Two former Mississippi sheriff’s deputies have each been sentenced for their part in torturing two Black men after a neighbor complained that the men were staying in a home with a white woman.
FILE – This combination of photos shows, from top left, former Rankin County sheriff’s deputies Hunter Elward, Christian Dedmon, Brett McAlpin, Jeffrey Middleton, Daniel Opdyke and former Richland police officer Joshua Hartfield appearing at the Rankin County Circuit Court in Brandon, Miss., Aug. 14, 2023.
Before sentencing Elward and Middleton separately, U.S. District Judge Tom Lee called the former deputies’ actions “egregious and despicable” and said a “sentence at the top of the guidelines range” was justified. After Elward shot Jenkins in the mouth, they devised a coverup that included planting drugs and a gun. False charges stood against Jenkins and Parker for months.
Both victims had called for the “stiffest of sentences.” Their attorney, Malik Shabazz, said they were too traumatized to speak in court, and he read statements on their behalf. Middleton’s lawyer, Carlos Tanner, urged the judge to give his client a shorter sentence, saying Middleton had committed fewer violent acts.
“It may be true that you had less hands-on involvement in the torture of Mr. Parker and Mr. Jenkins,” Lee told Middleton. “But, there’s no doubt that you and McAlpin are at least as culpable as any of your co-defendants for the attacks on these victims.”
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