Release of Information – Some Demanded, Some Unexpected – Changes Dynamics in Ferguson Shooting
FROM STAFF REPORTS
Expert in police use of force says an officer would be on heightened alert when dealing with someone believed to be a felony suspect. Read more
NFL Hall of Famer Aeneas Williams visits Ferguson to "get the heartbeat of the community"
Williams said he wants to open a dialogue Read more
ACLU attains agreement for right to record police
The ACLU filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday Read more
Dick Gregory meets with crowd at QuikTrip
The civil rights activist is skeptical about timing of the release of the Michael Brown convenient story video.
FERGUSON • It was a day when the police released information both long-demanded and unexpected.
Here are Friday’s main developments in a week of internationally riveting strife, some of it violent and choked by tear gas, over the fatal shooting Aug. 9 of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old, by a Ferguson police officer:
• After days of demands that authorities release the officer’s name, Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson identified him as Darren Wilson, 28, who has been on the municipal force for four years. Jackson called Wilson a “gentle, quiet man, a distinguished officer” who was devastated by what happened.
• Jackson also released security video from a nearby convenience store that appears to show Brown stealing cigars shortly before he was killed. Lawyers for Brown’s family confirmed that the teen “appears” to be in the video but were furious by what they called a “character assassination.”
• Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ronald S. Johnson, who was handed the main law enforcement task Thursday after four nights of unrest, was irritated that Jackson released the video. “There was no need to release it,” Johnson said, calling the reported theft and the killing entirely different events.
• Johnson, who grew up in North County, continued his charm strategy on West Florissant, where his troopers were again barely in evidence Friday night — in stark contrast to the SWAT teams and armored cars of nights earlier in the week.
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced it will send agents to the neighborhood to interview witnesses of the shooting. The FBI is working with the Justice Department’s civil rights division and federal prosecutors. “We ask for the public’s cooperation and patience,” the FBI statement says.
After Thursday night’s relative calm, Friday began outside the looted and burned QuikTrip at 9240 West Florissant, ground zero for protests. Jackson opened a news conference where he was expected to release the name of the officer who shot Brown by discussing the robbery at a convenience store on West Florissant. He released incident reports and the video that appears to show Brown stealing cigars and shoving a employee at the store, which was identified later as Ferguson Market and Liquor, at 9101 West Florissant.
The store is barely a block from the apartment complex where Brown was killed. Police said Dorian Johnson, 22, who was Brown’s friend and a key witness to the shooting, also was at the liquor store.
Just north of the liquor store is the QuikTrip, which was looted and burned during the street riot late Sunday.
The release of the officer’s name — a major goal of police critics for days — almost became an afterthought with Jackson’s release of the video. Protesters and lawyers for Brown’s family responded angrily. Jackson followed with another news conference, followed by more public statements from the lawyers.
Family lawyers confirmed that Brown’s image was in the video but said it didn’t justify the shooting. Jackson further complicated the dispute by saying that Wilson, at least initially, stopped Brown and Dorian Johnson because they were blocking a street, not over the robbery.
Said Benjamin Crump, a lawyer from Florida who is representing Brown’s family, “It’s bad enough they assassinated him, and now they’re trying to assassinate his character.” Crump accused police of playing “the old game of smoke and mirrors.”
Daryl Parks, Crump’s law partner, said Brown appears to be in the security video but said it didn’t prove robbery. Crump represented the family of Trayvon Martin, who was shot to death in Sanford, Fla., in 2012.
Anthony Gray, a local lawyer for the family, added that Brown was killed while “displaying a universal sign of surrender” — his hands up, which has become the main pose of street protesters.
“We don’t care what happened before that point,” Gray said. “It’s irrelevant ... Why did you shoot this unarmed teenager who had his hands in the air, period?”
Gray said the family never called Brown “a perfect kid.” He warned protesters that, in viewing the video, “you may see images or depictions that don’t paint him in the most complimentary light.”
