Six more New Orleans police officers have been indicted by the federal government for their involvement in the killing of two men in the days after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and in a broad effort to cover it up. The charges were announced yesterday by Attorney General Eric Holder and the Assistant AG Thomas Perez, along with other New Orleans officials. Several of them could face the death penalty if found guilty.

One officer has already entered a guilty plea, and yesterday, he spelled out what he said happened. Hunter, 33, testified that a New Orleans police sergeant fired an assault rifle at wounded civilians at close range after other officers stopped shooting and after it was clear that the police were not taking fire. He also says he witnessed another officer in a car fire a shotgun at a fleeing man’s back, killing him.

In admitting he conspired to obstruct justice, Lohman acknowledged helping concoct a cover story for police shootings that left two New Orleanians dead and four injured in the chaotic days after Hurricane Katrina. Among other things, the government says Lohman participated in a scheme to plant a gun at the scene, and helped rewrite police reports and witness statements to make a fabricated version of events seem more plausible.