Dad dies after being beaten like 'human pinata' by police officers
A father died after he was beaten like a "pinata" by police officers, according to his family's legal team.
Tyre Nichols, 29, died in hospital three days after being pulled over for a traffic stop by law enforcement in Memphis, Tennessee.
His family allege the FedEx worker suffered a heart attack after he was shocked, pepper sprayed and restrained during the incident on January 7 while returning from a suburban park.
Police said in a statement shortly afterwards that "a confrontation occurred" as officers approached the vehicle before Mr Nichols ran, with a second confrontation taking place while they were taking him into custody.
He complained of shortness of breath, they said, and was taken to a hospital.
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Attorney Ben Crump compared the "savage" beating to the infamous Rodney King case (Gerald Herbert/AP/REX/Shutterstock)But Antonio Romanucci, one of the attorneys for the family, believes the force used was of a brutal nature and said of the 29-year-old: “He was defenceless the entire time,”
“He was a human piñata for those police officers. It was an unadulterated, unabashed, non-stop beating of this young boy for three minutes.”
Another attorney, Ben Crump, claims the dad to a four-year-old was subjected to brutality for three minutes and compared the "savage" incident to the infamous police beating of Rodney King, which sparked the 1992 Los Angeles race riots.
The five officers involved in Mr Nichols' arrest, who like him are black, have since been fired.
Officer Desmond Mills, Jr has since been fired by Memphis police (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)
Justin Smith was another of the five officers dismissed following the incident (Uncredited/AP/REX/Shutterstock)Memphis police Director Cerelyn "CJ" Davis said the decision had been reached after probe determined that they had used excessive force or failed to intervene and render aid.
They were identified as Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills, Jr. and Justin Smith.
A video of the incident is expected to be released next week, according to state prosecutors.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy has asked for patience from activists and members of the public who have demanded that the footage be made available sooner, saying they want to complete as many interviews as possible before it is released.
Footage of the incident will be released next week, say state prosecutors (Jordan James/AP/REX/Shutterstock)He said he was concerned that making the footage available too early in the investigation could influence witnesses.
The Nichols family agreed to wait a week or two before making the video public to "make sure to give this family what they want most, and that is justice," according to their attorneys.
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The U.S. Justice Department has opened a civil rights investigation into the arrest, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is looking into whether excessive force was used.
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