NEW YORK?A federal appeals court overturned the convictions of three white police officers in the Abner Louima torture case Thursday, finding insufficient evidence they obstructed justice.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan reversed the conviction of Charles Schwarz, 36, who was accused of taking part in one of the worst police brutality cases in U.S. history. The appeals court also overturned convictions against Schwarz, Thomas Wiese, 37, and Thomas Bruder, 34, on charges that they helped cover up the crime.

The ruling did not affect the guilty plea of the main attacker, former Officer Justin Volpe, who is serving 30 years in prison after admitting he sodomized Louima with a broken broomstick in a police station bathroom.

Prosecutors said a handcuffed Louima was pinned down and brutally assaulted following his arrest in a melee outside a Brooklyn nightclub Aug. 9, 1997.