Shelby Lawson is a student at the University of Kansas, majoring in Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Lawson posted the following to her Facebook page:
“Alright y’all. I’d like to clear a few things up. This is a general address to the long list of misconceptions and inconsistencies and abuses of power that exist surrounding the killing of Mike Brown. I have researched these points and provided sources in case you wish to do some reading of your own.
-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
-Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.
-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
WICHITA POLICE SHOOTING EPIDEMIC: TEN DEAD
Ferguson Protests in Kansas Focus on Wichita Police Shootings
Appreciate your input Shelby.
Michael Brown’s ADULT criminal record:
Description: Burglary – 1st Degree { Felony B RSMo: 569.160 }
Date: 11/02/2013 Code: 1401000
OCN: AJ006207 Arresting Agency: ST ANN PD
Description: Armed Criminal Action { Felony Unclassified RSMo: 571.015 }
Date: 11/02/2013 Code: 3101000
OCN: AJ006207 Arresting Agency: ST ANN PD
Description: Assault 1st Degree – Serious Physical Injury { Felony A RSMo:565.050 }
Date: 11/02/2013 Code: 1301100
OCN: AJ006207 Arresting Agency: ST ANN PD
Description: Armed Criminal Action { Felony Unclassified RSMo: 571.015 }
Date: 11/02/2013 Code: 3101000
OCN: AJ006207 Arresting Agency: ST ANN PD
Also a member of the Vice Lords gang, 6’3″ and nearly 300 lbs.
What else would be found if his juvie record was unsealed ? How about this?
Brown has a second degree murder charge on his juvenile arrest record.
are you fucking retarded?
Lol
I am very happy that you do not teach law, self defense or use of force…!!
Mike Brown was 6ft 4in and 300lbs … this is junk journalism.
Shelby, would you mind referencing your “sources” on where you found the info. You know, documents, page numbers, etc. Your article reads more like personal opinion, since you did not state where you acquired your info from. Thank you.
Great work. Thanks for you research
Job well done Ms.Lawson,
Read the actual testimony. He does not say that he shot him when he was running away. In fact, on page 281, all he says is that he gave chase when Brown started running. He says nothing about shooting on page 281, and this post is lying. Again, just read it…
Amazing observation. You are very wise and on the same page as seasoned reporters such as MSNBC Lisa Bloom, Lawrence O’Donnell and CNN Nancy Grace. They are also reporting that this case is full of lies and deception. Kudos to you for allowing yourself to see this case through the lens of the truth, facts, your heart. Thank you for the way you broke the case down and shed more light. I really want MSNBC and CNN to get a hold of your article, very enlightening. God Bless You!!!
How can anyone downthumb the comment “I appreciate your input, Shelby.” I mean, if you don’t like the article or something fine, but the comment is best!
i realize now that the downthumb comes from another moderated commenter. so much for your puritan economic journalism. I figured you out, it’s all about the Benjamin’s?
If this is an example of your work as a journalist maybe you should look into another career. None of your “sources” actually state what you say they are stating. Maybe you should get into politics.
It thoroughly hurts my heart for the family. Then the next thing I have is anger against the police officer who did the unnecessary shooting. He was wrong, he should have been punished. It was a great injustice that was handed down. Amen.
had to stop reading where you put they are taught to shoot to wound. So very wrong no training ever would teach this as it would leave you open to lawsuits and it violates the 8th amendment.
I do not agree with these findings as they are incorrect to the evidence. Ur findings are based on speculation and misinformation. Yes they were stopped for jaywalking, however info cane across that they ALSO MATCHED the suspects of a robbery just min before they were stopped for jaywalking.
No, the fatal shot was NOT while he was fleeing…forensic evidence states otherwise! Stop spreading these race baiter posts….u are the problem that keeps the hate fueled. You do NOT have the evidence at hand and u hv not posted all evidence or statements that were stated. This is a ridiculous post.
Dang, you’re smarter than eleven people with access to all the evidence!
awesome work
Except that the autopsy report you are referring to was an unofficial, private report, and the actual official autopsy did find gunshot residue on Brown’s hands and that he was in fact involved a struggle for the gun when it first went off. Also, even in your source, no where does it list that he broke “self-defense” protocol and you can’t break self-defense protocol, there’s a reason it’s called self-defense, to protect yourself you do what needs to be done. Also those eyewitnesses were all found to be lying as the physical evidence did not match their reports hence why officer Wilson wasn’t found guilty. Why are you completely ignoring the physical evidence? Do you seriously believe that the grand jury is conspiring to protect some random 28 year old cop? Gimme a freaken break.
Except that the autopsy report you are referring to was an unofficial, private report, and the actual official autopsy did find gunshot residue on Brown’s hands and that he was in fact involved a struggle for the gun when it first went off. Also, even in your source, no where does it list that he broke “self-defense” protocol and you can’t break self-defense protocol, there’s a reason it’s called self-defense, to protect yourself you do what needs to be done. Also those eyewitnesses were all found to be lying as the physical evidence did not match their reports hence why officer Wilson wasn’t found guilty. Why are you completely ignoring the physical evidence? Do you seriously believe that the grand jury is conspiring to protect some random 28 year old cop? Gimme a freaken break.
It was scientifically proven Mike Brown was shot from the front of his body. And Only from the front of his body.
Despite what anyone says. Science does not lie.
It’s all lies and bullshit, nothing in this article is true. Deceitful articles like this are the reason they have so many idiots rioting.
Fucking sheeple I swear.
