On Monday January 30th, the BLM RI PAC will hold a Candlelight Vigil in Memory of Tyre Nichols at 6pm on the back steps of the Rhode Island State House.

The Black Lives Matter Rhode Island Political Action Committee has issued the following statement after the release of police body camera footage from the night that Tyre Nichols died following a traffic stop with the Memphis Police Department. As a result, and at the hands of five Memphis police officers, Tyre Nichols died on January 10, 2023.

“Today, we mourn the loss of Tyre Nichols, a black father and son from Memphis, Tennessee who died as a result of police brutality,” wrote the BLMR RI PAC in a statement. “The heartbreaking, ungodly and brazenly brutal beating suffered by Nichols not only violates federal & Tennessee state policing protocols but violates Nichols’s civil rights and is grossly criminal. We applaud Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy for swiftly indicting all officers involved and are calling for accountability to the fullest extent of the law. No one should ever fear for their life when interacting with the police, our condolences go out to the Nichols family.

“We urge Rhode Island lawmakers to take bold action and enact legislation that grants municipal police chiefs the autonomy and sole power to discipline their officers when misconduct occurs; which is not currently possible based on the Rhode Island Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights (LEOBOR).”