Video of Tyre Nichols’ deadly encounter with five Memphis Police Department (MPD) officers will not be immediately released, officials said Monday.
MPD officials and those from Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland’s office met with the Nichols family Monday morning to “facilitate the viewing of video recordings,” according to a statement. The city’s statement did not make it clear whether or not the family viewed the video Monday or whether the meeting was simply to organize the viewing.
A statement from Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy’s office, however, said the family “have now seen the video.” Mulroy said he expected the public release to come “this week or next.”
MPD made clear, however, that the public will not see the video Monday.
“Transparency remains a priority in this incident and a premature release could adversely impact the criminal investigation and judicial process,” reads a statement tweeted by MPD Monday afternoon. “We are working with the District Attorney’s office to determine the appropriate time to release video recordings publicly.”
Mulroy said transparency was a priority for his office, too. While he said “we understand the public’s desire for immediate release,” it is “important that the release does not compromise the investigation.”
“We’re working with the [Tennessee Bureau of Investigation] and [the Federal Bureau of Investigation] to expedite that investigation and are consulting regularly with the city of Memphis about the video’s release, which we expect will occur this week or next.”
So far, five MPD police officers have been fired in the wake of the incident. On Saturday, January 7th, Nichols was stopped for reckless driving. After two “encounters” with MPD, he was transferred to St. Francis Hospital – Memphis.
An image of Nichols in the hospital shared widely online shows him intubated with bruises and a swollen face. He died at the hospital on January 10th.
The family has urged local leaders to release the footage of Nichols’ interaction with law enforcement. However, videos that are still subject to an ongoing investigation are often kept sealed, sometimes even after cases have been heard in court.
It didn’t take long for many to criticize the decision to keep the video under wraps. Many on Twitter called officials behind the decision “cowards.”
