Motorist who suffered cardiac arrest and kidney failure during struggle with two officers

Protests broke out nearby Memphis Police Department over the weekend after a black man died following a traffic stop where officers 'beat' him into 'cardiac arrest.'

Tyre D. Nichols, 29, was pulled over on January 7 for reckless driving by police officers in an unmarked car and hoodies, his Keyana Dixon sister said. 

The police department reported a 'confrontation' between Nicolas and officers before he ran from the scene and was ultimately caught.

'Afterward, the suspect complained of having a shortness of breath, at which time an ambulance was called,' police said. 

Nichols was seen bloody and bruised on a hospital bed where he died the next day. Police haven't confirmed the details of Nichols' arrest or his family's claims, but his condition led to an investigation as officers involved remain on the force.

The department said it had served notices to the officers involved and is launching an investigation, meanwhile furious protesters are now demanding Memphis police release the bodycam footage.

Nichols' family claimed he suffered from cardiac arrest and kidney failure at the time of his death, however the police have yet to confirm his cause of death. 

Tyre D. Nichols, 29, died in a Memphis hospital after he was pulled on January 7. Nichols' family claimed he was 'beat' by police who wore 'hoodies'

The police department reported a 'confrontation' between Nicolas and officers before he ran from the scene and was ultimately caught

Nichols' family claimed he suffered from cardiac arrest and kidney failure at the time of his death. 

Rodney Wells, Nichols' stepfather, confirmed his son's critical state following the incident. 

'When we got to the hospital, it was devastating,' Wells told WREG-TV. 'All of that still should not occur because of a traffic stop. You shouldn't be on a dialysis machine looking like this because of a traffic stop. That's inhumane.' 

Wells appeared alongside Nichols' family, including his sister Dixon, and other supporters outside of the police department this weekend. 

Protestors carried signs demanding justice for Nichols while his loved ones spoke on behalf of what they claimed happened to the 29-year-old.

'If he did run, it was because he was scared,' Dixon said. 'A traffic stop is supposed to be a traffic stop for anybody, and they were in an unmarked vehicle, so I already knew what he thought.'

Meanwhile, protestors demanded transparency for the family.

'The least they can do is be transparent with the mother, father and the family and show that video to them about what happened to their son,' community activist Kareem Ali told WMC-TV. 

Nichols' sister Keyana Dixon sister said her brother likely ran because he was scared

Furious protesters over the weekend gathered nearby the Memphis Police Department and are now demanding Memphis police release the bodycam footage

 The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation alongside the police department to determine the details of the incident and officer involvement. 

Memphis police chief CJ Davis didn't release the names of the officers or how many were involved - but reassured on Sunday that action will be taken as the findings come through at the end of the week. 

'After reviewing various sources of information involving this incident, I have found that it is necessary to take immediate and appropriation action,' Davis wrote in a statement. 

'The department is serving notice to the officers involved of the impending administrative actions.' 

Mayor Jim Strickland added that police violations are taken seriously.

'Make no doubt, we take departmental violations very seriously and, while we must complete the investigation process, it is our top priority to ensure that swift justice is served,' Strickland wrote in the statement. 

'We want citizens to know that we are prepared to take immediate and appropriate actions based on what the findings determine.'

Outraged supporters voiced their distaste with the police's handling of Nichols' arrest based on the details provided by his family while sharing the photo of him on the hospital bed.

One person shared how Nichols may have assumed the officers were carjackers that have been attacking random civilians in the city. 

'Everyone you know needs to see this picture and understand that this young man was pulled over by an unmarked car by a plainclothes pig wearing a hoodie,' one person wrote.

'Any reasonable person in Memphis would have been scared and likely pulled off after seeing a man in a hoodie coming from an unmarked car, especially considering the fact that a gang of carjackers have been caught posing as MPD as recently as this week.'

Supports of Nichols (above) shared how he may have assumed the officers were carjackers that have been attacking random civilians in the city

Memphis police chief CJ Davis didn't release the names of the officers or how many were involved - but reassured on Sunday that action will be taken as the findings come through at the end of the week

 Nichols' case is now being represented by civil rights attorney Ben Crump who has handled high profile cases, such as the death of George Floyd. 

'All of the available information tells us that this was the tragic and preventable death of a young man deeply beloved by his family and community. 

'This kind of in-custody death destroys community trust if agencies are not swiftly transparent. The most effective way for the Memphis Police Department to be transparent with the grieving Nichols family and the Memphis community is to release the body camera and surveillance footage from the traffic stop. 

'Nobody should ever die from a simple traffic stop – the footage is the only way to discern the true narrative of why and how that happened to Tyre.'