Third of 6 former Mississippi officers sentenced to more than 17 years in the torture of 2 Black men
CNN
Daniel Opdyke was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison by a federal judge on Wednesday afternoon.
Daniel Opdyke, the third of six former Mississippi law enforcement officers who pleaded guilty in the torture of two Black men in January 2023, was sentenced to more than 17 years in prison by a federal judge on Wednesday afternoon. The former deputy with the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office pleaded guilty in August to federal charges of conspiracy against rights, deprivation of rights under color of law, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and obstruction of justice related to the January 24 incident. For almost two hours, a squad of White Mississippi law enforcement officers raided a home without a warrant, subjected two Black residents to racist vitriol, tased them after they had already been handcuffed, beat them with various objects and then shot one in the mouth – leaving him to bleed as they planted a gun on the victims and plotted their cover story, officials said. Now, one by one, each of those former officers is paying the price for what the FBI director described as “atrocious” acts of “pure hell.” Another defendant, former Rankin County sheriff’s deputy Christian Dedmon, will be sentenced in federal court Wednesday afternoon after pleading guilty in connection with the assualts. Two other former Rankin County sheriff’s deputies, Hunter Elward and Jeffrey Middleton, learned their fates Tuesday. Elward, who shot Jenkins in the mouth, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and gave an emotional apology to the victims in court. Middleton was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison.
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