Civil rights leaders say acquittals in Tyre Nichols' death highlight the need for police reform

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — After three former Memphis police officers were acquitted Wednesday in the beating death of Tyre Nichols, community and civil rights leaders expressed outrage over another disappointment in the long push for police reform.

Nichols' death at a traffic stop more than two years ago sparked nationwide protests and renewed calls for systemic change as the first post-George Floyd case that revealed the limits of an unprecedented reckoning over racial injustice in Black America.

Now, Wednesday's acquittals again show the need for reforms at the federal level, civil rights leaders said.

“Tyre and his family deserve true justice — not only in the courtroom, but in Congress, by passing police reform legislation once and for all," NAACP President Derrick Johnson posted on social media. "Traffic stops should never be a death sentence, and a badge should never— ever — be a shield to accountability.”

The Rev. Al Sharpton, who spoke Wednesday to Nichols' mother and stepfather, said they were outraged.

“Justice can still be delivered,” Sharpton added in a statement, referring to the officers' upcoming sentencing in a federal civil rights case. “Tyre’s death was preventable, inexcusable, and tragic.”

Nichols, 29, was on his way home on Jan. 7, 2023, when he was stopped for an alleged traffic violation. He was pulled out of his car by officers, one of whom shot at him with a Taser. Nichols ran away, according to video footage that showed him brutally beaten by five officers. An autopsy found he died from blows to the head.

An out-of-town jury from a majority-white county found Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith not guilty of all state charges, including second-degree murder, in the fatal beating. All five officers, the city of Memphis and the police chief are being sued by Nichols’ family for $550 million. A trial has been scheduled for next year.

“Let this be a rally and cry: We must confront the broken systems that empowered this injustice and demand the change our nation — and Tyre’s legacy — deserves,” said civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who is representing the family in the lawsuit.

On Thursday, more than 100 supporters of Nichols’ family joined them at a rally at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis. The museum is built on the site of the former Lorraine Motel, where the Rev. Martin Luther King was assassinated in 1968.

Nichols' mother, RowVaughn Wells, spoke to the crowd in the rain, covered by an umbrella, in front of the balcony where King was felled by a rifle bullet. Behind her, people held posters showing with a photo of a hospitalized Nichols, his face swollen and bruised. On the posters was the saying, “I Am a Man,” the rallying cry for the sanitation workers' strike that brought King to the city.

Wells said the verdict was a “devastating blow” to her family. She said the jury didn't care about her son. Jurors were brought in from the Chattanooga area after a judge's ruling that intense pre-trial publicity made it difficult to find an impartial jury.

“They were allowed to come here and look at the evidence, but they didn't see the evidence,” Wells said. “What they saw was a Black man running from the police. They didn't care that my son was afraid for his life.”

After Floyd's 2020 murder by a former Minneapolis police officer, states adopted hundreds of police reform proposals, creating civilian oversight of police, more antibias training and stricter use-of-force limits, among other measures. But federal reforms in the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act have been stuck in Congress without enough bipartisan support to get enacted during the Biden administration.

The Nichols case sparked a 17-month federal investigation into the Memphis Police Department, which found a host of civil rights violations, including using excessive force, making illegal traffic stops and disproportionately targeting Black people.

Last year, police traffic-stop reforms put in place in Memphis after Nichols’ death were repealed by GOP Gov. Bill Lee, despite pleas from civil rights advocates.

One of the ordinances had outlawed traffic stops for reasons unrelated to a motorist's driving, such as a broken taillight and other minor violations. Lee echoed arguments from Republican lawmakers who said Nichols’ death needed to result in accountability for officers who abuse power, not new limits on traffic stops.

Speaking after Wednesday's acquittal, Shelby County District Attorney Steven Mulroy said: “Our office will continue to push for accountability for everybody who violates the law, including, if not especially, those who are sworn to uphold it.”

“If we’re going to have any silver lining from this dark cloud of both the event itself and in my view today’s verdict, it has to be that we need to reaffirm our commitment to police reform,” he said.

Thaddeus Johnson, a former Memphis police commander and a senior fellow at the Council on Criminal Justice, said Nichols' beating and Wednesday's acquittal compound wounds from generations of policing problems in the majority-Black city.

“I do believe that reform is local, but I do believe this has kind of put a black eye on things,” Johnson told The Associated Press. "People feel like police cannot be held accountable. Or they won’t be held accountable.”

Andre Johnson, a pastor at Gifts of Life Ministries in Memphis and a community activist, said he was disappointed but not surprised at the verdict.

“It is extremely difficult to convict officers even when they are on camera,” he said, calling the acquittal ”a loud and clarion acknowledgment that certain groups of people do not matter.”

