From [HERE] Choking up at times, a second Fresno police officer testified Tuesday that he saw no justification for a fellow officer to shoot an unarmed, defenseless suspect with a beanbag shotgun and another officer kick him. "I was in a state of disbelief," Thomas Hardin Jr. told the jury in U.S. District Court. "I was put in a situation that was bad."

In the second week of a trial over alleged excessive force, Hardin's account echoed that of officer Martin Van Overbeek, who completed his testimony Tuesday morning. Both officers testified that Rolando Celdon offered no resistance when former officer Chris Coleman fired beanbag rounds at him and former officer Paul Van Dalen kicked him while making an arrest in October 2005. The officers' testimony is key to the prosecution's case because Celdon, who was deported after being convicted of stalking and striking his girlfriend, can't be found in Mexico and will not testify in the trial. A third officer, Beau Burger, could testify today for the prosecution.

Van Dalen and Coleman are accused of using excessive force while arresting Celdon, and Sgt. Michael Manfredi and former officer Sean Plymale are accused of concealing the alleged assault. All four are charged with falsifying an official report to obstruct justice. If convicted, each faces up to 20 years in prison.