ST. LOUIS — A former St. Louis police officer is expected to plead guilty in January to a misdemeanor and face no jail time or pay any fines for his role in the assault of a colleague who was working undercover as a protester in 2017.
Christopher Myers was one of five officers charged in connection with the beating of Officer Luther Hall.
Two juries hung on whether Myers intentionally destroyed Hall's cellphone during the assault to conceal evidence and hinder an investigation.
His attorney, Scott Rosenblum, argued both times that his client threw the cellphone after seeing blood on it and that it was impossible for Myers to know an investigation would commence because none of the other officers believed any policies were violated during the arrest.
Should the judge accept the plea deal during the Jan. 5 hearing, Myers will get probation, Rosenblum said.
Four other officers were also implicated in the assault, which Hall testified left him with permanent injuries. He testified during both trials against his former fellow officers, telling the court he had to have surgery to repair injuries to his spine, and a jaw injury left him unable to eat. That caused drastic weight loss.
One of the former officers, Randy Hays, has already pleaded guilty to violating Hall's civil rights. Judge E. Richard Webber sentenced Hays to 52 months in prison.
Former Officer Bailey Colletta was sentenced to three years of probation for lying to the FBI about what she saw on the night of the assault.
A jury hung in March on whether former Officer Dustin Boone violated Hall's civil rights, but a second jury convicted him. He is expected to be sentenced in October.
A fifth officer, Steven Korte, was acquitted and remains on the force.
Hall was working undercover to document crimes committed during protests about the acquittal of a white officer charged with murdering a Black drug suspect.
All of the officers accused of assaulting him are white. Hall is Black. Federal prosecutors raised concerns when defense attorneys seated predominantly white juries during their trials.