The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals this week overturned the convictions of two former New Orleans police officers responsible for the killing and burning of Henry Glover following Hurricane Katrina.

David Warren was previously found guilty of fatally shooting Glover on September 2, 2005, as he attempted to loot stolen goods, while Greg McRae was convicted of torching Glover’s body in an effort to cover up the murder.

The Fifth Circuit reviewed the trials and determined Warren should not have been tried along with McRae and a third officer, Travis McCabe. Warren’s conviction was voided, setting up a retrial on the same charge.

The appellate panel also tossed a key charge against McRae, who admitted to burning Glover’s body. The justices said there was “insufficient evidence to convict McRae of denying Glover's descendants and survivors the right of access to court.”

But the court upheld the remaining convictions against McRae for use of fire to commit a felony, obstruction of a federal investigation, and denying a man a right to be free of unreasonable search and seizure. It was reported that the bulk of his 17-year prison sentence remains intact.

The third officer involved, McCabe, had been convicted of helping to cover up the killing. That conviction was overturned by another court review.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

To Learn More:

Key Convictions Overturned in Killing by New Orleans Police (by A.C. Thompson, ProPublica)

NOPD Cop Convicted In Henry Glover Case Getting New Trial, Appeals Court Decides (New Orleans Times-Picayune)

United States v. Gregory McRae and David Warren (Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals) (pdf)

Witness to Post-Katrina Murder by Police Had to Enter Witness Protection to Avoid Harassment (by Noel Brinkerhoff and David Wallechinsky, AllGov)

Update on Mysterious Post-Katrina Death of Henry Glover (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)