tyre Nichols deathBlack lawmakers call for meeting with president to discuss police reform as investigation into Nichols’s death continues A sixth officer involved in the death of Tyre Nichols has been removed from duty, police said, as an influential group of Black elected officials has called for a meeting with Joe Biden to discuss police reform.Officer Preston Hemphill was relieved of duty and put on what is known as administrative leave, Memphis police maj Karen Rudolph said on Monday, according to multiple reports.Rudolph stopped short of saying what role Hemphill had at the scene of Nichols’s deadly beating or whether he would be charged with a crime in connection with the killing as several other officers have been. But Rudolph said that the investigation into Nichols’s death remained ongoing, and “more information will be shared as it develops”.Hemphill’s removal comes as calls for changes to American policing intensify after officers’ deadly beating of Nichols.‘We’re not done’: end of Scorpion unit after Tyre Nichols death is first step, protesters sayRead moreThe chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Steven Horsford, said the group of 60 members of Congress had asked to meet with the president this week to “push for negotiations on much-needed national reforms to our justice system – specifically, the actions and conduct of our law enforcement”.The appeal to Biden, who has called for Congress to pass police reforms, came as protests prompted by Nichols’s killing continued in Memphis over the weekend.Nichols, a Black man, died on 10 January, three days after Memphis police officers beat him after a traffic stop. Nichols’s parents, who have been invited to attend Biden’s State of the Union speech on 7 February, said the 29-year-old was driving home after photographing the sunset.Video footage released by Memphis officials last week showed officers kicking and punching Nichols and hitting him with a police baton.Five Memphis officers were fired after the attack and have since been charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression.“No one in our nation should fear interacting with the police officers who serve our diverse communities, large and small,” Horsford, a Democratic congressman from Nevada, said. “We all want to be safe.“Many Black and brown people, however, and many young people in general, are justifiably afraid to interact with law enforcement officials.”Horsford continued: “We are calling on our colleagues in the House and Senate to jumpstart negotiations now and work with us to address the public health epidemic of police violence that disproportionately affects many of our communities.“The brutal beating of Tyre Nichols was murder and is a grim reminder that we still have a long way to go in solving systemic police violence in America.”The Senate judiciary committee’s chairperson, Dick Durbin, said on Sunday that Congress can pass additional policing measures like “screening, training, accreditation, to up the game so that the people who have this responsibility to keep us safe really are stable and approaching this in a professional manner”.Law enforcement primarily falls under the jurisdiction of states, rather than the federal government. But Durbin said that should not “absolve” Congress from acting.“What we saw on the streets of Memphis was just inhumane and horrible,” he said. “I don’t know what created this – this rage in these police officers that they would congratulate themselves for beating a man to death. But that is literally what happened.”Also on Sunday, the civil rights attorney representing the Nichols family, Benjamin Crump, called for Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.The bill, drafted after a Minneapolis police officer murdered Floyd in May 2020, would ban chokeholds, create national standards for policing ostensibly to increase accountability, and reform qualified immunity, which shields police officers from civil liability for misconduct.The legislation passed the US House – then controlled by Democrats – in March 2021 but stalled in the Senate. With the House now under Republican control, it remains to be seen whether progress can be made on the bill.Crump told CNN there could be further criminal charges brought against Memphis police while Steve Mulroy, the prosecutor handling the case, said in an interview with the news channel that “nothing we did last Thursday [when the five officers were charged] regarding indictments precludes us from bringing other charges later”.“We are going to need time to allow the investigation to go forward and further consideration of charges,” Mulroy said.The Memphis police department on Saturday announced it would disband its “Scorpion” unit, which was tasked with proactively taking on street crime. The five officers charged over Nichols’s death were all part of the unit.Later that night protesters gathered outside Memphis city hall to mark the victory but said it was just the first step.Local community organizer LJ Abraham told the Guardian that organizers are still demanding that Memphis police dismantle other task forces they run – such as the multi-agency gang unit – and transparency in releasing body-camera footage.She showed the Guardian video from 2020 from a woman showing multiple Memphis police kneeling on her husband’s back while they tried to handcuff him, reportedly on his property.“Right now, when somebody is shot by police, we can’t see that video,” Abraham said, adding that four people had been killed by Memphis police since November. “The only reason we got to see Tyre’s footage was because of the manner in which he died.”A New York Times analysis found that police had given Nichols dozens of “contradictory and unachievable orders” during the traffic stop and subsequent beating. In the 13 minutes between officers stopping Nichols and taking him into custody, police shouted at least 71 commands, the Times reported.“Officers commanded Mr Nichols to show his hands even as they were holding his hands,” the Times found. “They told him to get on the ground even when he was on the ground. And they ordered him to reposition himself even when they had control of his body.”TopicsTyre NicholsMemphisUS policingUS politicsJoe BidennewsReuse this content More