But he said the family was pleading for people not to renew Sunday night’s violence.
“Don’t take the bait from anybody who is trying to character-assassinate Mike,” he said. “Don’t take that and begin to riot, don’t take that and begin to loot. The family has made this clear.”
Citizen response was quick.
“I am incensed,” said Laura Keys, 50, of St. Louis. “I can’t believe this is the tactic they are using, bringing up a robbery to make the victim look like he was the person who created this whole mess.”
Jackson held a second news conference in the afternoon, justifying release of the video by saying that news organizations had been filing public-information requests for days for the incident reports.
“I had to,” he said of the release.
Told of the family’s reaction, Jackson said, “First, my heart goes out to the family. I can’t imagine what they are going through. We have given you everything that we have now … There is nothing else we have got.”
Jackson said Wilson was a police officer in neighboring Jennings for two years before joining Ferguson about four years ago.
Jackson described events before the Aug. 9 shooting, saying Wilson was at a sick call from 11:48 a.m. to about noon. At 11:51 a.m., a 911 caller reported a strong-arm robbery at a convenience store, Jackson said, and a brief description went over the radio a minute later.
Another officer went to the convenience store and a more detailed description went out a short time later. The robbery suspect was said to be heading toward the QuikTrip.
Wilson left the sick call and encountered Brown and Dorian Johnson at 12:01 p.m. in the 2900 block of Canfield Drive. In a follow-up interview, Jackson said he did not believe Wilson initially knew Brown might be connected to the robbery. He said Wilson stopped Brown and Johnson because they were walking in the street, but then noticed Brown had cigars, the items stolen in the robbery.
Sometime between then and 12:04 p.m., when a second officer arrived at the scene, Brown was fatally shot by Wilson on Canfield.
A supervisor arrived at 12:05 p.m., and the ambulance that had been at the nearby sick call came to the scene “immediately following the shooting,” to “assess Michael Brown,” Jackson said.
At Ferguson Market and Liquor, according to a police report that was released Friday, an employee had seen Brown tell a clerk he wanted several boxes of cigars. The employees’ names were blacked out in the released report, which says in part:
“As (redacted) was placing the boxes on the counter, Brown grabbed a box of Swisher Sweets cigars and handed them to Johnson who was standing behind Brown. (Redacted) witnessed (redacted) tell Brown that he had to pay for those cigars first. That is when Brown reached across the counter and grabbed numerous packs of Swisher Sweets and turned to leave the store. (Redacted) then calls ‘911.’ Meanwhile (redacted) comes out from behind the counter and attempts to stop Brown from leaving. According to (redacted), (redacted) was trying to lock the door until Brown returned the merchandise to him. That is when Brown grabbed (redacted) by the shirt and forcefully pushed him back in to a display rack. (Redacted) backed away and Brown and Johnson exited the store with the cigars.”
Former St. Louis mayor Freeman Bosley Jr., who is representing Dorian Johnson, said his client did not dispute that Brown had taken the cigars. Dorian Johnson told authorities about the theft this week, Bosley said. “He told them about the cigarillos and that Big Mike took cigarillos,” Bosley said.
Jackson said his department decided against charging Dorian Johnson in the incident. “We determined he didn’t steal anything or use force,” Jackson said.
Store employees declined to talk with reporters Friday, but company lawyer Jay Kanzler said the owners “hope people understand they have nothing to do with the investigation. They want to remain part of the community, just like everyone else.”
He said the market’s owners will comply with a St. Louis County circuit court subpoena seeking the hard drive containing the video. Ferguson police had obtained a copy earlier.
Kanzler said a customer, not a store employee, summoned police during the alleged robbery.
Koran Addo, Kim Bell, Jessica Bock, Joel Currier, Stephen Deere, Steve Giegerich, Paul Hampel, Denise Hollinshed, Ken Leiser, Valerie Schremp Hahn, Tim O’Neil, all of the Post-Dispatch staff, contributed to this report.
