The Memphis Police Department, which was Founded in 1917 by a Black, Officer-Involved Officer, After Paul Strickland Left

When Nichols, who was black, was arrested and hit with a stun gun after a traffic stop, Davis was in charge of the department. The officers were part of a crime-suppression team called the Scorpion unit, which was established in 2021, after Davis took over as Memphis Police Director.

Paul Young, who was elected to the position of mayor on New Year’s day, wanted to re-appoint Ellen Davis, but he warned that he would make a change if she didn’t perform well. Jim Strickland left office due to term limits, and Davis was appointed by him.

The camera footage of the beating was released publicly, and Nichols died three days later. The beating was part of a series of cases of police brutality against Black people that sparked protests and renewed debate the need for police reform in the U.S.

In all, seven officers were fired for violating department policies, resulting in Nichols’ death, while an eighth was allowed to retire before he could be fired.

Mills pleaded guilty in November to federal charges of excessive force and obstruction of justice. The plea is part of a larger deal in which prosecutors said he had also agreed to plead guilty later to state charges. The four other officers have pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges.

The officers said they pulled Nichols over because he was driving recklessly, but Davis, the police director, has said no evidence was found to support that allegation.

The Scorpion unit was dismantled by Davis after the beating, and he was praised for quickly firing the officers. But Nichols’ death shined a bright light on the department and Davis, and calls for her ouster increased among activists and citizens frustrated with an increase in overall crime — which includes a city-record 398 homicides and a jump in auto burglaries to more than 14,000 last year.

In March, the Justice Department said it was conducting a separate review concerning use of force, de-escalation strategies and specialized units in the police department.

The DOJ Guide to Specialized Police Units: A View from Sacramento, California, and Washington D.C. Attorney General Vanita Gupta

At times, the committee meeting was tense, with members questioning Davis about her record and officers supporting her. Some police officers sat in the audience in support of their boss. Some audience members held signs saying “We support chief Davis,” while others had signs saying “No on chief Davis.”

Davis made a presentation that detailed accomplishments during her tenure, including hiring more than 400 officers and expanding community-oriented policing. Young also spoke in support of her and the other people he recommended for appointment to city jobs.

The units can serve a laudable purpose if they are able to prevent auto thefts and street violence, as suggested by the DOJ guide. It adds that police chiefs should determine how long they need to operate based on community needs and that elected leaders should do the same.

“Our hope is that the guide is going to help law enforcement avoid the bad and sometimes very tragic outcomes we’ve seen from such units including what we saw happen a year ago,” Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta told NPR.

Los Angeles, New York, and Washington D.C. are only a few places where specialized units have been accused of doing things like target the communities they are supposed to serve. Some of their names alone–Scorpion, Wolfpack, and Crash–“emphasize and further separate the agency from the community and perpetuate the ‘us versus them’ mentality,” the new guide said.

Gupta hopes that the new report will help managers ask the correct questions and ensure that there’s leadership in place.

She said that after Nichols died, police officials nationwide began to evaluate their own operations and practices.