A former Mississippi police officer was sentenced Tuesday to serve 20 years in prison for torturing two black men in their home.
Hunter Elward is the first of six police officers accused of these vile acts perpetrated against two black men to receive his sentence, CNN reported.
The event took place in 2023 when the former officers entered the victims’ home without an arrest warrant.
The two men who were in the residence were beaten, shocked with tasers and even sexually assaulted.
One of the police officers also inserted his service weapon into the mouth of one of the victims and pulled the trigger; a botched execution attempt that fractured the man’s jaw and severed his tongue.
“Obhorrent and despicable”
The five other police officers involved in the incident will be tried on Wednesday and Thursday.
The group, made up of six white men – who nicknamed themselves the “Goon Squad”, according to prosecutor’s information – pleaded guilty last August.
Each of them faces decades in prison.
On Tuesday, Judge Tom Lee said Mr Elward’s actions were “heinous and despicable” according to local media reports published by BBC News.
The two victims, Michael Jenkins and Eddie Parker, were handcuffed and assaulted for an hour.
Hunter Elward apologized to Mr. Jenkins during his hearing, but the two men who were attacked still demanded that the officers be judged according to the “severest sentences.”
“It was very difficult for me, and for both of us,” Mr. Jenkins told the Associated Press.
“We hope for the best conclusion, but we are preparing for the worst,” he added.
Not at the first incident
Three of the six officers were also convicted for another incident involving a 28-year-old white man.
An investigation by the New York Times, Mississippi Today and the Associated Press revealed that the incident was part of a series of violent events by public safety officers that spanned nearly a decade.
The Associated Press has even linked some of these officers to at least four other violent incidents that led to the deaths of two people.
The head of the police department, Sheriff Bryan Bailey, is facing a $400 million lawsuit for failing to train officers who worked on his force.
He also requested to be transferred after the six police officers involved in the torture event pleaded guilty in August 2023.
