Perpetrator
Victim
Date:
2014-08-09Location:
Ferguson, Missouri
What happened:
Brown, an 18-year-old African American, was a suspect in a “strong-arm” robbery of a convenience store. Brown was fatally shot by Darren Wilson, a 28-year-old white police officer in an encounter that took place a short distance away from the convenience store, several minutes after officer Wilson received a radio alert which included a description of a suspect. Brown was accompanied by his friend Dorian Johnson who was 22. Wilson said that an altercation ensued when Brown attacked Wilson in his police vehicle for control of Wilson’s gun until it was fired. Brown and Johnson then fled, with Wilson in pursuit of Brown. In the entire altercation, Wilson fired a total of twelve bullets.
About The Perpetrator:
Darren Dean Wilson is a white man. He was born in Fort Worth, Texas on May 14, 1986. He lives in Crestwood, Missouri, southwest of Ferguson and was 28 years old when he murdered 18 year old Mike Brown. Wilson had only been a police officer for 6 years First spent 2 years in Jennings, Missouri. Wilson had no previous disciplinary actions on his record although his first department was so dysfunctional all officers were fired.
About The Victim:
Michael Brown was an African American male, murdered on August 9th, 2014. At the time of his death, he was 18 years old, was 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) tall, and weighed 292 lb (132 kg). He graduated from Normandy High School in St. Louis County eight days before his death and was two days from starting a training program for heating and air conditioning repair at Vatterott College technical school.
Outcome:
The shooting sparked great unrest in Ferguson. Although a subsequent FBI investigation found that there was no evidence that Brown had his hands up in surrender or said “don’t shoot” before he was shot, protesters believed that he had done so, and used the slogan, “Hands up, don’t shoot.” in protest. Protests, both peaceful and violent, continued for more than a week in Ferguson resulting in police establishing a nightly curfew. The response of area police agencies in dealing with the protests was strongly criticized by the media and politicians. There were concerns over insensitivity, tactics, and a militarized response. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon ordered local police organizations to cede much of their authority to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
A grand jury was called by Robert McCulloch, the St. Louis County Prosecutor, and was given extensive evidence. On November 24, 2014, McCulloch announced the St. Louis County grand jury had decided not to indict Wilson. On March 4, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice reported it had concluded its own investigation and cleared Wilson of civil rights violations in the shooting. It found forensic evidence supported the officer’s account, that witnesses who corroborated the officer’s account were credible, and that witnesses who had incriminated him were not credible, with some admitting they had not directly seen the events. The U.S. Department of Justice concluded Wilson shot Brown in self-defense.
