Protests erupt across the country
Tensions in Ferguson, Mo. escalated to a boiling point on the night of Monday, Nov. 24, when the grand jury found no probable cause to file an indictment against Officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of Michael Brown on Aug. 9.
The verdict was announced at 9:25pm EST at the downtown courthouse in the St. Louis County seat of Clayton, where a 12-person grand jury had been meeting for several months to review testimony and make final deliberations.
Michael Brown’s killing on Aug. 9 sparked angry protests, riots, looting, and violent clashes with Ferguson police over the past few months, also igniting a national conversation about police brutality and racial tensions. Wilson, the officer responsible for Brown’s death, was placed on paid administrative leave and has not been seen in public since the incident three months ago.
A spokesman for Bob McCulloch, the St. Louis County prosecutor, confirmed on Monday, Nov. 24 that the final decision had been reached by the jury. The family of the teenager, Michael Brown, had been notified by prosecutors.
Brown’s family had been “praying for an indictment, and they’re trying to put their faith in the justice system,” said Benjamin Crump, a lawyer for the Brown family.
The family released a statement following the announcement: “We are profoundly disappointed that the killer of our child will not face the consequences of his actions.”
Attorneys vowed to push for federal charges against Wilson, who testified in court that he could not have done anything differently in his confrontation with the 18-year-old to have prevented his death.
“I know I did my job right,” Wilson, who had been with the police force for less than three years, told ABC News.
Testimony from Wilson also included his feelings of being threatened, as well as the discovery of Brown’s blood in Wilson’s patrol car. According to Wilson’s story, the teenager and his friend were walking on the street when Wilson pulled up in his car, telling them to move onto the sidewalk. Brown reportedly responded by hitting the officer in the face, causing Wilson to pull out his firearm.
Other witnesses claim Brown was unarmed and had his hands up when the officer fired a round of shots. The teen’s body lay in the center of the residential street for hours after the incident, sparking civil unrest and violence for months.
Five potential indictments were presented to the grand jury, from first-degree murder to involuntary manslaughter. Wilson was not charged on any counts.
Following the decision, Attorney General Eric Holder confirmed a separate investigation of the case from the Justice Department, as well as a thorough review of Ferguson’s police conduct. “The department is looking to conclude the inquiries swiftly to ‘restore trust’ and foster cooperation between police and the community,” Holder said.
“Though we have shared information with local prosecutors during the course of our investigation,” Holder continued, “the federal inquiry has been independent of the local one from the start, and remains so now.”
Ferguson residents and officials prepared emergency plans for civil unrest following the final verdict. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency on Nov. 17, authorizing the state’s National Guard and the St. Louis County Police Department to support local Ferguson police. Authorities and lawyers representing Brown’s family encouraged police and protesters to remain calm as the jury continued weighing the evidence, which included 70 hours of recorded testimony and 60 witnesses, three medical examiners and forensic experts, as well as photographs and physical evidence, according to McCulloch.
“They are the only people that have heard and examined every witness and piece of evidence,” McCulloch added.
Moments after the judge’s final announcement on Monday night, outrage in Ferguson and St. Louis erupted. Fires and looting of local businesses were also started. Shots were fired near the Ferguson Police station, and at least two police cars were set ablaze by protesters. St. Louis police arrested 61 people overnight for various charges, including assault, vandalism, unlawful possession of a firearm, burglary, and more.
National outrage
Nationwide, protestors organized in major areas, demanding justice for Brown’s family.
Thousands marched in Manhattan from Union Square to Times Square, shut down three bridges, and blocked the Lincoln Tunnel. One protestor was arrested in Times Square after splattering fake blood on New York Police Department Commissioner Bill Bratton.
In California, protestors organized demonstrations in Oakland, San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and several other cities.
Protestors shut down intersections of downtown Oakland, with a mass “ die in”—in which they laid on the streets—before making their way to Interstate 580, which remained blocked for hours until early Tuesday morning, Nov. 25. Many started fires in trash cans, spray painted anti-police statements on buildings and broke windows of establishments. In San Francisco, demonstrations remained fairly small and peaceful — less than 50 waved signs after the decision was announced.
Marchers briefly shut down the 110 freeway for 70 minutes in Los Angeles. Similar demonstrations where held on Rodeo Drive and Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills and intersections in the south side of the city. Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck said “the vast majority of people behaved very well,” but put police on high alert, especially on freeways.
On Tuesday, Nov. 25, students and faculty from the Claremont Colleges organized a rally to City Hall and the Police Department, waving signs and chanting slogans in solidarity of the Ferguson incident.
Both President Obama and the Brown family called for peace during this time of activism.
“We are a nation built on the rule of law, so we need to accept that this decision was the grand jury’s to make,” Obama said.
“While we understand that many others share our pain, we ask that you channel your frustration in ways that will make a positive change. We need to work together to fix the system that allowed this to happen,” the Brown family said. “We respectfully ask that you please keep your protests peaceful. Answering violence with violence is not the appropriate reaction. Let’s not just make noise, let’s make a difference.”
(With reports from Associated Press, USA Today, Washington Post, ABC, NBC News)
(www.asianjournal.com)
(Las Vegas November 27 – December 3, 2014 Sec. A pg.1)
