The initial information released by police in the Tyre Nichols case differed significantly in some respects from what was shown on video footage released to the public last week. 

Leaders of the sunset protest demanded the names of every officer involved in Nichols’ death and that they all be charged. Meanwhile, the parents of Nichols were among a smaller group that gathered Monday evening in the Brandywine subdivision where Nichols was beaten by police the night they stopped him.

A seventh Memphis Police officer under investigation and off the job is not identified. But police brass say he and officer Preston Hemphill have been relieved of duty since the day after Tyre Nichols was beaten by police in southeast Memphis.

Three Memphis firefighters have been fired for violating “numerous” department protocols in the treatment of Tyre Nichols, the Memphis Fire Department announced.

News of Preston Hemphill being relieved of duty caused attorneys representing the family of Tyre Nichols to question the level of transparency provided by the Memphis Police Department.

Related story:

Officer relieved of duty after Tyre Nichols’ death

The Memphis Police Department confirmed Monday, Jan. 30, that Officer Preston Hemphill has been relieved of duty and it plans “to have additional information to share ... once it becomes available.”

The Daily Memphian analyzed the earliest available footage of the Nichols traffic stop in detail, creating a moment-by-moment timeline of the Memphis Police Department officers’ increasingly aggressive responses, even as Nichols himself remains calm and compliant.

The Memphis Police Department’s SCORPION unit, which MPD announced Saturday is being disbanded, is reminiscent of a controversial defunct unit in Atlanta over which MPD Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis was once in charge. 

Related story:

MPD’s SCORPION unit permanently deactivated

The crowd at Handy Park heard Downtown Memphis Commission President Paul Young ask, “the question for our city is: what are we going to next?”

MPD released a tweet Saturday that said: “In the process of listening intently to the family of Tyre Nichols, community leaders and the uninvolved officers ... it is in the best interest of all to permanently deactivate the SCORPION Unit.”

“I was just trying to turn a negative into a positive. That’s my main goal today.”

 When Kirstin L. Cheers, director of communications for BRIDGES, learned of the release of the Tyre Nichols’ arrest video, she quickly mobilized to try to help.

MPD’s Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis talked to The Daily Memphian about why they are releasing the video footage Friday evening, whether the National Guard will be brought in and how she thinks these latest events will affect recruiting. Earlier in the day, she also discussed the fire department’s role in Nichols’ death. 

President Joe Biden and local officials speak ahead of the release of police video of the arrest of Tyre Nichols. Much of the reaction followed the filing of second-degree murder charges against five Memphis Police officers.

A court date has been set for the five police officers accused in the death of Tyre Nichols. All posted bail less than 24 hours after being booked in Shelby County Jail. 

Here’s a list of places and entities that plan to close early Friday in light of the City of Memphis’ planned release of Tyre Nichols/MPD footage.

The family of Tyre Nichols, friends, mourners and skateboarders gathered in Tobey Skatepark for a vigil on Jan. 26, 2023.