Wow youre dumb if you believe that officer could shoot him in the head from 128ft with a police issue 9mm hand gun. Thats over 40 yards and the bullet drops more then 2″. And you can clearly see its brown in the video. His friend was in it too. Same clothes for both. Just watch the videos
You GOOOOO girl…… “speaking/researching/defining with the real!!!….
You said “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown”. And that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown, but the source you indicated didn’t say anything about that not being Mike Brown?
What a joke
A lot of these claims are compete fabrications. There is no integrity to be found with this author. Why lie? Just present Actual facts.
Fact #1 – Michael Brown outweighed Darren Wilson by 80 pounds.
Fact #2 – Wilson did not provide testimony that Brown was fleeing when shot.
Fact #3 – There is no police protocol to shoot to incapacitate rather than kill when a suspect is a perceived threat to loss of life, and the “source” provided does not state this, either.
Fact #4 – Stating that police did not interview witnesses is an unsubstantiated claim that is in fact proven wrong by the court documents.
Fact #5 – The absence or presence of crime scene photographs is inconsequential when the data, DNA, etc recovered from the scene pains such a clear picture.
Fact #6 – To claim that no fingerprints were taken off the gun is another outrageous lie. Fingerprints were taken – and Brown’s were among those present on the weapon.
Fact #7 – Blood patterns on Wilson’s uniform and vehicle made similar patterns on his skin redundant.
Fact #8 – Wilson’s story has not changed 3 times, and all of the witnesses who testified to his detriment were proven to be liars when they claimed that Brown was shot from behind, which was proven wrong by forensic analysis.
Fact #9 – These witnesses did not give identical accounts, and the claim that they never met is unsubstantiated.
Fact #10 – There is in fact NOT forensic evidence that Brown’s hands were up. In fact, exactly the opposite is true. Forensic analysis determined that is palms could not have been facing forward when he was shot.
Fact #11 – Again, the author presented an outright lie – the coroner found that there was gunshot residue found on Brown, in data made available to the Grand Jury.
Fact #12 – The distance of the shot was not 148 ft. This is easily proven by the location the shell casings and where they could have rolled from, and the fact that there is no reason to believe that Wilson had to have taken the shots from beside his vehicle, especially considering all witnesses testified that he chased brown first, which would put him away from the vehicle, and less than 148 ft away.
Fact #13 – No one has ever claimed that the person in the video of the robbery was not Brown. The provided “source” does not claim this, either.
Fact #14 – The prosecuting attorney did not directly raise funds in any way, and the $600,000 cited is the total amount raised worldwide, not by any one group.
Fact #15 – Darren Wilson himself had a spotless record of service in a predominantly black neighborhood. Profiling him as a racist based on his past coworkers is ironic at best.
As a journalism major – you should be more careful with your “facts” and “sources”. Just because you use an unreliable source, does not make your “facts” true. Your ‘analysis’ is riddled with unreliable sources (e.g. DailyKos, Slate, etc.) and half truths that, in many cases, were subsequently discredited during testimony to the FBI, DOJ and the Grand Jury. If you read all the Grand Jury testimonies (which I have not read ALL – but, many) you’ll see that many of their stories/perceptions changed significantly from their initial statement to detectives on/near 9 Aug… and later to the FBI and/or Grand Jury while under oath. Many recanted their initial statements, admitted they didn’t actually see what they originally said, or changed them to support with Officer Wilson’s testimony. To cherry-pick these early statements, without clarification by their later statements (under oath) is irresponsible. For example, you source the 2nd autopsy report (Dr. Baden) without Dr. Baden’s subsequent statements that the body was already cleansed by the time he did his autopsy – and the fact that he had no issue with the professionalism of the first autopsy (by county Coroner’s office). While this entire ‘event’ has been unfortunate and may have been handled better – the officers involved, the investigators and ultimately, the Grand Jury did the best they could to understand what happened and why. And, they did this in the light of the FULL story – not based on ‘cherry-picked’ evidence.
Did you read the grand jury evidence? Brown was shot in the back as he was coming back toward Wilson. Brown was 2 inches and almost 100 pounds heavier than Wilson, which is significantly larger. The owner of that maket was scared to death to file a report. Read the actual evidence and THEN tell me what you believe.
Interesting analysis, however page 281 does not confirm or deny any fact that Brown was running at the time Wilson was firing at him. You may want to edit this.
Great analysis and review. The facts and have had me perplexed since the beginning of this ordeal..and you’ve outlined most of them here. What a tragedy. Thanks for sharing.
it not all about black or white and that is what all is making it out to be
To bad it doesn’t line up with the science like a lot of the eye witnesses it just don’t mach I guess that’s why they recanted their sorry……I mean lie this is the best you can do .You get an F on this one!!!
lol satire
i found many mistakes she needs to check her facts better.If brown was fleeing the shots would have been in his back.THats ony one mistake there is many more
Lies. All bullets entered from the front as shown by the autopsy. And 292lbs verses 210 is an huge difference in size. If you lost 80lbs no one would recognize you.
These sources don’t match what they’re being cited for…
I think you better keep researching because most of what you said is nottrue. Read the report from the grand jury unless you are racist against white people. I sure would not hire you. You be getting in trouble all the time for not checking your facts.
The police officer resigned without a severance package, threats on his life and those of other officers. He probably won’t get a job anywhere in the county (or state) again. This is the season of forgiving and forgetting people; and Thanksgiving! Time to move on!!!
“-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Autopsy lists Brown as 6’5″ 289 lbs, giving him a 79 lb advantage. Brown was unequivocally “significantly larger” than Wilson.
