Former St Louis police officer sentenced for beating undercover colleague during street protest in 2017

St Louis had settled a civil suit for $5m (£3.6m) with the undercover Black officer

People gather near a recently unveiled statue of George Floyd following news that former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin was sentenced to 22 and 1/2 years in prison for Floyd's murder, in the Brooklyn borough of New York, 25 June 2021 (EPA)

A former St Louis police officer has been sentenced for beating up a Black undercover colleague during a street protest in 2017.

The accused police officer, 34-year-old Randy Hays, and other white officers had brutally beaten and arrested Luther Hall, an undercover officer gathering information during protests that had erupted following a controversial court ruling, reported The Washington Post.

In 2019 Hays had pleaded guilty to excessive and unreasonable force during the 2017 incident when the officers picked Mr Hall up and slammed him into the pavement resulting in blood gushing out from his nose and lips.

According to St Louis Post Dispatch, he was sentenced on Tuesday by a federal judge and will now serve more than four years behind bars. Hays expressed being “greatly sorry” and said: “I am a good person, but I made a mistake.”

He was among the first of three officers to be sentenced while another is expected to be sentenced Thursday.

Mr Hall told the court in a written statement that the incident left him feeling withdrawn from the person he was before the attack. He has had three surgeries and multiple procedures till now to relieve pain and may need more.

According to court documents, the attack by the police officer, including Hays, left Mr Hall with herniated discs, a rotator cuff tear and a hole above his lip that required sutures. The undercover Black officer also suffered a bruised tailbone, a concussion and other injuries.

Mr Hall has also been diagnosed with depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. He takes medication to address the mental and physical harm as a result of the beating.

“The reality is I will live out the rest of my life in some degree of pain,” said Mr Hall while adding that the decision of these officers has altered his “career, professional and personal life.”

Subsequently, St Louis agreed to settle Mr Hall’s civil suit for $5m (£3.6m). His attorneys argued that race motivated the officers to beat Mr Hall.