OLYMPIA, Wash., January 31, 2023—Following the release this weekend of a video detailing the deadly traffic stop and killing of Tyre Nichols in Memphis, TN, Senator John Lovick (D-Mill Creek), the former Snohomish County Sheriff and a trooper with more than 31 years served in the Washington State Patrol, issued this statement:
“Words can’t describe the deep pit in my stomach that I feel for this family’s tragic loss. What we witnessed was absolutely horrendous. I don’t believe there is any other way to see it.
“While we certainly cannot demand injustice be answered with patience, temperance, and community spirit, that is exactly what we saw this weekend all over the nation. In response to the gut-wrenching, deadly beating of Tyre Nichols by those five members of the Memphis Police Department, we saw peaceful protests like our nation hasn’t seen for decades.
“Nearly 55 years ago, in his final speech before he was killed in Memphis, TN, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, ‘we’ve got some difficult days ahead.’ After watching the video of the senseless killing of Tyre Nichols, it is clear that we yet again have some difficult days ahead, but it gives me great hope that the protests around the country were peaceful. The fact that people are talking to each other and organizing through this tragedy is inspiring.
“Justice is not merely people fired. Justice means change, and change takes work. May we all mourn, and tears dried or not, get to work making our communities safer for everyone.”
SOURCE: Office of Senator John Lovick
