NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Republican Tennessee House lawmakers on Thursday advanced a bill to undo the reforms to police traffic stops made by the city of Memphis in response to the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols by officers last January.
Republicans held the vote as Democrats accused Memphis Republican Rep. John Gillespie of being misleading about when the bill would come up again, resulting in Nichols’ parents not coming to the Capitol in Nashville on Thursday.
Gillespie called it a miscommunication. Nichols’ parents attended Monday when the bill was initially on the itinerary, but it was pushed back, as Gillespie spoke with them in the gallery.
Nichols’ death sparked outrage and calls for reforms nationally and locally. Videos showed an almost 3-minute barrage of fists, feet and baton strikes to Nichols’ face, head, front and back, as the 29-year-old Black man yelled for his mother about a block from home.
Five officers, who were also Black, were charged with federal civil rights violations and second-degree murder and other criminal counts in state court. One has pleaded guilty in federal court. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating how Memphis Police Department officers use force and conduct arrests, and whether the department in the majority-Black city engages in racially discriminatory policing.
Activists and Nichols’ family drummed up support for the city council last year to pass ordinance changes. One outlawed so-called pretextual traffic stops, including for minor violations such as a broken taillight.
An officer’s incident report said Nichols was stopped for driving into oncoming traffic. Police chief Cerelyn “CJ” Davis has said there was no evidence Nichols was driving recklessly.
Local governments in Tennessee couldn’t have similar ordinances under the House-approved bill. The proposal says local governments can’t have laws prohibiting or limiting “traffic stops based on…
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