A federal judge will begin sentencing six former Mississippi law enforcement officers who pleaded guilty to a slew of state and federal charges for torturing two black men starting Tuesday.
U.S. District Judge Tom Lee will sentence two defendants each on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday for delaying the trial twice. Each faces possible decades in prison.
In August, former law officers admitted to committing numerous racially motivated acts of violent torture against Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker.
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In the January 2023 episode, a gang of six entered a Rankin County home without a warrant and assaulted Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Parker with stun guns and sex toys.
The attack began on January 24, 2023 with racist calls for extrajudicial violence.
A white man called Rankin County Deputy Brett McAlpin and complained that two black men were staying with a white woman at a home in Braxton, Mississippi. McAlpin told Rep. Christian Dedmon, who sent a text message to a group of white lawmakers calling themselves the “Rogue Squad” who were willing to use excessive force.
Once inside, they handcuffed Jenkins and his friend Eddie Terrell Parker and poured milk, alcohol and chocolate syrup over their faces.
They forced them to get naked and take a shower together to hide the mess.
They taunted the victims with racial slurs and shocked them with stun guns.
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After a mock execution failed when Mr. Jenkins was shot in the mouth, they devised a cover-up that included planting drugs and guns.
Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Parker were falsely accused for months.
Prior to sentencing, Jenkins and Parker called for the “toughest sentence” at a press conference on Monday.
“It’s been very difficult for me and for us,” Jenkins said. “We hope for the best and prepare for the worst.”
Mr Jenkins suffered a lacerated tongue and a fractured jaw. He still has difficulty speaking and eating.
Malik Shabazz, an attorney representing both men, said the outcome of the sentencing hearing could have national implications.
“Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker have continued to suffer both mentally and physically since this horrific and bloody attack by Rankin County deputies,” Shabazz said. “We must send a message to law enforcement in Mississippi and across America: That level of criminality will result in the harshest consequences.”
Months before federal prosecutors announced the indictment in August 2023. Investigation by Associated Press Since 2019, some members of Congress have been involved in at least four violent incidents with black men, resulting in two deaths and one man being seriously injured.
The indicted officers include McAlpin, Dedmon, Hunter Elward, Jeffrey Middleton, and Daniel Opdyke of the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department, and Joshua Hartfield of the Richland Police Department.
They pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to violate rights, obstruction of justice, deprivation of rights under color of law, discharging a firearm during a crime of violence, and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Most of the attorneys did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Monday.
Opdyke’s attorney, Jason Kirshberg, said: “Daniel has accepted responsibility for his actions and failures to act. … He acknowledges that he was wrong and feels deep remorse for the pain he has caused his victims.”
Under the federal charges, Dedmon and Elward each face up to 120 years plus life in prison and a $2.75 million fine.
Hartfield faces 80 years in prison and $1.5 million, McAlpin faces 90 years in prison and $1.75 million, Middleton faces 80 years in prison and $1.5 million, and Opdyke faces 100 years in prison and a $2 million fine. .
The former officers agreed to the five- to 30-year sentences recommended by prosecutors in state court, but the time served for separate convictions at the state level would run concurrently with potentially longer federal sentences. The law will be executed accordingly.
Rankin County, a predominantly white county located just east of the state capital, Jackson, has one of the highest percentages of black residents of any major city in the United States.
According to court documents, the officers warned Jenkins and Parker to “leave Rankin County and return to Jackson or ‘their side’ of the Pearl River,” referring to areas with large concentrations of black residents. ing.
Federal prosecutors saw echoes of Mississippi’s dark history in the gruesome crimes committed by the men tasked with enforcing the law. 1964: Three civil rights activists murdered after a deputy turned them over to the Ku Klux Klan.
Rankin County Sheriff Brian Bailey said little about the case for several months.
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After the officers pleaded guilty in August, Bailey said they committed misconduct and promised to change the department.
Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Parker demanded his resignation and filed a $400 million civil lawsuit against the department.
