CRAWFORD COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — The trial for former Crawford County deputies accused of using excessive force while arresting a man outside a Mulberry gas station in August 2022 has been pushed back again, according to court documents filed on Nov. 28, 2023.
Former deputies Levi White and Zachary King along with Mulberry Police Officer Thell Riddle were seen in a video on top of Randal Worcester at the convenience store on Sunday, Aug. 21. In the video posted to social media, the two deputies seem to be hitting and kicking Worcester while he is on the ground.
According to the FBI, US Marshals took Levi White and Zachary King into custody on January 24, 2023. Their trial date was originally in early April 2023, but has since been pushed back twice and is now scheduled for May 6, 2024.
White and King were fired from the Crawford County Sheriff's Office in October 2022 after several investigations were opened after the violent arrest was filmed on video and seen by thousands across the nation.
An FBI search warrant affidavit alleges that just a few hours before officials claimed White's department-issued iPhone that he "performed a factory reset that erased all data."
Officer Riddle was reinstated to the Mulberry Police Department in February 2023. In the video, he is only seen holding Worcester down.
The charges stem from the two deputies infringing on Worcester's civil rights, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. A federal grand jury indicted White and King, charging them with hitting Worcester "multiple times" while he was lying on the ground.
The indictment goes on to say that Worcester "suffered bodily injury" as a result of the two deputies' actions.
If convicted, White and King face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, along with three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
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 say.
Both deputies were released on $5,000 bonds.
Their attorney, Russel wood says, "The allegations claimed in the indictment are not true. I look forward to our opportunity to tell what happened. We will have an opportunity to do this at the jury trial."
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