Oakland Protests Over Ferguson Decision Cause Havoc

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Oakland Protests Over Ferguson Decision Cause Havoc

OAKLAND, Calif. — Protesters angered by the grand jury decision in Ferguson, Missouri, disrupted Oakland on Monday in a slow-moving wave of unrest that halted traffic on freeways and impeded city streets in many directions. Vandals among the crowds that meandered for miles lit fires in trash cans and in streets, spray painted anti-police slogans on buildings and broke windows in a news van. The roaming demonstrations were in reaction to Officer Darren Wilson avoiding indictment for the killing of unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson. The event began with a mass “die-in” in which dozens of protesters lay at the intersection of 14th Street and Broadway, a frequent site for political protests. The protesters’ bodies were outlined in chalk on the street, as if it …

OAKLAND, Calif. — Protesters angered by the grand jury decision in Ferguson, Missouri, disrupted Oakland on Monday in a slow-moving wave of unrest that halted traffic on freeways and impeded city streets in many directions.

Vandals among the crowds that meandered for miles lit fires in trash cans and in streets, spray painted anti-police slogans on buildings and broke windows in a news van.

The roaming demonstrations were in reaction to Officer Darren Wilson avoiding indictment for the killing of unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson. The event began with a mass “die-in” in which dozens of protesters lay at the intersection of 14th Street and Broadway, a frequent site for political protests. The protesters’ bodies were outlined in chalk on the street, as if it were the site of a huge crime scene.

“I’m here to be heard. No more stolen lives,” said Cadine Williams, 34, whose brother, O’Shaine Evans was killed by San Francisco police in October. “Why is one life worth more than somebody else’s?”

The march meandered from near Oakland’s city hall through Chinatown and to residential neighborhoods on the north side of Lake Merritt.

Phrases like, “No justice. No peace. No racist police,” and, “Shut it down for Michael Brown” were rhythmically chanted as attendees snaked around the city. Fireworks exploding in midair sent protesters ducking for cover at one point. Police gave marchers a wide berth in the early portion of the evening.

North of the lake, the crowds brought traffic to a standstill in both directions on I-580, an important east-west freeway. For roughly an hour, cars barely moved as police in riot gear slowly drove back the demonstrators under threat of arrest.

Many inconvenienced drivers expressed support for the crowd that had engulfed them.

“I’m okay. I support [these] guys,” said Ivan Ho, 29, a driver for a Chinese restaurant who was attempting to deliver an order. “But I feel bad for my customer who’s still waiting.”

Oakland is no stranger to civil disobedience and unrest. There was violence there in July 2013 following George Zimmerman’s acquittal for killing Trayvon Martin.

The name Oscar Grant was on many people’s lips. The unarmed black man’s killing by transit cop Johannes Mehserle led to demonstrations. Mehserle was convicted in 2011 of involuntary manslaughter, a count many thought was too light.

“I’m happy to see so many people care, but this is small,” James Berk, 23, said about Monday’s gathering. Berk carried his 11-year-old sister on his back so she’d be part of it. “A lot of people in America are not surprised [by the grand jury decision] and it makes them less motivated.”

The Oakland police department didn’t immediately respond to inquiries about arrests and the extent of damage.

But they reported graffiti on a patrol car and a broken bank window, as well as some arrests, according to KCRA.

Some shops near the starting point of the action had boarded up their windows in anticipation of trouble later in the night. A sign on a T-Mobile store apologized for closing early “due to the Ferguson trial.”

It was near the starting point that vandals, some with bandanas or masks covering their faces, spray painted “Fuck the police” on walls and used cigarette lighters to ignite small fires in garbage cans along the route.

“That’s how we express ourselves,” said one teen who was seen starting three of the small blazes.