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| Scene of shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown. |
Expert in police use of force says an officer would be on heightened alert when dealing with someone believed to be a felony suspect. Read more
NFL Hall of Famer Aeneas Williams visits Ferguson to "get the heartbeat of the community"
Williams said he wants to open a dialogue Read more
ACLU attains agreement for right to record police
The ACLU filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday Read more
Dick Gregory meets with crowd at QuikTrip
The civil rights activist is skeptical about timing of the release of the Michael Brown convenient story video.
FERGUSON • It was a day when the police released information both long-demanded and unexpected.
Here are Friday’s main developments in a week of internationally riveting strife, some of it violent and choked by tear gas, over the fatal shooting Aug. 9 of Michael Brown, an unarmed 18-year-old, by a Ferguson police officer:
• After days of demands that authorities release the officer’s name, Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson identified him as Darren Wilson, 28, who has been on the municipal force for four years. Jackson called Wilson a “gentle, quiet man, a distinguished officer” who was devastated by what happened.
• Jackson also released security video from a nearby convenience store that appears to show Brown stealing cigars shortly before he was killed. Lawyers for Brown’s family confirmed that the teen “appears” to be in the video but were furious by what they called a “character assassination.”
• Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ronald S. Johnson, who was handed the main law enforcement task Thursday after four nights of unrest, was irritated that Jackson released the video. “There was no need to release it,” Johnson said, calling the reported theft and the killing entirely different events.
• Johnson, who grew up in North County, continued his charm strategy on West Florissant, where his troopers were again barely in evidence Friday night — in stark contrast to the SWAT teams and armored cars of nights earlier in the week.
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced it will send agents to the neighborhood to interview witnesses of the shooting. The FBI is working with the Justice Department’s civil rights division and federal prosecutors. “We ask for the public’s cooperation and patience,” the FBI statement says.
After Thursday night’s relative calm, Friday began outside the looted and burned QuikTrip at 9240 West Florissant, ground zero for protests. Jackson opened a news conference where he was expected to release the name of the officer who shot Brown by discussing the robbery at a convenience store on West Florissant. He released incident reports and the video that appears to show Brown stealing cigars and shoving a employee at the store, which was identified later as Ferguson Market and Liquor, at 9101 West Florissant.
The store is barely a block from the apartment complex where Brown was killed. Police said Dorian Johnson, 22, who was Brown’s friend and a key witness to the shooting, also was at the liquor store.
Just north of the liquor store is the QuikTrip, which was looted and burned during the street riot late Sunday.
The release of the officer’s name — a major goal of police critics for days — almost became an afterthought with Jackson’s release of the video. Protesters and lawyers for Brown’s family responded angrily. Jackson followed with another news conference, followed by more public statements from the lawyers.
Family lawyers confirmed that Brown’s image was in the video but said it didn’t justify the shooting. Jackson further complicated the dispute by saying that Wilson, at least initially, stopped Brown and Dorian Johnson because they were blocking a street, not over the robbery.
Said Benjamin Crump, a lawyer from Florida who is representing Brown’s family, “It’s bad enough they assassinated him, and now they’re trying to assassinate his character.” Crump accused police of playing “the old game of smoke and mirrors.”
Daryl Parks, Crump’s law partner, said Brown appears to be in the security video but said it didn’t prove robbery. Crump represented the family of Trayvon Martin, who was shot to death in Sanford, Fla., in 2012.
Anthony Gray, a local lawyer for the family, added that Brown was killed while “displaying a universal sign of surrender” — his hands up, which has become the main pose of street protesters.
“We don’t care what happened before that point,” Gray said. “It’s irrelevant ... Why did you shoot this unarmed teenager who had his hands in the air, period?”
Gray said the family never called Brown “a perfect kid.” He warned protesters that, in viewing the video, “you may see images or depictions that don’t paint him in the most complimentary light.”
