LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — A second individual formerly employed in law enforcement in Arkansas has been sentenced to a year in prison after admitting to infringing on the civil rights of a man during a violent incident that occurred in 2022, which was captured on video.
On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Susan O. Hickey sentenced former Crawford County sheriff’s deputy Zackary King to prison. He will receive credit for any time already served in federal custody, as detailed in court documents. Back in April, King accepted a plea deal, admitting guilt to a charge of deprivation of rights under color of law stemming from the arrest of Randal Worcester on August 21, 2022, outside a convenience store.
In addition to the prison sentence, Judge Hickey mandated that King undergo one year of supervised release following his incarceration. Alongside King, another former deputy, Levi White, was charged by federal authorities last year concerning the same arrest. The incident took place in Mulberry, a small town located about 140 miles northwest of Little Rock and near the Oklahoma state line, and was widely circulated online after a bystander recorded it on their cellphone.
“This kind of gratuitous and unjustified violence from law enforcement officers undermines their fundamental duty to protect and serve,” stated Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The defendants took an oath to uphold the law but instead chose to abuse their authority and assaulted a person they had in custody.”
An attorney representing King did not respond to inquiries late Thursday afternoon. White, who also pleaded guilty alongside King in April, was sentenced recently to over five years in prison, receiving credit for time served as well. White has been ordered to stay at a federal medical facility in Missouri, where he is required to undergo mental health counseling and treatment while he serves his sentence.
A third officer, Mulberry Police Officer Thell Riddle, was present during the arrest but has not faced charges in the federal case. Both King and White lost their positions with the Crawford County sheriff’s office following the incident. The evidence showed King and White physically assaulting Worcester while Riddle restrained him.
Authorities indicated that Worcester was being interrogated for allegedly threatening a convenience store clerk in a nearby town, Alma, before he tackled one of the deputies and punched him. Worcester is scheduled to stand trial in February on charges related to the incident, which include resisting arrest and second-degree battery.
In addition to his criminal charges, Worcester filed a lawsuit in 2022 against the three officers, as well as the city of Mulberry and Crawford County, connected to the arrest. However, this civil case remains in a holding pattern while the associated criminal proceedings are ongoing.
