Preston Hemphill, the white Memphis police officer concerned within the Tyre Nichols arrest who’s heard on physique cam footage wishing Tyre hurt, has simply been fired.
The Memphis Police Department introduced Hemphill’s firing in a Friday information dump … and he has not been criminally charged in reference to Tyre’s dying.
Hemphill was one of many first officers to confront Tyre in the course of the fateful January. 7 visitors cease … and he is alleged to have used his Taser on Tyre.
Memphis Police Department
Hemphill’s physique cam footage reveals him chasing Nichols on foot … and he is twice heard saying, “I hope they stomp his a**.”
As … Tyre was later confronted by 5 Black cops, who used pepper spray and beat him so badly he complained of shortness of breath and ended up in a hospital, the place 3 days later he died.
The 5 Black officers … Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr. and Justin Smith … have been fired earlier than Hemphill, they usually’ve been charged with second-degree homicide.
Why did it take so lengthy for Memphis officers to disclose Ofc. Preston Hemphill’s identification and that he was reportedly relieved of obligation weeks in the past however not but terminated or charged?
Why was the white officer concerned within the brutal assault of #TyreNichols shielded and guarded?
— Ben Crump (@Legal professionalCrump) January 30, 2023
@Legal professionalCrump
Civil rights lawyer Ben Crump, who’s representing Tyre’s household, has been questioning why Hemphill isn’t being prosecuted.
In a press release, Memphis PD says they carried out a radical evaluate of Tyre’s arrest and decided Hemphill violated a number of division insurance policies, together with private conduct, truthfulness and never utilizing his Taser correctly.
Meanwhile, a seventh Memphis PD officer who was concerned within the arrest is on administrative go away … however the officer’s identification has not been publicly revealed.
As we reported … earlier this week the Memphis Fire Department fired 3 members who responded to the scene in an ambulance, together with a pair of EMTs and a lieutenant.