4th Fire Department employee probed in Tyre Nichols case
ASSOCIATED PRESS / JAN. 28
The screen at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans honors Tyre Nichols before an NBA basketball game between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Washington Wizards, Jan. 28. Five former Memphis, Tenn., police officers were scheduled Friday, Feb. 17, to make their first court appearance on murder and other charges in the violent arrest and death of Nichols.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. >> A top city official said Tuesday that a fourth Memphis Fire Department employee is being investigated as part of the probe into the violent arrest and death of Tyre Nichols.
Memphis Chief Legal Officer Jennifer Sink told reporters the city hasn’t made a final decision on what consequences the employee may face, according to The Commercial Appeal. She did not disclose the employee’s name or rank.
Sink said that the person came to the scene much later than others “and provided medical care and transported Mr. Nichols to the hospital.”
A Fire Department spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking further information Tuesday night.
Three other fire employees who were present at the site of the arrest have been fired.
Five former police officers pleaded not guilty on Friday to second-degree murder and other charges. They were fired after a police investigation into the Jan. 7 arrest of Nichols, who died in a hospital three days later. His beating was caught on video.
One other officer who was involved in the initial traffic stop has also been fired, and an additional officer who has not been identified has been suspended.
Two Shelby County sheriff’s deputies have been suspended without pay.
