Former Officer Testifies He Beat ‘Helpless’ Tyre Nichols, Then Lied About It

MEMPHIS, Tennessee — A former Memphis police officer testified Tuesday that he punched a “helpless” Tyre Nichols at least five times while two colleagues held his arms and said “hit him,” then lied to his supervisor about their use of force in a beating that ended in death.

Emmitt Martin III testified that he was at a traffic stop on Jan. 7, 2023, when Nichols was pulled over and pulled from his car. Nichols fled the scene, and Martin said Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith chased the 29-year-old and beat him without his handcuffs when Martin caught up to them.

“They assaulted him,” Martin said Tuesday.

Bean, Smith and Demetrius Haley have pleaded not guilty to charges that they deprived Nichols of his civil rights through excessive use of force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering.

All four men, along with Desmond Mills Jr., were fired after Nichols’ death. The beating was caught on video by police, which was made public. The officers were later indicted on federal charges. Martin and Mills have agreed to plead guilty and are testifying against their former colleagues.

The five officers were part of the Scorpion Unit, a team tasked with tracking down drugs, illegal weapons and violent criminals. The unit was disbanded after Nichols’ death.

Jurors watched video clips while Nichols’ mother and stepfather, RowVaughn and Rodney Wells, sat outside the courtroom. RowVaughn Wells never saw the video. Nichols’ brother watched it inside.

Martin said he was angry that Nichols had fled and that the team had yet to make any arrests that night.

“I thought that’s what he should get,” Martin said.

Prosecutor Kathryn Gilbert asked Martin whether officers were allowed to use force in anger.

“No, ma’am,” he said, adding that he should have intervened.

Martin said he threw his body camera on the ground because he did not want to show that he was “assaulting Mr. Nichols.”

Martin said he kicked Nichols, while Mills hit him with a baton. Martin then said he punched Nichols at least five times, while Bean and Smith held his arms and encouraged him to continue. The officers held his arms while ordering him to give them his hands.

“He was helpless,” Martin said of Nichols.

Martin said he did not inform Lt. Dewayne Smith, his supervisor, of their use of force. Martin said he told Lt. Smith that Nichols was under the influence of drugs, without evidence, and that the officers lied when they said Nichols drove into oncoming traffic and struck the officers during the traffic stop.

Martin testified that although he felt pressure on his gun belt during the traffic stop, he never saw Nichols’ hands on his gun. Yet, Martin said, he told his supervisor that Nichols had his hands on his gun.

“I exaggerated his actions to justify my own,” Martin said.

He said his colleagues understood that they were not going to report me and that I was not going to report them.

Martin said they violated department policy by using force and lying about it.

Martin acknowledged his plea and said he hoped the judge would show leniency in sentencing.

“I can’t sit here and live with a lie. The truth has to come out,” Martin told Gilbert. “It was eating me up inside.”

Under cross-examination by Bean’s attorney, John Keith Perry, Martin said he was injured in November 2022 when he was hit by a car, and that he didn’t return to the Scorpion unit until four days before Nichols was arrested. While Martin was away from his team, Justin Smith called and Martin told him he was having homicidal thoughts, Martin said.

Martin also said he had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, with problems including sleep disturbances, paranoia, irritability and anger issues.

Perry attempted to point out inconsistencies between Martin’s previous statements to investigators and his court testimony.

He pressed Martin on terms he had used in court, such as “exaggerating” and “passive resistance,” suggesting that Martin had used those terms only after lawyers had guided him through his testimony. Martin acknowledged that he had not used those words when he spoke to internal affairs investigators in the days after the beating, adding that he had not been telling the truth at the time.

Nichols, who was black, was pepper-sprayed and hit with a stun gun during the traffic stop but fled, police video shows. The five officers, who are also black, then beat him about a block from his home as he called for his mother.

The video shows officers moving around and talking as Nichols struggles with his injuries. Nichols died on January 10, 2023, three days after the beating.

An autopsy report shows Nichols, the father of a now 7-year-old boy, died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, cuts and bruises on his head and other parts of his body.

The five officers were also charged with second-degree murder in state court, where they have pleaded not guilty. Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas. A state court trial date has not yet been set.

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Associated Press writer Jonathan Mattise contributed to this report from Nashville, Tennessee.