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      Florida officers charged with battery after allegedly beating homeless man

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      Florida officers charged with battery after allegedly beating homeless manTwo officers allegedly handcuffed Jose Ortega Gutierrez and took him to an ‘isolated’ location where they beat him unconscious Two Florida police officers are facing armed kidnapping and battery charges for allegedly assaulting a homeless man after handcuffing him without reason, and taking him to an “isolated” location where they beat him unconscious.The news has emerged as America is grappling with a reckoning over abusive policing in the US following the beating to death of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, Tennessee. Video of the beating of the 29-year-old Black motorist shocked the US and the world when it was released on Friday. Five officers have been charged with his murder.Now Florida prosecutors say that on 17 December, officers Rafael Otano and Lorenzo Orfila of Hialeah city in Miami-Dade county handcuffed 50-year-old Jose Ortega Gutierrez, a homeless man who was known in the area. Surveillance cameras in the area around did not show any behavior by Gutierrez that would warrant an arrest.The officers then drove him to a “dark” and “isolated” spot six miles away, blasting their emergency lights on the way. They allegedly threw Gutierrez on the ground and beat him. He later woke up without cuffs, bleeding from his head.He was eventually able to find help through an off-duty police officer who was walking his dog and called 911 for him.Orfila reportedly called one of the responding officers to ask about Gutierrez’s condition and asked him to write up the 911 call as “no report”.The incident soon led to an internal investigation.A few days later, Ali Amin Saleh, 45, allegedly approached Gutierrez and offered him $1,200, persuading him into signing an affidavit claiming the officers did not assault him.Gutierrez, who does not know how to read and was not informed what was in the statement, said he signed the paper because he needed the money.Saleh was charged with tampering with the victim. Orfila, who was the one to handcuff Gutierrez, was also charged with official misconduct.The charges were announced on Thursday by Miami-Dade state attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle who condemned their actions, and said: “We will not allow rogue police officers to abuse their powers and to betray the public that they serve.”The officers were fired on Thursday, and taken into the Miami-Dade jail. They have been denied bail by a judge.TopicsFloridaUS policingUS politicsnewsReuse this content More

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      ‘We’re not done’: end of Scorpion unit after Tyre Nichols death is first step, protesters say

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      ‘We’re not done’: end of Scorpion unit after Tyre Nichols death is first step, protesters sayCall for release of information on all officers and an end to pre-textual traffic stops, such as pulling people over for loud music Along Main Street, just outside Memphis City Hall, a swarm of white and Black protesters and organizers gathered under the sprinkling rain to mark a significant victory: the city police department had just announced they would permanently disband the so-called Scorpion unit whose officers were involved in the beating death of Tyre Nichols.Memphis police disband unit whose officers fatally beat Tyre NicholsRead moreStill, they argued, that was just the first step in getting justice for Nichols, whose shocking death has stunned and angered much of America and reopened a debate over racism and police brutality. “We’re not done,” one organizer said through a megaphone. “We’ve got a long way to go.”They called for the release of information on all officers and personnel involved in Nichols’s death on top of the murder charges laid against the five Black officers who attacked the 29-year-old. They also demanded an end to pre-textual traffic stops, such as pulling people over for broken tail lights and loud music, and the dissolution of other units and task forces the Memphis police department operates.Before the announcement of the Scorpions disbandment, demonstrators had marched past a fire station and Memphis police headquarters and chanted “Justice for Tyre”. The protest had come just a day after the city released video footage of the brutal mass beating that had led to Nichols’s death. At one point, protesters surrounded police vehicles that had blocked off the streets.Once the group made a loop around the area and returned to City Hall, Amber Sherman, an organizer, recounted part of the statement released by Memphis police and added: “If we can do one, we can do them all!”Ending the unit, one of several police task forces in Memphis dispatched to neighborhoods to suppress crime, had been one of several demands protesters and Nichols’s family made in the aftermath of the Nichols’s death. In a statement, the family’s attorneys Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci said that the unit’s dissolution marked an “appropriate and proportional” response to Nichols’s death and a “decent and just decision” to Memphis residents.