Tire Nichols video release: Former Memphis cop never ‘crossed a line that others have crossed’, lawyer claims

A lawyer for former Memphis police officer Desmond Mills Jr., who is charged with second-degree murder in connection with Tyre Nichols’ death arrest, said Saturday that his client has never “overstepped boundaries that others have crossed.”

“The videos released on Jan. 27 raised as many questions as they answered,” lawyer Blake Ballin said in a statement to Fox News. “Some remaining questions will require a focus on the individual actions of Desmond Mills.”

“We are confident that questions about whether Desmond crossed a line that others have crossed and whether he committed the crimes that are being charged will be answered with a resounding no,” Ballin said.

View from a camera above the intersection where Memphis police caught up with Tyre Nichols, who died three days later. On Friday, authorities released footage of the deadly confrontation between Nichols and police.
(Memphis Police Department)

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Ballin’s comments come after footage from body cameras and street lights was released Friday showing a sequence of violent events in which a group of Memphis police officers repeatedly beat Nichols while he was tied up with his hands behind his back, using batons, fists and repetitive kicking while he was lying down. on the ground.

At one point, the video shows officers holding Nichols upright while others trade blows to his head.

Nichols, who was pulled over due to an alleged traffic stop, was also electrocuted and pepper sprayed in an incident that took place three houses away from his mother’s home on January 7.

Three days later, he died in hospital from his injuries.

It is unclear what role Mills played in the botched arrest, which was condemned as a “lack of basic humanity”, as several officers arrived after Nichols had been beaten and leaned against a police car.

However, none of the police officers tried to provide medical assistance.

After the fight, Tyre Nichols can be seen, his face swollen and bloody, as he sits on the ground in handcuffs with his back against the car.
(Memphis Police)

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Ballin said it still needed to be determined what Mills “knew and what he was able to see when he was late to the scene”, what he was able to see after he too was allegedly pepper sprayed, and “whether Desmond’s actions crossed the line crossed by other officers during this incident.”

“We continue to urge caution and patience in assessing the actions of Desmond Mills,” Ballin said.

Memphis Police Department officers Demetrius Haley, Tadarrius Bean, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills and Justin Smith were fired January 18 for their role in the arrest of the late Tyre Nichols.
(Memphis Police Department)

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Five officers, including Mills, were charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, misconduct and official harassment.

Ballin’s comments seem to be the first among the defendants’ representatives trying to separate their client from others in a violent scene.