Current:Home > NewsGarland says officers’ torture of 2 Black men was betrayal of community they swore to protect -Elevate Capital Network
Garland says officers’ torture of 2 Black men was betrayal of community they swore to protect
View
Date:2025-04-15 18:06:58
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The prosecution of six former law enforcement officers who tortured two Black men in Mississippi is an example of the Justice Department’s action to build and maintain public trust after that trust has been violated, Attorney General Merrick Garland said Wednesday.
Garland spoke during an appearance in the office of the U.S. attorney for the southern district of Mississippi. He was in the same federal courthouse where the six former officers pleaded guilty last year and where a judge earlier this year gave them sentences of 10 to 40 years in prison.
Garland said the lawless acts of the six men — five Rankin County Sheriff’s Department deputies and one Richland police officer — were “a betrayal of the community the officers were sworn to protect.” Garland had previously denounced the “depravity” of their crimes.
The Justice Department last week announced it was opening a civil rights investigation to determine whether the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department has engaged in a pattern or practice of excessive force and unlawful stops, searches and arrests, and whether it has used racially discriminatory policing practices.
“We are committed to working with local officials, deputies and the community to conduct a comprehensive investigation,” Garland said Wednesday to about two dozen federal, state and local law enforcement officers. The group included five sheriffs, but not Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey.
Former deputies Christian Dedmon, Hunter Elward, Brett McAlpin, Jeffrey Middleton and Daniel Opdyke and former Richland officer Joshua Hartfield pleaded guilty to breaking into a home without a warrant and engaging in an hourslong attack on Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker. The racist attack included beatings, repeated use of stun guns and assaults with a sex toy before one of the victims was shot in the mouth.
Some of the officers were part of a group so willing to use excessive force they called themselves the Goon Squad. The charges against them followed an Associated Press investigation in March 2023 that linked some of the officers to at least four violent encounters since 2019 that left two Black men dead.
Angela English, president of the Rankin County NAACP, was at the federal courthouse Wednesday and said she was “elated” Garland came to Mississippi. She told reporters she hopes the Justice Department’s civil rights investigation prompts criminal justice reform.
“This has been going on for decades ... abuse and terrorism and just all kind of heinous crimes against people,” English said. “It has ruined lives and ruined families and caused mental breakdowns, caused people to lose their livelihoods. People have been coerced into making statements for things that they didn’t do.”
The attacks on Jenkins and Parker began Jan. 24, 2023, when a white person called McAlpin and complained two Black men were staying with a white woman in Braxton, federal prosecutors said.
Once inside the home, the officers handcuffed Jenkins and Parker and poured milk, alcohol and chocolate syrup over their faces. They forced them to strip naked and shower together to conceal the mess. They mocked the victims with racial slurs and assaulted them with sex objects.
Locals saw in the grisly details of the case echoes of Mississippi’s history of racist atrocities by people in authority. The difference this time is that those who abused their power paid a steep price for their crimes, attorneys for the victims have said.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke last week said the Justice Department has received information about other troubling incidents in Rankin County, including deputies overusing stun guns, entering homes unlawfully, using “shocking racial slurs” and employing “dangerous, cruel tactics to assault people in their custody.”
veryGood! (6)
Related
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Remains of Indiana soldier killed during World War II identified
- Louisiana teen Cameron Robbins missing after going overboard on Bahamas cruise during graduation trip
- Brooklyn Peltz Beckham Explains Controversial Choice to Cook With a Wine Cork
- Big Lots store closures could exceed 300 nationwide, discount chain reveals in filing
- Gwyneth Paltrow Trial: Daughter Apple Martin Says Mom Was Shaken Up After Ski Crash
- Japan shooting and knife attack in Nagano reportedly leaves 3 dead, including 2 police officers
- Iranian model who wore noose dress at Cannes says she wanted to highlight wrongful executions in her country
- The Daily Money: Spending more on holiday travel?
- Nick Jonas' Hilariously Relatable Dad Moment Proves He's Only Human
Ranking
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Kit Connor’s Fitness Transformation Will Stop Your Heart
- Why Adam Sandler Is “Psyched” for Jennifer Aniston’s Future Partner
- Killer whales are ramming into boats and damaging them. The reason remains a mystery.
- Michigan lawmaker who was arrested in June loses reelection bid in Republican primary
- Jay Leno Reveals He Has a Brand-New Ear After Car Fire
- Australian mother pardoned after 20 years in prison for killing her young children
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: This $360 Backpack Is on Sale for $89 and It Comes in 8 Colors
Recommendation
Hidden Home Gems From Kohl's That Will Give Your Space a Stylish Refresh for Less
U.S. hardware helps Ukraine fend off increasingly heavy Russian missile and drone attacks
13 family members die after reportedly eating toxic porridge in Namibia
U.S. woman injured in shark attack in Turks and Caicos
Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
Gabriel Basso's Transformation From Child Star to The Night Agent Has the Internet Shook
Shop the Best New March 2023 Beauty Launches From Shiseido, Dermalogica, OUAI & More
Why Priyanka Chopra Says She Felt Such a Freedom After She Froze Her Eggs