Remember Mike Brown?

Here is the story of Michael Brown’s murder that we all believed: One sunny day in Ferguson, Mo., a huge behemoth of a man named Michael Brown walked into a convenience store; committed a strong-arm robbery, escaping with the invaluable loot of a pack of cigarillos; and while he was walking home, Darren Wilson, a brave cop responding to the robbery, stopped him.

When Wilson tried to detain Brown, Brown reached for the cop’s gun and the policeman shot him. But Brown wouldn’t quit, and the officer thought that Brown might have a weapon, so Wilson shot a few more times to stop Brown from harming him.

[...]

After a documentarian released video this past weekend that dispels the myth of the Mike Brown corner-store robbery, more information is emerging about the n-word-using patrolman who was accused of racial discrimination and excessive force even before he pumped at least six bullets into Brown on Aug. 9, 2014, killing him. New court papers reveal that Brown never tried to take the officer’s gun, never struck the officer and did not initiate any contact with Wilson, who was cleared of wrongdoing by a secret grand jury in November 2014.

[...]

In a court docket filed Dec. 28, the cop who killed Brown admitted to using racial slurs, cursing at Brown before he was killed and grabbing him without provocation.

[...]

The next part of the testimony will confound the conservatives who stated that Wilson did not shoot Brown in the back. Wilson admits that after the first shot, Brown started running away from him and he fired another shot, which missed Brown.

[...]

Wilson agrees that after the second bullet was fired, the teen turned around, faced the officer and—although Wilson was trained in “defensive tactics and techniques”—began shooting as soon as Brown started running toward him.

He fired 10 times.

After shooting Brown in the face, Wilson kept firing, shooting him again in the top of the head.

[...]

I’m sure this news will comfort the family, friends and loved ones of Brown, who only got 18 years on this earth, while the man who shot him rests comfortably in the free house he bought with the $500,000 in donations he received from supporters, who rewarded him for shooting the teen.
  The Root

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

It May Be June, But's It's Cold in St. Louis

Very cold.

He's proud of this. Two things:

And...

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Michael Brown Legacy

St. Louis has developed a plan to change:


PIER "Making a Safe City"

"Why"?

We're a nation of violent racists?

Law enforcement officials are still probing who is responsible for six recent church fires in north St Louis. The members of St Augustine Catholic Church are equally concerned with “why”.

The church, which was the site of a fire on 14 October, was the third of six predominantly African American churches to be targeted. All the churches are within a few miles of each other, and near Ferguson, Missouri.

[...]

St Louis police chief Sam Dotson told reporters Wednesday that it is “frustrating” that a suspect hasn’t been found yet, “even though we’re two weeks into this investigation”.

“We really don’t have any solid information above motive,” Dotson said. “We don’t have any real solid information about suspects.”

  Guardian

Wo, Is Missouri the New "Wild West"?

https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2015/04/08/how-st-louis-police-robbed-my-family/

At Least One More Should Probably Be Fired for Stupidity

In Ferguson, Missouri, racist emails amongst a court clerk and police officials (all of whom have either been fired or resigned after the publication of some of the emails) have been slowly coming out. Some are reprinted here.

 In addition,

Some 50,000 emails also reviewed by the DOJ remain unavailable to the public. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch quoted an estimate of $43,750 by the city clerk to redact private information from the emails in compliance with the state’s public record laws. Ferguson’s city attorney, Stephanie Karr, would have to redact an estimated 200 emails an hour, at the hourly rate of $175, plus a deposit and copy fee.

  RT

That’s a pretty good hourly wage.

Karr herself was named in the DOJ report for dismissing a traffic ticket issued to Ferguson municipal court judge Ronald Brockmeyer, who has since resigned his position in Ferguson and four other jurisdictions.

[...]

“I don’t think the taxpayers of the city of Ferguson should bear the financial burden,” of the FOIA request, Karr said. Asked whether she would consider doing the redactions pro bono, Karr replied, “I don’t know what you mean.”

Did she get her law degree in Missouri? We need to up the standards.

 ...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

More Ferguson Fallout

The chief of police in Ferguson, Mo., has resigned in the aftermath of a searing Department of Justice (DoJ) report.

[...]

Asked if all the recent resignations are an admission that the Justice Department report was valid and that the problems described in it were real, [Mayor James] Knowles reiterated that Jackson's resignation was a mutual decision and officials have not admitted wrongdoing.

[...]

He said Jackson's decision to resign was made in the best interest of the city.

  RT

And it had nothing to do with the city manager’s resignation or the DOJ’s threat to dismantle the police department if necessary.

By the way, the DOJ will NOT charge Officer Wilson with any civil rights violations. I wonder where he is.

At any rate, around midnight after Tom Jackson's resignation, two police officers were shot.  It doesn't seem to be known who did it.

