Memphis SCORPION Unit should be disbanded 'immediately,' Tyre Nichols family attorney says

Hours after attorneys Antonio Romanucci and Ben Crump called for the immediate disbanding of the Memphis Police Department's SCORPION Unit, a specialized unit focused on crime prevention, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland confirmed the unit was inactive.

Officers in the unit were indicted on charges for the death of Tyre Nichols, the 29-year-old Black man who officials say died after officers injured him during a traffic stop earlier this month. Memphis officials had previously been mum on the status of the unit, but late Wednesday said the unit was under review. Officials have not set a date for expected results of the review.

"Since this event happened, the SCORPION Unit has been and remains inactive," Strickland said Friday afternoon in a weekly email update.

Nichols' parents, RowVaughn and Rodney Wells, joined attorneys Romanucci and Crump calling for reforms to the unit during a Friday morning press conference.

The attorneys said they intend to file a civil lawsuit against the unit and called on the Memphis Police Department to accept a pattern and practice investigation by the Department of Justice should the federal organization deem the investigation appropriate.

"The intent of the SCORPION Unit has now been corrupted," Romanucci said.

Romanucci and Crump described allegations from other people of police violence with the unit and a lack of response from the Memphis Police Department's internal affairs. At least two of the five officers indicted on charges for Nichols' death were part of the unit, attorneys have confirmed.

Calls to disband special unit come alongside praise for swift action in officer termination, charges

Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn "C.J." Davis announced the "complete and independent review" of all the department's specialized units earlier this week. It is unclear if additional units, beyond the SCORPION unit, are part of the investigation.

"It is clear that these officers violated the department’s policies and training. I want to assure you we are doing everything we can to prevent this from happening again," Strickland said in the Friday update. "We are initiating an outside, independent review of the training, policies, and operations of our specialized units. Since this event happened, the SCORPION Unit has been and remains inactive."

Describing the SCORPION unit, Crump said: "We believe this was a pattern and practice. And Tyre is dead because that pattern and practice went unchecked by the people who were supposed to check that."

Crump also called for support to legislation in honor of Nichols that would emphasize a duty to intervene when crimes are committed, he said, including when crimes are committed by other police officers.

While the Memphis Police Department created the unit, the attorneys also commended Davis and local leadership for moving swiftly toward terminating the officers, all of whom are Black, and Shelby County District Attorney Gen. Steve Mulroy for bringing charges.

"This is the blueprint, America," Crump said. "And we won't accept less."

Still, Crump criticized the culture of police departments: "We have to talk about this institutionalized police culture that has this unwritten law that you can engage in excessive use of force against Black and brown people."

"It doesn't matter if it's a Black police officer or a white police officer," Crump said. "And that's why it hurts so bad, because you want them to see the humanity. You keep thinking to yourself that these officers have got to understand that could have been your brother."

Calls for disbanded unit come days after Memphis police chief announces 'complete and independent review'

The announcement came about a day after five former MPD officers, some of whom belonged to the SCORPION Unit, were charged with second-degree murder and aggravated assault, among other criminal charges for their roles in the traffic stop that led to Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man, being taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Nichols was the fourth person to die after interactions with local law enforcement over a five-week span. Three other people were fatally shot.

"You often hear about other tragedies that happen before the high-profile case that's going on. And what we try to do is try to lift all the injustices up and we try to speak to all of those," Crump said asked about the shootings. "...I would hope that the city leadership, if the Department of Justice deems it appropriate, to have a pattern and practice organization of the Memphis Police Department, that they will welcome it."

Officers in the SCORPION unit and others like it across the country, Romanucci alleged, operate with "whispered impunity."

"You can call this the SCORPION unit, if that's what you want to call it. But what these really are...these are suppression units, these are saturation units, and what they really turn out to be are oppression units. And what they do is they wind up oppressing the people that we care about the most," Romanucci said Friday.

In an open letter Thursday night, Crump and Romanucci elaborated on the calls to disband: "The official cause for Tyre’s encounter with police on January 7, 2023, was a traffic stop, far outside the unit’s stated purpose of stemming violent crime. But the 'why' of Tyre Nichols's death is found in this policing culture itself, not something Tyre personally did. And his running in fear for his life in-between a series of beatings was an affront to the officers, who wanted to show Tyre and the city of Memphis that as a team they can take anyone down. No one escapes the Scorpions."

Nichols family 'satisfied' with charges: 'We had a special son'

Nichols had just left his mother's house when officers pulled him over for a traffic violation. According to police, a "confrontation" took place and Nichols eventually ran away — back towards his mother's house.

He didn't make it home that night. Crump told reporters at a press conference Jan. 23 that Nichols was between 80 and 100 yards from the house when officers caught up to him. That, according to Romanucci, is where an "unadulterated...beating of [Nichols] for three minutes" took place.

"The last words on the video — he's only about 80 to 100 yards from the house — and he calls for his mom," Crump said Jan. 23. "Three times, he calls, 'Mom. Mom. Mom.' Where's the humanity?"

Nichols was taken to St. Francis Hospital in critical condition after he "complained of a shortness of breath," according to the initial police narrative. He died three days later on Jan. 10.

More details and clarity on the incident were nearly nonexistent before Thursday afternoon, when Mulroy hosted a press conference and laid out a vague timeline.

"There was an initial altercation involving several officers and Mr. Nichols. Pepper spray was deployed," Mulroy said. "Mr. Nichols fled on foot and there was another altercation at a nearby location, at which the serious injuries were experienced by Mr. Nichols. After some period of time of waiting around afterwards, he was taken away by ambulance."

Five officers were immediately placed on administrative leave while MPD brass conducted an internal investigation. Former MPD officers Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Justin Smith, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills, Jr. were fired Jan. 20 after that investigation was completed.

Two employees from the Memphis Fire Department, who have not been identified or charged in connection with Nichols' death, were relieved of duty.

Bean, Haley, Smith, Martin III and Mills, Jr. were all indicted on second-degree murder charges, aggravated assault-acting in concert, aggravated kidnapping, two counts of official misconduct and one count of official oppression, according to court records.

They were held on various bonds, ranging from $250,000 to $350,000 and all five had bonded out by Friday.

Rodney Wells, Nichols' stepfather, had previously called for the officers to be charged with first-degree murder, but said he was satisfied with the swiftness and severity of the charges.

"We're very satisfied with the charges," Wells said. "This is a special case. We had a special son."

Laura Testino covers education and children's issues for the Commercial Appeal. Reach her at laura.testino@commercialappeal.com. Find her on Twitter: @LDTestino

Lucas Finton is a news reporter with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com and followed on Twitter @LucasFinton.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Tyre Nichols' attorneys call for Memphis SCORPION Unit to be disbanded