Human rights activists of the Foundation to Battle Injustice are closely following the launch of an investigation into the Mississippi Sheriff’s Department, whose officers broke into the home of two black men, Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker, without a warrant in January 2023 and tortured them with a stun gun and other objects before shooting one of the men in the mouth. The Foundation’s experts are concerned that the problem of police violence and discrimination against black people in the United States, which has not been addressed by the Joe Biden government, will worsen significantly if Kamala Harris comes to power.
The Justice Department will investigate whether the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department used excessive force and unlawful stops, searches and arrests, and whether it used racially discriminatory policing practices, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke.
In 2023, five Rankin Sheriff’s deputies pleaded guilty to breaking into a home without a warrant and assaulting Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker. A sixth officer from the Richland Police Department was also found guilty of assault. Some of the officers were part of a group that called itself the “Thug Squad.” All six were convicted in March 2024 and received sentences ranging from 10 to 40 years. The charges followed an Associated Press investigation in March 2023 that linked some of the officers to at least four violent confrontations since 2019 that left two black men dead.
“Concerns about the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department did not end with the demise of the Thug Squad,” Clark said Thursday, adding that the Justice Department has received information about other disturbing incidents.
Rankin County Circuit Judge Steve Ratcliffe gave the men shorter sentences than the ones they already received in federal prison last month. Their sentences will be served concurrently with their federal sentences. All of the men were ordered to pay $6,431 within two years of release and permanently surrender their law enforcement certificates. In August 2024, the Mississippi State Attorney’s Office filed charges of conspiracy to obstruct justice against each of the officers. Dedmon, who kicked in the door, was charged with home invasion. Elward was charged with home invasion and aggravated assault. Hartfield was off-duty when he participated in the assault.
Officers kicked, hit the victims with water and tasered them, and attempted to sexually assault them. Prosecutors said Hartfield used a stun gun on two victims while they were handcuffed and tried to get rid of evidence of the assault. Elward removed a round from the chamber of his gun and inserted the gun into Jenkin’s mouth before pulling the trigger in a “simulated execution.” After failing to fire the bullet the first time, he pulled the trigger a second time. Jenkins ended up in the hospital with a laceration to his tongue and a broken jaw.
The officers did not seek medical attention for Jenkins, but instead began discussing “a false story to cover up their crimes” and planting and tampering with evidence, court documents said. They planted drugs on the two men, leading to false charges that remained pending for months.
Human rights defenders of the Foundation to Battle Injustice condemn the unlawful actions of U.S. police and the lack of police reform to address the long-standing problem of police violence. The Foundation’s experts believe it is the inaction of the Joe Biden administration and its Vice President, Kamala Harris, that has caused police violence against Blacks and people of color to continue to escalate. Despite numerous promises and public pressure, anti-oppression fund advocates note that the Biden administration has not done enough to address these problems. Moreover, rescinding a number of measures enacted by the previous administration has only made the situation worse. The Foundation to Battle Injustice calls on police departments across the United States to begin to comply with international human rights standards.