“These police officers were standing there and they were shot, just because they were police officers,” said [St. Louis County police chief Jon] Belmar, who added that the officers sustained serious gunshot wounds.

The Webster Groves officer, a 32-year-old who has worked in the department for five years, was shot in the face, according to Belmar. The St Louis County officer, who is 41 and a 17-year law-enforcement veteran, was shot in the shoulder, he said.

[...]

Several protesters at the scene said the shots appeared to have been fired from a hill behind a dwindling group of demonstrators who were celebrating the resignation of Ferguson police chief Thomas Jackson and were gathered across from the police department on the other side of South Florissant Road.

  MSN

Well, we assume they were shot just because they were police officers, right?  We need an investigation, don't we?

Things are not going well in Ferguson.

Ferguson Update

The city manager of Ferguson, Mo., has resigned in the wake of a critical Justice Department report on the behavior of local police. The city’s municipal court has also been canceled for a week, with all cases being transferred to a state judge.

[...]

On Monday, state Judge Roy L. Richter was reassigned by the Missouri Supreme Court to take over all pending and future municipal cases from Ferguson. The high court said the move was intended “to help restore public trust and confidence,” adding that Richter would be authorized to implement any reforms needed to “ensure that the rights of defendants are respected and to help restore the integrity of the system.”

Richter won’t actually take over the city’s caseload until March 19, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, but he will remain in place until the state Supreme Court reverses its decision.

  RT

Has anybody done a study to see if the state of Missouri is any better at this than the City of Ferguson?

Meanwhile, after Madison police shooting:

Madison police have already been receiving racial sensitivity training, Chief Koval told the Wisconsin State Journal. However, though the city enjoys the reputation of a liberal haven with progressive politics, statistics indicate substantial disparities between whites and blacks on every level, from poverty and unemployment to arrest rates.

[...]

According to 2011-2012 arrest statistics reported by USA Today, Madison actually had worse racial disparity in arrests than Ferguson, Missouri.

[...]

“There is no question that the system is kinder and gentler” to middle-class white youths, Madison Mayor Paul Soglin told RT's Manuel Rapalo. Soglin added that the city is experimenting with ways to keep young African-Americans out of the criminal justice system, by working with a municipal judge and setting up a “peer court” in one of the districts.

[...]

“Reconciliation cannot begin without my stating ‘I am sorry,’ and I don't think I can say this enough. I am sorry,” wrote Madison Police Chief Michael Koval on his official blog.

[...]

On Tuesday evening, however, a cyber attack crippled city and county computers in Madison, with the hacker collective Anonymous claiming responsibility.

  RT

Ferguson Update

Investigators found [Judge Ronald J} Brockmeyer had boasted of creating a range of new court fees, “many of which are widely considered abusive and may be unlawful”. A city councilman opposing the judge’s reappointment was warned “switching judges would/could lead to loss of revenue”.

[...]

[Judge Brockmeyer is also] accused of fixing traffic tickets for himself and colleagues [and] also owes more than $170,000 in unpaid [federal] taxes.

[...]

Since November 2013, Brockmeyer has paid off another three overdue tax bills totalling $64,599.

[...]

[A] class-action federal lawsuit [...] alleges Ferguson repeatedly “imprisoned a human being solely because the person could not afford to make a monetary payment”.

[...]

Brockmeyer did not respond to multiple emails and telephone calls requesting comment.

  Guardian

The second-highest ranking commander in the beleaguered police department of Ferguson, Missouri, was one of two veteran officers to resign on Friday over racist emails uncovered by federal investigators.

Captain Rick Henke stepped down from his job together with Sergeant William Mudd, a fellow long-serving officer who was awarded the Medal of Valor more than 20 years ago, a spokesperson for the city confirmed on Friday.

Their departures came as Eric Holder, the US attorney general, said he was prepared to demand the dismantling of Ferguson’s entire police department if required for reforms ordered by his department this week in a scathing report on the city’s criminal justice system.

[...]

A second Justice Department inquiry that concluded simultaneously this week decided to bring no federal civil-rights charges against Darren Wilson, the officer who shot Brown.

  Guardian

Ferguson Federal Probe Completed

A federal review of Ferguson’s police force found officers disproportionately used excessive force against black people, who were also subject to arrests without probable cause and stops when driving without reasonable suspicion, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the department’s findings.

[...]

According to the law enforcement official, the department detected in Ferguson a pattern of racial bias in violation of federal laws and the 14th amendment to the US constitution, which guarantees equal protection under the law.

[...]

Racist emails sent by Ferguson officials – including one doubting Barack Obama’s ability to serve a full term as president because “what black man holds a steady job for four years?” – were also unearthed and are expected to be released to the public.

[...]

