Current:Home > Contact-usA former officer texted a photo of the bloodied Tyre Nichols to his ex-girlfriend-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
A former officer texted a photo of the bloodied Tyre Nichols to his ex-girlfriend
View Date:2024-12-24 00:03:48
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — A former Memphis police officer charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols sent his ex-girlfriend a photo of the badly injured man on the night he was punched, kicked and hit with a police baton following a traffic stop, according to trial testimony Wednesday.
Brittany Leake, a Memphis officer and Demetrius Haley’s former girlfriend, testified during the criminal trial that she was on the phone with Haley when officers pulled Nichols over for a traffic stop. She said she heard a “commotion,” including verbal orders for someone to give officers his hands.
The call ended, but Haley later texted the photo in a group chat comprising Haley, Leake and her godsister, she testified. Prosecutors displayed the photo for the jury. It showed Nichols with his eyes closed, on the ground with what appeared to be blood near his mouth and his hands behind his back.
Leake said that when she saw the photo, her reaction was: “Oh my God, he definitely needs to go to the Med.”
The Med is shorthand for Memphis’ trauma hospital.
Haley, Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith are on trial after pleading not guilty to charges that they deprived Nichols of his civil rights through excessive force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering.
The Memphis Police Department fired the three men, along with Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr., after Nichols’ death. The beating was caught on police video, which was released publicly. The officers were later indicted on the federal charges. Martin and Mills have taken plea deals and are testifying against their former colleagues.
During her testimony Wednesday, Leake said she deleted the photo after she saw it and that sending such a photo is against police policy.
“I wasn’t offended, but it was difficult to look at,” she said.
Leake said Haley had sent her photos before of drugs, and of a person who had been injured in a car accident.
Earlier Wednesday, Martin was on the witness stand for a third day. Defense attorneys tried to show inconsistencies between Martin’s statements to investigators and his court testimony. Martin acknowledged lying about what happened to Memphis Police Department internal investigators, to try to cover up and “justify what I did.”
But Martin said he told the truth to FBI investigators after he pleaded guilty in August, including statements about feeling pressure on his duty belt where his gun was located during the traffic stop, but not being able to see if Nichols was trying to get his gun. Martin has testified that he said “let go of my gun” during the traffic stop.
Martin Zummach, the attorney for Justin Smith, asked Martin if he knew of any reasons why Nichols did not simply say, “I give up.”
“He’s out of it,” Martin said. “Disoriented.”
Martin testified that the situation escalated quickly when Haley pulled his gun and violently yanked Nichols from his car, using expletives and failing to tell Nichols why he had been pulled over and removed from the vehicle.
“He never got a chance to comply,” Martin said.
Nichols, who was Black, was pepper sprayed and hit with a stun gun during the traffic stop, but ran away, police video shows. The five officers, who also are Black, then beat him about a block from his home, as he called out for his mother.
Video shows the officers milling about and talking as Nichols struggled with his injuries. Nichols died Jan. 10, 2023, three days after the beating.
An autopsy report shows Nichols — the father of a boy who is now 7 — died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, and cuts and bruises on his head and elsewhere on his body.
The five officers also have been charged with second-degree murder in state court, where they pleaded not guilty. Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas. A trial date in state court has not been set.
___
Associated Press reporter Jonathan Mattise contributed from Nashville, Tennessee.
veryGood! (585)
Related
- Mike Tyson has lived a wild life. These 10 big moments have defined his career
- Purdue, Houston, Creighton lead winners and losers from men's college basketball weekend
- Beyoncé's uncle dies at 77, Tina Knowles pays tribute to her brother
- New York Democrats reject bipartisan congressional map, will draw their own
- Massive dust storm reduces visibility, causes vehicle pileup on central California highway
- Duke coach Jon Scheyer calls on ACC to address court storming after Kyle Filipowski injury
- Eagles’ Don Henley takes the stand at ‘Hotel California’ lyrics trial
- US government may sue PacifiCorp, a Warren Buffett utility, for nearly $1B in wildfire costs
- 'America's flagship' SS United States has departure from Philadelphia to Florida delayed
- These Versatile Black Pant Picks Will Work with Every Outfit, for Any Occasion
Ranking
- Chipotle unveils cilantro-scented soap, 'water' cup candles in humorous holiday gift line
- A shooting claimed multiple lives in a tiny Alaska whaling village. Here’s what to know.
- Francia Raísa Gets Candid on Her Weight Fluctuation Amid PCOS Battle
- Magnitude 4.9 earthquake shakes Idaho, but no injuries reported
- Harriet Tubman posthumously named a general in Veterans Day ceremony
- When is forgetting normal — and when is it worrisome? A neuroscientist weighs in
- Handcuffed car theft suspect being sought after fleeing from officers, police say
- What The Bachelor's Joey Graziadei Wants Fans to Know Ahead of Emotional Season Finale
Recommendation
-
Louisville officials mourn victims of 'unthinkable' plant explosion amid investigation
-
Donald Trump appeals $454 million judgment in New York civil fraud case
-
These Cheap Products Will Make Your Clothes, Shoes, Bags & More Look Brand New
-
Priest accused of selling Viagra and aphrodisiacs suspended by Roman Catholic Church in Spain
-
New wildfires burn in US Northeast while bigger blazes rage out West
-
How The Underground Railroad Got Its Name
-
Purdue, Houston, Creighton lead winners and losers from men's college basketball weekend
-
US sues to block merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, saying it could push prices higher