What to Know About the Trial Over Tyre Nicholss Death

The graphic footage of a group of Memphis police officers beating Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black FedEx worker for roughly three minutes in January 2023, despite his cries for help and his mother, stunned the nation and brought intense scrutiny to the city’s law enforcement practices.A trial is now underway for three of those former officers for federal civil rights, conspiracy and obstruction offenses in connection with the confrontation, which led to Mr.Nichols’s death three days later.

Two other former officers have pleaded guilty to federal charges and will not face trial, though they may be called to testify.Opening statements are expected Wednesday, and the trial is expected to last at least three weeks.Here’s what to know about the case.What is at stake in the trial?Prosecutions involving police officers have in recent years produced a mixed array of verdicts, including acquittals, convictions and at least one mistrial.Should the three officers facing trial — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith — be convicted on charges of deprivation of rights under color of law, they could face up to life in prison.They also face charges related to obstruction and witness tampering that are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.The trial also presents the first opportunity to answer key questions about what happened on the evening of Jan.

7, 2023, including why Mr.Nichols was stopped by the police.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

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