“For a lot of people who have had engagement with police officers, the message is loud and clear: that even if we get you on camera, doing what you did to Tyre, that you cannot face justice,” Johnson said.

Brewer reported from Norman, Oklahoma. Mattise reported from Nashville. Associated Press writer Travis Loller in Nashville contributed.

Attendees show their support during a community rally in honor of Tyre Nichols, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Nikki Boertman)

Tameka Greer, center left, and Dory Lerner, center right, embrace during a community rally in honor of Tyre Nichols, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Nikki Boertman)

Stepfather Rodney Wells and, RowVaughn Wells, mother of Tyre Nichols, during a community rally in honor of Tyre, Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Memphis, Tenn. (AP Photo/Nikki Boertman)

FILE - This combination of images provided by the Memphis, Tenn., Police Department shows, from top row from left, Police Officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, bottom row from left, Desmond Mills, Jr. and Justin Smith. (Memphis Police Department via AP, File)

FILE - Candles spell out the name of Tyre Nichols during a candlelight vigil for Nichols on the anniversary of his death, Jan. 7, 2024, in Memphis. (AP Photo/Karen Pulfer Focht, file)

NEW YORK (AP) — Thousands of nurses in three hospital systems in New York City went on strike Monday after negotiations through the weekend failed to yield breakthroughs in their contract disputes.

The strike was taking place at The Mount Sinai Hospital and two of its satellite campuses, with picket lines forming. The other affected hospitals are NewYork-Presbyterian and Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx.

About 15,000 nurses are involved in the strike, according to New York State Nurses Association.

“After months of bargaining, management refused to make meaningful progress on core issues that nurses have been fighting for: safe staffing for patients, healthcare benefits for nurses, and workplace violence protections,” the union said in a statement issued Monday. “Management at the richest hospitals in New York City are threatening to discontinue or radically cut nurses’ health benefits.”

The strike, which comes during a severe flu season, could potentially force the hospitals to transfer patients, cancel procedures or divert ambulances. It could also put a strain on city hospitals not involved in the contract dispute, as patients avoid the medical centers hit by the strike.

The hospitals involved have been hiring temporary nurses to try and fill the labor gap during the walkout, and said in a statement during negotiations that they would “do whatever is necessary to minimize disruptions.” Montefiore posted a message assuring patients that appointments would be kept.

“NYSNA’s leaders continue to double down on their $3.6 billion in reckless demands, including nearly 40% wage increases, and their troubling proposals like demanding that a nurse not be terminated if found to be compromised by drugs or alcohol while on the job," Montefiore spokesperson Joe Solmonese said Monday after the strike had started. "We remain resolute in our commitment to providing safe and seamless care, regardless of how long the strike may last.”

New York-Presbyterian accused the union of staging a strike to “create disruption,” but said in a statement that it has taken steps to ensure patients receive the care they need.

"We’re ready to keep negotiating a fair and reasonable contract that reflects our respect for our nurses and the critical role they play, and also recognizes the challenging realities of today’s healthcare environment,” the statement said.

The work stoppage is occurring at multiple hospitals simultaneously, but each medical center is negotiating with the union independently. Several other hospitals across the city and in its suburbs reached deals in recent days to avert a possible strike.

The nurses’ demands vary by hospital, but the major issues include staffing levels and workplace safety. The union says hospitals have given nurses unmanageable workloads.

Nurses also want better security measures in the workplace, citing incidents like a an incident last week, when a man with a sharp object barricaded himself in a Brooklyn hospital room and was then killed by police.

The union also wants limitations on hospitals’ use of artificial intelligence.

The nonprofit hospitals involved in the negotiations say they’ve been working to improve staffing levels, but say the union’s demands overall are too costly.

Nurses voted to authorize the strike last month.

Both New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Zohran Mamdani had expressed concern about the possibility of the strike. As the strike deadline neared, Mamdani urged both sides to keep negotiating and reach a deal that “both honors our nurses and keeps our hospitals open.”

“Our nurses kept this city alive through its hardest moments. Their value is not negotiable,” Mamdani said.

State Attorney General Letitia James voiced similar support, saying "nurses put their lives on the line every day to keep New Yorkers healthy. They should never be forced to choose between their own safety, their patients’ well-being, and a fair contract.”

The last major nursing strike in the city was only three years ago, in 2023. That work stoppage, at Mount Sinai and Montefiore, was short, lasting three days. It resulted in a deal raising pay 19% over three years at those hospitals.

It also led to promised staffing improvements, though the union and hospitals now disagree about how much progress has been made, or whether the hospitals are retreating from staffing guarantees.

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Nurses strike outside Mount Sinai West Hospital, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

FILE - A medical worker transports a patient at Mount Sinai Hospital, April 1, 2020, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)