Protests and rioting has erupted in Ferguson, Missouri as a response to 18-year-old Michael Brown’s killing by police. His friend, 22-year old Dorian Johnson, was an eye witness to the tragic death of his teenage friend. Johnson stood just a few feet away and saw a police officer open fire. “I saw the barrel of the gun pointed at my friend,” he said. “Then I saw the fire come out of the barrel.”
The killing has sent shock waves through the St. Louis suburb. Tension between Blacks and police continues to scale up, and the local community has been demanding answers since the shooting last Saturday. Crowds have gathered to mourn Brown’s death. Stores have been looted and journalists have been assaulted in the wake of Brown’s death. Several dozen people have been arrested in the span of less than a week since the incident.
A police officer claimed that another officer shot Brown after Brown allegedly shoved him and tried to wrestle his weapon from him. Johnson and other witnesses disagree with that claim. The officer that shot Brown was placed on paid administrative leave.
The NAACP has stepped in and called on the Justice Department and the federal government to take over the investigation from state police. The FBI has joined the investigation, and Attorney General Eric Holder added that the FBI will help local authorities conduct, “a thorough, fair investigation.
The Ferguson Police Department has turned over the investigation to the St. Louis Police. Many people have drawn parallels between this case and the death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida on Feb. 26, 2012. Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer. Zimmerman was acquitted of second degree murder and manslaughter charges in July, 2013.
Featured image via facebook/michaelbrown