If Ms Lawson read the grand jury docs, she would know there was a 79 lb difference and she purposely omitted it, knowing the avg person would simply consider Wilson to be a big guy. Brown is FAR bigger.
Page 281 confirms why Wilson still felt Brown was a danger to others, not that he shot him while he was fleeing. Page 234, he clearly states he shot Brown as he turned around and came towards him again. You’re a dishonest hack
A thorough review of “the facts”. It’s a shame that a lot of the right-wingers won’t look at facts before declaring Michael Brown “guilty of causing his own death”.
Holy crap, I don’t ever want you for my lawyer.
It seems apparent that if this is all as accurate as it sounds, the grand jury must have been out to lunch.
Sorry, Shelby, but your story is full of holes. Starting with it being in opposition to actual eyewitness testimony, which put Brown at about 20 feet from Wilson at the time of the shooting. Anyone who’s ever fired a handgun will tell you that it’s hard to hit a person-sized target from 148 feet (50 yards) even at a range when you’re taking your time. To think that even a trained LEO can do so and hit all but one shot, including 3 head shots, from that distance in a stressful situation after running some distance is ludicrous.
Further, the witness intimidation taking place in Ferguson, including one witness who was shot and then set on fire in his car, seems to indicate that it isn’t Brown-friendly witnesses that are being targeted. It’s those who won’t support the false narrative that Brown was innocent.
Not really, it doesn’t seem like good research to me. Why do we have to insist on dividing the country? We’re all the same people. Don’t you think it’s odd that the people on the news like Reverend Al Sharpton who claim to be for justice and equality consistently do things to divide this country racially? Wake the f*** up people.
Sorry, but this “expose” doesn’t even pass the sniff test. Are you telling me that anyone can fire a handgun at a range of 50 yards, and hit 7 out of 8 shots, including 3 head shots, AFTER having engaged in a struggle and a foot chase? Not to mention that 3 eyewitnesses to the GJ put the two at about 20 feet apart before the shooting started, and all agreed that Brown was advancing toward Wilson, which makes the position of Brown’s hands, which is also in dispute, irrelevant. And either he was 50 yards away, or he was close enough to get spattered with Brown’s blood (allegedly washed off). He can’t be both, yet her story puts forth both as fact.
Police protocols are NOT to disarm and incapacitate. They are to put down the threat. Brown was shot 4 times in the body and was still up and advancing toward the officer. At that point, he shot the 3 head shots. Given Brown’s size (289 lbs), head shots were appropriate, because, given Brown’s poor judgment and aggressiveness, the prospect of him being on some strong drugs had to be considered. Such people have been known to absorb multiple gunshot wounds and keep coming. Head shots take care of that.
Little girl, finish J school and live some life before you decide that you know enough to survive in this world. You aren’t there yet.
I read the same report and on page 95 of the grand jury testimony which you linked to never stated that she went to the hospital to take his photograph. She was there to examine and remove the body. Mike brown was 298 according to the official report that is roughly 80 lbs more than Wilson.
In his testimony D.Wilson stated “the gun was jammed”, would a jammed gun produce gun powder residue? I am not an expert on this matter
I am 5’4 150..If someone is 80 lbs heavier they will be 5’4 230 lbs. Per the force equation, this is equivalent to 1680 lbs of additional force per sq inch. (Area was approximated from an average male hand). Let me put it in another perspective, not knowing you, but estimated from your picture you are approximately 125 more or less. A person who is 80 lbs heavier would be 200-205 lbs. Would you be worry if they are attacking you?
This event was a tragedy and Mike Brown did not deserve to die, but moving to the side walk could have prevented the escalation of violence.
Do you think the Grand Jury got it wrong?
Good luck with that.
One can hardly call this a *debunking* or shredding of the facts. Given the grand jury reviewed all of the available and known evidence, its report is the only source for credible scientific and factual data in support of the events occurred. I certainly wouldn’t count Slate and Vox (among others) as unimpeachable sources for facts. This is a serious volatile matter that doesnt need someone playing at investigative journalism. Your writing is more incendiary than fact-revealing.
GAYYY HE WAS IN THE RIGHT MAD BITCHES
Total bs, this coming from a student. I guess she better and more knowledgeable than the witnesses and grand jury. I’m tired of all the speculations from people, like this one, who thinks they are experts in what happened. Do you have some crystal ball? Where you there? It is a fair guess to say, “no you weren’t”…..
Total bs, this coming from a student. I guess she better and more knowledgeable than the witnesses and grand jury. I’m tired of all the speculations from people, like this one, who thinks they are experts in what happened. Do you have some crystal ball? Where you there? It is a fair guess to say, “no you weren’t”…..
http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2014/12/washington_times_contrasts_med.html
Except that it’s wrong…..read the transcript yourself and see. I did….1st line of autopsy, body 77inches, 278 lbs. MB DNA all over inside of cruiser and on gun, etc., etc., etc. Witness statements there too. Go ahead, read for yourselves.
This is obviously not true. Whomever wrote this is banking on you not actually reading the evidence.
did she even look at the evidence?????
148 feet twice in the head? Really?
so do i. this whole thing is so sad!
Stick to your gender studies, sweetheart. Your investigative journalism skills might get you a position with Joseph Goebbels — who believed If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it — but he’s dead. Your sources might meet the standards for MSNBC or NPR, but really, and
the Daily KOS??