“We hope that other cities take similar action with their saturation police units in the near future to begin to create greater trust in their communities,” they said. “We must keep in mind that this is just the next step on this journey for justice and accountability, as clearly this misconduct is not restricted to these specialty units. It extends so much further.”Martavius Jones, chair of the Memphis city council, told the crowd that it was now on city officials to take further action to reform the police department. “Hold us accountable,” he told the crowd. LJ Abraham, a local community organizer, and others looked over to Jones and reiterated they would.Jones, who grew up in Memphis and has been on the city council since 2015, told the Guardian that he gave credit to the police chief and Shelby county district attorney for respectively firing and charging five officers but would listen to residents for guidance.“We’re the body that can put forth reforms that can address this, and do our best to try to prevent this from happening again,” Jones told the Guardian.JB Smiley, vice chair of the Memphis city council, called for charges against “each and every officer” involved in Tyre Nichols’s death and urged citizens to “pull up” to upcoming city council meetings to make their voices heard.Smiley said in a statement that one police officer who “tased Tyre Nichols and who compelled the other officers to stomp him” to be fired, echoing what other organizers have expressed. He plans on introducing amendments to city ordinances that would bolster transparency by making Memphis police report traffic stops and track use of force complains and other misconduct.“We don’t stand for police brutality in the city of Memphis,” Smiley said. “This will never happen again in any other city because we will set the standard people will take suit and will be served and policy is implemented across this nation.Abraham, who says she has lived in Memphis since she was 12, told the Guardian that organizers are still demanding that Memphis police dismantle other task forces they run such as the multi-agency gang unit and transparency in releasing body camera footage. She showed the Guardian video from 2020 from a woman showing multiple Memphis police kneeling on her husband’s back while they tried to handcuff him, reportedly on his property.“Right now, when somebody is shot by police, we can’t see that video,” Abraham said, adding that four people had been killed by Memphis police since November. “The only reason we got to see Tyre’s footage was because of the manner in which he died.”Abraham recalled a moment outside a cocktail bar when she interacted with police after a patron made a “racist comment” toward her brother. During that interaction a year ago, Abraham says she was “aggressively attacked and thrown into a police car”.“For me it shines an additional layer into how aggressive the Memphis police department feels they need to be when there’s no need for aggression. In these traffic stops, people are fearful that either they are getting the shit beat out of them or they’re going to die,” Abraham said. “That shouldn’t be an expectation from people whose salaries we pay who are hired to protect and serve…It should never constitute someone getting murdered by the police.”“We’re not stopping until our demands are met,” she added. “This will keep going.”TopicsTyre NicholsUS policingUS politicsMemphisTennesseenewsReuse this content More

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      Biden speaks with Tyre Nichols’s parents ahead of video release – latest updates

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      Joe Biden spoke with the parents of Tyre Nichols, according to the Washington Post.The paper released a brief clip of the conversation, where the president mentions how Nichols’ father is “devastated” by the death of his son, and invokes his own experience of losing a child:🚨President Biden just called Tyre Nichols’ parents. He talked to them for more than 10 minutes.”He actually tattooed my name on his arm,” his mom told Biden.”That’s what you call something special,” Biden replied. We were in the room for the call. Here’s a snippet. pic.twitter.com/0gpfU1wmv6— Emily Davies (@ELaserDavies) January 27, 2023
      Earlier, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said Biden had been briefed on the video of Nichols’ beating that will be released later today, but has not seen it:.@PressSec on Tyre Nichols video expected to be released tonight says @POTUS has “been briefed, but he has not seen the video, nor has anyone at the White House seen the video.”— Allie Raffa (@AllieRaffa) January 27, 2023
      Acclaimed author and anti-racism activist Ibram X Kendi has condemned the beating and death of Tyre Nichols while criticizing police brutality on Friday.In a statement on Twitter, Kendi wrote:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}“Tyre Nichols should be with us skateboarding and looking up and admiring the sunset. But instead the sadistic scourge of police violence claimed its latest innocent victim.
