From [HERE] The two New Orleans police officers charged in the 2005 beating death of a Treme man denied Thursday that they ever struck the man.

Officers Melvin Williams and Matthew Dean Moore both testified in federal court that they rushed 48-year-old Raymond Robair to Charity Hospital because he was in pain and they believed he had swallowed cocaine.

The officers said Robair tried to flee from the cops and his shoe flew off, causing him to crash to the sidewalk.

Williams, an 18-year police veteran, faces a federal civil-rights charge for allegedly beating Robair to death. He and Moore each face an obstruction charge for allegedly writing a false report, while Moore also is charged with lying to the FBI.

The events of the morning of July 30, 2005, are greatly in dispute. The officers say they never struck or kicked Robair. But four neighborhood residents have testified that Williams kicked and beat him, though details of their accounts have differed.

The dispute doesn't end there. Doctors and a nurse at Charity Hospital claim the officers dumped Robair at the hospital and were cagey about identifying themselves, or offering details about the man's condition. The doctor who worked on Robair said he never spoke to the cops. But the officers testified they spent roughly 25 to 30 minutes at the hospital, talked to that doctor and watched staffers try to revive Robair.