You must be slow in the head
You really haven’t a clue in that liberal peas sized brain you have. You are one of those college educated idiots that losses all common sense. If you really want to make false statements about things you know nothing about you should keep your mouth shut.
oh wow. such misinformation. The autopsy (not the browns attny….thats the one you used and its subjective at best) showed NO bullet wounds in the back….meaning he WASNT fleeing. Also the hand wounds show his hands COULDNT have been up. You need to review the evidence. Also SEVERAL wittnesses stated Mr Brown was the aggressor AND was charging the cop. All in the report. Stop spreading misinformation. Its irresponsible.
Shelby, honey, sorry, but you’re a clueless bimbo. I mean, that explains why you are studying “journalism,” but you have the IQ of a rattle.
Journalism major, not LAW. ffs.
The daily kos is a legit source?
why can’t people like you just let the dead horse die damn
Is this serious? “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.” This statement inherently defeats itself. So Wilson shot at Brown FOUR times in the torso region in an attempt to stop him, which was clearly unsuccessful, to which he had to shoot for the head. How is he not following protocol? Also, does Ms. Lawson not understand firearm forensics? Clearly not! (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=1) The angle of the laceration on his right hand lines up perfectly with the entry wound on his upper right pectoral. The angle of the laceration could not have occurred if his hands were in the air, they would have been perpendicular. This alone suggests his arm was reaching towards the firearm. If not reaching towards the firearms, it absolutely proves he did not have his hands in the air. Not to mention this story was corroborated by several other eyewitness accounts several months later. Use basic logic, you do not need to study firearms forensics to put two and two together. Simple physics and velocity. In order to use credible sources, you cannot use websites that paraphrase the actual grand jury documentation. Sources are, for the most part, not credible. If I were her professor I would not allow her to use said sources in a college document, let alone in a courtroom. Is this a joke?
Police departments do not train there officers to shot to wound. First in the heat of a fight for your life it would be almost impossible to shot someone n the arm or leg. Also if you iss then you put innocent people in danger of being shot.
Lady you just flunked your journalism class and course.
Shelby, i did some reading on your sources and found that many of them are not credible or are biased liberal sources. (Www.Dailykos.com)Please take this into account. Also reading through ur credible sources i didnt find that i interpret the articles the way you did, as a journalist you need to stay unbiased yourself. Thanks
according to these “facts” wilson performed two headshots from 148 feet at a fleeing target.
Thank you. You are an angel for caring enough to do this. <3
I am always shocked, no matter how many times I see it, that this type of complete b.s. propaganda finds its way to hundreds of thousands of viewers. I was so convicted after reading this that I decided look up more about the case and low and behold, first LEGIT ACTUAL SOURCE contradicts nearly everything this girl said.
And all I did was Google physical evidence Michael Brown case and click on the Washington post.
Always check your facts when reading on the internet people. Never know what is credible.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?_r=0
The article is well written, but sadly inaccurate and misleading.
Who is this lunatic and why was such a biased story published ? It is obvious this was only written to get her name out there. Her misguided and one sided assumptions are so ridiculous it is laughable. She needs to change majors because she will never make a living as a real journalist.
I believe that if these are the true facts, while it will not bring back Mike Brown, there is a clear case for a Wrongful Death suit against Officer Wilson and the Ferguson Police Department. If these are true facts in writing, then I do not understand how the Grand Jury came to their conclusion.
I really appreciate this post. My only concern/question is about the specifics of this citation.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
I know that it has nothing to do with Mike Brown’s death, whatever the police were looking for on the surveillance tape had nothing to do with what went on in the street. That being said I clicked on the source and it only said that neither the owner nor any employee of the Ferguson Market called the police to report a theft. I couldn’t find where it explicitly says that “that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” Unless I missed something, I don’t believe that is a true statement. Your other points are really important and I don’t want them sullied by this possible oversight. I don’t know if the source was edited after this was posted or if I’m just wrong. I hope you can address it in some way.
I understand that Mike Brown committing a petty crime seems to confirm the biased perception of a “demonic” thug and that it seems to give circumstantial credence to Wilson’s testimony. There are people in the news who are using it to write off Brown as a criminal. I think the takeaway is that this bias is intimately linked with the unorthodox crime scene investigation and the unorthodox use of the grand jury procedure. There’s still so much confusion surrounding this, I hope we can recognize our biases and make an effort to hold them back.
These articles from Slate are very informative about biases and prejudice white people are likely to have on black people and the Supreme Court’s precedents on proceedings that function like trials (the introduction of broad evidence, making it “often the final and most important step in the criminal proceeding”)
http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/11/25/the_language_of_darren_wilson_s_testimony_close_reading_the_demons_and_supervillains.html
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/11/ferguson_grand_jury_investigation_a_shadow_trial_violates_the_public_s_right.html
There are so many holes in your theory and the information you have found. All of which is very argumentative. It is a good thing your going in journalism because that seems to be the only place that flagrant thoughts are accepted as truth. If your going to make an assumption, keep it to yourself especially when the outcome of your thoughts can have such a huge impact on society. Take a little responsibility for yourself and your words.
Her story is completely inaccurate.
http://conservativetribune.com/new-autopsy-michael-brown/
You are an idiot.
Brown was at least 80 pounds heavier than Wilson. That is a large difference especially when the lighter person is in a vulnerable position (seated in an automobile). No less than 2 or 3 autopsies have shown that Brown was NOT SHOT WHILE FLEEING. There are no bullet wounds to the back of Brown’s body. Let’s not facts get in the way of the truth Ms. Lawson.
