The Mississippi Attorney General has chosen not to prosecute certain police officers and has cleared others involved in officer shootings, even those with Black victims, between 2022 and 2024, according to a report by Mississippi Today.
According to records obtained from the Department of Public Safety, there have been a total of 65 officer shootings in the state since 2023. Under the leadership of AG Lynn Fitch, nearly 40% of these cases were resolved by declining prosecution, even in cases involving Black victims. Out of these incidents, approximately 30 individuals lost their lives, while at least 30 others sustained injuries.
Several incidents in 2023 involved victims who had phoned the police. One such incident occurred when an 11-year-old Black boy named Aderrien Murry was shot in the chest by an Indianola police officer who had been called to his mother’s home. Despite this, a Sunflower County grand jury decided not to indict the officer, Sgt. Greg Capers, in December 2023. Similarly, another case involved a Gulfport officer who shot 15-year-old Jaheim McMillan, but failed to be indicted by a grand jury in 2022.
Between 2023 and 2024, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation (MBI) successfully closed 40 cases. It was found that the average time between the shooting incident and the submission of the case was approximately 181 days, equivalent to around five and a half months. However, there are still 24 cases that remain open, mostly stemming from shootings that occurred in late 2023 or 2024. MaryAsa Lee, the spokesperson for Fitch’s office, defended this outcome by highlighting the various factors that contribute to the dismissal or resolution of each case. According to Lee, the complexity of the fact pattern, the number of parties involved, and the available evidence are all taken into account during the thorough and independent review process for each case.
“We seek to have a complete picture of the incident, considering all relevant facts and evidence.”
“After cases are closed, they are sent to the attorney general’s office, which has been given the responsibility to prosecute law enforcement shootings since July 2022. Once in the hands of the attorney general, it then takes more time for the office to review the incident and determine if an officer’s use of force was justified. “Ultimately, by seeking truth and justice, we hope to bolster the credibility of our legal system and trust between the men and women of law enforcement and the communities in which they serve,” Lee continued.
Convictions have been secured in some cases involving Black victims, including sentences for five former Rankin County sheriff’s deputies and a former Richland Police Department officer who were referred to as the “goon squad.”
In January 2023, all the officers were found guilty of torturing two Black men.
