Lawyers for three former Memphis officers have rested their cases without calling them to testify in their defense against charges that they violated Tyre Nichols’ civil rights when he was fatally beaten after a 2023 traffic stop.

A former Memphis police officer who has pleaded guilty to violating Tyre Nichols' civil rights testified in tears Tuesday, saying that he made Nichols' young son fatherless, and that he's sorry and wishes he had stopped the punches.

Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith Jr., two former Memphis police officers, will be released in the months before their sentencing hearings.

Prosecutors accused the former officers of viciously assaulting Nichols after a traffic stop even though he posed no threat.

A federal judge has ruled that two former Memphis police officers convicted of obstruction of justice in the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols will be released from jail ahead of sentencing in January.

The three former officers facing federal charges in the beating death of Tyre Nichols rested their cases on Monday. Defense attorneys announced on Monday morning that Tadarrius Bean and Demetrius Haley rest their cases.

Prosecutors also say they -- along with two other officers involved in the arrest -- did not stop one another from assaulting him. Those two additional colleagues, Emmitt Martin III and Desmond Mills, pleaded guilty and testified at trial that Nichols did not pose any real threat to them.

The federal trial for the ex-officers facing charges in connection to the beating death of Tyre Nichols enters its fourth week, potentially nearing a close.