President Joe Biden expressed feeling “outraged and deeply pained” after seeing the images of the beating that several police officers gave to the African-American Tire Nichols, who died days later in the hospital.
“Like many, I was outraged and deeply hurt after watching the horrifying video of the beating that ended in death” of the 29-year-old in Memphis, Tennessee, Biden said in a statement Friday.
The US president acknowledged that the images, which were published on Friday afternoon, will leave many Americans “shocked” but asked those who “seek justice” not to resort to violence.
“Violence is never acceptable, it is illegal and destructive,” said the executive.
White House officials had a call this afternoon with the mayors of 16 cities in the country before possible protests this weekend after the Memphis Police published the videos showing the beating of Nichols.
For his part, the mayor of New York, Eric Adams, who was on the call, said in a video statement posted on his social networks that he felt “devastated” by what happened with Nichols and asked the inhabitants of the city to act. peacefully if you wish to protest this weekend.
“If you need to express anger or outrage, please do so peacefully,” he said in the video.
Adams added that the city’s Police Department is already “fully prepared” to allow residents to exercise their right to protest.
The most graphic video is the one captured by a surveillance camera on a lamppost, where it is seen from above how the agents kicked, some of them in the head, and hit Nichols with a baton (weapon).
The attorney general of the United States, Merrick Garland, promised that there will be an investigation into the death of Nichols at the hands of five police officers in Memphis and called for any protests that may take place over this event to be peaceful.
Five former agents are in custody and face various criminal charges for having killed Nichols in the beating, who was arrested on January 7 for an alleged traffic violation.
With information from EFE
Also read:
- ‘Failure of human decency’: New York condemns video on the death of Tire Nichols in the face of police abuse in Memphis
- US Attorney General promises to investigate the death of an African-American less than 5 police officers in Tennessee