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A former police officer from Memphis, Emmitt Martin III, provided testimony on Tuesday regarding his involvement in the traffic stop that led to the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols. Martin recounted how he punched Nichols several times while his colleagues restrained him, asserting that he was instructed to “hit him.” During his testimony, he admitted to misrepresenting their actions to his supervisor following the incident.
The events in question occurred on January 7, 2023, when Nichols was pulled over and subsequently removed from his vehicle. After fleeing the scene, Nichols was pursued by Martin’s fellow officers, Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith, who began to physically assault him before Martin arrived.
“They were assaulting him,” Martin testified, highlighting the severity of their actions.
Bean, Smith, and Demetrius Haley face federal charges for allegedly violating Nichols’ civil rights through excessive force and failing to intervene. They are also charged with obstructing justice by tampering with witnesses. Following Nichols’ death, these four officers, along with Desmond Mills Jr., were terminated from the Memphis Police Department. The incident was recorded on police body cameras and subsequently released to the public, leading to their indictment by a federal grand jury.
While Mills and Martin have accepted plea deals and are collaborating with prosecutors against their colleagues, all five officers are also facing second-degree murder charges in state court, where they have entered pleas of not guilty. The anticipated changes in pleas from Mills and Martin remain unresolved, and a trial date in state court has yet to be established.
‘I figured that’s what he should get’
Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, was subjected to pepper spray and a stun gun during the stop but managed to flee. Pursued back to a location near his home, Nichols was then beaten while calling for his mother, as observed in the police footage. This harrowing scene was viewed by jurors in the courtroom, including Nichols’s family members, with his mother, RowVaughn Wells, having chosen not to watch the video herself.
Martin expressed anger towards Nichols for attempting to escape, stating, “I figured that’s what he should get.” When asked by prosecutor Kathryn Gilbert about the justification for using force during moments of anger, Martin replied, “No ma’am,” admitting he failed to intervene during the assault on Nichols.
In his testimony, Martin described disposing of his body camera to avoid revealing the brutal nature of their actions, admitting they were engaged in an assault on Nichols. He recounted kicking Nichols while his colleague Mills struck him with a baton. Martin punched Nichols multiple times as Bean and Smith restrained him, calling Nichols “helpless” during the assault.
Admits to lying about victim
Despite Nichols’s struggles with his injuries, the officers, as depicted in the video, were seen milling about without attending to him. Nichols succumbed to his injuries on January 10, 2023, with an autopsy revealing he died from severe head trauma, along with multiple bruises and injuries across his body.
Martin later admitted to not informing his lieutenant, Dewayne Smith, about the excessive force used against Nichols, instead falsely alleging that Nichols was under the influence and had committed reckless driving. He acknowledged that he exaggerated Nichols’s actions to validate his own and that there was a culture of mutual protection among the officers involved.
Adhering to his plea agreement, Martin expressed a desire for leniency during sentencing, stating, “I can’t sit here and live with a lie. The truth needs to come out.” He revealed his struggles with guilt, summarizing the internal conflict he faced in light of his actions during the incident.
In a notable moment during cross-examination, Martin disclosed that he had recently returned to work after being injured by a car in November 2022. He shared a conversation with Justin Smith where he expressed having troubling thoughts, providing further context for his state of mind leading up to the arrest.
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www.cbc.ca