Ex-Miss. Police Officers Plead Guilty to Torturing Two Black Men

Facts

• Six former Mississippi police officers have pleaded guilty to state charges for torturing two Black men in January. The officers, all of whom are White, already pled guilty in a related federal civil rights case.¹
• Former Rankin County deputies — Christian Dedmon, Hunter Elward, Brett McAlpin, Jeffrey Middleton, and Daniel Opdyke — as well as ex-Richland Police officer Joshua Hartfiel, were charged with conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice. Dedmon was also charged with home invasion and Elward with home invasion and aggravated assault.²
• The group, which dubbed itself the "Goon Squad" for their willingness to use excessive force and cover up their actions, entered a Braxton, Miss. home on Jan. 24 without a search warrant before hurling racial slurs at and physically and sexually abusing Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker.³
• They tortured and mocked the victims for 90 minutes and shot Jenkins in the mouth after a failed game of Russian Roulette. They then planted drugs and a gun as part of a cover-up story in which they claimed Jenkins resisted arrest and reached for an officer’s gun.⁴
• The officers and victims appeared in court Monday along with Monica Lee, the mother of a Black man who died in Elward’s custody in 2021. Their story had unraveled after one of the officers reported their lies to the sheriff.⁵
• The group will face federal sentencing in November, and the officers agreed to the state prosecutors' recommended sentences ranging from five to 30 years. State sentences will run concurrently with federal sentences, which are expected to be longer.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²CNN, ³Reuters, ⁴NBC, ⁵Associated Press, and ⁶Daily Caller.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by WLBT. The vile and racist abuse by these officers is indicative of the widespread issues with policing in Mississippi and the US at large. The Rankin County Sheriff must resign, as there is no way for him to restore legitimacy to a police department that has been plagued with racism and excessive force. Whether or not the sheriff committed abuse himself doesn’t take away from the horrific actions that took place under his leadership.
• Right narrative, as provided by SuperTalk Mississippi Media. While the abuse by the six police officers was absolutely horrific, the actions of rogue officers shouldn't delegitimize an entire county’s police force or be seen as an indictment against law enforcement in general. The Rankin County Sheriff understands what actions must be taken to address the problems. The sheriff took swift action to investigate the abusive officers and make sure they were prosecuted at the state and federal levels. His leadership proves he should not resign and represents proper administration of law and order.