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Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man who was violently beaten by Memphis police officers in January, died from blunt force trauma to the head and his death has been ruled a homicide, his autopsy results revealed Thursday.
Nichols was repeatedly punched and kicked by five Memphis Police Department officers on January 7 following a traffic stop and brief foot chase. He required hospitalization after the encounter and died three days later.
A toxicology report performed on Nichols detected the presence of chemicals associated with marijuana and alcohol use, the report says. Nichols’ blood alcohol content was 0.049, which is below the legal limit of 0.08 in the state of Tennessee.
CNN has contacted the Shelby County medical examiner to obtain a direct copy of Nichols’ autopsy report.
The Nichols’ family attorney, Benjamin Crump, released a statement on Thursday, saying the video of his killing “stunned the world, and we are once again stunned to see it put into words by the medical examiner.”
“The utter brutality of the deadly beating that Tyre suffered is once again highlighted in these official autopsy results,” the statement continued.
The five former Memphis police officers, who are Black, pleaded not guilty at their arraignment on February 17 after being indicted on seven counts each, including second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping and official misconduct.