      “The history of the police is the racist history of violence. Cops of all races have been empowered and socialized to brutalize and terrorize and exploit and sexually assault and harass and lynch people, particularly Black people with near total impunity.
      “There’s no reforming an inherently violent institution with a pervasively violent history. How many more Black people have to be brutally killed before we realize the obvious? How many more? How many more?”Several groups are organizing rallies across the country tonight as Memphis police prepares to release footage of Tyre Nichols this evening. According to the Instagram accounts of various chapters of the political party PSL, or Party for Socialism and Liberation, rallies titled “Justice for Tyre Nichols” are scheduled in major cities including New York, Detroit, San Francisco, Asheville and Chicago. Meanwhile, the Youth Communist League is scheduled to host a rally in Philadelphia tonight. Other rallies are set to be held in Dallas and Washington DC. The White House has released more details of Joe Biden’s call with the family of Tyre Nichols.“President Biden spoke with Mrs RowVaughn Wells and Rodney Wells, Tyre Nichols’ mother and stepfather, this afternoon to directly express his and Dr Biden’s condolences for Tyre Nichols’ death. During the conversation, the president commended the family’s courage and strength,” a readout of the call said.The Guardian’s Maya Yang is now taking over this blog to cover the latest developments in this story.Former vice-president Mike Pence said he takes “full responsibility” for the secret materials found at his residence, CNN reports:Former Vice President Mike Pence, speaking to a crowd in Miami, says he was not aware classified documents were at his house. But he adds: “Those classified documents should not have been in my personal residence. Mistakes were made. And I take full responsibility.”— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 27, 2023
      Pence’s disclosure this week that documents dating from his time in the White House under Donald Trump were discovered in his Indiana home came after both Joe Biden and Trump were found to have similar materials in their possession. Attorney general Merrick Garland has appointed two special counsels to handle the investigations of the current and ex-presidents’ documents, but hasn’t done the same for Pence.A network of racial justice activist groups is asking the public not to share footage of Tyre Nichols’ fatal beating at the hands of police, which is scheduled for release at 6 pm eastern time.Here is the message from Movement for Black Lives:Today a video of Tyre Nichols’ murder will be released. Do not share it. Do not traumatize our people further by putting it in front of us. We feel the overwhelming rage and grief without subjecting ourselves to a video of his life being taken.To protect yourself online: ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/EytQUlWvQ0— Movement 4 Black Lives (@Mvmnt4BlkLives) January 27, 2023
      Separately, the Republican National Committee re-elected Ronna McDaniel as its chair, overcoming concerns about her leadership after the party underperformed in last November’s midterm elections.McDaniel’s main challenger was Harmeet Dhillon, a lawyer for Donald Trump who handled his challenge to a subpoena from the January 6 committee. Conspiracy theorist Mike Lindell and former congressman Lee Zeldin were also on the ballot, which McDaniel won easily:RNC Chair Election First Ballot Results:167 votes cast. 84 needed to win. Ronna McDaniel – 111Harmeet Dhillon – 51 Mike Lindell – 4Lee Zeldin – 1Ronna McDaniel reelected RNC Chair.Watch LIVE on C-SPAN2 https://t.co/uYWdF9rUK2— CSPAN (@cspan) January 27, 2023
