A Mississippi police officer pleaded guilty on Thursday to a federal misdemeanor charge after authorities accused him of forcing a prisoner to drink his own urine.
In court filings, first reported by the Daily Beast, prosecutors for the US district court for the southern district of Mississippi alleged that the patrol officer, Michael Christian Green, ordered a prisoner to lick up his own urine after the man had urinated in the corner of his holding cell.
The incident took place at the Pearl police department in Pearl, Mississippi, a town outside Jackson, the state’s capital, and was captured on security cameras.
Mississippi has come under scrutiny in recent years for its short-staffed prisons that create unsafe conditions for inmates. In February, the Department of Justice released a report saying Mississippi maintained “basic safety failures and … poor living conditions” in three large correctional facilities in the state. Parchman, the state’s penitentiary, has become notorious for being one of the worst prisons in the US.
According to court documents, Green and other officers were dispatched to a family disturbance call where they arrested a man, whom court documents refer to as “BE”, on 23 December.
After being placed in a holding cell, BE tried to communicate with Green about needing to urinate. After waiting, BE went to the back of the cell and urinated in a corner.
When Green transferred BE to the booking area, he was informed that BE had urinated in his holding cell. Green then threatened to “beat [his] fucking ass” and ordered BE to “go in there and you’re gonna lick that piss up”.
BE was returned to the holding cell where Green commanded him to “suck it up”. Green then started to film BE as he got on the floor and licked his urine, which made him start to gag.
“Don’t spit it out,” Green ordered BE, according to the documents. “Lick that shit up. Drink your fuckin’ piss.”
When BE was allowed to leave his holding cell, he repeatedly vomited in a garbage can. He was eventually transferred to a detention center in Brandon, Mississippi.
Although court documents did not mention race, Green is white and a Pearl spokesperson said the man he arrested is Latino.
Green has since lost his job and been charged with deprivation of civil rights under color of law. He remains free on bond until his sentencing in May, and could face up to a year in prison and a $10,000 fine.
Lawyers for Green did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
At a court appearance on Thursday, Green – who has a large cross tattooed on one arm and the word “Blessed” tattooed on the other – stood calmly before a federal magistrate judge and did not dispute any of the accusations read aloud by a federal prosecutor.
When Judge Andrew Harris asked how Green was pleading on the charge of deprivation of civil rights, he responded: “Guilty, sir.”
The mayor of Pearl, Jake Windham, held a news conference earlier on Thursday and condemned Green’s brutality against a person in detention.
“I don’t understand how you treat someone like that,” Windham said.
The city of Pearl said in a statement on Thursday that officials learned about the “disturbing event” during the Christmas weekend and opened an investigation, using an independent attorney. Windham said Green resigned on 27 December.
“The proper thing to do was to take the gentleman to the restroom and to not do anything of this magnitude and violate his civil rights,” Windham said.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