A journalism major citing Vox, DailyKos and Americans Against the Tea Party as primary sources? Gee what else is new? Plus much of the sources are outdated and have been debunked (e.g. the claim regarding no gun powder residue was found on Brown’s hands). Sounds like this girl thinks journalism means citing bullet points from several different predominantly left leaning sources.
wheres the snopes for this?
well ms bell, that is what i would call
Biggest bunchof BS I have heard today.
if michael brown was shot while he was fleeing then why aren’t there any bullet penetrations in his back?
you also say that he was shot while his hands were on the air however, the autopsy report shows that the hand wound was from close range (two inches) because brown’s tissue was found in the police car (also proving that brown was reaching for wilson’s gun.)
your so full of it , that it comes out your ears!!!!!!! apparently you read the jury reports differently than we all did????? I think you need to get your facts straight before publishing this! ALL of your info is from NEWS MEDIA not PROOF!
»
this is backed up by some facts
BULLSHIT.
100% Made up CRAP!!!
How could there be blood on Wilson if Brown wasn’t very close to him?
Clearly a one sided investigation, If said suspect was fleeing as you noted why is there no shots in the back part of any of his body! How do you justify your opinion over that of 12 people on the grand jury that saw all the evidence!! Why not reference the pages that talked about the officer standing over his body and shooting him in the back, oh until the autopsy came back saying there were no shots in the back. Your investigative reporting skills suck!!!
oh boy, just some helpful tips since you’re a journalism major.
You cite stories that are peoples theories (http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/11/20/1346374/-BREAKING-VIDEO-Police-Lied-Mike-Brown-was-killed-148-feet-away-from-Darren-Wilson-s-SUV) that were addressed in the grand jury, yet you state it like this person’s theory is fact. You could cite the grand jury testimony here if you wanted to cite a reputable source, although I understand that you would have to change the tone of the article a bit. You say there are 4 witness’s that all say the same thing, but that is different than the witnesses statements from the grand jury interviews, and most of those had differences between each other. But you are insinuating that those 4 witness’s stories are more trustworthy than others, somehow you think it’s okay to make broad assertions on that. You cite the story that the store shop owner didn’t call the police and that it wasn’t Mike Brown in the video… Mike’s friend, Dorian Johnson, admits that was them in that store and on the camera….. Taking various statements and placing them in a manner that suits your hypothesis, while some have been proven untrue or have been updated at the time of your article, isn’t journalism, that’s being an author.
Your an idiot. That’s not what the autopsy showed at all!
He was NOT shot while fleeing the scene and Wilson does not “confirm this”. On page 281 of the testimony Officer Wilson confirms that Brown initially fled after the altercation in the car, that’s it. He further stated that he followed him on foot, which is his JOB as a POLICE OFFICER. You don’t let a criminal who just attacked a police officer and tried to wrestle for his gun get away, are you THAT ignorant? This “journalist” is not a lawyer, she is a dimwitted undergrad gender studies major with very poor researching skills. The autopsy report did NOT support the notion that Brown was giving up. The reports were released recently to the public and everyone knows that the autopsy supported Wilson’s defense, that Brown was shot in the car trying to wrestle for the gun and that the following shots were consistent with him charging towards Wilson. These witnesses that are being quoted are completely false, doctored accounts and the majority of witnesses who testified were in support of Wilson’s story. Deandre Johnson was fatally shot by protesters (his own race) for standing up for Wilson and testifying in his defense. To turn around and put this pubescent article out with these accusations is horrendously inaccurate and unprofessional. This is nothing but click bait journaism, plain and simple.
I see you like to delete comments that don’t serve your agenda. That’s real pathetic.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ferguson-grand-jury-documents-support-earlier-data/
You got it right why couldn’t they?
This type of “reporting” gone viral has a lot to do with the reactions to Ferguson. Someone not involved in the case makes some unsubstantiated claims, and lots of people present it as fact, in this case a college student cherry picking a bunch of false accounts and contrived stories posted on the web. The forensic evidence is known. Witness accounts can’t refute forensics. Many of those wishing to vilify Officer Wilson will unfortunately accept these false accounts as factual, even though the physical evidence doesn’t support them. “It must be fact, I saw it on Facebook!” As with many things, we’ll believe what we want to, regardless of facts. I bet if I put a link on my FB page showing all of the “evidence” that President Barack Obama was born in Kenya it would be picked up and shared and believed by many right-wingers. I could do the same with “evidence” indicating there is no such thing as Global Warming or I bet I could produce a page of links showing “evidence” that being gay is a choice one makes. The same is being done here. Playing fast and loose with the facts for no reason but to spread ignorance and inflame the gullible.
I wasn’t there. Most people weren’t. So, Officer Wilson is the only one who knows the entire truth. For the rest of us, we must look at what we can learn from the evidence, and determine if Officer Wilson’s and witnesses account fit it. Might there be witnesses that think they are telling the truth and the facts show otherwise? Yes, including Officer Wilson. Might there be witnesses lying? Yes, including Officer Wilson. Be we can only look at the facts, and as we hope the Grand Jury did, assess the veracity of the witnesses versus the facts, and the consistency of their statements over time, and apply a common sense standard to determine if we think they are truthful and correct in their accounts.
So, it starts with the forensics. If someone claims that someone was shot in the back, then the autopsy will show entry wounds into the victims back. There are three autopsies, one done by an independent examiner, which have shown facts that refute many witness statements. He wasn’t shot in the back. And Brown’s hands weren’t up, because the entry wound of a bullet went into the top of his forearm. His hand was on or near the gun when he was first shot in the hand, as it had powder burns on it. Crime scene blood proves other facts. Brown’s blood was in the police car, which refute the statements that Brown never reached into the police car. Brown’s blood trail back toward Officer Wilson shows Brown wasn’t standing still surrendering. It more supports Officer Wilson’s claim that Brown was charging him.
