Six former Mississippi law enforcement officers are expected to plead guilty to state charges for their involvement in a racist assault on two Black men. The officers recently admitted their guilt in a connected federal civil rights case. Prosecutors revealed that the officers had formed a group known as the Goon Squad due to their willingness to use excessive force and cover it up. The assault, which involved entering a house without a warrant, handcuffing, and torturing the two men for 90 minutes, included the use of stun guns, racial slurs, and even a sex toy. The officers also planted drugs and a gun on one of the victims as part of a cover-up.
The officers are expected to plead guilty to charges including home invasion, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to hinder prosecution, and aggravated assault. Each officer reached an individual plea agreement, with prison sentences ranging from five to 30 years. These state charges will be served concurrently with the sentences they are scheduled to receive in federal court in November after their guilty pleas on August 3.
The individuals involved in the assault include five former Rankin County sheriff’s deputies, Brett McAlpin, Hunter Elward, Christian Dedmon, Jeffrey Middleton, and Daniel Opdyke. The group also includes a police officer from the city of Richland, Joshua Hartfield. Elward admitted to shoving a gun into one victim’s mouth and pulling the trigger in what he described as a mock execution that went wrong.
This case shed light on the brazen acts of police violence and abuse of power in Rankin County, which some residents attributed to a police culture that allowed officers to engage in such behavior without consequences. An investigation by The Associated Press linked some of these former officers to at least four other violent encounters with Black men since 2019, resulting in two deaths and severe injuries. The U.S. Department of Justice launched a civil rights probe into the case in February.
The victims of the assault, Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker, were targeted due to a complaint from a white neighbor who claimed that two Black men were staying with a white woman. Parker, who was a childhood friend of the homeowner, was helping to care for her. Jenkins, who still experiences difficulty speaking due to his injuries, stated that he knew justice would prevail but anticipated it might take longer.
This case has created a deep sense of distrust within the community, as the officers’ actions represent a betrayal of the trust they were supposed to uphold. Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch emphasized that the abuse of power demonstrated by these officers would not be tolerated. The guilty pleas of these officers bring some measure of justice to the victims and serve as a message that such acts will face serious consequences.
The case highlights the ongoing issue of police brutality and racial injustice in the United States. It underscores the importance of holding law enforcement officers accountable for their actions and working towards systemic change to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.
