Photo: Black Lawyers For Justice
Mississippi county officials have settled a lawsuit filed by Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker, two Black men who were tortured and abused by sheriff's deputies in 2023.
According to Fox 13, Rankin County reached a $2.5 million settlement with the two men, who were handcuffed, beaten, and shocked by six law enforcement officers during a warrantless raid of Parker's home.
“This amount, for Mississippi, is historic,” Trent Walker, an attorney representing Jenkins and Parker, said in a statement. “I can’t think of an excessive force settlement larger than this.”
The attack involving Rankin County officers Hunter Elward, Christian Dedmon, Brett McAlpin, Jeffrey Middleton, Daniel Opdyke, and Joshua Hartfield, who referred to themselves as "The Goon Squad," unfolded on the night of January 24, 2023.
A white neighbor called McAlpin, asking if he and the squad were "available for a mission" before the officers entered a home where Jenkins and Parker were staying without a warrant. The officers went on to handcuff the two and assault them for 90 minutes. The group beat Parker with wood and a metal sword, then poured milk, alcohol, and chocolate syrup over their faces before forcing them to strip naked and shower together. Elward fired a gun in Jenkins' mouth. Following the assault, officers attempted to cover up the incident, fabricating a narcotics bust by planting weapons and drugs.
Last year, a federal judge sentenced the six officers and former Richland police officer Joshua Hartfield to between 10 and 40 years for their roles in the 2023 torture of Jenkins and Parker.
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