And there is still a Federal investigation underway. The Feds aren’t in cahoots with any police department in the U.S. It’s usually the opposite. If the “facts” on the student’s Facebook page are true, I’m sure the Feds will tell us as much.
I took some time and looked at this post closely and referenced all of her sources. If her “facts” are any reflection of her skills of fact checking, let’s hope she isn’t awarded a journalism degree. Here’s her entire list refuted, the fact-checking took me about an hour, a bit more to summarize it:
Point 1: “The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Fact: “Big Mike” as he was known, was 6 ft 5 inches tall and weighed 289 pounds, 79 more than Officer Wilson. Brown weighed almost 40% more. A comparison would be 210 pound Officer Wilson fighting with a 153 pound person. This in and of itself is no reason for him to have been shot, but certainly gives credence to Officer Wilson’s claim of feeling overpowered by Brown.
Point 2: “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Fact: That Brown was NOT stopped for being a suspect in a crime is her trying to make a case that Officer Wilson never made. This was never presented by Officer Wilson. Wilson testified he didn’t know about Brown being the strong arm robber when he first addressed him to stop walking down the middle of the road and to get on the sidewalk. Brown instead of getting on the sidewalk ignored the order. That’s what started the incident. The implication that the student is making is that the officer had no right to stop Brown for walking down the middle of the road unless he was a suspect in another crime. This is nonsense. In fact, this goes to the point that Officer Wilson is not lying. Wouldn’t it make more sense, since the call regarding the robbery was made prior to Officer Wilson seeing Brown, that Officer Wilson would have said, “I stopped him because I thought he might be the robbery suspect?”
Point 3: “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Fact: Officer Wilson never stated this. In his testimony on page 281 he is talking about when he followed after Brown after he was attacked and after the first shots went off, one grazing Brown as he was wrestling for the gun. This testimony is not about when he was fatally shot. NONE of the bullets entered Brown from behind. Therefore, it is impossible for this to have been true unless, as I haven’t seen suggested anywhere, Brown was running backwards. All of the witnesses that came forward were heard by the Grand Jury. 60 of them.
Her point 4: “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
Fact: That she somehow is trying to make a case against Officer Wilson because his aim wasn’t perfect when being attacked then charged at is ludicrous.
Point 5: “While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Fact: Her listed source doesn’t reference any changes in Officer Wilson’s statement, and I haven’t found any elsewhere in him changing his story at all. The source shows various accounts of witnesses. Many are conflicting. Dorian Johnson says Brown never reached for Officer Wilson’s gun. Tiffany Mitchell indicated that Brown’s arms weren’t in the car during the first shot. Brown’s blood inside the car with the bullet going from the inside of the door to the outside and powder burns on his hand would indicate otherwise. Dorian Johnson’s initial accounts (changed after he learned the autopsy results) consistently indicated that Officer Wilson shot Brown in the back. We know from the autopsy results that this wasn’t true. Piaget Cranshaw says Browns hands weren’t up. Piaget also said that Brown never came forward toward Officer Wilson. She said, “maybe a centimeter step,” whatever that is. Dorian said the same thing. But, the blood evidence on the road shows a 20-22 foot long trail of Brown’s blood, back toward officer Wilson. Again, 60 witnesses were brought to the grand Jury, many who have remained anonymous. Cherry picking a few accounts doesn’t change the fact that the Grand Jury heard from everyone the police found. And at least those presented here are refuted by physical evidence.
Point 6: “These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
Fact: See points before, the Grand Jury saw 60 witnesses.
Point 7: (Brown’s hands were up when shot) “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
Fact: Completely fabricated. One bullet entered the top of Brown’s forearm, impossible if his hands were up, unless he contorted them around. The entry into the top of the forearm is consistent with Officer Wilson’s account that Brown was running toward him. When running, the top of one’s forearm raises to a forward position.
Point 8: “Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Fact: Again, not true. All three autopsies, including the one commissioned by Brown’s family, found gunshot residue on Brown’s hand. The student’s source referenced only a preliminary review, not the final and complete autopsy reports which were readily available to her.
Point 9: “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
Fact: Wow. This is really some poor “journalism” here. The headline in her own source indicates Brown’s body was 148 feet FROM OFFICER WILSON’S SUV. This was after Brown ran, before he turned and was shot after officer Wilson gave chase. Brown was shot from 35 feet away from Officer Wilson. After running, he ended up 148 feet AWAY FROM THE POLICE SUV, not from Officer Wilson. (By the way, if you are a slow runner, you run a 40-yard dash in 6 seconds. That equates to less than 2 seconds to cover 35 feet. )
Point 10: “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Fact: The call was made by a customer. You can watch the video yourself to see if the man robbing the store and shoving the store owner is Mike Brown. Looks exactly like him, same size, and wearing the same clothes that Brown was wearing. Brown’s friend Dorian Johnson is in the video as well. But all of this is simply a red herring, as we know Officer Wilson didn’t even know Brown was the suspect when he asked him to stop walking in the middle of the road. In the end, whether or not Brown robbed the store is not relevant. Whether the store owner made the 9-1-1 call doesn’t matter. Brown was shot for attacking Officer Wilson, not his attack on the store owner. But the 9-1-1-call was made, the Ferguson police didn’t make this up as the source implies.
