MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The process of picking a jury marched on Tuesday in the federal trial of three former Memphis police officers charged with federal civil rights violations in the January 2023 beating death of Tyre Nichols.
A pool of 200 candidates answered questionnaires ahead of jury selection to assess their ability to serve on the panel. They answered questions from U.S. District Judge Mark Norris about whether they could be fair and impartial in the face of heavy media coverage before the trial and whether watching video of the beating would be a problem for them if they are chosen.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith have pleaded not guilty to charges that they deprived the 29-year-old Nichols of his rights through excessive force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering. The beating was caught on police cameras, triggering protests and calls for police reform. Two others, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr., have already pleaded guilty to the federal charges and could testify against their former colleagues.
The trial is expected to last three to four weeks.
Nichols, who was Black, died in a hospital on Jan. 10, 2023, three days after he was kicked, punched and hit with a police baton following a traffic stop. Police video released that month showed the five officers, who also are Black, beating Nichols as he yelled for his mother about a block from his home. Video also showed the officers milling about and talking with each other as Nichols sat on the ground, struggling with his injuries.