Federal prosecutors are considering filing civil rights charges against the Rankin County, Miss., sheriff’s department over the torture of two Black men. This could result in federal oversight. U.S. Attorney Todd Gee talked about the possibility at a meeting last month, where he urged local residents to come forward if they had experienced violence or discrimination at the hands of deputies. More than 50 people, including defense attorneys and civil rights advocates, showed up. Some shared stories of being harassed or falsely accused of crimes by deputies, according to several people who attended the meeting, which was closed to the press, reports the New York Times. “Information from people like you can make a difference,” Gee told the crowd, according to a video of the meeting obtained by reporters.
Gee explained that if deputies’ misconduct had been going on for years, it could be evidence of a pattern of civil rights violations that could lead to a case against the department. Rather than focusing on individual acts of misconduct, “pattern or practice” investigations determine whether civil rights violations have become part of an agency’s overall culture. Prosecutors can sue a department and seek a consent decree, a legally binding agreement that would force the department to implement reforms. Rankin County came to national attention last year after deputies, some from a unit that called itself the Goon Squad, tortured two Black men in their home and shot one of them in the face, nearly killing him. Six officers pleaded guilty and were sentenced to federal prison in March. An investigation by The New York Times and Mississippi Today last fall found that nearly two dozen residents experienced similar brutality when deputies burst into their homes looking for illegal drugs.
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