Mississippi Deputies Are ‘Terminated’ After 2 Black Men Claim Abuse
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A federal lawsuit against the former deputies from Rankin County said that they assaulted the men with a sex toy and shot one in the face. An internal investigation is ongoing.
Several Mississippi deputy sheriffs who were accused of sexually assaulting two Black men and shooting one of them in the face have been fired or have resigned, the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office said on Tuesday.
The announcement came after the two men, Michael Corey Jenkins, 32, and Eddie Terrell Parker, 35, filed a federal lawsuit against the officers earlier this month. The lawsuit claims that six Rankin County deputies “forcibly entered” Mr. Parker’s home in Braxton, Miss., and raided the property without a warrant on Jan. 24.
That’s when Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Parker said that they were beat and stunned with Tasers, abused with a sex toy and made to strip naked in an ordeal that lasted nearly two hours.
Their lawsuit identified three deputies involved in the raid as Hunter Elward, Brett McAlpin and Christian Dedmon, along with three others referred to as John Doe 1-3. The former deputies did not have defense lawyers listed and could not be reached.
Sheriff Bryan Bailey of Rankin County said in a statement on Tuesday that the deputies involved in the episode had previously been placed on administrative leave. They were not identified by the authorities.
Some of the deputies involved in the case had previously resigned, but Sheriff Bailey did not say how many had resigned and how many had been fired. He also did not elaborate on the specific reasons for their dismissals. A lawyer representing the sheriff’s department referred comments to the statement from Sheriff Bailey.
“Due to recent developments, including findings during our internal investigation, those deputies that were still employed at this department have been terminated,” the sheriff said.
“We understand that the alleged actions of these deputies has eroded the public’s trust in our department,” Sheriff Bailey said in the statement. “Rest assured that we will work diligently to restore that trust.”
The Mississippi Department of Public Safety said in January that Rankin County deputies were conducting a narcotics investigation at the home when someone “displayed a gun toward the deputies.”
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