Memphis will release Tyre Nichols video after 6 p.m. on a Friday. Why?

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Susan Adler Thorp's name.

At some point tonight, the city of Memphis is expected to release video of the confrontation that led to Tyre Nichols’ death.

On Jan. 7, a traffic stop led to an altercation between Nichols and five former Memphis Police Department officers, which landed Nichols in the hospital. The 29-year-old died at a local hospital three days later. Those five former officers have since been charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault-acting in concert, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression.

At a press conference Thursday announcing those charges, Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy said the city of Memphis ― the custodian of video evidence of the confrontation between Nichols and MPD ― would release the video sometime after 6 p.m. Friday.

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Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said he had seen no correlation in other communities about the date and time videos like this were released and how communities reacted.

"That was a law enforcement preference on trying to get people home from school and home from work, and do it after rush hour when people were safely at home, because we've been getting calls from school leaders and business leaders saying, 'When you release it... we're worried about our students or workers,'" he said.

Susan Adler Thorp, a seasoned public relations and politics expert in Memphis, said releasing the video after 6 p.m. on a Friday made sense to her. It gives people working traditional business hours the chance to get home, should there be public demonstrations.

“They are ready to release the video and after 6 o'clock… this brings the week and the business day to a close. People have time to leave their businesses, workers have time to go home,” she said.

Thorp was not in the room at the time decisions about when and how to release the video were made. She said Memphis officials will have seen what has happened in other American cities in similar situations and put a lot of thought into how to meet public demands for transparency without jeopardizing the prosecution's future case against the five officers. They also have to consider public safety and potential demonstrations or protests that occur following members of the public viewing the video.

"I'm not really certain that any time is the right time to release a video like this," she said. "The leadership of this city has been very careful and almost calculating to a point how to manage the outcome or how to manage what has happened based on what they all have already seen in the video."

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Alissa Marque Heydari, deputy director of the Institute for Innovation in Prosecution at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said extensive or unnecessary delays in releasing information, including video, in cases like these can lead to speculation, which can fuel distrust.

“The sooner prosecutors can, without compromising the investigation or compromising the strength of the case against the police officers… as soon as possible is ideal,” she said. “Prosecutors have a long way to go in restoring faith in law enforcement.”

Heydari’s team developed a toolkit for best practices in handling officer-involved fatalities.

She said officials have to consider how not to compromise an ongoing investigation and future prosecutorial efforts as well as restore public trust. But they also can, and should, take into account the needs of the victim’s family.

In this situation, some members of Nichols’ family were given the chance to view the footage in a private setting earlier this week, before charges were announced and a public release date for the footage was given.

This week, the family has called for any reaction to the footage to remain peaceful and advised people not to let children see the video. Numerous law enforcement and public officials have called the video heinous and disturbing.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director David Rausch said it was "absolutely appalling."

“We are here to pursue truth and justice, realizing that we should not be here," he said at a Thursday press conference. "Frankly I’m shocked. I’m sickened by what I saw and through our extensive and thorough investigation... What happened here does not at all reflect proper policing. This was wrong. This was criminal.”

Mulroy said the video would be a compilation of body camera footage and SkyCop video. He said some of the video will be redacted.

Beyond the graphic content, there are strong reasons for redacting portions of these kinds of videos, including protecting potential witnesses, Heydari said.

However, the public reaction to what will be released Friday night, remains to be seen.

Corinne S Kennedy covers healthcare, economic development and real estate for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached via email at Corinne.Kennedy@CommercialAppeal.com.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Tyre Nichols video: Why is Memphis releasing it on a Friday night?