New Orleans police fire 51 for Katrina desertion

Fifty-one members of the New Orleans Police Department - 45 officers and six civilian employees - were fired Friday for abandoning their posts before or after Hurricane Katrina. "They were terminated due to them abandoning the department prior to the storm," acting superintendent Warren Riley said. "They either left before the hurricane or 10 to 12 days after the storm and we have never heard from them." Police were unable to account for 240 officers on the 1,450-member force following Katrina. The force has been investigating them to see if they left their posts during the storm.