ProPublica has uncovered proof that a second ex-New Orleans policeman has been implicated in a Big Easy cover-up. According to records released to the reporters, The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that ex-NOP patrolman Jeffrey Lehrmann “participated in the creation of false reports” and provided “false information to investigating agents” looking into the September 4 (2005) shootings on the Danziger Bridge. In the now-infamous post-Katrina incident, police shot six people, killing two, disfiguring one. They then maintained that they’d responded to gunfire. Last month, Lehrmann’s former colleague, NOPD Lt. Michael Lohman, plead guilty to obstruction of justice in connection with the shootings. “Lohman had conspired with the officers, coached statements, attempted to help with a cover story explaining the circumstances,” NOLA.com reports. “He also made sure another officer planted a ‘clean’ handgun at the scene, meaning it couldn’t be traced back to a crime. That handgun would help bolster police story that officers were under fire from civilians and acted in self-defense.” All of which begs the question: what DID happen under that bridge?