Point 11: “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Fact: Read HER OWN source. The story has been updated to show this claim on social media is false.
Point 12: “The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Fact: Please read the source story. It’s the classic attempt to smear the character of Officer Wilson for which anyone bringing up any background information about Michael Brown would be chastised. The story even mentions his mother being charged with forgery when he was a freshman in high school. Really? Even if the source is true that the Jennings police department was a racist group, are we accepting this as guilt by association for Officer Wilson?
As A retired electronic media person of 35 yrs. I think you are a real Journalist and not a story spinner. thanks to you for researching and reporting on the facts. Often with media ratings and financial motives by corporations, facts take a back seat or never get on the “Bus”.. Ms Shelby Lawson, my wish is for your continued success in life and your journalistic passion… thanks again:) Charles Harris.
I’m white and I understand that calling the cops probably ends up with everyone in the area being being beaten, tazed, carted off. that’s why I never call them
..but then again you take one look at me; it’s easy to tell I’d pretty- much never need them as I’m quite capable to police my own area. You’re media is hypnotizing you to contortions of logic which never could fit in the real America but do evoke the post-war dystopian novelists. It’s designed to quiet your mouth and fear the government. The message is this: “If you’re white or if you are business owner you are a racist.” & “Mess with the Government and you’ll end up dead.” The tax-collectors we pay to re-distribute wealth aren’t legally bound to protect anyone. See how wonderfully protected the people of Chicago and Furgeson have been? The aren’t even permitted to carry a gun to defend themselves. The government(even though paid to) is hardly on your side; The agents of the law’s primary objective is to protect the Government, The president, Wall Str. and The Bankers.Of course, Barack Obama is still the head of the United Nations violation the U.S. constitution Sect. 1 Article 9 forbiding our president to be leader of any other Government entity. ja? and to protect Con Agra and big Oil empires in the middle-East I’m just wondering, Do you think it would be alright to torture pedophiles “NO!! , NO, NO!” You can’t torture anyone!” Yeah, but they who try to take over the world at the beginning of every century 1815, 1914, 2014 and started WW1 are targeting any convenient civilian target to produce a political objective. Ever hear of Antifada 2nd Antifada, the Ottoman Caliphate when Armenian Women were captured,married, then passed around, raped by the millions as Otttoman/Turkish policy, “divorced (In Hadith Shariah law all a man has to do to divorce his”wife is say” I divorce you, I divorce you, I divorce you.”). In their Law” he can then pass her around to his comrades, They “marry” her, “divorce her” sometimes seven men in one day Well that is the Sharia state caliphate they have in mind to establish world Wide; Not Okay to torture those guys, huh? Google the photos taken LAST time they tried this then Crucified Armenian women by the 1,000’s al at once who refused to deny Christianity : Ottoman-Turkish caliphate Army Has them all lined up as far as the eye can see on crucifixes” The traditionally most-humiliating way to die in that culture. but they all keep telling us “Islam still remains the fastest growing religions in the world.” ../´¯/) ……,/¯../ …../…./ ……/´¯/’…’/´¯¯`·¸ …/’/…/…./ /¨¯ .(‘(…´…´…. ¯~/’…’) …..’…../ …” …… _.·´ …..( .… That was true until 2012, Only because of 3 things. Radical Jihadists murder all other adherents to other faiths 2. Their governments keep the Christian message off the airwaves, radio and television. 3. taking several wives will create a higher population of children who will of course not be given any option or freedom to seek God from any prophets but Muhammad.Then closing off the society from any other message. Strongholds like Saudi Arabia. There have been 9 times more CHRISTIAN DEATH OFFICIAL martyrs than that of islam . Everyone should know what we are up against and see the photos I’m describing. They look worse than Aushwitz. I’ve been there too June 1989. There also is a difference between being attacked when un-armed and dragged from your bed then gunned down or crucified in front of your wife and children.. and being captured on a battlefield because you’ve run out of ammo, been out-gunned and are in league with the people who murdered 3,000 innocents on Sept 11 2001 so “morons”Who just got elected are going to simply keep the torture laws just the fine way they are, Making this a great country, simply by virtue of the fact we are determined to prevent the scum of the earth from turning women like you into sex slaves.
So you are a journalism major and you have intimate knowledge of how a crime scene is processed? Or how accurate a police officer is with his or her firearm etc? I can see from your post that you really do not have any experience in this field – in a vaccuum you arguments MIGHT have some weight but let’s be honest – you are young and inexperienced…I would still caution you with your idealistic approach to issues in the future.
Thank you for laying out the facts.
I think you need to read the DOJ report (http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/opa/press-releases/attachments/2015/03/04/doj_report_on_shooting_of_michael_brown_1.pdf). If you have any integrity you will retract this pathetic example of journalism. You do your profession a diservice.
Your research is spotty at best. I see you enjoy reading dailykos but the articles you cite aren’t factual, they are opinion based.
stupid
Yea I’m sure that you know more than the Washington Post, which reported that all the physical evidence supports Officer Wilson
The only problem I see is with the claim Shelby makes about the Market owner saying the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown & the security footage didn’t show anyone identified as Mike Brown.
In her source reference it does not say that. The owner simply said he didn’t call 911 and neither did any employees, but a customer inside the store was responsible for the call. It also says the warrent for the security footage wasn’t obtained until after Brown was killed.
Her source raises key issues with the media’s inconsistency with the grand jury record and should’ve caught the jury’s attention, nonetheless.
Other facts Shelby brings up are essential.
