From staff and AP reports

COLUMBUS, Miss.— Circuit Judge Lee Howard has postponed until February a hearing for four Columbus police officers who lost a month’s salary after a May 5 incident at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

The hearing had been set for Friday.

Officers Wade Beard, Heath Beard and Robert Walker and Cpl. Spence Wallingford are appealing a ruling by the Columbus Civil Commission, which upheld their suspensions.

The officers were suspended for 15 days after being called home from a three-day field sobriety training course in Vicksburg. They also were placed on probation for six months.

The officers were reported by a visitor to park rangers for playing loud music and using flashers to deter visitors from approaching the police cruiser in which they were riding with the trunk popped open. No citation was issued to the officers, park officials said, because the matter was treated as an educational stop that asks a visitor to cease inappropriate behavior.

They were part of a contingent of law enforcement officers from around the state in Vicksburg for a conference of S.T.O.R.M., or Sobriety Trained Officers Representing Mississippi, made up of more than 200 agencies who convene on issues pertaining to DUI detection and apprehension. The Columbus officers were ordered back home the following day.

“The Columbus Police Department stands by its commitment to excellence,” Columbus Police Chief John St. John said in a statement after the incident. “I’m proud to work alongside some of the finest in the law enforcement profession, though this incident is unfortunate it was addressed in a quick and expedient manner.

“This behavior is not indicative of the hard work of the Columbus Police Department officers.”