The sentencing hearings this week for six law enforcement officers, some of whom were members of the Goon Squad, have revealed a disturbing portrait of a Mississippi sheriff’s department that encouraged extreme violence as a policing tool.
Prosecutors and several of the deputies who were sentenced described a toxic culture in which senior officers directed their subordinates to humiliate and torture people suspected of crimes. Young deputies saw violence as a way to earn promotions and live up to the expectations of their supervisors, who were considered heroes of the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department.
Christian Dedmon, a former narcotics detective, admitted in court that he rose through the ranks at the department because of his willingness to “do bad things.” Dedmon and five other former law enforcement officers were sentenced this week to prison terms for federal civil rights violations stemming from the torture and sexual assault of two Black men, Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker, in January 2023.
The officers shocked the men with Tasers, abused them with a sex toy, and even shot one of the men in the mouth during a mock execution. Three of the deputies were also sentenced for their roles in the beating of Alan Schmidt in December 2022.
Judge Tom Lee of U.S. District Court handed down the final sentences this week, with Brett McAlpin, the ringleader of the Goon Squad, receiving more than 27 years in prison. Joshua Hartfield, a narcotics detective for the Richland Police Department, received a 10-year sentence.
An investigation by Mississippi Today and The New York Times last year exposed a decades-long reign of terror by nearly two dozen Rankin County deputies, with residents in impoverished communities complaining of being targeted for years.
Testimony at the hearings this week shed new light on why the violence had been so widespread, with federal prosecutor Christopher Perras stating that McAlpin had been involved in at least nine incidents over the past five years in which he led deputies in brutalizing people with impunity.
The details revealed at the hearings have cast further doubt on Sheriff Bryan Bailey’s claims of not knowing about his deputies’ actions. Policing experts have questioned how such a culture of violence could have gone unchecked for so long.
Moving forward, the sheriff’s office is dedicated to preserving the safety and security of county residents, according to Sheriff Bailey. Prosecutors are now reviewing criminal cases involving Goon Squad members and considering whether to dismiss them.
Mr. Parker and Mr. Jenkins expressed hope that federal authorities would investigate Sheriff Bailey next, calling him “the head of the snake.” The disturbing revelations from the sentencing hearings have shed light on the need for accountability and reform within the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department.
