Former Mississippi Sheriff’s Deputy Indicted for Planting Evidence at Crime Scene to Justify Fatal Shooting

In an indictment unsealed today, a former Mississippi sheriff’s deputy was charged with planting a weapon at a crime scene to justify a fatal shooting.  The indictment charged Walter Grant, 51, with placing a stick or baton near the body of Willie Bingham Jr. after shooting him, in order to mislead investigators into believing that Bingham had possessed a weapon prior to the shooting.

 

At the time of the incident, Grant was a sheriff’s deputy in Bolivar County, Mississippi. He has since retired. Grant was tried twice in state court for manslaughter; the jury was twice unable to reach a verdict.

If convicted of the federal charge, Grant faces a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison.  An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the Jackson Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the cooperation of the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert Mims of the Northern District of Mississippi and Trial Attorney Dana Mulhauser of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.