A Mississippi police officer is going to court on Thursday after being accused 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 allege that the patrolman, Michael Christian Green, ordered a prisoner to lick up his own urine after the prisoner 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.
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 particularly 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 an adult male, who court documents refer to as “BE”.
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.
Green has since been charged with deprivation of civil rights under color of law. If found guilty, he could face up to a year in prison and a $10,000 fine. Prosecutors say security footage from the booking area and the holding cell show the incident.
Lawyers for Green did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Green is expected to appear in court on Thursday, according to the Daily Beast.
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