Vandalism, looting in Missouri after Officer Shooting

[mamabearCali]

There are a bunch of people in that video that need to A. Pay serious restitution B. Go to jail for a while.

Why do they think this is acceptable? Why is it ok to tear up another persons business?

[cb1000rider]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

If this went down like advertised in page one, it should be a non-issue. Show the jury the camera footage that was in the car, evidence should show GSR in the vehicle and on the clothes of the person that was shot. Pretty simple.

However, if it didn't go down like that, there may very well be a problem. We don't know either way, because the PD isn't saying. Personally, I reserve judgement and have refrained from any local looting.

This is just another great example of how personal cameras can protect good police officers, promote the public trust, and generally straighten out bad behavior.

[Pawpaw]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

I disagree with you, somewhat, on that point. It is relevant because it possibly explains why Brown attacked the officer. It is very probable that Brown thought he was being stopped because of the robbery and that would explain why he attacked. He had just done the crime and could not know that the officer didn't know.

[mamabearCali]

Brown knew he had robbed the store. He likely thought he was about to be arrested. Hence his reaction. I think it is very relevant what had just happened before. It also shows his character. He roughed up
a clerk who merely confronted him over stolen goods.....what would he do to a LEO who Brown thought was about up arrest him for those goods.

Maybe he would punch the LEO in the face and break his eye socket.

What happened directly before is very relevant to Micheal Browns death.

[Excaliber]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

I disagree with you, somewhat, on that point. It is relevant because it possibly explains why Brown attacked the officer. It is very probable that Brown thought he was being stopped because of the robbery and that would explain why he attacked. He had just done the crime and could not know that the officer didn't know.

[cb1000rider]

vant because it possibly explains why Brown attacked the officer. It is very probable that Brown thought he was being stopped because of the robbery and that would explain why he attacked. He had just done the crime and could not know that the officer didn't know.

It might explain why an officer was attacked. Hopefully we'll see some evidence on that soon, it's odd to hold it back for so long.

I don't like death. I don't like looting. I do think we have significant reasons to be concerned about our police force, regardless of the color of your skin. To me, cameras would go a long way in forcing accountability into the issue.

[philip964]

http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014 ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

How a writer at the Boston Globe feels about the shooting. Oh and by the way this was printed on August 20, 2014 (today) not last week.

In case you have blood pressure problems, you probably shouldn't read it, that is, unless you find the shooting unjustified.

[Jim Beaux]

The bigot eric holder is/was in Ferguson & speaking from a position of anti LEO. He makes mention of his experiences as a young black male being disrespected by the law; as if that has anything to do with this specific incident. Really concerned that the LEO is going to be crucified.

[mamabearCali]

The local prosecutor is two step ahead of them. He already has convened a grand jury. He has already said it will take till October to get anywhere with the mountain of evidence that they have.

So, that makes it harder for the race vaulters to cry foul get him removed and a special political prosecuti brought in (a la the Zimmerman case). As GJ are secret it makes it harder to intimidate the jurors. It also means that perhaps just perhaps a bit of time and perspective may help calm things down.

I gotta say how much does one have to hate a town to incite its own residents to burn it down? How much do you have to hate a community to get them to destroy their own grocery stores?

[baldeagle]

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

The halls of justice are filled with the names of dead officers who didn't know the person they stopped for a simple traffic violation had just killed three people and was on the run. It goes to the state of mind of the person stopped and is completely relevant to the reason the officer was attacked and why he was forced to use deadly force.

If this went down like advertised in page one, it should be a non-issue. Show the jury the camera footage that was in the car, evidence should show GSR in the vehicle and on the clothes of the person that was shot. Pretty simple.

Unfortunately Ferguson PD had just acquired camera equipment and had not yet installed it in their patrol cars. (Bet they will now!) And their officers do not wear body cams.

[Vol Texan]

I gotta say how much does one have to hate a town to incite its own residents to burn it down? How much do you have to hate a community to get them to destroy their own grocery stores?

I tend to agree with you, but in this case, it's not the Ferguson people. Note the comment in this link:

http://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/cr ... -militants

Sources are now reporting that 78 people were arrested overnight on Monday, with just four of them being residents of Ferguson. 56 were from outside the city and 18 were from out of state.

[VMI77]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

If this went down like advertised in page one, it should be a non-issue. Show the jury the camera footage that was in the car, evidence should show GSR in the vehicle and on the clothes of the person that was shot. Pretty simple.

However, if it didn't go down like that, there may very well be a problem. We don't know either way, because the PD isn't saying. Personally, I reserve judgement and have refrained from any local looting.

This is just another great example of how personal cameras can protect good police officers, promote the public trust, and generally straighten out bad behavior.

The most suspicious thing I've heard so far are the dispatch recordings. After shooting Brown the officer did not call it in. The dispatcher called Ferguson and asked about the shooting after hearing about it on the news. Even then the department told the dispatcher they didn't know anything about it. This is apparently a very crappy place to live. Last year the town issued 3 arrest warrants PER HOUSEHOLD and assessed fines that amount to $130 for every man woman and child. Meaning a household of four would have paid an average $520 a year in fines. They start trials 30 minutes ahead of the scheduled time and then fine the defendants for appearing late. 50% of the town's revenue is account for by traffic tickets, or about $2.6 million.

