Nevertheless, they were exonerated of civil rights offenses that might have resulted in a life sentence.
In January 2023, Mr. Nichols, a single parent, was hit by officers with a baton, kicked, punched, and died three days later. He was only a few yards from his house.
A video of the incident, in which the 29-year-old called out for his mother, and his murder incited uproar in the US and resulted in police reform.
Demetrius Haley, an officer, was convicted on two counts of “deprivation of rights resulting in bodily injury”; each conviction carries a mandatory prison sentence.
However, the federal jury rejected a potential life sentence by finding that Mr. Nichols’s death was not the consequence of the offense.
While Justin Smith and Tadarrius Bean were found guilty on one witness tampering count but exonerated of all civil rights charges, Haley was found guilty on two counts of witness tampering.
