A newly identified sixth officer was involved in the traffic stop that later killed Tire Nichols, according to Memphis, Tennessee police.
The officer identified as Preston Hemphill was separated from his position during the ongoing investigation, and it was revealed that he deployed his Taser during training, authorities said.
His body camera video shows Hemphill chasing Nichols down the highway, but then returned to the scene of the initial traffic stop, ABC News reported.
“I hope he gets stomped on his ass,” Hemphill is heard saying on his body camera video twice.
However, so far Hemphill, who is the only non-African American involved in the incident, has not been fired or charged.
“He was relieved when the other officers were fired,” a Memphis police spokesman said Monday.
The case of the 29-year-old African-American, who worked as a driver at FedEx, gained national notoriety after five officers fired him and charged him with murder after brutally beating him after a traffic stop on January 7.
Lee Gerald, Hemphill’s attorney, previously noted that his client was the third officer at the Nichols traffic stop.
“Per departmental regulations, Officer Hemphill activated his body camera,” Gerald said earlier in a statement. “He was never present in the second scene. He is cooperating with officials in this investigation.”
Meanwhile, attorneys for the Nichols family, Antonio Romanucci and Ben Crump, said they were extremely disappointed that Hemphill was relieved of his position but not fired or charged. They also questioned why Memphis police did not initially announce Hemphill’s name.
“We have asked from the beginning that the Memphis Police Department be transparent with the family and the community; this news seems to indicate that they have not risen to the occasion. It certainly raises the question of why the white officer involved in this brutal attack was shielded and shielded from public view and, to date, given sufficient discipline and accountability. The Memphis Police Department owes us all answers,” the lawyers said.
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