      Joe Biden spoke with the parents of Tyre Nichols, according to the Washington Post.The paper released a brief clip of the conversation, where the president mentions how Nichols’ father is “devastated” by the death of his son, and invokes his own experience of losing a child:🚨President Biden just called Tyre Nichols’ parents. He talked to them for more than 10 minutes.”He actually tattooed my name on his arm,” his mom told Biden.”That’s what you call something special,” Biden replied. We were in the room for the call. Here’s a snippet. pic.twitter.com/0gpfU1wmv6— Emily Davies (@ELaserDavies) January 27, 2023
      Earlier, the White House press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said Biden had been briefed on the video of Nichols’ beating that will be released later today, but has not seen it:.@PressSec on Tyre Nichols video expected to be released tonight says @POTUS has “been briefed, but he has not seen the video, nor has anyone at the White House seen the video.”— Allie Raffa (@AllieRaffa) January 27, 2023
      From the Capitol, Punchbowl News reports Nancy Pelosi told journalists she will not be watching the video of the attack on her husband:Nancy Pelosi says “she has absolutely no intention” of watching the attack on Paul Pelosi pic.twitter.com/vG5HMkb3XQ— Max Cohen (@maxpcohen) January 27, 2023
      The top Democrat in the House, Hakeem Jeffries, reacted to the release of video showing the attack on Paul Pelosi.Jeffries took over from Nancy Pelosi as the party’s leader in Congress’s lower chamber at the start of this year. Here’s what he had to say:.css-cumn2r{height:1em;width:1.5em;margin-right:3px;vertical-align:baseline;fill:#C70000;}The violent attack on Paul Pelosi was unconscionable and his assailant must be brought to justice. We live in dangerous times of unprecedented extremism and political violence which have no place in our democracy or in the everyday lives of elected officials and their loved ones. The prayers of the Caucus, the Congress and the Country are with Paul, Speaker Emerita Pelosi and their wonderful family. May God watch over Paul in his continued recovery.Hello US live blog readers, we are continuing to follow developments in the news relating to the death of Tyre Nichols in Memphis after a fatal encounter with the police – and political reaction to that and related developments in Washington, DC, and elsewhere. Please stick around as we take you into the afternoon and evening, ahead of the release later tonight of police video of what’s described as a brutal police beating of Nichols.Here’s where things stand:
      Tyre Nichols’ mother, RowVaughn Wells, said at a press conference in Memphis that ended a little bit ago that she has not been able to bring herself to watch the video of her son’s beating by five police officers earlier this month, following which he died in hospital, but she’s been told it’s “very horrific” and she urged carers not to let children watch it when police release footage tonight.
      FBI director Christopher Wray said he was “appalled” by video of Nichols’s beating at the hands of Memphis police, and that the bureau has opened a civil rights investigation into the fatal incident.
      Footage was released of the brutal hammer attack last year on Paul Pelosi, the husband of California congresswoman and then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi last October. A right-wing, allegedly politically-motivated intruder broke into their home in San Francisco, with the stated intent of kidnapping Nancy, who was in Washington, DC. Instead he found Paul and attacked him.
      Joe Biden sent condolences to the family of Tyre Nichols in a statement released yesterday, while issuing a vague call for “meaningful reform” of policing, an issue on which he has had mixed success during the first two years of his presidency. The US president appealed for calm at protests that are expected in several cities tonight after the video of Nichols’s beating is released.