Darren Wilson Not Indicted | Photos Of Darren Wilson’s Injuries Released | Shooting Witness Admitted Racism In Journal | Darren Wilson’s Statement Doesn’t Mention Michael Brown | Reactions To Ferguson Decision | Protesters’ Open Letter | Prosecutor Gives Bizarre Press Conference | Obama Address Ferguson Decision | Notable Black Figures React | Politicians React | Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’ | Al Sharpton Calls Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’ | Ferguson Erupts In Protest | Thousands Protest Nationwide |

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Oakland Protests Over Ferguson Decision Cause Havoc

Ferguson Police: 61 Arrested Following Grand Jury’s Decision

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FERGUSON, Mo., Nov 25 (Reuters) – Some 61 people were arrested during a night of unrest in the St. Louis suburbs following a grand jury’s decision not to charge a white police officer for the fatal August shooting of an unarmed black teen, the St. Louis County Police Department said on Tuesday. People were arrested on charges ranging from unlawful assembly to arson and burglary during a night when angry crowds set fires to buildings and cars and looted businesses, while police responded with tear gas and flash-bang canisters. (Reporting by Edward McAllister; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Bill Trott)

FERGUSON, Mo., Nov 25 (Reuters) – Some 61 people were arrested during a night of unrest in the St. Louis suburbs following a grand jury’s decision not to charge a white police officer for the fatal August shooting of an unarmed black teen, the St. Louis County Police Department said on Tuesday.

People were arrested on charges ranging from unlawful assembly to arson and burglary during a night when angry crowds set fires to buildings and cars and looted businesses, while police responded with tear gas and flash-bang canisters. (Reporting by Edward McAllister; Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Bill Trott)

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Ferguson Police: 61 Arrested Following Grand Jury’s Decision

Most Police Shootings Don’t End With Prosecutions

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Most Police Shootings Don’t End With Prosecutions

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Missouri grand jury’s decision to spare police officer Darren Wilson from criminal charges makes his case the latest in a long line of police shootings that show the latitude that the law and the courts give law enforcement in using deadly force. The question for the panel that decided the case was never whether Wilson fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown, but rather whether the Aug. 9 killing constituted a crime. In declining to indict Wilson, the grand jury reached a conclusion that is far more the norm than the exception. “For a cop to be indicted and especially to be convicted later of a…

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Missouri grand jury’s decision to spare police officer Darren Wilson from criminal charges makes his case the latest in a long line of police shootings that show the latitude that the law and the courts give law enforcement in using deadly force.

The question for the panel that decided the case was never whether Wilson fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown, but rather whether the Aug. 9 killing constituted a crime. In declining to indict Wilson, the grand jury reached a conclusion that is far more the norm than the exception. “For a cop to be indicted and especially to be convicted later of a crime in these kinds of situations is very, very unusual,” said Chuck Drago, a police practices consultant and former police chief in Oviedo, Florida.

States and police departments have developed their own policies that generally permit officers to use force when they reasonably fear imminent physical harm. The Supreme Court shaped the national standard in a 1989 decision that said the use of force must be evaluated through the “perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene” rather than being judged after the fact. That means officers are often given the benefit of the doubt by prosecutors and grand jurors reluctant to second-guess their decisions.

Many of the cases that don’t result in charges involve armed suspects shot during confrontations with police. But even an officer who repeatedly shoots an unarmed person, as was the case in Ferguson, may avoid prosecution in cases where he contends he felt at imminent risk.

“A police officer is not like a normal citizen who discharges their weapon. There is a presumption that somebody who is a peace officer, and is thereby authorized to use lethal force, used it correctly,” said Lori Lightfoot, a Chicago lawyer who used to investigate police shootings for the police department there.

But even though police are legally empowered to use deadly force when appropriate, Lightfoot said an officer’s perception of danger can be strongly influenced by the race of a suspect, particularly in a community like Ferguson, where an overwhelmingly white department patrols a majority-black city.

“Take any environment you live in — if there’s not diversity in your workplace, that is a void in your experience,” she said.

The Ferguson shooting followed a skirmish that began when Wilson told Brown and a friend to move from the street onto the sidewalk. St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch said Monday the two men fought inside Wilson’s car and said Wilson shot Brown multiple times after Brown charged at the officer. In explaining the grand jury’s decision, McCulloch cited what he said were inconsistent and erroneous witness accounts.

