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Fury on streets following grand jury decision
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ENRAGED protesters set fire to buildings and cars and looted businesses in Ferguson after a grand jury decided not to indict a white police officer in the death of an unarmed black 18-year-old — one of America’s most racially charged cases in recent years.
Smoke billowed from some businesses yesterday morning and shattered glass covered the sidewalks in front of others, but the streets in Ferguson were mostly clear. At least 14 people were injured during the overnight protests.
There were 61 arrests in Ferguson overnight, many for burglary and trespassing, St Louis County Police spokesman Brian Schellman said. St Louis Mayor Francis Slay said there were 21 arrests in the city, where some protesters broke business windows.
The violence erupted despite pleas for calm from President Barack Obama and the family of the victim Michael Brown after prosecutors announced the officer faces no state criminal charges.
Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch said witnesses had given the grand jury inconsistent accounts of the shooting, including whether Brown’s hands were raised and whether he was stumbling or charging toward the police officer, Darren Wilson. Authorities later released Wilson’s own account of the shooting, in which he said Brown had punched him in the face and tried to grab his gun.
Speaking to reporters, McCulloch never mentioned that Brown was unarmed when he was killed.
As McCulloch read his statement, Michael Brown’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, sat atop a vehicle listening to a broadcast of the announcement. When she heard the decision, she burst into tears and began screaming before being whisked away by supporters.
The crowd with her then converged on the barricade where police in riot gear were standing. They pushed down the barricade and began pelting police with objects, including a bullhorn. Officers stood their ground.
Brown’s family released a statement saying they were “profoundly disappointed” but asked that the public “channel your frustration in ways that will make a positive change.”
Obama said it was understandable that some Americans would be angered, but echoed Brown’s parents in calling for peaceful protests. “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,” the president said.
About 10 St Louis-bound flights were diverted or canceled Monday night because of concern about gunfire being aimed into the sky, a Lambert-St Louis International Airport spokesman said, but the restrictions expired at 3:30am.
The Justice Department is conducting a separate investigation into possible civil rights violations that could result in federal charges, but investigators would need to satisfy a rigorous standard of proof in order to mount a prosecution.
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