MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Attorneys for two former Memphis police officers convicted of hindering the beating of Tire Nichols filed acquittal motions Friday, arguing that the government failed to prove the allegations at the federal trial.
Tadarrius Bean, Justin Smith and a third former Memphis police officer, Demetrius Haley, were initially charged with four counts in connection with the death of Nichols, who fled from officers during a routine traffic stop in January 2023.
On October 3, Bean, Smith and Haley were found guilty of a charge of obstruction of trial by witness tampering when a jury returned mixed results in the federal case.
“There is absolutely no evidence to support an individual finding of Mr. Bean’s guilt of obstruction of justice,” Bean’s attorney, John Perry, argued in Friday’s motion. Meanwhile, Smith’s attorney, Martin Zummach, argued in his motion that “the government’s own evidence established that Justin Smith had no intentional, conscious desire to obstruct justice or withhold information during the deposition, nor did he persuade or attempt to persuade a witness in to obstruct or delay any investigation.”
Asked for further comment, Perry on Monday referred ABC News to the request, saying it “speaks for itself.”
“With God’s help, I will do everything in my power to speak on Justin’s behalf during the lawsuit,” Zummach told ABC News by email on Monday.
ABC News reached out to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), but requests for comment were not immediately returned.
All three former officers were also initially charged with three additional counts – violating Nichols’ civil rights by excessive use of force, unlawful assault, failure to intervene during the assault and failure to provide medical assistance. Bean and Smith were found not guilty of these charges.
Meanwhile, Haley was acquitted of disenfranchisement of Nichols resulting in death, but found guilty of the lesser charge of disenfranchisement resulting in bodily harm. He was also found guilty of conspiracy to obstruct work.
The former officers did not defend themselves during the federal trial and pleaded not guilty to all charges.
SEE ALSO: Tire Nichols’ official autopsy revealed brain injuries caused by blunt force trauma, prosecutors say
According to the Department of Justice, Bean and Smith face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, while Haley faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for both the violation of depriving an individual of civil rights and the willful indifference to the known serious medical needs of an individual in custody.” The department noted that Haley faces up to 20 years in prison for the witness tampering charges.
A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee on Oct. 7 ordered Haley held without bail pending sentencing on Jan. 22, 2025, according to court documents, but ruled that Bean and Smith could be held on supervised release until issuing the judgment.
Court documents show that on October 10, Haley’s attorney filed a motion to reinstate Haley’s bond, arguing that the judge “erroneously concluded that Mr. Haley has been convicted of a violent crime and is subject to compulsory detention,” citing that Haley was “acquitted of civil rights violation resulting in death and convicted of lesser offenses of civil rights violation resulting in bodily harm.”
ABC News contacted the court, but a request for comment was not immediately returned.
Body camera footage shows Nichols, 29, running away after police stopped him on Jan. 7, 2023, for allegedly reckless driving, then shocked him with a Taser and pepper sprayed him.
Officers allegedly beat Nichols minutes later after tracking him down. After the encounter with police, Nichols was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Nichols died in hospital on January 10, 2023.
Two additional officers – Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills Jr. – were also charged in the federal case and testified at the trial of Bean, Smith and Haley after pleading guilty to some federal charges.
All five former officers charged in the case were members of the Memphis Police Department’s SCORPION unit, a crime-fighting unit that was disbanded after Nichols’ death. All officers were fired for violating MPD policies.
All five former officers also face state felony charges, including second-degree murder, in connection with Nichols’ death. Bean, Smith and Haley have pleaded not guilty to these charges. They pleaded not guilty to these charges.
The video in the player above is from an earlier report.
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