The Justice Department is continuing to investigate the shooting for evidence of a potential civil rights violation, and federal investigators are relying on the same evidence and witness statements as the grand jury. But they face a higher burden of proof to establish whether Wilson willfully deprived Brown of his civil rights. That standard has been tough to satisfy in past high-profile shootings. Federal prosecutors, for example, declined this year to charge officers who fatally shot an unarmed woman with a baby in her back seat after a high-speed car chase from the White House to the U.S. Capitol.

It’s hard to know how often police use force. A federal Bureau of Justice Statistics study found that an estimated 1.4 percent of the nearly 60,000 U.S. residents who reported having contact with police in 2008 said the officers used or threatened to use force against them.

Some cases do result in criminal charges. A Charlotte-Mecklenburg, North Carolina, police officer was indicted in January in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man who wrecked his vehicle and apparently knocked on the front door of a home seeking help. Thinking incorrectly that the man was trying to break into her home, the homeowner called police. Three officers responded and one shot the unarmed victim, authorities say.

But far more often officers aren’t prosecuted.

A grand jury in Ohio, for instance, declined to indict a police officer who in August shot a man carrying an air rifle inside a Wal-Mart. And in May, an Alabama grand jury declined to indict an officer who shot and wounded an Air Force airman he pulled over on the highway. The police chief said the officer shot the man after he got out of his car based on a perceived threat.

Geoffrey Alpert, a University of South Carolina criminologist, said only a “small tip” of police shootings are considered so outrageous as to merit criminal charges. An absence of prosecution, he said, does not mean that an officer did a good job or should not face a wrongful-death lawsuit. But criminal charges are a different burden.

“He may not do (his job) well, and he may have made a mistake, but it’s not like he woke up in the morning and said, ‘I’m going to go out and kill someone,'” Alpert said.

____

Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP

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Most Police Shootings Don’t End With Prosecutions

Ferguson Unrest Takes Over Newspaper Front Pages Across The Country

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Ferguson Unrest Takes Over Newspaper Front Pages Across The Country

The violence that erupted in Ferguson following the announcement that a grand jury would not indict police officer Darren Wilson for the shooting death of Michael Brown has taken over front pages of newspapers across the country this morning. The St. Louis Post Dispatch went through several editions as the story evolved during the night. Here’s their first edition: Tomorrow’s front page, first edition. #Ferguson pic.twitter.com/ufLNXuUH9o November 25, 2014 Hours later, the front page had been updated: Front page of the third edition for Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014. pic.twitter.com/cxbr4NHXcI November 25, 2014 Here’s a look at how the unrest in Ferguson was featured on front pages around the nation, starting with the Kansas City…

The violence that erupted in Ferguson following the announcement that a grand jury would not indict police officer Darren Wilson for the shooting death of Michael Brown has taken over front pages of newspapers across the country this morning.

The St. Louis Post Dispatch went through several editions as the story evolved during the night. Here’s their first edition:

Hours later, the front page had been updated:

Here’s a look at how the unrest in Ferguson was featured on front pages around the nation, starting with the Kansas City Star:

USA Today:

Tampa Bay Times:

Chicago Sun-Times

Washington Post:

The New York Times:

New York Post:

New York Daily News:

While many front pages featured photos of burning cars and buildings, there’s one image that many on Twitter believe should have been used instead. This post was retweeted thousands of times during the night:

More On Ferguson From HuffPost:

Darren Wilson Not Indicted | Photos Of Darren Wilson’s Injuries Released | Shooting Witness Admitted Racism In Journal | Darren Wilson’s Statement Doesn’t Mention Michael Brown | Reactions To Ferguson Decision | Protesters’ Open Letter | Prosecutor Gives Bizarre Press Conference | Obama Address Ferguson Decision | Notable Black Figures React | Politicians React | Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’ | Al Sharpton Calls Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’ | Ferguson Erupts In Protest | Thousands Protest Nationwide |

