Dozens of Jacksonville citizens joined the ranks of protesters in cities across America as they rallied in front of the Duval County Courthouse on Sunday, calling for police reform and accountability. 

The brutal videos of Memphis police beating 29-year-old Tyre Nichols were released to the public on Friday. It showed Nichols beaten, pepper sprayed and tased on camera. He died of his injuries three days later. 

Activist Ben Frazier made an appearance as a speaker, telling the crowd to be angry about what happened in Memphis but not to forget that accountability in Jacksonville is needed too. 

“No more bloodshed. No more pain. No more cops. Community control now,” Alivia Kalin, a University of North Florida student and member of UNF Students for a Democratic Society, said. 

The rally was organized by the Jacksonville Community Action Committee, a local black-led group fighting for justice and liberation, demanding accountability from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. 

JSO Sherriff T.K. Waters released a statement about the death of Nichols offering his prayers and calling the actions of the Memphis officers “reprehensible and inexcusable.”

“There is no policy in the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office or any law enforcement agency in this country that permits such brutality. . . I stand with our community in condemning this behavior,” Waters said in the written statement. “Those officers’ actions do not reflect the culture of law enforcement in our agency or in this country.  We are a society of laws, and no one is above the law.”

Scroll through Spinnaker’s gallery of photos from the rally below:

Gallery • 7 Photos

Carter Mudgett

A protester hoisted a "Stop Death By Cops" sign on their shoulders during the rally.

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