MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Monday was the first pre-trial hearing in federal court for four of the former Memphis Police officers charged in the beating death of Tyre Nichols.
U.S. District Judge Mark Norris said they are still on track for the scheduled September 9th trial date but added that they have a “tangled web” of motions to address leading up to it.
Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III and Justin Smith Jr. face federal civil rights charges in addition to the second degree murder charges brought forth by the State of Tennessee in Nichols 2023 death.
Judge Norris told attorneys they had close to 30 motions that need resolution and a few of them were addressed during Monday’s hearing.
One of the biggest decisions was Judge Morris denying the defense's motion to exclude evidence that Haley shared pictures of Nichols. The judge said this is relevant to the issue of deliberate indifference, especially when considering the question of whether or not Haley took pictures of Nichols rather than rendering aid.
Defense attorneys also spent lots of time debating the United States Government’s motion that the defense’s expert witnesses could not testify on ultimate issues or legal conclusions. That includes whether defense experts believe reasonable force was used in Nichols’s arrest.
The ex-officers defense attorneys claimed they've always been allowed to have qualified expert witnesses weigh in on ultimate issues and they would be asking them if the ex-officers actions were consistent with MPD training.
Attorneys also went back and forth on the prosecution’s motion that while the defense can explore the reasons why Desmond Mills is testifying against his former fellow officers, they cannot talk about the specific amount of jail time he would be avoiding, claiming this could confuse the jury.
Judge Norris ruled they would need to revisit those issues at a later date.
August 9th is the deadline for the defense to disclose all other witnesses other than their experts, August 19th is the deadline for both sides to agree on jury instructions and August 26th is the deadline to enter any plea agreements.
None of the attorneys were willing to comment on Monday’s proceedings. The ex-officers are due in state court August 12th, where the state trial date could be set.