Vandalism, Looting After Black Teen Killed By Animal Control

[Q. A. Sharpton]

Animals with orange and fecal colored hair. Animals that foul
their own nests. Animals who steal from themselves.

FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) � A candlelight vigil for a young unarmed
black man who was fatally shot by a suburban St. Louis police
officer was followed by unrest as crowds looted and burned
stores, vandalized vehicles and taunted officers who tried to
block access to parts of the city.

Nearly three dozen people were arrested after tensions erupted
following a candlelight vigil Sunday night for 18-year-old
Michael Brown, who police said was unarmed when he was shot
multiple times Saturday in a scuffle with an officer in Ferguson.

The investigation into what led to the shooting was ongoing, but
Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson told The Associated Press on
Monday that the FBI was taking over the case and that he
welcomed the move.

Streets upended on Sunday night were relatively quiet early
Monday, with some debris littering the area but crowds largely
dispersed.

St. Louis County police spokesman Brian Schellman said 32 people
were arrested for various infractions including assault,
burglary and theft. Schellman said two officers suffered minor
injuries and that there were no reports of civilians hurt.

Several businesses were looted, including a check-cashing store,
a boutique and a small grocery store. People took items from a
sporting goods store and a cellphone retailer, and carted rims
away from a tire store. Some climbed atop police cars as the
officers with riot shields and batons stood stoic nearby, trying
to restrict access to the most seriously affected areas.

Deanel Trout, a 14-year resident of Ferguson, said he was
convinced the troublemakers were largely from outside Ferguson
and that they had used Brown's death and the vigil as an
opportunity to steal.

"Most came here for a peaceful protest but it takes one bad
apple to spoil the bunch. ... I can understand the anger and
unrest but I can't understand the violence and looting," Trout,
53, said.

St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley said there were no
reports of injuries as of about 11 p.m. But there were scattered
reports of assaults into the very early morning. Pat Washington,
a spokeswoman for Dooley, said tear gas had been used.
Authorities would not immediately confirm media reports of
gunfire.

"The small group of people are creating a huge mess," Mayor
James Knowles said. "Contributing to the unrest that is going on
is not going to help. ... We're only hurting ourselves, only
hurting our community, hurting our neighbors."

County Police Chief Jon Belmar said that on Saturday, an officer
encountered Brown and another man outside an apartment complex
in Ferguson. One of the men pushed the officer into his squad
car and they struggled. Belmar said at least one shot was fired
from the officer's gun inside the police car. Ferguson Police
Chief Tom Jackson said authorities were still sorting out what
happened inside the police car. It was not clear if Brown was
the man who fought with the officer.

The struggle spilled out into the street, where Brown was shot
multiple times. Belmar said the exact number of shots wasn't
known and that all shell casings at the scene matched the
officer's gun. Police were investigating why the officer shot
Brown, who police have confirmed was unarmed.

Jackson said the second person has not been arrested or charged
and it wasn't clear if he was armed.

Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson told KSDK-TV there's no video
footage of the shooting from the apartment complex, or from any
police cruiser dashboard cameras or body-worn cameras that the
department recently bought but hasn't yet put to use.

Jackson said blood samples were taken from Brown and the officer
who shot him. Toxicology tests can take weeks to complete.

Earlier Sunday, a few hundred protesters gathered outside
Ferguson Police headquarters. Some marched into an adjacent
police building chanting "Don't shoot me" while holding their
hands in the air. Officers stood at the top of a staircase, but
didn't use force; the crowd eventually left.

Brown's mother, Lesley McSpadden, said she didn't understand why
police didn't subdue her high school graduate son with a club or
stun gun, and that the officer involved should be fired and
prosecuted.

"I would like to see him go to jail with the death penalty," she
said, fighting back tears.

The killing drew criticism from some civil rights leaders, who
referred to the 2012 racially charged shooting of 17-year-old
Trayvon Martin by a Florida neighborhood watch organizer who was
acquitted of murder charges.

"We're outraged because yet again a young African-American man
has been killed by law enforcement," said John Gaskin, who
serves on both the St. Louis County and national boards of
directors for the NAACP.

Ferguson's population of about 21,000 people is almost 70
percent black. The race of the officer has not been disclosed.
He has been placed on paid administrative leave.

St. Louis County Police Department is in charge of the
investigation, and Dooley said he will request an FBI
investigation. The U.S. Justice Department said Attorney General
Eric Holder instructed staff to monitor developments.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/11/micheal-
brown_n_5667711.html

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