Second-in-command at a Mississippi sheriff's department that oversaw a 'goon squad' that tortured Black men has resigned
Rankin County Undersheriff Paul Holley resigned amid misconduct allegations against Sheriff Bryan Bailey and the conviction of so-called "Goon Squad" deputies who tortured Black men.
Associated Press
- Rankin County Undersheriff Paul Holley announced his resignation on Monday.
- Holley served in the role for four months.
- During that time, five Rankin Sheriff's deputies were convicted of torturing Black men.
The undersheriff of a Mississippi sheriff's department beset with controversy and a history of brutality resigned amid new revelations about possible misconduct by his boss, Sheriff Bryan Bailey.
The Rankin County Sheriff's Department announced the resignation of Undersheriff Paul Holley on Monday in a statement, according to WAPT, a local ABC affiliate based in Jackson.
Holley had previously served as the sheriff's department's in-house legal counsel, but had been re-assigned as undersheriff at least four months ago, the sheriff's department said in a statement provided to the outlet.
During those four months, five Rankin sheriff's deputies were convicted of torturing and sexually assaulting two Black men inside their home.
"During my 4 months as Undersheriff, I have implemented a number of changes that I believed were the best way to help the sheriff's office improve its credibility with the community and to improve the ways in which we carry out our mission," Holley said in the statement.
"Sheriff Bailey deserves an Undersheriff that will continue that mission and shares his beliefs on how best to accomplish that," Holley added. "I hope that the community will be patient with the men and women that wear the badge as they continue to serve all the citizens of Rankin County."
Holley said in the statement that he will continue to support law enforcement in the county.
Despite the convictions of his deputies, the longtime sheriff has so far avoided repercussions himself and is running for reelection unopposed in November.
The Rankin County Sheriff's Office did not immediately return a request for comment from Insider. Holley declined to comment further when reached by Insider on Wednesday.
History of violence at the Rankin County Sheriff's Office
Holley's resignation comes at a curious time for the sheriff's department.
Holley resigned just four days after an investigation by The New York Times in conjunction with the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting at Mississippi Today revealed that the local district attorney investigated Sheriff Bailey for illegally subpoenaing his girlfriend's phone records in 2014.
Bailey had already been under fire since five of his deputies were convicted of torturing Black men on August 3. All five deputies were part of a group of officers that called themselves the "goon squad" for their willingness to use excessive force, according to court documents.
The group broke into the home of Michael Corey Jenkins and Eddie Terrell Parker in Braxton, Mississippi on January 24 without a warrant. The officers then beat and sexually assaulted the two men before one deputy — Hunter Elward — eventually shot Jenkins in the mouth, according to court documents viewed by Insider.
The family of Pierre Woods, a Black man whom Rankin deputies shot to death in February 2019 outside his home, is also suing the sheriff's department. Two of the convicted "Goon Squad" officers, Elward and Christian Dedmon, were also present during Woods's shooting in 2019, according to the lawsuit.
Insider also previously reported the deaths of Damien Cameron, Cory Jackson, and Trevor McKinley.
Cameron, a Black man, died while in the custody of the sheriff's department in July 2021. Cameron's mother told Insider police beat and tased him and knelt on his back for 15 minutes while he complained he could not breathe.
Jackson died in May 2021 after a sheriff's deputy arrested him while he was experiencing hallucinations and refused to take him to the hospital, his family told Insider. And in August 2021, deputies shot McKinley, Cameron's high-school classmate, inside his grandparents' home.
In December 2021, while responding to a call of a drug overdose, deputies also shot and killed Robert Rushton, who police said was armed with two knives. A fifth man, Adam Coker, died in the Rankin County Jail in September 2021.