After the death of Tyre Nichols, 2 more officers face disciplinary action.

On Monday, the Memphis Police Department announced that a seventh police officer who responded to the scene of Tyre Nichols’ fatal beating has been relieved of duty. The agency did not identify the seventh officer in the statement or say whether the person would face departmental or criminal charges.

“An investigation into Officer Preston Hemphill and other officer’s actions and inactions has been ongoing since Jan. 8, the day after Nichols’ traffic stop and the day all seven officers were relieved of duty,” the department said.

“Numerous” impending charges are developing, the statement added. It isn’t clear which officers will be charged.

Lee Gerald, Hemphill’s lawyer, had initially confirmed on Monday that Hemphill was seen on a body camera video released last week. The video showed Hemphill firing a stun gun at Nichols as he ran from officers during the stop.

“Gerald said the officer was never present at the scene where five officers who have been charged with second-degree murder and other crimes were seen beating Nichols,” rewritten as a question would be, “Did Gerald say the officer was never present at the scene where five officers who have been charged with second-degree murder and other crimes were seen beating Nichols?”

“Hemphill’s actions and involvement are under investigation as he participated in the initial traffic stop and the use of a TASER,” the department said in its statement Monday.

Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley, Emmitt Martin III, Desmond Mills Jr., and Justin Smith were fired on Jan. 20 after an administrative investigation found they had violated department policy about the use of force. They were employed from 2017 to 2020.

Last week, prosecutors announced that those five former officers were charged with second-degree murder, two counts of official misconduct, two counts of aggravated kidnapping, one count of official oppression, and one count of aggravated assault.

Lt. Hemphill has not been charged criminally.”

A police spokesperson said that the other 5 officers’ names were announced when they were charged departmentally, then subsequently charged criminally, but Lt. Hemphill has not been charged criminally. To date, Officer Hemphill has neither received departmental nor criminal charges. The investigation is ongoing, as we have advised. After the release of the Tyre Nichols scene video on Friday evening, Officer Hemphill’s name was heard. “He is relieved of duty,” confirmed the speaker.

Ben Crump, attorney for the Nichols family, was not satisfied with that answer.

It is extremely disappointing that Officer Preston Hemphill was reportedly relieved of duty weeks ago but not yet terminated or charged, according to news from Memphis officials today. He asked why his identity and the role he played in Tyre’s death were just now coming to light.

“We have asked from the beginning that the Memphis Police Department be transparent with the family and the community,” Crump added. “This news seems to indicate that they haven’t risen to the occasion.” Why was the white officer involved in this brutal attack shielded and protected from the public eye, and to date, from sufficient discipline and accountability? We all deserve answers from the Memphis Police Department.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s office said on Monday that authorities had charged those whose offenses were plain and clear and had directly contributed to the death of Mr. Nichols, but that the investigation is far from over.

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More information is presented would not stop us from adding charges on top of the current ones. We are looking at all individuals involved in the events leading up to, during, and after the beating of Tyre Nichols. This sentence includes the officer present at the initial encounter who has not been charged—so far, Memphis Fire Department personnel and persons who participated in preparing documentation of the incident afterward,” Mulroy’s office said in a statement.

The agency did not identify the seventh officer in the statement or say whether the person would face departmental or criminal charges.