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Ferguson Unrest Takes Over Newspaper Front Pages Across The Country

Police Officials Condemn Ferguson Protests

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Police Officials Condemn Ferguson Protests

WASHINGTON — Police officials condemned the actions of protesters following a grand jury’s decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson for killing Mike Brown. Speaking at a press conference early Tuesday morning, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said that there had been 29 arrests so far and that a dozen buildings had been set on fire in Ferguson, most of which were “total losses.” Belmar said that he was “disappointed in this evening,” and that he didn’t see a lot of peaceful protests following Monday’s grand jury decision. “What I’ve seen tonight is probably much worse than the worst night we had in August,” he said, referring to …

WASHINGTON — Police officials condemned the actions of protesters following a grand jury’s decision not to indict Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson for killing Mike Brown.

Speaking at a press conference early Tuesday morning, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said that there had been 29 arrests so far and that a dozen buildings had been set on fire in Ferguson, most of which were “total losses.”

Belmar said that he was “disappointed in this evening,” and that he didn’t see a lot of peaceful protests following Monday’s grand jury decision.

“What I’ve seen tonight is probably much worse than the worst night we had in August,” he said, referring to the protests that followed the killing. Even so, he said that some protesters were in the streets Monday evening for “the right reason.”

“There are protesters out here who are out here for the right reason. Tonight it just didn’t seem that way,” he said.

Belmar said that he had personally heard 150 gunshots on Monday, but said not a single one had been fired by police. He added that he believed even 10,000 police wouldn’t have been able to prevent the kind of destruction that occurred on Monday.

Missouri Highway Patrol Chief Ron Johnson said that the protests on Monday had hurt the Ferguson community.

“Those are dreams. Those are small business owners. We’ve torn those dreams away,” Johnson said, referring to the numerous businesses that were destroyed on Monday.

“Our community has to take responsibility for what happened tonight,” Johnson said. “We definitely have done something here that is gonna impact our community for a long time.”

“That’s not how we create change,” he said.

Additional reporting by Mollie Reilly, Ed Mazza and Andrew Hart.

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Police Officials Condemn Ferguson Protests

Protesters Shut Down Three New York City Bridges In Reaction To Ferguson Decision

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Protesters Shut Down Three New York City Bridges In Reaction To Ferguson Decision

NEW YORK — Thousands of protesters stormed New York City streets Monday night, shutting down at least three bridges and snarling traffic in response to a grand jury’s decision not to indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who fatally shot unarmed teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, last August. Hordes of New Yorkers marched from Union Square to Times Square, up FDR Drive and across the Triboro, Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, shouting chants of “You say get back, we say fight back!” and “Whose streets? Our streets!” By 1:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, authorities had shut down all three bridges: March sitting in on the bridge. #ferguson pic.twitter.com/BMnFm7lYrE November 25, 2014 Protestors in NYC have taken the Brooklyn Bridge roadway…

NEW YORK — Thousands of protesters stormed New York City streets Monday night, shutting down at least three bridges and snarling traffic in response to a grand jury’s decision not to indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who fatally shot unarmed teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, last August.

Hordes of New Yorkers marched from Union Square to Times Square, up FDR Drive and across the Triboro, Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, shouting chants of “You say get back, we say fight back!” and “Whose streets? Our streets!” By 1:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, authorities had shut down all three bridges:

In Times Square, a protester was arrested after splattering NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton with fake blood. There were a number of other arrests, and other officers suffered minor injuries, reports said.

The decision not to indict Wilson resonated with many New Yorkers who were also angry about the recent police killing of Akai Gurley, an unarmed 28-year-old who was shot to death last Friday by a rookie NYPD officer in the stairwell of a Brooklyn public housing project. On Tuesday, a number of protesters carried signs bearing Gurley’s photograph alongside calls to “end police terrorism from NYC to Ferguson.”

Other demonstrators invoked the image of Eric Garner, the Staten Island father who was also unarmed when he died in a police chokehold last July after being arrested for illegally selling cigarettes.

