Officials renew calls for police reform as Nichols' family celebrates his life

380d ago / 9:49 PM UTC

Watch the Rev. Al Sharpton's eulogy at Tyre Nichols' funeral

380d ago / 9:13 PM UTC

Funeral for Tyre Nichols ends

The emotional funeral for Tyre Nichols ended Wednesday afternoon with Nichols’ family leaving the ceremony first as mourners stood and watched them.

A soloist sang Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” as the family exited the service.

The choir concluded with “Oh How Precious,” a gospel song that has been recorded by multiple artists.


380d ago / 9:04 PM UTC

Tyre Nichols' parents remember son as a 'beautiful person' while calling for justice

The mother of Tyre Nichols said her son was “a beautiful person” whose killing was “unimaginable.”

RowVaughn Wells said the only thing keeping her going after her son's death was her faith. She repeated calls for the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

“Because there should be no other child that should suffer the way my son and all the other parents here that have lost their children,” she said, breaking down with emotion as she spoke.

Rodney Wells, Nichols’ stepfather, said the family looks forward to “getting justice for all the families over there.”

“We have to fight for justice. We cannot continue to let these people brutalize our kids,” he said. 

Wells added that “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.”

380d ago / 8:51 PM UTC

Tyre Nichols' sister: 'I will just always love my baby brother'

A sister of Tyre Nichols described “anger” and “deep sorrow” over the loss of her “baby brother.”

“My brother was robbed of his life, his passions and his talents, but not his light,” the sister, Keyana Dixon, said.

“I see the world showing him love and fighting for his justice, but all I want is my baby brother back,” she said through tears.

Dixon said when she heard the news of her brother's killing, she cried and lost her faith, then was full of “anger,” “deep sorrow” and “pain I never felt, when those monsters murdered my baby brother.”

“My family will never be the same, and I will just always love my baby brother, forever.”

380d ago / 8:50 PM UTC

Crump says swift justice will be Tyre Nichols' legacy

The death of Tyre Nichols and ensuing prosecution of police officers who beat the Memphis motorist will be the young man's lasting legacy, one of his family's attorneys said.

Nichols was beaten during a traffic stop on Jan. 7 and died on Jan. 10. Five officers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection with his death.

Attorney Ben Crump listed the cases of several Black men and women who died at the hands of authorities, where no arrests have been made or took months or years to happen.

"No more, no more can they ever tell us: When we have evidence on video of them brutalizing us, that it's going to take six years, that it's going to take a month, that it's going to take three years like Laquan McDonald," Crump told mourners.

"No, no, no, 20 days. We're going to start counting. We can count to 20 and every time you kill one of us on video, we're going to say the legacy of Tyre Nichols is that we have equal justice swiftly. Swiftly. Swiftly."

380d ago / 8:27 PM UTC

Rev. Al Sharpton calls for passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act

The Rev. Al Sharpton called for police reform, beginning with the passage of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which among other provisions in the bill would end "qualified immunity," a judicial doctrine that protects police officers from civil lawsuits. Advocates of the bill believe it will increase police accountability.

"You will have to think twice before you beat Tyre Nichols. You think twice before you shoot at someone unarmed. You think twice before you chokehold Eric Garner. You think twice before you put your knee on George Floyd’s neck because if you don’t have qualified immunity, your wife will be telling you before you leave home, 'Behave yourself,'" he said.

"We're asking to be treated equal and to be treated fair."

380d ago / 8:21 PM UTC

Rev. Al Sharpton on Tyre Nichols: 'All he wanted to do was get home'

The Rev. Al Sharpton said that as they died, both Tyre Nichols and George Floyd called for their mothers, seeking home and comfort.

“All he wanted to do was get home,” Sharpton said.

“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.

“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,” Sharpton said. “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."

380d ago / 8:13 PM UTC

Rev. Al Sharpton: Tyre Nichols will be 'a symbol for justice all over this country'

The Rev. Al Sharpton said Tyre Nichols will be “a symbol for justice all over this country.”

“I believe that babies unborn will know about Tyre Nichols because we won’t let his memory die,” he said. “We’re going to change this country because we refuse to keep living under the threat of the cops and the robbers.”

380d ago / 8:04 PM UTC

Rev. Al Sharpton calls out Black officers involved in Nichols' death amid fight for civil rights

The Rev. Al Sharpton returned to the pulpit for the eulogy for Tyre Nichols, saying that one reason the man’s death was so personal to him was because Nichols was killed during an encounter with five Black officers. Those officers would not have been able to gain the positions they did within their police department without hard-fought battles by civil rights activists, including Martin Luther King Jr., Sharpton said.

