Cops sentenced for torturing and abusing Black men

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Six now former Mississippi law enforcement officers were sentenced this week for torturing and abusing two Black men in Mississippi, the Department of Justice tells the Wisconsin Law Journal.

The following former officers received prison sentences ranging from 10 to 40 years.

• • Christian Dedmon, 29, former Narcotics Investigator of the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office (RCSO), was sentenced to 40 years in prison.
  • Brett McAlpin, 53, former RCSO Chief Investigator, was sentenced to 27.25 years in prison.
  • Hunter Elward, 31, former RCSO Deputy, was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
  • Jeffrey Middleton, 46, former RCSO Lieutenant, was sentenced to 17.5 years in prison.
  • Daniel Opdyke, 28, former RCSO Deputy, was sentenced to 17.5 years in prison.
  • Joshua Hartfield, 32, former Narcotics Investigator for the Richland Police Department, was sentenced to 10 years in prison

The depravity of the crimes committed by these defendants cannot be overstated, and they will now spend between 10 and 40 years in prison for their heinous attack on citizens they had sworn to protect,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.

“These defendants kicked in the door of a home where two Black men were residing, handcuffed and arrested them without probable cause, called them racial slurs, and punched, kicked, tased, and assaulted them. After one of the defendants fired his gun in the mouth of one of the victims, breaking his jaw, the defendants gathered outside to come up with a cover story as the victim lay bleeding on the floor,” Garland noted.

“Officers who violate constitutional rights will be held accountable by the Justice Department for their crimes that harm individual victims and betray the trust of entire communities. I am grateful to the Department’s Civil Rights Division, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, the FBI Jackson Field Office, and our state partners for their outstanding work bringing these defendants to justice,” Garland added.

According to court documents obtained by the Wisconsin Law Journal, the officers referred to themselves as “The Goon Squad.”

Upon arrival in the victims’ home the white officers began to racially taunt the black victims, calling them various racial slurs, court documents noted.

According to court documents, a search of the home did not uncover drugs, but instead an adult toy was discovered and later used to torture the victims.

Later, according to court documents, officers attempted to conduct a mock execution.

After, the officers tried to cover up their entry into the property without a warrant by lying to investigators that they observed a black male with drugs, who later fled.

That proved to be entirely false, as Justice department officials noted the officers planted and tampered with evidence to corroborate a false cover up.