In about-face, Memphis police chief disbands Scorpion unit

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis police chief on Saturday disbanded the city’s socalled Scorpion unit after some of its officers beat to death Tyre Nichols, reversing an earlier statement that she would keep the unit intact.

Police Director Cerelyn “CJ” Davis said she listened to Nichols’ relatives, community leaders and uninvolved officers in making the decision.

Referring to “the heinous actions of a few” that cast “a cloud of dishonor” on the unit, Davis said it was imperative that the department “take proactive steps in the healing process.”

“It is in the best interest of all to permanently deactivate the Scorpion unit,” she said in a statement. She said the officers currently assigned to the unit agreed “unreservedly” with the step.

The unit is composed of three teams of about 30 officers who target violent offenders in areas beset by high crime. It had been inactive since Nichols’ Jan. 7 arrest.

Protestors marching in Memphis cheered when they heard the unit had been dissolved.

The footage released Friday left many unanswered questions about the traffic stop involving Nichols and about other law enforcement officers who stood by as he lay motionless on the pavement.

Questions swirled around what led to the traffic stop in the first place. One officer can be heard saying that Nichols wouldn’t stop and then swerved as though he intended to hit the officer’s car.

But Davis said the department cannot substantiate the reason for the stop.

“We don’t know what happened,” she said. “All we know is the amount of force that was applied in this situation was over the top.”