Officer's trial may drag force through muck

Reginald A. Williams, a veteran St. Louis police officer accused of making bogus drug cases against three people, was turned in by another officer who had beaten a handcuffed suspect repeatedly, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

The revelation of the beating came in the opening statements of Williams' trial, which seems likely to shine a harsh light on the St. Louis force. Multiple officers have been given immunity from prosecution to testify for the government, the prosecutor said.