MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The top prosecutor in Memphis agreed Thursday to review additional information about the fatal shooting of a 19-year-old Black man during an attempted arrest by a white police officer after the man’s family asked for the case to be reopened.
Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy met with the father of Darrius Stewart and the father’s lawyer. They want the case presented to a grand jury for a second time for consideration of charges against former Memphis officer Connor Schilling.
The request comes after the January arrest, beating and death of Tyre Nichols, a Black man, in Memphis. Five officers, who also are Black, have been fired and face charges including second-degree murder in connection with Nichols’ death. The district attorney’s office has said it will be reviewing past cases involving those officers.
Stewart’s father, Henry Williams, and his lawyer, Carlos E. Moore, have asked for the case to be reopened under the district attorney’s Justice Review Unit. The independent unit works separately from active prosecutions in the district’s attorney’s office to review past cases, and it reports directly to Mulroy.
Then-Officer Connor Schilling shot Stewart in July 2015 during a struggle following a traffic stop that escalated after an attempted arrest for outstanding warrants. Stewart was not carrying a weapon.