Three of the five Memphis, Tennessee, police officers who were charged in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols in 2023 were acquitted of state charges on Wednesday.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, and Justin Smith were found not guilty of all charges by a jury that deliberated for two days, Fox 13 Memphis reported. The former police officers faced charges of second-degree murder, aggravated assault, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, two counts of official misconduct, and official oppression. While the former officers celebrated their acquittal on state charges, they still face sentencing after being convicted of obstruction of justice in a federal trial.
The trial, which was carried out in front of an out-of-town jury from Hamilton County, Tennessee, took nine days. Prosecutors argued that Bean and Smith had a duty to intervene after their fellow officers, Desmond Mills Jr. and Emmitt…
