Montgomery County public safety and government leaders made statements Friday as video footage was released showing police officers in Memphis, Tennessee beating a man who later died.
29-year-old Tyre Nichols died three days after the beating, which occurred Jan. 7, The Associated Press reported. Five Memphis officers have been fired and charged with murder.
Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones called the officers’ actions “indefensible.”
“Our nation and the law enforcement community are once again faced with the death of a man at the hands of people who have taken an oath to protect and serve,” Jones wrote in a statement.
“This latest incident is extremely disturbing, frustrating, and discouraging. Following the death of George Floyd, the Montgomery County Department of Police, along with departments across the nation implemented new policies and training for recruits and current officers.”
Jones said the police department will continue to work with the community to promote positive change.
On Twitter, the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office retweeted a statement from the National District Attorneys Association, which strongly condemned “the horrific and egregious killing of Tyre Nichols.”
In a joint statement, County Executive Marc Elrich and the county council called it a “senseless murder.”
“Our nation once again mourns the brutal loss of a young Black man’s life at the hands of law enforcement and must now cope with the collective trauma that this tragedy has triggered,” the statement reads.
“It’s difficult to grasp the lack of humanity that was displayed by these officers during this heinous incident. We share the outrage and pain felt all across our country, at the disregard of basic human rights at the hands of those who took oath to protect and serve the public. As a county, a state, and a nation, we must have zero tolerance for police brutality.”
Elrich and councilmembers said the county has made changes like creating a Policing Advisory Commission.
Statement From Chief Marcus Jones on the Death of Tyre Nichols@mcpdChiefhttps://t.co/prc6hpzN1V#MCPD #MCPNews pic.twitter.com/qdpLOXgijY
— Montgomery County Department of Police (@mcpnews) January 27, 2023
