Two former police officers who pleaded guilty in connection with the paralysis of Richard “Randy” Cox will not serve time behind bars — but they’ll pay just $15 each in court costs, as noted by Atlanta Black Star.

Former Sgt. Betsy Segui and Officer Ronald Pressley, who has since retired, both entered plea deals after being charged over how Cox was handled in custody. Under the terms, their 6-month jail sentences are suspended, and they’ll be on conditional discharge for six months, provided they avoid new crimes, according to the New Haven Independent.

News of the case has slowly trickled through the internet and only recently picked up speed as the word spreads.

On June 19, 2022, Connecticut cops arrested Cox, placing him in handcuffs in the back of a patrol van after he was accused of threatening a woman with a gun at a block party. During the ride to the station, the cops took Cox on what attorney Benjamin Crump and many have called a “rough ride.” Cox road in the back of the van, with his hands behind his back and no seatbelt; at some point, the driving officer abruptly stopped the van and Cox was sent head-first into a metal partition.

“I can’t move. I’m going to die like this. Please, please, please help me,” Cox said in the van minutes after the crash, according to police video.

“You ain’t crack nothing. You just drank too much,” Segui responded, according to an internal affairs investigation report shared by ABC News. Upon arriving at the police station, Cox was dragged from various points and continuously mishandled — his pleas were ignored. It was later discovered he suffered a broken neck, and he is now paralyzed from the neck down.

What happened to Cox is reminiscent of what happened to Freddie Gray in 2016. The case sparked attention and brought the police brutality tactic of “rough rides” to the forefront.

“You ask yourself, was it cruel and unusual punishment to put him in the back of that police transportation van with no seat belt, knowing that if you’re speeding, if you slam on the brakes, that somebody is going to be seriously injured?” said Crump, one of the attorneys representing Cox, during a press conference in 2022.

Local officials worked with police on reforms that included eliminating the use of police vans for most prisoner transports. Officers are also now required to immediately call for an ambulance if the arrested individual requests or appears to need aid.

In 2023, New Haven agreed to a $45 million civil settlement with Cox and his family over the incident, calling it the largest municipal payout in a police misconduct case to date. 

Despite the national attention, subsequent settlement, and police reform, the two officers at the center of this case will now receive what has been called a slap on the wrist. It’s also sparked debate about how the city holds its law enforcement accountable.