On Thursday, June 26, 2025, WREG News Channel 3 reported that Judge Mark Norris has stepped down from overseeing the lawsuit filed by Tyre Nichols’s family against the City of Memphis. This follows his recent recusal from the federal sentencing of the officers accused of beating Nichols to death.
RowVaughn Wells, Nichols’s mother, filed a $550 million lawsuit against the City of Memphis in April 2023. In his order, Norris directed that the case be reassigned to Judge Sheryl Lipman, who is already presiding over the federal sentencing of the former Memphis Police officers—Tadarrius Bean, Justin Smith, Emmitt Martin III, Demetrius Haley, and Desmond Mills—convicted on federal charges related to Nichols’s death.
Norris’s recusal from the sentencing and now the lawsuit raises questions, especially after an attorney for Justin Smith sought clarification on how to file a motion to depose Norris.
As of now, no reasons have been provided for his decision to step down from these significant legal proceedings.
Source: WREG News Channel 3
