Early last year a police officer in Mississippi (USA) was sentenced this Tuesday to 20 years in prison, along with five other officers, all white, two African-American men.
Federal Judge Tom Lee sentenced Rankin County Sheriff Hunter Elward to 241 months in prison for violating the civil rights of Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker, local media reported.
Elward and five of his colleagues pleaded guilty in August last year to charges related to the attack, in which they entered the home of two men without a warrant, handcuffed them and tortured them by shouting racist insults.
In return, Aylward shot Jenkins in the mouth, seriously injuring him, refused to give him medical attention, and worked with his accomplices to invent a false story to cover up what had happened.
During the plea hearing, the police officer apologized to the victims, who were present in the courtroom.
“I am very sorry (…) I am sorry for what happened to me and I hate myself for it. “I take full responsibility,” Elward said, according to CNN.
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A hearing where the sentences of five other former police officers named in the case will be handed down is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday of this week.
Malik Shabazz, the victim’s lawyer, said in a statement to the local press on Monday that he hoped they would receive the maximum sentence for the charges.
“A strong message should be sent to the entire country that such despicable activities will not be tolerated,” the lawyer said.
The group of officers, who called themselves the “gang squad,” arrived at the home where a man alerted police that two African Americans were the victims after staying at a white woman’s home.
As part of the torture inflicted on them, the officers shot them with stun guns, beat them, poured alcohol on their faces and forced them to shower together, according to court documents.
The incident came to light after victims filed a federal lawsuit against the group of agents last summer for civil rights violations.
Six police officers pleaded guilty in August 2023 to charges of assault and obstruction of justice, among others. EFE
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