Former Memphis police officer accused in death of Tyre Nichols pleads guilty

Share

Explore Our Galleries

A man stands in front of the Djingareyber mosque on February 4, 2016 in Timbuktu, central Mali. 
Mali's fabled city of Timbuktu on February 4 celebrated the recovery of its historic mausoleums, destroyed during an Islamist takeover of northern Mali in 2012 and rebuilt thanks to UN cultural agency UNESCO.
TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY SEBASTIEN RIEUSSEC / AFP / SÉBASTIEN RIEUSSEC
African Peoples Before Captivity
Shackles from Slave Ship Henrietta Marie
Kidnapped: The Middle Passage
Image of the first black members of Congress
Reconstruction: A Brief Glimpse of Freedom
The Lynching of Laura Nelson_May_1911 200x200
One Hundred Years of Jim Crow
Civil Rights protest in Alabama
I Am Somebody! The Struggle for Justice
Black Lives Matter movement
NOW: Free At Last?
#15-Beitler photo best TF reduced size
Memorial to the Victims of Lynching
hands raised black background
The Freedom-Lovers’ Roll Call Wall
Frozen custard in Milwaukee's Bronzeville
Special Exhibits

Breaking News!

Today's news and culture by Black and other reporters in the Black and mainstream media.

Ways to Support ABHM?

By Pamela Kirkland and Eric Levenson, CNN

Demonstrators march during a protest on Jan. 28, 2023, in Atlanta, over the death of Tyre Nichols, who died after being beaten by Memphis police. (Alex Slitz/AP)

One of the five former Memphis police officers accused in the January death of Tyre Nichols pleaded guilty Thursday to federal charges and agreed to plead guilty to related state charges as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

Desmond Mills Jr., 33, pleaded guilty to two of the four federal charges he was facing, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee. He also agreed to plead guilty in state court at an upcoming hearing on charges related to Nichols’ death, according to the Shelby County district attorney.

Mills pleaded guilty to civil rights and conspiracy charges, which included using excessive force and failing to intervene, as well as conspiring to cover up his use of unlawful force, the US attorney’s office said.

As part of the agreement, he will be called to testify against the other defendants, according to prosecutors. He has also agreed to fully cooperate in the federal civil rights investigation into patterns and practices of the Memphis Police Department.

Mills may serve up to 15 years in prison for his part in Nichols’ murder.

To learn more about Nichols’ murder, read his family’s suit here.

Follow the proceedings with Breaking News.

Comments Are Welcome

Note: We moderate submissions in order to create a space for meaningful dialogue, a space where museum visitors – adults and youth –– can exchange informed, thoughtful, and relevant comments that add value to our exhibits.

Racial slurs, personal attacks, obscenity, profanity, and SHOUTING do not meet the above standard. Such comments are posted in the exhibit Hateful Speech. Commercial promotions, impersonations, and incoherent comments likewise fail to meet our goals, so will not be posted. Submissions longer than 120 words will be shortened.

See our full Comments Policy here.

Leave a Comment