A spokesman for the city of Ferguson said in a statement on Tuesday evening that its leaders would not be commenting until the Justice Department released its report. Publication is expected on Wednesday.

  Guardian

Mike Brown Legacy

In a new challenge to police practices in Ferguson, Mo., a group of civil rights lawyers is suing the city over the way people are jailed when they fail to pay fines for traffic tickets and other minor offenses.

The lawsuit [...] alleges that the city violates the Constitution by jailing people without adequately considering whether they were indigent and, as a result, unable to pay.

The suit is filed on behalf of 11 plaintiffs who say they were too poor to pay but were then jailed — sometimes for two weeks or more.

[...]

It charges that Ferguson officials "have built a municipal scheme designed to brutalize, to punish, and to profit."

  NPR

Ferguson Grand Juror Files Suit Against Prosecutor

A member of the unusual grand jury that declined to indict a Ferguson police officer in the shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown contends in a lawsuit filed Monday that the prosecutor in the case has wrongly implied that all 12 jurors believed there was no support for any charges.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed the lawsuit on behalf of the unnamed juror, who wants to be allowed to talk publicly about the case but could face charges for doing so because of a lifetime gag order. The juror also says he or she came away with the impression that evidence was presented differently than in other cases, with the insinuation that Brown, not Officer Darren Wilson, was the wrongdoer.

[...]

The suit also contends that legal standards in the case were discussed in a "muddled" and "untimely" manner.

  Boston Herald

A lifetime gag order? WTF?

Good luck getting a favorable ruling on this one.

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Meanwhile In Cop Shootings

A white former Milwaukee police officer who fatally shot a black man in a downtown park in April won’t face criminal charges, the county’s top prosecutor said on Monday.

The Milwaukee County district attorney, John Chisholm, said in an emailed press release that Christopher Manney will not be charged because he shot Dontre Hamilton in self-defense.

[...]

Manney shot 31-year-old Hamilton on 30 April after responding to a call for a welfare check on a man sleeping in the park. Manney said Hamilton resisted when he tried to frisk him. The two exchanged punches before Hamilton got a hold of Manney’s baton and hit him on the neck with it, the former officer has said. Manney then opened fire, hitting Hamilton 14 times.

Hamilton’s family said he suffered from schizophrenia and had recently stopped taking his medication.

Police chief Edward Flynn fired Manney in October, saying Manney instigated the fight with an inappropriate pat-down. The chief said Manney correctly identified Hamilton as mentally ill but ignored his training and department policy, and treated him as a criminal.

[...]

Hamilton’s death preceded those of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in New York City, but the case hasn’t attracted as much attention despite frequent, mostly peaceful protests.

  The Guardian

That’s why it’s not getting any attention.

Manney has appealed against his firing and applied for disability, saying the shootings in Milwaukee and Ferguson have cost him sleep and made it difficult for him to think clearly.

Awwww.

 ...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

Ferguson-Born Protests Continue

Thousands of Americans took to the streets on Saturday in Washington, New York, and several other cities to protest recent grand jury decisions regarding the deaths of black men at the hands of police officers.

[...]

More than 20 people were arrested in Boston on Saturday, as hundreds gathered around the Massachusetts state capitol amid a heavy police presence. Largely peaceful protests took place in Chicago and Oakland.

  The Guardian

Support in the NBA

LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and many Brooklyn players wore “I can't breathe” shirts while they warmed up for Monday night's game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Nets.

[...]

Inside the center, Cleveland Cavaliers' James and Kyrie Irving were among the players wearing T-shirts that said “I can't breathe” —Garner's last words, which have become a rallying cry for protesters since last week's grand jury decision.

“It was a message to the family. That I'm sorry for their loss, sorry to his wife. That's what it's about,” James said after the Cavaliers' 110-88 victory. “I think everybody else gets caught up in everything else besides who's really feeling it, and that's the family. That's what it's about.”

  alJazeera

Really, James? Take the shirt off. Put on one that says, "I'm sorry for your loss."

People Do Care

Opinion of an Ex-St.Louis (Black) Cop

Unfortunately, I don’t think better training alone will reduce police brutality. My fellow officers and I took plenty of classes on racial sensitivity and on limiting the use of force.

The problem is that cops aren’t held accountable for their actions, and they know it. These officers violate rights with impunity. They know there’s a different criminal justice system for civilians and police.

Even when officers get caught, they know they’ll be investigated by their friends, and put on paid leave. My colleagues would laughingly refer to this as a free vacation. It isn’t a punishment. And excessive force is almost always deemed acceptable in our courts and among our grand juries. Prosecutors are tight with law enforcement, and share the same values and ideas.

[...]

