Desmond Mills Jr. changed his plea to guilty in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, becoming the first of five officers charged to reverse course. The agreement would settle state and federal charges.
A former Memphis police officer changed his plea to guilty Thursday in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols, becoming the first of five officers charged to reverse course, with prosecutors recommending up to 15 years in prison.
Desmond Mills Jr. entered his plea during a hearing at the Memphis federal courthouse as part of a larger agreement to settle charges in state court as well. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the four other officers would follow suit. Their attorneys declined to comment on Mills’ plea change.
Mills pleaded guilty to federal charges of excessive force and obstruction of justice and agreed to plead guilty to related state charges. Mills also agreed to cooperate with prosecutors, who are recommending a 15-year sentence. The final sentencing decision rests with the judge. Mills remains free on bail ahead of his May 22 sentencing hearing.
Nichols’ mother, RowVaughn Wells, shook as she described hearing how five large men beat her skinny son.
“This one today was very difficult for me because this was really the first time I actually heard somebody tell and say what they actually did to my son,” she told reporters outside the courthouse. “So, this was very difficult. But I’m hoping that Mr. Mills, it was his conscience that allowed him to make this plea agreement, and not because of his lawyers telling him it was the right thing to do.”
Caught on police video, the Nichols beating in January was one in a string of violent encounters between police and Black people that sparked protests and renewed debate about police brutality and the need to for police reform in the U.