“In the city that Dr. King lost his life, not far away from that balcony, you beat a brother to death,” he said.

“There’s nothing more insulting and offensive to those of us that fight to open doors, than you walk through those doors and act like the folks we had to fight for to get you through them though.”  

"I believe that if that man had been white, you wouldn’t have beat him like that that night,” Sharpton added.

380d ago / 7:55 PM UTC

Vice President Kamala Harris: 'This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety'

Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at the service after the Rev. Al Sharpton invited her to the pulpit. She condemned police violence that led to Nichols' death.

“This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety,” she said. "Was he not also entitled to the right to be safe?"

"Tyre Nichols should've been safe," she said.

She demanded Congress pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.

"We should not delay and we will not be denied, it is nonnegotiable."

At the beginning of her remarks, she told Nichols' parents: "You have been extraordinary in terms of your strength, your courage and your grace, and we mourn with you and the people of our country mourn with you."

"Mothers around the world, when their babies are born, pray to God, when they hold that child, that that body and that life will be safe for the rest of his life. Yet, we have a mother and a father who mourn the life of a young man who should be here today. They have a grandson who now does not have a father," Harris said.

380d ago / 7:51 PM UTC

Rev. Al Sharpton thanks families of others killed by police for joining

The Rev. Al Sharpton thanked the families of other Black people killed at the hands of police, including George Floyd’s family, for joining the service for Tyre Nichols.

Sharpton asked the families to stand as they received applause from the crowd. Sharpton said the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Eric Garner, Botham Jean and others were present.

"They know what it's like to sit at a funeral like this," he said.

380d ago / 7:50 PM UTC

Families of Eric Garner, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor among those present

The families of several well-known Black people who died at the hands of police are present at the services, including relatives of Botham Jean, Eric Garner, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.

The Rev. Al Sharpton acknowledged the families in his opening remarks.

380d ago / 7:47 PM UTC

Service is being held in historic Memphis church

The service is being held at the Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church, a historic church on North Bellevue Boulevard.

The church was founded in 1921 as the city's first Black church under the doctrine of the Disciples of Christ, a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, according to its website.

380d ago / 7:38 PM UTC

Mother of another Black man killed in encounter with police sings heartfelt solo

The mother of another Black man who was killed during an encounter with police in Houston performed a solo song at the service for Tyre Nichols

Tiffany Rachal, the mother of Jalen Randle, sang a rendition of “Total Praise” by Grammy-winning gospel artist Richard Smallwood as the choir played.

Randle, 29, was killed by a Houston police officer last year. He was the same age as Nichols when he was killed. 

“I pray that God bless you. I pray that God heal your broken heart,” she said to the family.

380d ago / 7:36 PM UTC

Tribute shows images of demonstrations across the country following Nichols' death

A 'pictorial tribute' at the funeral showed images from demonstrations that broke out across the country following Nichols' death, with masses of people gathered in the streets and signs of protest emblazoned with slogans like "justice for Tyre" surrounded by candles and flowers. Photos of Nichols smiling and a Bible verse were also among the images.

A verse from John 14 was displayed on the screen.

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me."

380d ago / 7:31 PM UTC

Program for celebration of life shows photos of Tyre Nichols smiling, holding his child

The program for the celebration of the life of Tyre Nichols shows him smiling, posing with family and friends and holding his child, offering new glimpses into the private life of a man who has become a public symbol of racial injustice and police brutality in America.

A biography of Nichols included in the program notes that he was the youngest of four siblings, that he lived in Memphis with his son, Milo, and that he "loved skateboarding, watching the sunset, photography, and most of all helping people."

"He had the most infectious smile," it says.

Nichols is pictured smiling in several photos in the program. In one, on the second-to-last page, he beams at his infant son, whom he holds up in the air in front of him.

380d ago / 7:17 PM UTC

Celebration of life for Tyre Nichols begins

The celebration of life for Tyre Nichols began Wednesday afternoon with a choir singing, "You Are My Strength," by gospel artist William Murphy.

The large crowd gathered to “celebrate the life of Tyre Nichols, a good person, a beautiful soul, a son, a father, a brother, a friend,” Rev. J. Lawrence Turner, the senior pastor and officiant, said as the service began. “A human being gone too soon, denied his rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

380d ago / 7:11 PM UTC

Mighty Lights display to glow red and gold for Tyre Nichols' favorite team, the 49ers

Mississippi's Mighty Lights display, which spans the Big River Crossing and the Hernando de Soto bridges, will be lit red and gold beginning at sundown Wednesday in honor of the San Francisco 49ers, Tyre Nichols' favorite football team, officials said on Twitter.

