Tyre Nichols case: As video's release nears, here's what to expect in Memphis today

The city of Memphis is set to release some footage of the Jan. 7 altercation that led to the death of Tyre Nichols three days later.

A Thursday night vigil remained peaceful and Nichols' family has asked for any subsequent gatherings to remain peaceful, too. With the scale of potential demonstrations to come unclear, some organizations are curtailing hours or activities.

Here’s what we know. 

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When will Tyre Nichols footage be released?

Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy has said the city, which is the custodian of the video, would release it some time after 6 p.m. Friday. Exact timing of the release was unclear. Multiple law enforcement and public officials have called the actions of five former Memphis Police Department officers seen in the video appalling and disturbing and Nichols' family and activists advised people not to let children see the footage.

Those five men were arrested Thursday and charged with second-degree murder, aggravated assault-acting in concert, aggravated kidnapping, official misconduct and official oppression.

Schools, utility alter hours and programming

Memphis-Shelby County Schools has announced all afterschool activities Friday have been canceled, including varsity basketball games that had been scheduled for Friday night. 

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of Tyre Nichols, and those across the Mid-South affected by this tragedy,” MSCS said in a news release Thursday. “In the interest of public safety, on Friday, Jan. 27, we are canceling all after-school activities, including YCare and athletic events.”

The school district said decisions about activities scheduled for Saturday would be made by 10 p.m. Friday. 

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The University of Memphis, LeMoyne-Owen College and Southwest Tennessee Community College have all announced they will either go completely virtual or close early Friday.  

Memphis Light, Gas & Water said Friday morning its offices would be closing early for the weekend. 

“Community Offices will close at 5 p.m. today. Normal hours will resume Monday, January 30. Customers can use My Account on MLGW’s secure website to check balances, make payment arrangements, and to check the status of an outage,” the utility said in a tweet. 

The call center will be open until 7 p.m. Friday. 

Memphis restaurants closing early

Restaurants throughout Memphis are closing early Friday night in anticipation of the release of the video. Mosa Asian Bistro in East Memphis stated in a social media post that it decided to not offer dinner service tonight to ensure the safety of patrons and staff.Memphis restaurateur Aldo Dean is closing all the restaurants in his restaurant company — Slider Inn, Aldo’s Pizza Pies and Bardog Tavern — at 5 p.m. “We stand with Tyre and our thoughts and prayers are with the family at this time,” read the post on Slider Inn’s Instagram account.

The Peanut Shoppe in Downtown Memphis also will close at 5 p.m., citing concern for safety of customers and staff.

To see if a restaurant is open tonight, check its social media account for the most up-to-date information.

Friday protests

At least one organized demonstration is planned for Friday evening.

A flyer circulated on social media is calling for a gathering Friday at 5:30 p.m. at Martyrs Park, Channel 3 Drive, at the south end of Tom Lee Park.

No projected road closures

Downtown Memphis Commission President Paul Young said that, as of Friday morning, there were no plans for road closures due to anticipated protests. 

During a DMC board meeting, he said DMC and city officials had spoken with activists and had been told all planned demonstrations are intended to be peaceful.

The DMC has also not announced any measures aimed at restricting capacity on Beale Street. There are no events planned at FedExForum on Friday or Saturday.

Commercial Appeal reporter Jennifer Chandler contributed to this report.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.