Gov. Moore Mourns Inhumanity Of Tyre Nichols Video, Baltimore PD Ready

BALTIMORE, MD — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore mourned the inhumanity shown in the video of Memphis police officers beating Tyre Nichols, while the Baltimore Police Department prepared for the Friday release of the footage showing the attack that eventually resulted in Nichols' death.

Moore released a statement on the death of Nichols: "It’s difficult not to fight back tears watching this video. The inhumanity that was shown to Tyre Nichols, a young skateboarder and amateur photographer, is intolerable by anybody, but especially by people whose job and responsibility it was to protect him. I’m thankful that the Department of Justice is engaged in this investigation, and these five individuals must be held to account for their barbarism.

"I know I speak for all Marylanders as we grieve with Tyre’s family, friends, and community," Moore said.

A spokesperson for the Baltimore Police Department told Patch the agency is aware of potential protests and "stands ready to safeguard those peacefully participating and exercising their 1st (sic) Amendment rights."

"The Department is creating a contingency plan in the event that we deploy to areas across the city to support those participating in peaceful protests," the spokesperson said.

The five officers, all of whom are Black, were charged Thursday with murder and other crimes in the killing of Nichols, a motorist who died three days after a confrontation with the officers during a traffic stop on Jan. 7.

Nichols' family members and their lawyers said the footage shows officers savagely beating the 29-year-old FedEx worker for three minutes in an assault the legal team likened to the infamous 1991 police beating of Los Angeles motorist Rodney King.

Memphis Police Director Cerelyn Davis described the officers' actions as "heinous, reckless and inhumane" and said Friday that her department could not substantiate the reckless driving allegation that prompted the stop.

The officers each face second-degree murder, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct, and official oppression.

According to court and jail records, four of the five officers had posted bond as of Friday morning and had been released from custody.

In Baltimore, police are coordinating with other local and state law enforcement agencies to ensure resident safety during any protests, the spokesperson said.

Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown released a statement about Nichols' death and offered his condolences to the family.

“These videos, and the horrors that they portray, have been felt here in Maryland and across the nation. Protesting injustice is a proud American tradition, and I stand with you in peaceful opposition to the violence and degradation portrayed in these videos," Brown said.

“As the Attorney General, I promise to uphold the ideals that all Marylanders share — that justice should not depend on race or wealth or geography, and that no person or profession is exempt from the rule of law. I promise to be present with our Maryland community while we reckon with injustice, and to listen and learn as we work together to ensure that the brutality that ended Mr. Nichols’ life will never happen again.”

In Memphis, Nichols's family members pleaded for peaceful protests.

"I don't want us burning up our city, tearing up the streets because that's not what my son stood for," Nichols' mother, RowVaughn Wells, said Thursday. "If you guys are here for me and Tyre, then you will protest peacefully."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.