Protesters in Union Square thought the Ferguson decision represented part of a larger problem and that they had no plans to stop demonstrating any time soon. “Innocent people are routinely shot, and these people are young, black and male,” Michael Chou, 24, told The Huffington Post. “I will protest as long as it’s needed to make a point about that.”

Anta Toure, 19, agreed. “If the cops protected the people, like they’re supposed to, then Michael Brown would still be alive,” she said. “I won’t stop protesting until I see some sort of change. I’ll protest at my university, at my job, wherever I see some space.”

A few hours before the grand jury decision Monday night, another group of protesters gathered outside NYU Law School to call for Bratton’s resignation. They said the commissioner’s “broken windows” policing — the strategy of aggressively targeting lesser crimes as a means of deterring more serious crimes — unfairly targets minorities and leads to the deaths of unarmed black men like Gurley and Garner.

“The lives of people of color, young black men of color, young women of color, poor people — they are not respected and valued by the NYPD,” said Josmar Truillo, of New Yorkers Against Bratton. He pointed to the police-involved deaths in 1994 of Nicholas Heyward Jr. and Anthony Baez as proof that nothing has changed over the last 20 years. Heyward Jr., an unarmed black teenager, was killed in a public housing project stairwell, just like Gurley. Baez died after being put into a chokehold, just like Garner.

“Connecting the dots between Brooklyn, Staten island and Ferguson is exactly what the mayor of this city does not want us to do and that’s something we must make sure happens,” Trujillo said, noting that Mayor Bill de Blasio only last week said that Gurley’s death appeared to be an “accident,” and shouldn’t be compared to other instances of alleged police brutality.

During a press conference Monday evening, the Rev. Al Sharpton discussed Gurley and Garner’s killings as they related to the Ferguson grand jury’s failure to indict Wilson. “Let it be clear. We are dealing with the same attitudes in Ferguson right here in the city,” Sharpton said from his office in New York, where he was joined by Garner’s family. “It was expected, but still an absolute blow to those of us that wanted to see a fair and open trial.”

More On Ferguson From HuffPost:

Darren Wilson Not Indicted | Photos Of Darren Wilson’s Injuries Released | Shooting Witness Admitted Racism In Journal | Darren Wilson’s Statement Doesn’t Mention Michael Brown | Reactions To Ferguson Decision | Protesters’ Open Letter | Prosecutor Gives Bizarre Press Conference | Obama Address Ferguson Decision | Notable Black Figures React | Politicians React | Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’ | Al Sharpton Calls Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’ | Ferguson Erupts In Protest | Thousands Protest Nationwide |

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Protesters Shut Down Three New York City Bridges In Reaction To Ferguson Decision

Darren Wilson Testimony: Michael Brown Looked Like ‘A Demon’

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Darren Wilson Testimony: Michael Brown Looked Like ‘A Demon’

WASHINGTON — Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson told a grand jury that Michael Brown looked like a “demon” during the confrontation that ultimately left the teenager dead, according to testimony released on Monday. Court documents containing Wilson’s testimony were made public shortly after a grand jury decided not to indict the officer for killing Brown, 18, who was unarmed at the time of his death. In his testimony, Wilson portrays Brown as overpowering and aggressive, using phrases like “Hulk Hogan” to describe the 6-foot-4 teen, who was known among relatives and friends as a “gentle giant.” “And when I grabbed him, the only way I can describe it is I felt like a five-year-old holding onto Hulk Hogan,”…

WASHINGTON — Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson told a grand jury that Michael Brown looked like a “demon” during the confrontation that ultimately left the teenager dead, according to testimony released on Monday.

Court documents containing Wilson’s testimony were made public shortly after a grand jury decided not to indict the officer for killing Brown, 18, who was unarmed at the time of his death. In his testimony, Wilson portrays Brown as overpowering and aggressive, using phrases like “Hulk Hogan” to describe the 6-foot-4 teen, who was known among relatives and friends as a “gentle giant.”

