Tyre Nichols, Race Baiting & The War on Police (Update II)

 Bookworm Room

The death of Tyre Nichols was horrid and unnecessary, but racial and anti-police politics, not justice, appear to be front and center in this case.

"Tyre Nichols’ death was likely caused by a single rogue officer who used excessive force. Part of the problem is societal — why do so many black men think it appropriate to resist arrest? Likewise, societal problems are the racial and anti-police politics now dominating America. What is happening to the arresting officers is not about justice. All but one of the arresting officers appear to have done nothing more than try to lawfully arrest Nichols,  Lastly, and despicably, race hustlers in this nation are trying to paint the death of Nichols as caused by racism and white supremacy.". . .

. . ."Tyre Nichols was a 6’3″, 145 lbs., 29-year-old off-duty FedEx employee with no criminal record at the time of his death. He was also the father of a 4-year-old son. We don’t know whether he was married to his son’s mother.

"On January 7, Memphis police allegedly stopped Tyre Nichols for the misdemeanor crime of reckless driving. This is a traffic offense, and we do not know how this escalated from a simple ticketing offense to an arrestable one, though that would not be unusual. Reckless driving is often the initial charge laid against a driver who appears to be impaired and who needs to be taken off the streets for the public’s safety. We still do not know if Nichols was, in fact, impaired as the official autopsy has not been made public, nor do we know any of the facts the police relied on to make their initial stop and attempt to arrest Nichols.

"There was already an attempt to arrest Nichols ongoing when the police officer wearing the bodycam in the first video (below) arrived on the scene. At no point then or during the second arrest attempt did Nichols appear to be armed or appear to present a direct threat to the officers.

"Once the video begins, we see that Nichols refused to comply with officer commands, actively resisted arrest, and then ran away, all despite police attempts to subdue him, including with pepper spray and a taser. The events of this first arrest attempt are shown in the video below. The officers involved solely in this first arrest attempt have not been charged with any crime.

"Update:  That is no longer true.  Virtually anyone who touched Nichols at any time, including during the first attest and the medics who rendered treatment, are being suspended and charged, though it is not clear at the moment what crimes they are being charged with.". .  .