Former Crawford County sheriff's deputy pleads guilty after viral video

FORT SMITH – Former Crawford County Sheriff's Deputy Zackary King pleaded guilty Monday to one count of deprivation of rights in connection with an arrest that was captured on video and went viral on social media.

“I think under the circumstances it was a close call, and I think the case was arguably arguable,” said one of King's lawyers, William O. James. “But you never know how these cases will turn out, and in the current climate we thought this was a safe way to proceed and ensure that Officer King would be able to move on with his life without committing a crime. “”

King could be sentenced to up to one year in a correctional facility with a fine or both, James said. There is no set date for the sentencing hearing.

According to court records, King appeared via teleconference before Judge Mark E. Ford at 3 p.m. Monday to enter his guilty plea after requesting the plea change on April 4.

King and two others – Mulberry Police Department officer Thell Riddle and former sheriff's deputy Levi White – came into the national spotlight after a video went viral on social media showing the trio Randal Worcester on Aug. 21 arrested in 2022.

The video showed Riddle pinning Worcester to the ground while King and White repeatedly punched and kicked him. The incident occurred outside the Kountry Xpress supermarket in Mulberry. Both former deputies were arrested on January 24, 2023 and released on $5,000 bail.

King and White were fired from the sheriff's office in September 2022 prior to their arrest for “excessive use of force.” King had worked at the Crawford County Sheriff's Office since January 2018. White had worked there since January 2022.

White has scheduled a jury trial for May 6. White and King filed a motion to separate defendants in September, allowing them to have separate trials.

Riddle will not be charged and has been reinstated to the police force.

Cindy Murphy, communications director for the Arkansas Department of Public Safety, said the Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training will schedule a certification hearing for White and King once their criminal charges are decided.

Worcester, 28, of Goose Creek, South Carolina, was charged with first-degree terroristic threats, second-degree assault, resisting arrest, possession of a felony weapon, obstructing government operations and disorderly conduct in connection with the incident. He is awaiting trial, currently scheduled for July 29.

Jimmy Damante, then-Crawford County Sheriff, said on August 25, 2022 that on August 21, 2022, Worcester reportedly threatened a woman with a knife and then spat on her with the knife at the Sargent gas station on Interstate 40 in Alma Bike left.

According to Damante, King, White and Riddle met Worcester shortly afterwards at Mulberry.