“And when I grabbed him, the only way I can describe it is I felt like a five-year-old holding onto Hulk Hogan,” Wilson said of his struggle with Brown. “That’s just how big he felt and how small I felt just from grasping his arm.” Wilson told grand jurors that when he and Brown struggled over the officer’s gun, Brown “had the most intense aggressive face. The only way I can describe it, it looks like a demon, that’s how angry he looked.”

Wilson’s testimony largely reiterates the version of events he provided to the St. Louis County Police Department the day after he fatally shot Brown in August. As in previous reports, Wilson said he encountered Brown and his friend Dorian Johnson walking in the middle of the street. A confrontation followed when Brown refused Wilson’s request to walk on the sidewalk. In his testimony, Wilson also said he identified Brown as a possible robbery suspect based on a dispatch he heard earlier.

In his testimony, Wilson repeatedly refers to what he calls “aggression” from Brown that he said led to a struggle and then fatal shooting. “The intense face he had was just not what I expected from any of this,” Wilson said, recalling that Brown punched him through the window of his car.

“I felt that another one of those punches in my face could knock me out or worse,” Wilson said. “I mean it was, he’s obviously bigger than I was and stronger and the, I’ve already taken two to the face and I didn’t think he would, the third one could be fatal if he hit me right …Or at least unconscious and then who knows what would happen to me after that.”

The testimony also reveals that Wilson did not carry a taser and typically doesn’t because “it is not the most comfortable thing.” He told the grand jury he was carrying mace, a baton and a flashlight, but chose not to reach for them because he was trying to shield himself from Brown and did not believe non-lethal options would be “effective.”

His gun, he said, was “the only option,” adding that he warned Brown to get back or he would shoot. According to Wilson, Brown responded by grabbing the gun and telling the officer, “You are too much of a pussy to shoot me.”

Wilson said after a couple of unsuccessful attempts, he fired two shots from his car, prompting Brown to run from the vehicle. Wilson said he then got out of the car, called for backup and pursued Brown.

“He made like a grunting, like aggravated sound and comes back toward me,” Wilson said of Brown’s reaction.

He added that he told Brown to get on the ground, and fired the fatal shots when the teenager charged him.

“At this point it looked like he was almost bulking up to run through the shots, like it was making him mad that I’m shooting at him,” Wilson said. “And the face that he had was looking straight through me, like I wasn’t even there, I wasn’t even anything in his way.”

“I shoot a series of shots,” Wilson added. “I don’t know how many I shot, I just know I shot it.”

Wilson fired 12 shots. Photos released of the officer after the grand jury’s decision on Monday show some bruising on his face and the back of his neck, but no serious injuries.

Several eyewitnesses have disputed the notion that Brown charged at Wilson. Although they support that a confrontation occurred, some eyewitnesses said Brown looked like he was trying to surrender and had his hands in the air when Wilson fatally shot him.

Brown’s death prompted massive demonstrations in Ferguson and reopened a discussion on law enforcement and racial profiling. Protests erupted once again on Monday night when it was announced that Wilson would not be indicted.

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Darren Wilson Testimony: Michael Brown Looked Like ‘A Demon’

Ferguson Grand Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’

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Ferguson Grand Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’

After the Ferguson grand jury voted not to indict officer Darren Wilson for killing Michael Brown, Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch released a trove of evidence presented to the jury. One of documents released to the public was the testimony of “Witness 16,” who said she saw Brown get shot by Wilson while the 18-year-old had his “Hands in the air.” “By the time that I saw him have his hands in the air, he got shot,” the witness said. “I heard two shots like specifically in my head I saw those two shots. And he dropped down like kinda drop hands first, then knee, then face and everything else.” The witness also said she never…

After the Ferguson grand jury voted not to indict officer Darren Wilson for killing Michael Brown, Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch released a trove of evidence presented to the jury.

One of documents released to the public was the testimony of “Witness 16,” who said she saw Brown get shot by Wilson while the 18-year-old had his “Hands in the air.”

“By the time that I saw him have his hands in the air, he got shot,” the witness said. “I heard two shots like specifically in my head I saw those two shots. And he dropped down like kinda drop hands first, then knee, then face and everything else.”

