Lieutenant testifies in case of officers accused of beating Tyre Nichols to death
The federal trial of three former Memphis police officers charged in connection with the January 2023 beating death of Tyre Nichols continued Monday, with the cross-examination of a Memphis Police Department (MPD) lieutenant who trained the defendants.Kevin Whitmore, who is representing ex-officer Tadarrius Bean, cross-examined Second Lt.Larnce Wright on training methods at the police academy, noting that Wright did not train Bean in several courses, so he could not speak to what Bean was taught, according to WATN, the ABC affiliate in Memphis covering the case in the courtroom.Wright did not teach the officers how to write reports, provide medical classes for them or teach them about the duty of an officer to intervene if another officer engages in misconduct, according to WATN.Last Thursday, Wright testified that the scenario of the initial traffic stop involving Nichols should have been low-risk, according to WATN.
Wright said during the initial stop, Nichols voicing that he was trying to do what was asked should have led officers to deescalate the situation.Wright claimed officers were not following training for several reasons and described Nichols' behavior as human nature, according to WATN.The former officers -- Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith -- were charged on Sept.
12, 2023, with violating Nichols' civil rights through excessive use of force, unlawful assault, failing to intervene in the assault and failing to render medical aid – charges that carry a maximum penalty of life in prison, according to the U.S.Department of Justice.
The officers have pleaded not guilty to all charges.On Monday, Whitmore showed Wright several presentation slides he uses in training, which the attorney said denoted that there is no such thing as a routine traffic stop, which “could turn violent in an instant,” according to WATN.The defense argued that training is only as good as the trainer.Wright claimed that if a violent felony was not committed, pursuit is no...