But he said the family was pleading for people not to renew Sunday night’s violence.
“Don’t take the bait from anybody who is trying to character-assassinate Mike,” he said. “Don’t take that and begin to riot, don’t take that and begin to loot. The family has made this clear.”
Citizen response was quick.
“I am incensed,” said Laura Keys, 50, of St. Louis. “I can’t believe this is the tactic they are using, bringing up a robbery to make the victim look like he was the person who created this whole mess.”
Jackson held a second news conference in the afternoon, justifying release of the video by saying that news organizations had been filing public-information requests for days for the incident reports.
“I had to,” he said of the release.
Told of the family’s reaction, Jackson said, “First, my heart goes out to the family. I can’t imagine what they are going through. We have given you everything that we have now … There is nothing else we have got.”
Jackson said Wilson was a police officer in neighboring Jennings for two years before joining Ferguson about four years ago.
Jackson described events before the Aug. 9 shooting, saying Wilson was at a sick call from 11:48 a.m. to about noon. At 11:51 a.m., a 911 caller reported a strong-arm robbery at a convenience store, Jackson said, and a brief description went over the radio a minute later.
Another officer went to the convenience store and a more detailed description went out a short time later. The robbery suspect was said to be heading toward the QuikTrip.
Wilson left the sick call and encountered Brown and Dorian Johnson at 12:01 p.m. in the 2900 block of Canfield Drive. In a follow-up interview, Jackson said he did not believe Wilson initially knew Brown might be connected to the robbery. He said Wilson stopped Brown and Johnson because they were walking in the street, but then noticed Brown had cigars, the items stolen in the robbery.
Sometime between then and 12:04 p.m., when a second officer arrived at the scene, Brown was fatally shot by Wilson on Canfield.
A supervisor arrived at 12:05 p.m., and the ambulance that had been at the nearby sick call came to the scene “immediately following the shooting,” to “assess Michael Brown,” Jackson said.
At Ferguson Market and Liquor, according to a police report that was released Friday, an employee had seen Brown tell a clerk he wanted several boxes of cigars. The employees’ names were blacked out in the released report, which says in part:
“As (redacted) was placing the boxes on the counter, Brown grabbed a box of Swisher Sweets cigars and handed them to Johnson who was standing behind Brown. (Redacted) witnessed (redacted) tell Brown that he had to pay for those cigars first. That is when Brown reached across the counter and grabbed numerous packs of Swisher Sweets and turned to leave the store. (Redacted) then calls ‘911.’ Meanwhile (redacted) comes out from behind the counter and attempts to stop Brown from leaving. According to (redacted), (redacted) was trying to lock the door until Brown returned the merchandise to him. That is when Brown grabbed (redacted) by the shirt and forcefully pushed him back in to a display rack. (Redacted) backed away and Brown and Johnson exited the store with the cigars.”
Former St. Louis mayor Freeman Bosley Jr., who is representing Dorian Johnson, said his client did not dispute that Brown had taken the cigars. Dorian Johnson told authorities about the theft this week, Bosley said. “He told them about the cigarillos and that Big Mike took cigarillos,” Bosley said.
Jackson said his department decided against charging Dorian Johnson in the incident. “We determined he didn’t steal anything or use force,” Jackson said.
Store employees declined to talk with reporters Friday, but company lawyer Jay Kanzler said the owners “hope people understand they have nothing to do with the investigation. They want to remain part of the community, just like everyone else.”
He said the market’s owners will comply with a St. Louis County circuit court subpoena seeking the hard drive containing the video. Ferguson police had obtained a copy earlier.
Kanzler said a customer, not a store employee, summoned police during the alleged robbery.
Koran Addo, Kim Bell, Jessica Bock, Joel Currier, Stephen Deere, Steve Giegerich, Paul Hampel, Denise Hollinshed, Ken Leiser, Valerie Schremp Hahn, Tim O’Neil, all of the Post-Dispatch staff, contributed to this report.
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