Officers charged with killing Tyre Nichols to appear in court in February

Washington, Jan 29 (EFE).- Five former police officers charged over the murder of Tyre Nichols in the US city of Memphis will make their first appearance before a judge on February 17, court records showed Sunday.

The hearing is set to determine whether the defendants will be released on bail or remain in detention.

Each suspect faces criminal charges, including second-degree murder which carries a prison sentence of 15 to 60 years, over the brutal beating of the 29-year-old African-American man following an alleged traffic violation on January 7.

The traffic stop led to two confrontations between Nichols and the officers, who are seen in footage that was released last week hitting and kicking him while he was lying on the ground in handcuffs.

Nichols died in hospital three days later.

The officers involved in the incident were fired and five of them have been indicted for second-degree murder. The Memphis police department announced Saturday that it was disbanding their street crime unit.

The incident has triggered an outpouring of anger and grief, with protests held in cities across the US on Friday and Saturday. EFE

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