Also, they had a case there where they arrested the wrong guy and charged him destruction of property because they got his blood on their shirts when they were beating him up in jail. There is something seriously wrong in this town. So, yeah, I don't know what happened in this particular incident, but there is apparently a culture of corruption in the city and in the police department that raises big questions.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

If this went down like advertised in page one, it should be a non-issue. Show the jury the camera footage that was in the car, evidence should show GSR in the vehicle and on the clothes of the person that was shot. Pretty simple.

However, if it didn't go down like that, there may very well be a problem. We don't know either way, because the PD isn't saying. Personally, I reserve judgement and have refrained from any local looting.

This is just another great example of how personal cameras can protect good police officers, promote the public trust, and generally straighten out bad behavior.

The most suspicious thing I've heard so far are the dispatch recordings. After shooting Brown the officer did not call it in. The dispatcher called Ferguson and asked about the shooting after hearing about it on the news. Even then the department told the dispatcher they didn't know anything about it. This is apparently a very crappy place to live. Last year the town issued 3 arrest warrants PER HOUSEHOLD and assessed fines that amount to $130 for every man woman and child. Meaning a household of four would have paid an average $520 a year in fines. They start trials 30 minutes ahead of the scheduled time and then fine the defendants for appearing late. 50% of the town's revenue is account for by traffic tickets, or about $2.6 million.

Also, they had a case there where they arrested the wrong guy and charged him destruction of property because they got his blood on their shirts when they were beating him up in jail. There is something seriously wrong in this town. So, yeah, I don't know what happened in this particular incident, but there is apparently a culture of corruption in the city and in the police department that raises big questions.

This is pretty damning. Do you have citations to reliable evidence? You are correct in that it has nothing to do with this shooting.

Chas.

[VMI77]

Brown was a towering hulk of a thug that had just robbed a store and assaulted the clerk. The video of the assault makes this absolutely clear. His buddy, the "witness," was his accomplice. How come Al and Jessie aren't in NJ protesting the treatment of the young black woman and single mother being persecuted for having a gun in her possession without a felony record?

Those facts aren't in dispute at all. However, apparently the officer didn't know any of that and they shouldn't be a factor in evaluation the shooting.

If this went down like advertised in page one, it should be a non-issue. Show the jury the camera footage that was in the car, evidence should show GSR in the vehicle and on the clothes of the person that was shot. Pretty simple.

However, if it didn't go down like that, there may very well be a problem. We don't know either way, because the PD isn't saying. Personally, I reserve judgement and have refrained from any local looting.

This is just another great example of how personal cameras can protect good police officers, promote the public trust, and generally straighten out bad behavior.

The most suspicious thing I've heard so far are the dispatch recordings. After shooting Brown the officer did not call it in. The dispatcher called Ferguson and asked about the shooting after hearing about it on the news. Even then the department told the dispatcher they didn't know anything about it. This is apparently a very crappy place to live. Last year the town issued 3 arrest warrants PER HOUSEHOLD and assessed fines that amount to $130 for every man woman and child. Meaning a household of four would have paid an average $520 a year in fines. They start trials 30 minutes ahead of the scheduled time and then fine the defendants for appearing late. 50% of the town's revenue is account for by traffic tickets, or about $2.6 million.

Also, they had a case there where they arrested the wrong guy and charged him destruction of property because they got his blood on their shirts when they were beating him up in jail. There is something seriously wrong in this town. So, yeah, I don't know what happened in this particular incident, but there is apparently a culture of corruption in the city and in the police department that raises big questions.

This is pretty damning. Do you have citations to reliable evidence? You are correct in that it has nothing to do with this shooting.

Chas.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2 ... y-lie.html

“On and/or about the 20th day of Sept. 20, 2009 at or near 222 S. Florissant within the corporate limits of Ferguson, Missouri, the above named defendant did then and there unlawfully commit the offense of ‘property damage’ to wit did transfer blood to the uniform,” reads the charge sheet.

http://www.newsweek.com/ferguson-profil ... ?piano_d=1

“Despite Ferguson’s relative poverty, fines and court fees comprise the second largest source of revenue for the city, a total of 2,635,400,” according to the ArchCity Defenders report. And in 2013, the Ferguson Municipal Court issued 24,532 arrest warrants and 12,018 cases, “or about 3 warrants and 1.5 cases per household.”

Exacerbating the problem, the report says, are "a number of operational procedures that make it even more difficult for defendants to navigate the courts." A Ferguson court employee reported, for example, that “the bench routinely starts hearing cases 30 minutes before the appointed time and then locks the doors to the building as early as five minutes after the official hour, a practice that could easily lead a defendant arriving even slightly late to receive an additional charge for failure to appear.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfSQyVC81vk (dispatch recordings)

Of course, given that the sources are the MSM I'm not gonna claim anything is reliable.

Edited to add: This video of spectators right after the shooting seems to corroborate the officer's account. Bad language.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/1F-ba5KwP_A

This witness undermines the officer's account:

https://www.youtube.com/embed/1F-ba5KwP_A

[stroo]

You do realize this has been edited by CNN and is not the Ferguson dispatcher, assuming there is one. But this is the St. Louis County dispatcher who may not have been involved up front in any case.