The witness also said she never saw Brown move toward Wilson “at any time.”

Another witness, apparently one of Brown’s friends, told a similar story.

“I seen my best friend in the middle of the street with his hands in the air and he said, ‘Please don’t shoot me.’ The officer got out of his car and shot him,” Witness 35 said. “I seen him in the middle of the street with his hands up. I seen an officer. I couldn’t even tell you what the man looked like. I seen him exit his car, shoot him in his head and then he shot him eight more times.”

Witness 35 said Wilson told his cousin to “run for his life” and then shot Brown in the head.

“Police cruiser was right behind him and Michael Brown was right there with his hands up and the officer was in front of him, like he got out of the car. He had, he got out of his car and walked up to him and looked him in his eye and he told my cousin to run for his life and he shot [Brown] In his head.”

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Ferguson Grand Jury Witness: ‘By The Time I Saw His Hands In The Air, He Got Shot’

CNN Anchor Almost Hit By Tear Gas In Ferguson

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CNN Anchor Almost Hit By Tear Gas In Ferguson

Shortly after a grand jury decided not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson for killing 18-year-old Michael Brown, a series of tear gas explosions hit protesters and journalists covering the scene. CNN’s Chris Cuomo was nearly struck by tear gas coming from the direction of law enforcement officers. Watch the video above.

Shortly after a grand jury decided not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson for killing 18-year-old Michael Brown, a series of tear gas explosions hit protesters and journalists covering the scene.

CNN’s Chris Cuomo was nearly struck by tear gas coming from the direction of law enforcement officers. Watch the video above.

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CNN Anchor Almost Hit By Tear Gas In Ferguson

Al Sharpton Calls Ferguson Grand Jury Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’

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Al Sharpton Calls Ferguson Grand Jury Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’

 

Rev. Al Sharpton addressed the public Monday evening and spoke out against a grand jury’s decision to not indict police officer Darren Wilson in the killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown. “This is one case. You have another case with [Akai] Gurley,” Sharpton said, referring to the unarmed black man who was accidentally killed last week by a police officer conducting a sweep through a Brooklyn housing project. Both cases exemplify the concerns many African-Americans have towards law enforcement in regards to racial profiling and police brutality. Sharpton was joined by the family of Eric Garner, a Staten Island man who died in …

Rev. Al Sharpton addressed the public Monday evening and spoke out against a grand jury’s decision to not indict police officer Darren Wilson in the killing of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

“This is one case. You have another case with [Akai] Gurley,” Sharpton said, referring to the unarmed black man who was accidentally killed last week by a police officer conducting a sweep through a Brooklyn housing project.

Both cases exemplify the concerns many African-Americans have towards law enforcement in regards to racial profiling and police brutality.

Sharpton was joined by the family of Eric Garner, a Staten Island man who died in July after being placed in a chokehold by a police officer. Garner’s family members are currently waiting for a grand jury to decide whether the officer involved should face charges.

“Let it be clear. We are dealing with the same attitudes in Ferguson right here in the city,” Sharpton said. “It was expected, but still an absolute blow to those of us that wanted to see a fair and open trial.”

Tensions have been high since Brown’s Aug. 9 shooting, as thousands of protesters have rallied in Ferguson and around the nation, speaking out against harmful police tactics and racial profiling.

Brown’s parents asked for 4 and a half minutes of silence immediately following the announcement of the grand jury’s decision, to represent the 4 and a half hours Brown’s body lay in the street after he was shot.

Brown family attorney Benjamin Crump said Monday that if the grand jury decided to not indict Wilson, the family would look to file federal charges against him. Crump admitted that such cases usually include “very high standards” and that a favorable outcome is “not very likely.”

“The family understands that if there is no indictment, the killer of their child won’t be held accountable — and that is heartbreaking to them,” Crump said.

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Al Sharpton Calls Ferguson Grand Jury Decision ‘Expected, But Still An Absolute Blow’

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