The number of people in uniform who will knowingly and maliciously violate your human rights is huge. At the Ferguson protests, people are chanting, “The whole damn system is guilty as hell.” I agree, and we have a lot of work to do.

  WaPo

And he gives examples from his own experience in the article.

Black Activists Meet the President

Black Agenda Report asked Phillip Agnew of the Dream Defenders what the top two takeaways of the White House meeting were for him.

“The first was that it was the movement that got us this meeting, the unrest in the streets, and yeah a meeting with the president is kind of like an audience with Pharaoh. We weren't there to negotiate, because the movement is so much deeper than us” Agnew told us. “The second was that we've got a long, long way to go to where officials in this administration feel anything like urgency to meet even the mildest of our demands.”

We also asked Mr. Agnew whose idea the White House meeting was, at whose initiative it happened.

“One of the original demands soon after Mike Brown's murder was that the president come to Ferguson MO and listen to people there. That didn't happen. But that was months ago... the time for that is long past... I don't really know who set the process for this meeting in motion, but I got my invitation from the White House,” he told Black Agenda Report. “They said they wanted to hear from the ground what was going on on the ground.”

“We didn't have much time to prepare, but we laid out a number of demands. We demanded an end to 1033 (the program which provides military grade weaponry to police departments). We demanded the president use his bully pulpit, his last two years in office to shift the culture of policing, imprisoning and prosecuting, and we demanded that they use their federal executive powers to rewrite guidelines in ways that will cut off federal funding to police departments that don't make this shift. We told them that actions in the streets are going to continue no matter what.

[...]

An public audience with Pharaoh, or with the president, as young activists against police impunity got early this week is surely kind of a big thing, especially in the US, where ordinary people are utterly deprived of direct influence upon the polices dictating how their lives are lived.

[...]

My own guess is that the president and his team were not much listening to the young people in that room. The notion that assembly of politicians, aides, top cops and misleaders like King Rat Sharpton are simply unaware of what cops and prosecutors do every day doesn't pass a laugh test. Obama represented Chicago's south side in the Ilinois state senate. Sharpton cut his teeth on this kind of thing. These guys have been hearing horror stories of police misconduct for longer than some of the young activists have been alive. For their purposes, the day's participants were not much more than props in a production aimed to convince some larger audience that the same president who sent an extra 100 FBI agents to Ferguson MO just before the grand jury decision to gather information on dissenters was still fishing for facts on why there was widespread outrage in the first place.

  Black Agenda Report

And, it remains to be seen what, if any, of the activists’ demands the president will meet. We know already that he flatly refused to end 1033.

The Other Grand Jury

Surely they won't be making the same mistake.

New York officials are preparing for likely protests as a grand jury decides whether to charge police in the death of a black man subjected to a banned choke hold, although they are aiming to avoid the kind of violence that engulfed Ferguson, Missouri last month after the grand jury decision in the Michael Brown case.

[...]

It is not clear when the grand jury will rule.

[...]

'We're just praying and hoping that things don't get out of hand,' said Bobby Digi, a Staten Island activist and businessman. 'We've been doing a lot of behind-the-scenes work to just try to get temperaments at bay.'

  alJazeera

I think this is going to take more than praying and hoping.

Hazel Dukes, president of the New York state chapter of the NAACP civil rights group, said she was 'very worried' about the possible response if no charges are brought by the Staten Island grand jury, which has been meeting in secret since August.

Yes, I imagine that would just about blow the roof. As well it should.

Garner suffered a heart attack after officers compressed his neck and chest as they restrained him for selling loose cigarettes, the medical examiner ruled, calling his death a homicide.

A 400-pound asthmatic Staten Island dad died Thursday after a cop put him in a chokehold and other officers appeared to slam his head against the sidewalk, video of the incident shows.

“I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!” Eric Garner, 43, repeatedly screamed after at least five NYPD officers took him down in front of a Tompkinsville beauty supply store when he balked at being handcuffed.

[...]

Police officials said Garner had a history of arrests for selling untaxed cigarettes. Cops said they observed him selling his wares Thursday on Bay St. and moved in for an arrest.

  NY Daily News

And went for the kill.

A law enforcement source said the incident was troubling.

“A guy is dead in our custody. That is always a potential problem,” the source said.

I sure hate it when the law is troubled with a potential problem.

And, perhaps they want to rethink this as well.

Investigators are considering whether to charge Michael Brown's stepfather with attempting to incite a riot for urging a crowd in Ferguson, Missouri, to "burn this bitch down" as part of a larger inquiry into violence after a grand jury declined to indict a white police officer in the shooting death of the unarmed black teenager, authorities told NBC News on Tuesday.

  NBC News

Bob McCullough - the same prosecutor who called the Wilson Grand Jury - will decide whether to charge him.

You Still Think the Ferguson Grand Jury Was Legal and Proper?