      Police body-camera video was released on Friday afternoon of the brutal hammer attack last October on Paul Pelosi, the husband of Democratic congresswomen and then House speaker Nancy Pelosi.The shocking footage shows officers arriving at the front door of the Pelosi residence in San Francisco and knocking loudly on the door.Paul Pelosi opens the door and can be seen with an intruder as the two wrestle over a hammer. Police can be heard asking “What’s going on, man?”, then they tell the suspect to drop the hammer. But he says “Nope”, then manages to grab it and swing it and, just off camera, hits Pelosi in the head.Police charge in to find Pelosi collapsed on the floor, unconscious and struggling to breathe, as they grapple with the suspect, who has fallen on the floor partially on top of Pelosi, then arrest him.Pelosi, 82, suffered a skull fracture and injuries to his hand and arm in the attack, requiring him to undergo surgery. He remained hospitalized for nearly a week as he recovered.The video was released Friday, after a state judge dismissed efforts by the San Francisco district attorney’s office to keep the footage sealed from the public. The suspect in the attack, David Wayne DePape of Canada, faces state and federal criminal charges of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon, among others. DePape has pleaded not guilty to the charges.DePape’s comments to authorities in the wake of the attack indicated that his actions were politically motivated. In court testimony last month, a San Francisco police investigator recounted how DePape claimed there was “evil in Washington” and described his initial plans to kidnap the House speaker.She was in Washington, DC, at the time and swiftly flew back to California to be with her husband.Democrats performed better than expected last November’s midterm elections, but Republicans narrowly won control of the House of Representatives and, after a fraught election earlier this month at the start of the 118th Congress, California congressman Kevin McCarthy took over the speakership.Pelosi had announced after the midterms that she would step down from her leadership role while continuing to represent her district in Washington, and she effectively handed the baton to New York Democrat Hakeem Jeffries, who became House minority leader in the new congress.Memphis police chief Cerelyn Davis explained that the decision to release the video of Tyre Nichols on Friday evening is to reduce the impact it may have on the surrounding communities and schools. “Friday evening will be a good time to try to get people home, try to have our children safe and have a means of being able to manage any type of response,” Davis told NBC. She added that police will be monitoring parts of Memphis and that they have increased their staffing. “We don’t want to overreact. But the reality is, is that there are individuals that may want to exercise their First Amendment right and come out and protest,” she told the outlet. “My son is looking down smiling because, you know, it’s funny, he always said he was going to be famous one day. I didn’t know this was what he meant,” RowVaughn Wells, Tyre Nichols’s mother said.“I‘ve never seen the video. But what I’ve heard is very horrific, very horrific. And any of you who have children, please don’t let them see it,” she added.“To the five police officers that murdered my son, you also disgraced your own families when you did this but … I’m going to pray for you and your families, because at the end of the day, this shouldn’t have happened. This just shouldn’t have happened. We want justice for my son, justice for my son,” she added.“We’re very satisfied with the charges,” said Tyre Nichols’s stepfather, Rodney Wells, referring to the second-degree murder charges against the five officers.“More importantly, we want peace. We do not want any type of uproar, we do not want any type of disturbance. We want peaceful protests. That’s what the family wants, that’s what the community wants,” Wells said ahead of the planned protests across the country later today as the footage of Tyre Nichols gets released.“We want to know, where are the unions? Where does the fraternal order of police unions stand on this? We want to hear…that you condemn the savagery…heinousness…brutality of this attack?” said Antonio Romanucci, one of the attorneys representing the family of Tyre Nichols. Romanucci also called upon Memphis police chief Cerelyn Davis to disband the specialized police unit known as the ‘Scorpion’ unit which the five police officers were a part of. “The intent of the Scorpion unit has now been corrupted. It cannot be brought back to center with any sense of morality and dignity, and most importantly, trust in this community. How will the community ever, ever, trust a Scorpion unit?” he said. “Officers have a duty to intervene in crimes being committed, even if it’s intervening with their own officers,” Crump said, calling for legislation to be passed which would require police officers to intervene when they see their colleagues exercising excessive force.“We have never seen swift justice like this,” said Crump, referring to the five officers who have since been charged with murder. “We want to proclaim that this is the blueprint going forward for any time any officers, whether they be Black or white, will be held accountable. No longer can you tell us we got to wait six months to a year,” he added. “It is the culture that allows them to think that they can do this to Tyre,” Crump said, saying that it does not matter if the officers were Black, Hispanic or any other ethnicity. “Call out the culture, call out the culture,” he said, as family members of Nichols chanted back. “It is the institutionalized police culture that is on trial today,” he added. More

