CRAWFORD COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Levi White, a former Crawford County deputy accused of using excessive force during an arrest that was caught on video, has changed his plea to guilty, and his trial has been canceled.
White's original trial date, scheduled for May, was canceled on April 16, and he pleaded guilty on April 19.
Levi White and Zackary King, both former Crawford County Sheriff's Office deputies, have now pleaded guilty to using excessive force while arresting a man in Mulberry almost two years ago.
A video of the arrest shows White and King, along with Mulberry Police Officer Thell Riddle, sitting on top of Randal Worcester, hitting and kicking him while trying to arrest him in August 2022.
According to court documents, when Worcester was pinned to the ground, King continued kicking and hitting him as White punched him at least nine times before lifting his head and slamming it into the pavement.
“The videos from this incident are a shocking display of the violent deprivation of civil rights committed by these officers,” said U.S. Attorney Clay Fowlkes for the Western District of Arkansas. “No person in police custody should ever feel threatened"
After several investigations, the two deputies were fired from the sheriff's office in October 2022 and were arrested by the FBI and U.S. Marshals in January 2023 after the video went viral and was seen by thousands.
According to the FBI, just a few hours before agents seized White's work iPhone he "performed a factory reset that erased all data."
Before they pled guilty, a federal grand jury indicted White and King, charging them with hitting Worcester "multiple times" while he was lying on the ground, causing him bodily injury.
“Disgraceful actions, like those of the two Crawford County sheriff’s deputies, negatively impact all members of Arkansas law enforcement,” said FBI Little Rock Special Agent in Charge Alicia D. Corder. “A gun and a badge does not give someone the right to ignore the Constitution."
The former deputies are officially charged with deprivation of rights under color of law for infringing on Worcester's constitutional right to be "free from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer," court documents said.
Worcester will face his own trial for the events leading up to his arrest.
Upon pleading guilty, the judge reportedly ordered that White be immediately detained.
White faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.
King faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison, one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $100,000.
5NEWS will update this article as more information about the former deputies' sentencing is released.
Watch 5NEWS on YouTube.
Download the 5NEWS app on your smartphone:
Stream 5NEWS 24/7 on the 5+ app: How to watch the 5+ app on your streaming device
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email KFSMDigitalTeam@tegna.com and detail which story you're referring to.