📢📢Context/Details 📢📢
April 10, 2024, Mississippi
Six former Mississippi law enforcement officers who abused two Black men for hours were sentenced in state court Wednesday to 15 to 45 years in prison. Their sentences will run concurrently with their federal sentences handed down last month, which range from 10 to 40 years in prison.
The ex-officers had pleaded guilty after the torture of Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker at a home in January 2023.
Five former Rankin County Sheriff’s deputies – Hunter Elward, Brett McAlpin, Christian Dedmon, Daniel Opdyke and Jeffrey Middleton – along with former Richland Police Department officer Joshua Hartfield were sentenced in a Rankin County circuit court Wednesday.
The group of White officers raided the home in Braxton without a warrant, subjected the two Black men to racist vitriol, used Tasers on them after they had already been handcuffed, beat them with various objects and one of them shot Jenkins in the mouth, prosecutors said.
Shortly before Wednesday’s sentencing, Jenkins described the horror he endured in a statement read by his attorney Malik Shabazz.
“Me and Eddie in this event were called racist names. We were called n***er, we were called monkey, we were called boy, and we were accused of dating White women,” the statement said.
“After Hunter Elward shot me, they left me to die bleeding on the floor. And they tried to set up me up to be in prison,” Jenkins’ statement said. “Your honor, they killed me. I just didn’t die.”
Each of the ex-officers faced state charges of conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice.
Dedmon was also charged with home invasion, and Elward was also charged with home invasion and aggravated assault.
McAlpin, Middleton, Opdyke and Hartfield all faced an additional charge of first-degree obstruction of justice.
While all of the state sentences will run concurrently with the federal sentences, some of the ex-officers will now spend more time behind bars because of the state charges
– Elward was sentenced in state court to 45 years in prison, to run concurrently with his federal sentence of 20 years.
– Middleton was sentenced in state court to 20 years in prison, which will run concurrently with his federal sentence of 17.5 years.
– Opdyke was sentenced in state court to 20 years in prison, to run concurrently with his federal sentence of 17.5 years.
Hartfield was sentenced in state court to 15 years in prison, to run concurrently with his federal sentence of 10 years.
– Dedmon was sentenced in state court to 25 years in prison, to run concurrently with his federal sentence of 40 years.
– McAlpin was sentenced in state court to 20 years in prison, to run concurrently with his federal sentence of just over 27 years.
Source -> https://t.co/VDVgBoWqMF
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