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Revision as of 15:41, 11 August 2014 by MPS (talk | contribs) (2012)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)On Saturday afternoon August 9, 2014, police shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black man after a scuffle inside the police car in Ferguson, MO. Brown was an 18-year-old black man, and the city of Ferguson is a predominantly black area 10 miles northwest of St. Louis. On Sunday afternoon,local and national leadership planned a vigil and other responses. In the evening of August 10, police tried to break up the crowd and then some of the protestors responded violently, looting various stores in the neighborhood including a QuikTrip. The story became widely reported in the United States, drawing comparisons to the Treyvon Martin incident of the 2012.
Details of police interaction with Brown
The details of the incident are not clear. According to Ferguson police department, there are no dash cameras in Ferguson police cars. The young man was unarmed. The scuffle involved three people: Brown, one policeman, and at least one other person. Both the press conference by the police as well as eyewitness testimony describe the event as starting with an initial scuffle within the police car where a shot was fired , and then the police shot Brown multiple times from about 35 feet away as the two were running away. According to a San Antonio ABC station, Brown was shot shortly after 2PM
Outrage and Vigils
Local pastors held a vigil Sunday morning. . Another vigil was planned at 8pm sunday night in the area where Brown was killed.
Sunday Press Conference and Police Investigation
Jon Belmar, chief of the St. Louis County Police Department gave a press conference Sunday afternoon. According to Fox2 news, "At the request of the Ferguson Police Department, the St. Louis County Crimes Against Persons Unit has taken over the investigation of the shooting."
Unruly crowd, police presence, and looting
There were 150 officers in riot gear
Responses
St. Louis County Police Department is in charge of the investigation, and St Louis County branch of the civil rights group NAACP said they would request an FBI investigation. The U.S. Justice Department said Attorney General Eric Holder had instructed staff to monitor developments.
On August 10, Reverend Al Sharpton and the National Action Network announced their plans to travel to St. Louis to assist the family in achieving justice.
The family announced that Benjamin Crump (lawyer for the Trayvon Martin case) would represent the family.
See Also
References
- http://online.wsj.com/articles/missouri-teenager-killed-by-police-after-fight-1407698036
- "A teenage girl told KMOV that a QuikTrip convenience store was being looted. Asked what looters were taking, she said, "Everything. They destroyed everything."" http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-missouri-police-shooting-20140811-story.html
- "Is #MikeBrown" the next Trayvon Martin?" http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/USA-Update/2014/0810/Unarmed-black-teenager-shot-Is-MikeBrown-the-next-Trayvon-Martin-video
- The killing has drawn criticism from some civil rights leaders, who have referred to the 2012 racially charged shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin by a Florida neighborhood watch organizer who was acquitted of murder charges." http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2721697/Trayvon-Martin-lawyer-represent-family-unarmed-teen-shot-dead-St-Louis-officer-looting-riots-break-vigil-honor.html
- http://www.ksat.com/content/pns/ksat/news/2014/08/10/missouri-police-involved-shooting.html
- "County Police Chief Jon Belmar said the shooting occurred after an officer encountered two people—one of whom was Mr. Brown—on the street near an apartment complex in Ferguson." http://online.wsj.com/articles/missouri-teenager-killed-by-police-after-fight-1407698036
- http://www.ksat.com/content/pns/ksat/news/2014/08/10/missouri-police-involved-shooting.html
- http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/michael-brown-remembered-as-a-gentle-giant/article_cbafa12e-7305-5fd7-8e0e-3139f472d130.html
- http://www.ksat.com/content/pns/ksat/news/2014/08/10/missouri-police-involved-shooting.html
- http://fox2now.com/2014/08/10/ferguson-police-officer-shoots-kills-teen-community-outraged/
- http://www.ksat.com/content/pns/ksat/news/2014/08/10/missouri-police-involved-shooting.html
- "Earlier Sunday, members of the St. Louis Clergy Coalition held a prayer vigil outside the Ferguson Police Department. Ministers prayed for the family of Michael Brown who was shot and killed Saturday during an encounter with a Ferguson police officer." http://fox2now.com/2014/08/10/clergy-hold-vigil-for-teen-shot-by-police/
- "The 8 p.m. vigil will take place in the Canfield Green apartment complex where Brown died." http://fox2now.com/2014/08/10/clergy-hold-vigil-for-teen-shot-by-police/
- http://www.ksat.com/content/pns/ksat/news/2014/08/10/missouri-police-involved-shooting.html
- http://fox2now.com/2014/08/10/ferguson-police-officer-shoots-kills-teen-community-outraged/
- http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-missouri-police-shooting-20140811-story.html
- http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-missouri-police-shooting-20140811-story.html
- http://www.newsday.com/news/nation/michael-brown-s-fatal-shooting-by-police-sparks-outcry-1.9018258
- The Associated Press reports the Reverend Al Sharpton will meet with the family of Mike Brown on Monday or Tuesday. "He released this statement on Sunday: Sunday, August 10, 2014 (New York, NY)— “I just spoke with Leslie McSpadden, the grandfather of Michael Brown. He has asked me to come to St. Louis in light of the police killing of his grandson to assist the family in achieving a fair investigation and justice. I assured him that National Action Network will stand with the family, as we have done for families around the country and assist in any way that we can. I am dispatching Rev. De-Ves Toon of our National Action Network field department to St. Louis immediately to prepare for my visit, and to work with groups in the area as we pursue justice in the tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” -- -Reverend Al Sharpton, President of National Action Network http://fox2now.com/2014/08/10/clergy-hold-vigil-for-teen-shot-by-police/
- http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2721697/Trayvon-Martin-lawyer-represent-family-unarmed-teen-shot-dead-St-Louis-officer-looting-riots-break-vigil-honor.html