380d ago / 6:55 PM UTC

Tyre Nichols loved his family, skateboarding and photographing sunsets

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — He was an amateur photographer who loved skateboarding and watching sunsets darken the woods and ponds of his adopted hometown.

He enjoyed his mom’s sesame seed chicken and greeted her and his stepfather, Rodney Wells, when he got home with a hearty “Hello, parents!”

Those words won’t be heard anymore from Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who was hospitalized in critical condition and died three days after a Jan. 7 traffic stop.

“Nobody’s perfect, OK, but he was damn near,” his mother, RowVaughn Wells, said recently.

Nichols, the youngest of four children, had a 4-year-old son. He was visiting his family in Memphis from his home in Sacramento, California, when the pandemic started, so he stayed put and got a job working the overnight shift at FedEx.

When he wasn’t working or taking photos, he was skateboarding, an activity he started when he was 6 years old, Wells said.

“That was his passion,” she said at the news conference, three days before a candlelight vigil was held for him at a local skate park.

Click here to read the full article.

380d ago / 5:50 PM UTC

380d ago / 4:48 PM UTC

'There must be greater value of Black lives in this country,' Sharpton says

Ahead of Tyre Nichols' funeral, the Rev. Al Sharpton stopped by the Memphis hotel where the civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in 1968.

"As we kick off Black History Month and I prepare to eulogize Tyre Nichols later today, I wanted to come by the Lorraine Hotel where Dr. King was viciously killed to reflect. There must be greater value of Black lives in this country," Sharpton, the host of MSNBC’s “PoliticsNation,” tweeted.

In a video posted to Instagram, he added: "As I Iook at this balcony and think about how he died to fight for all people — to fight for the right for Blacks to be on the police force. And here we are, over 55 years later, with Black cops beating Black unarmed men to death."

"I've got a message at the funeral for where we've come and why we've come," Sharpton said.

381d ago / 3:13 PM UTC

Memphis says it will release all footage after probe's completion

The city of Memphis said Tuesday it will release all audio and video footage of Tyre Nichols' fatal beating once it has completed its investigation.

"A premature release of the video and audio could compromise our administrative investigation," Memphis Chief Legal Officer Jennifer Sink said in a statement.

But once the probe is complete, all footage will be made public, she said.

Nichols’ family and attorneys "have been afforded an opportunity to view the entirety of the audio and video footage privately until it can be released publicly," Sink added.

On Friday, the city released portions of the graphic video footage, shot Jan. 7, showing Memphis police officers pulling Nichols over, taking him out of his car and beating him.

381d ago / 1:59 PM UTC

Tyre Nichols' funeral has been delayed due to weather

The funeral for Tyre Nichols has been delayed, the Rev. Al Sharpton said Wednesday.

Sharpton, who will deliver the eulogy, attributed the move "to inclement weather and travel delays."

The service had been scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. local time at the Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church.

It is now set to start at 1 p.m. local time, according to Sharpton, the host of MSNBC’s “PoliticsNation.”

381d ago / 1:10 PM UTC

381d ago / 12:54 PM UTC

Sharpton to deliver eulogy

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who leads the National Action Network civil rights group, will deliver the eulogy, according to a news release about the funeral services. Sharpton is the host of MSNBC’s “PoliticsNation.”

381d ago / 12:07 PM UTC

Two men say one of the Memphis police officers accused of killing Tyre Nichols pulled a gun on them

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two residents of this still-stunned city told NBC News that one of the former police officers charged with murdering 29-year-old Tyre Nichols pulled a gun on them three years ago and threatened to shoot them both in the face.

Glenn Harris, 24, and Demarius Hervey, 27, described their violent encounter with former Memphis Police Officer Emmitt Martin III just days after the department released police body camera and surveillance videos of Nichols’ arrest that sparked angry protests against police violence in Memphis and across the country.

Fearing arrest because they had been smoking marijuana and had a small amount of pot on them, as well as a registered handgun, the brothers admitted they tried to flee in Harris’ car.

“I got scared,” Harris said, adding that he was able to evade the police for about 2 miles before crashing his car. “When I got out the car and tried to run, that’s when Officer Emmitt grabbed me. He slammed me on the ground and pulled his gun out.”

Harris said Martin pinned him to the pavement with a knee on his neck and pointed a service weapon at his head. “I’ll blow your face off,” Martin said, according to Harris.

Hervey said Martin also threatened to shoot him in the face.

Click here to read the full article

381d ago / 12:07 PM UTC

Relatives of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd to attend funeral

Two people who lost family members in encounters with police officers — Tamika Palmer, the mother of Breonna Taylor, and Philonise Floyd, George Floyd’s brother — are expected to attend, according to a news release from a lawyer for Nichols’ family.

381d ago / 12:07 PM UTC

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