Tyre Nichols Body Cam Footage Released: Video Shows Brutal Police Encounter

The Memphis Police Department released body camera footage of Tyre Nichols' encounter with police officers that showed the brutal and horrific beating of the 29-year-old Black man during a Jan. 7 traffic stop.

The video release is a combination of footage captured by a SkyCop camera and the officer's body cameras and was split into four separate clips. In the videos, law enforcement personnel could yell at the suspect to get out of his vehicle before they forcibly removed him from his car.

Tyre Nichols Body Cam Footage

Law enforcement officials and attorneys for Nichols' family described the video recordings as "absolutely appalling," "alarming," and "unconscionable." The first footage released came from a police officer's body camera and lasted roughly 11 minutes. It showed officers pulling the suspect out of his vehicle as he yelled, "I didn't do anything."

One officer could be heard telling Nichols to "Get on the fuckin' ground. I'm going to tase your ass." In response, the suspect gets on the ground and says, "I'm on the ground, I'm on the ground," as per Commercial Appeal.

Another officer at the incident scene could be heard saying, "break your shit." Seconds before a law enforcement personnel shoots the victim with a taser, Nichols says, "You guys are doing a lot now." After being stung, the suspect runs away from the arresting officers.

Video footage also showed that several officers at the scene were hit by pepper spray that other officers deployed. The second video, roughly 30 minutes long, had no audio because it was taken from a SkyCop camera located at Castlegate and Bear Creek Lane.

The camera swivels to show two police officers violently pushing the victim to the ground on his face while he was trying to turn over. A third officer could then be seen appearing to kick Nichols several times in the face.

Police Brutality

A lawyer representing the Nichols family said the police officers treated the father-of-one as a "human pinata." He added that the arrest was an "unadulterated, unabashed, non-stop beating of this young boy," according to BBC.

The second video also showed a fourth police officer observing the situation but later walking over to strike the suspect with a baton. The victim then managed to get back on his feet, and it could be seen that one of the officers punched him in the face before three others forced him back to the ground.

More officers later come into view of the camera, one trying to hold Nichols down on the ground by the feet while another could be seen kicking the victim once more. The officers then backed away as the man lay on the ground, seemingly unable to move and get up.

One of Nichols' closest friends in Sacramento, Angelina Paxton, said that the victim, as a Black man, was wary of the police due to instances of brutality against Black people. He sympathized with the Black Lives Matter movement in social media posts, said the New York Times.

A third video showed a police officer running towards the victims before spraying Nichols with pepper spray, causing him to scream on the ground and scream for his mother. That officer who sprayed the victim later says, "I'm going to baton the f*ck out of you. Give us your hands." Other officers could then be seen throwing punches and beating Nichols.

It was not until 28 minutes into the second video a stretcher was brought in for Nichols. In a statement, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said that the footage was "beyond anything" he had ever seen.