Inquiry called active in Vicious Televised Beating of Black Man by St. Louis Police

Local prosecutors have not finished investigating last year's televised police chase that ended with the beating of driver Edmon Burns by three Maplewood police officers and one St. Louis officer, a spokeswoman said. Jeannette Graviss, chief warrant officer for the St. Louis circuit attorney's office, said the office's investigation has been on hold while the FBI investigated the case. On Wednesday, a U.S. Justice Department spokeswoman said federal charges would not be coming. Graviss said no decision would be made in the case before early next month. The 20-minute chase on Jan. 30, 2006, was sparked when Burns drove away from an officer at a Maplewood gas station, then led police into St. Louis. On Thursday, leaders of the NAACP of St. Louis County criticized the Justice Department's decision not to prosecute, and asked U.S. Attorney Catherine Hanaway to explain. Hanaway released a statement Friday saying she had already offered to meet with the NAACP. [MORE]