MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Former Memphis police officer Desmond Mills Jr. testified Tuesday that he regrets his failure to stop the beating of Tyre Nichols after Nichols ran away from a traffic stop in 2023.
Mills’ testimony came in the second day of the trial of Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith, who have pleaded not guilty to state charges including second-degree murder in the death of Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who was beaten as he cried out for his mother just steps from his home. The three defendants already face the prospect of years behind bars after they were convicted of federal charges last year.
Footage of the beating was captured by a police pole camera and also showed the officers milling about, talking and laughing as Nichols struggled. Nichols’ death led to national protests, raised the volume on calls for police reforms in the U.S. and directed intense scrutiny toward the police force in Memphis, a majority-Black city.
Mills pleaded guilty to federal charges last year and has agreed to plead guilty to state charges as well.
Mills says he hit Nichols out of anger after pepper-spraying himself
During his testimony Tuesday, Mills said he and Bean responded to a Jan. 7, 2023, police radio call that a man had run away from a traffic stop after he was pepper-sprayed and hit with a Taser. Nichols saw the two officers and ran away from them, and Bean eventually caught Nichols after a foot chase, Mills testified.
When Mills arrived at Nichols’ location, Nichols was struggling with Bean and Smith, who were holding Nichols on the ground, Mills said. Mills then tried to pepper-spray Nichols, but he ended up spraying himself, which made him angry, Mills said.
After stepping away to try to recover, Mills then walked up to Nichols and hit him three times in the arm with a police baton as Bean and Smith were holding Nichols, Mills said.
Mills told prosecutor Paul Hagerman that he hit Nichols with the baton because he was angry. Another officer, Emmitt Martin, arrived and punched and kicked Nichols in the head.
Nichols died three days after the beating. Mills acknowledged on the stand that he had a duty to intervene to stop it, but didn’t.
“Do you regret that?” the prosecutor said.
“Yes,” Mills said.
Mills also acknowledged that he did not tell paramedics that Nichols had been repeatedly hit in the head and later failed to give police supervisors details of the beating because he didn’t want to get in trouble.
Mills says Nichols wasn’t complying with officers’ orders
Under cross-examination, Mills said Nichols was not complying with repeated orders to give officers his hands so that he could be handcuffed. Mills acknowledged that suspects present a danger to officers if they don’t obey such commands.
Defense attorney John Keith Perry asked Mills if he would have struck Nichols with the baton if Nichols had just put his hands behind his back. Mills said no.
“I would have stopped,” said Mills, who spoke in a measured, quiet voice during questioning.
The air conditioning was not working properly in the compact, circular, windowless and packed courtroom. At times, Perry — wearing a tie and suit jacket — wiped his head and back of the neck with what appeared to be a handkerchief or a small towel, and people periodically fanned themselves with pieces of paper.
“It’s hot in here,” Perry said.
Under the plea agreements, Mills’ state sentence will be the same length as his federal term, which could reach up to life in prison, though federal prosecutors have recommended a 15-year sentence. He would serve the state sentence at the same time as his federal term in prison.
Prosecutor says the officers were ‘overcome by the moment’
In opening statements Monday, prosecutor Paul Hagerman said Nichols was being held by his arms by two of the officers as he was punched and kicked and hit with a police baton.
Hagerman said the officers helped each other beat Nichols to death. An autopsy showed Nichols died three days after the beating of blunt force trauma.
He said the officers had a duty to stop the beating but none of them did so. They were “overcome by the moment,” the prosecutor said.
In his opening statement, Bean’s attorney said the situation became “high risk” when Nichols continued driving for about 2 miles (3.2 km) after one of the officers turned on his vehicle’s blue lights in an attempt to stop Nichols for speeding. Nichols then failed to follow orders to give officers his hands so that he could be handcuffed, Perry said.
“He was actually resisting arrest the whole time,” Perry said, adding that the officers just “wanted to do their job effectively.”
Both Smith and Haley called for medical aid the night of the beating, their lawyers said.
The jury for the state trial was chosen in Hamilton County, which includes Chattanooga, after Judge James Jones Jr. ordered the case be heard from people outside of Shelby County, which includes Memphis. Defense lawyers for the officers had argued that intense publicity made seating a fair jury difficult.
The officers are charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression.
Mills and Martin were also charged but will not stand trial with their former colleagues due to their agreements to testify. Sentencings for all five officers in the federal case is expected after the state trial.
In December, the U.S. Justice Department said a 17-month investigation showed the Memphis Police Department uses excessive force and discriminates against Black people.