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      Tyre Nichols: what we know about his death after Memphis police encounter

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      ExplainerTyre Nichols: what we know about his death after Memphis police encounterCity on edge as police department is poised to release video of the deadly encounter after a traffic stop Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, died on 10 January, several days after an encounter with Memphis, Tennessee, police officers during a traffic stop near his mother’s house.Tyre Nichols’s death after police encounter was ‘failing of basic humanity’, says Memphis chief Read moreAccording to Nichols’s family and their attorneys, an independent autopsy revealed he had “suffered extensive bleeding caused by a severe beating”. The Memphis police department is investigating the deadly encounter, as are state and federal authorities.Meanwhile, Memphis remains on edge as the police department is poised to release video of the deadly encounter. The video is expected to provide additional details about the events leading to Nichols’s death, as authorities have yet to provide many thus far.Here is what is known about Nichols’s death.Who was Tyre Nichols?Nichols worked the second shift at FedEx, the parcel shipping company. He would return to his mother’s house about 7pm every night for his meal break, his family reportedly said.The father of a four-year-old boy, Nichols enjoyed photographing sunsets and skateboarding. His mother, RowVaughn Wells, said he had a tattoo of her name on his arm.“That made me proud,” she told the New York Times. “Most kids don’t put their mom’s name. My son was a beautiful soul.”What happened during the traffic stop?Police pulled Nichols over on 7 January for alleged reckless driving, his family’s attorneys said on Monday. The police department initially claimed that a “confrontation” unfolded when officers approached the vehicle, adding that he ran away, then when they arrested him there was another “confrontation”.The encounter resulted in Nichols being “bloody, swollen and unconscious” until his death several days later. Authorities have provided few other details about the incident.What does the video show?While the public has yet to see the footage, Nichols’s family members and their attorneys have seen a recording that they say shows a three-minute beating. Antonio Romanucci, one of their lawyers, said police pepper-sprayed Nichols, deployed a stun gun against him and then restrained him.“He was a human piñata for those police officers,” Romanucci told reporters. “Not only was it violent, it was savage.” The family’s legal team said that during the encounter, Nichols said he simply wanted to go home.The video showed that Nichols “called repeatedly for his mother” during the beating, which unfolded some 100 yards from her home, according to statements they gave to media.When will the video be released?The Shelby county district attorney’s office said on 23 January that they expect the video to be released this week or next. The chief of Memphis police said the video will be released “in the coming days”.Who are the officers involved?Five officers – Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr and Justin Smith – were involved in the arrest, according to the Memphis police department.The officers, who are all Black, were fired last week, it said.Following an investigation, the department alleged that they violated “multiple department policies, including excessive use of force, duty to intervene, and duty to render aid”. Other officers are currently being investigated for potential policy violations.Two Memphis fire department members who were involved in Nichols’s initial care have also been “relieved of duty” while an internal investigation is ongoing, officials said.What have police officials said?The Memphis police chief, CJ Davis, decried the fatal incident, calling it “heinous, reckless, and inhumane”.“Aside from being your chief of police, I am a citizen of this community, we share; I am a mother, I am a caring human being who wants the best for all of us; this is not just a professional failing,” Davis said in a video statement posted to YouTube.“This is a failing of basic humanity toward another individual … and in the vein of transparency when the video is released in the coming days, you will see this for yourselves.”TopicsMemphisUS policingUS politicsnewsReuse this content More