A jury delivered a split verdict for two former Shelby County Jail deputies on Aug. 19 related to the beating and death of detainee Gershun Freeman in October 2022, acquitting one deputy and finding another guilty on lesser charges.
Stevon Jones and Courtney Parham were two of nine jailers who were indicted for Freeman's death
. The two were charged with second-degree murder and aggravated assault acting in concert resulting in death.A jury returned a not guilty verdict as to Jones on all counts and found Parham guilty of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment, lesser charges, on Aug. 19 after 9 days of testimony. The Jury deliberated for about six hours.
The other seven jailers were not charged with second-degree murder and will
be tried separately.
The jailers, in previously released surveillance footage, could be seen punching, kicking, pepper spraying and kneeling on Freeman's back.
Freeman was 33 at the time of his death.
Trial began on Aug. 3 with jury selection.
The case was investigated by the Shelby County District Attorney's Office's Justice Review Unit, and when charges were filed against the nine deputy jailers, the case was given to Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk after Shelby County DA Steve Mulroy recused his office from the case.
What happened to Gershun Freeman in the Shelby County Jail?
Freeman died at the Shelby County Jail, often called 201 Poplar, on Oct. 5, 2022, after a "physical altercation with corrections officers." According to Freeman's autopsy report, that altercation exacerbated his heart condition, and the autopsy classified his manner of death as "homicide."
Autopsies will list homicide as a manner of death when another person is involved, but that classification does not necessarily indicate a crime was committed.
The autopsy report also indicated Freeman had a history of psychosis, which the medical examiner considered a possible contributor to his death. At the time, he was also healing from a stab wound on his back.
Freeman's body had multiple bruises on his scalp, neck, forehead and lips. He also had a scalp laceration just larger than an inch and hemorrhaging in his head, neck and back.
Freeman was arrested on Oct. 1, 2022, after he was accused of attacking, threatening and kidnapping his girlfriend. The kidnapping charge came from Freeman's girlfriend telling investigators he forced her into a car and drove to another location before setting her free.
Nearly a year after Freeman died, Funk's office released surveillance footage from inside the jail the day of the altercation. That footage showed corrections officers chasing, punching, kicking and kneeling on Freeman's back. Freeman was naked at the time.
The footage showed officers opening cell doors and giving people what appeared to be boxed meals. When they reached Freeman's cell, he ran at the officers — biting one of them, according to the Shelby County Sheriff's Office — and other officers rushed into the corridor. When they met Freeman in the hallway, they could be seen punching, kicking and pepper spraying Freeman. At one point, a corrections officer could be seen hitting Freeman with the canister of pepper spray.
Freeman eventually escaped the group of about 10 officers before running up an escalator, where an officer pushed him into a wall. That officer was joined by more who brought Freeman to the group and handcuffed him. After being handcuffed, an officer could be seen kneeling on his back for nearly six minutes.
Medical staff arrived and began performing CPR, but Freeman was declared dead inside the jail.
Freeman's family filed a civil lawsuit against Shelby County Sheriff's Office officials, who are responsible for operating the jail, in April 2023. That lawsuit has been pending, with little to no motion, for more than three years now.
Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr., as the case was first beginning, stood by the corrections officers and said "no actions by any Shelby County Sheriff's Office employee caused Mr. Freeman's death." He also called the investigation and indictments political. Bonner was in the midst of an unsuccessful campaign for Memphis mayor at the time.
"I want this community to know that I stand with these officers," Bonner said during that September 2023 press conference. "I believe that if I were not running for another office, these indictments never would have happened, and I find this despicable. The officers remained on administrative leave. If there is a fundraiser to help with their legal fees, I will be the first to donate."
A GoFundMe campaign was quickly launched, and saw thousands in donations within days. But GoFundMe later took down the page because it does not allow for people to crowdsource legal fees.
Freeman's death came at a time when the city and county were under immense pressure to respond to police brutality. In the months after he died, there were numerous shootings by police officers, and things reached a fever pitch when Tyré Nichols died after being beaten by Memphis police officers.
Deaths in the jail were also peaking, with a death rate higher than that of Riker's Island in New York City.
Lucas Finton covers crime, policing, jails, the courts and criminal justice policy for The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached by phone or email: (901)208-3922 and Lucas.Finton@commercialappeal.com, and followed on X @LucasFinton.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: One Shelby County Jail deputy found guilty of Gershun Freeman homicide
