Rick Steves: The officers appear at a couple of different moments here to be trying to justify their actions, even though the footage doesn't really support the actions. He says that's why so many people said they found the video as disturbing and as infuriating as the family made it out to be. Steves: And finally, we see the police and these medics showing very little regard for Tirey Nichols' injuries or his well-being despite the fact that he's visibly and audibly in pain.
This episode contains descriptions of violence and strong language.
Tyre Nichols was a 29-year-old Black man who lived in Memphis. His mother described him as living a simple and pleasant life. He worked for FedEx, loved to skateboard, was an amateur photographer and had a 4-year-old son.
On the evening of Jan. 7, after a traffic stop, Mr. Nichols was violently beaten by the police, sustaining severe injuries. He died on Jan. 10.
For weeks, what exactly had happened was unclear. This weekend, videos of the encounter were released.
Guest: Rick Rojas, the Southern bureau chief for The New York Times.
Background reading:
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