Some people don’t realize there is a difference between a jury trial and a Grand Jury hearing. With a standard jury hearing there is a judge present and witnesses aren’t allowed to speak directly to the jury. The votes must be unanimous before an official verdict statement can be presented.
With a Grand Jury hearing there is no judge and most people speculate that the prosecuting attorney has all of the control over what happens. Its much different because the Grand Jury is allowed to interview each witness. A Grand Jury’s votes do not need to be unanimous in order to reach verdict.
It’s a shame this case wasn’t allowed to be brought before a judge, especially with the prosecuting attorney’s obvious conflict of interest in raising money for Wilson. I’m glad Wilson resigned, I just hope he never gets hired as an officer again.
There is always an angel to see what others don’t want to see.
Your first “fact” is inaccurate
Mike Brown was 6’5″ 270-280 lbs not 6’4″ 210 lbs
That is significant. I am 6’2″ and around 200 lbs… Mike Brown would have seemed significantly bigger than myself if I was sitting.
However, I do not wear body armor and carry several weapons on my Bat-Belt.
Im convinced KU Journalism has a course on “how to be a sensationalist”
you obviously haven’t watched the news or read the released REAL documents from the trial. This is the most ignorant, patch worked article I’ve read on this situation. Darren Wilson was doing his job and I know you probably won’t post this comment because you don’t want someone to prove you wrong but I’m sorry-the police are here to protect us and themselves and that’s what Darren Wilson was doing. Mike Brown DID rob that store, and as for your claim about the 6 or 7 witnesses, there were 60 total in this trial and all of them had different stories. This was not a corrupt officer, the corrupt people are the ones rioting in St. Louis and people like you who don’t have the decency to read the facts instead of gathering loose information anywhere you can find it. I’m surprised you’re in college but I guess I’m not surprised you’re from KU, this was absolutely the most ridiculous thing I’ve read on the issue and actually made me laugh a little bit.
The first statement she makes is incorrect. She claims they’re the same size. Wilson 6’4″ 210 and Brown 6’5″ 290. Where I’m from if you weigh 80 lbs more your not the same size. You can debunk every single fat she tries to present.
You are the bomb!
Are you kidding me? This is why I weep for my children’s future.
Obviously the KU Journalism major didn’t read the info submitted to the grand jury. Her very first “fact” is completely untrue. There was an extreme weight difference.
Thank you for thoroughly researching- you did an excellent job of fact checking unlike the numerous articles I have read.
“that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” I’m not seeing this information at the cited source. Can you please elaborate? Thank you for this thoughtful and well researched post.
Why the need to lie though, starting with the very first “fact”?
MIke brown had 82 pounds on Wilson. They were not the same size. Regardless of your opinion on what happened, saying they were the “same size” is an outright lie.
This is a classic straw man argument with no regard to the whole facts a they exist. 6 4 210 vs. 6 4 290 that’s a decent difference. Broke protocol? Protocol would be if you feel like someone is going to kill you you are able to stop them with whatever force necessary to stop it. Lots of additional one sided arguments here nice to cited sources but what does it matter if you ignore the evidence contrary to your arguments?
Ok that’s all good. The question is……was this a lifetime criminal or not? I’m all against the police, but honestly this guy was a criminal! He should have stopped threatening others! No matter the color
You do have incorrect notes.
Gun residue was found on Mike Brown’s hand. As the federal pathologist noted, the shot to the arm could have happened while Mike Brown was running away (which corroborates those who said Wilson fired at Brown’s back).
The Medical Examiner didn’t take the photos of Wilson at the hospital.
The store video and theft are really irrelevant to any of this. But there is no doubt that it was Mike Brown, Dorian Johnson, Brown’s friend, acknowledged it was so.
Most of the witnesses didn’t hear Brown say anything. Most of the witnesses also say Mike Brown wasn’t charging Wilson. He was, at most, stumbling forward after having been shot.
All the witnesses the police could find were interviewed. Several multiple times.
The prosecuting attorney did not raise money for Darren Wilson. That one was debunked in September. McCulloch is president of Backstoppers, an organization that helps the families of responders killed in line of duty. The Wilson fund raiser site stated part of the funds would go to Backstoppers. The Backstoppers said not only were they not associated with the fundraiser, they wouldn’t take any of the funds.
You have an incorrect distance, from the GJ documents, I believe it was 153 feet at max that Brown ran, but then he moved back towards Wilson. It wasn’t a charge back, more of a stumble or slow walk.
Mike Brown is listed as either 6′ 4″ or 6′ 5″, but the weight is given as 285. Not the same as Wilson, but Wilson was no lightweight.
That protocol was broken was definitely true, and abysmally so.
If you’re going into journalism, you need to work on your accuracy.
You report that the owner says the theft of cigars had nothing to do with Mike Brown, but in the source link the owner said that the theft had nothing to do with him getting shot. It’s an important distinction.
This information is wrong. First piece… He was never stopped for jaywalking. He was simply told to get out of the street from the car. Secondly he was never shot while fleeing… That’s why there are no shots in the back… He was only shot when he reached for the gun through the cops window. And again when he turned and charged the officer. Also she says they refused to use eye witness reports. That is a total fallacy. The used all credible eye witness reports that lined up with evidence. Half of the people that gave accounts kept changing their story. Get your facts right before you just throw your opinions around and call it credible reporting.
Quite a sorry excuse for journalism. Your sources are extremist websites and one-sided op-ed pieces. Really? (Americans Against Tea Party? Daily KOS? VOX?) Just because you can site a source doesnt mean it is a credible one. KU should be ashamed of teaching you such a poor method to relay information. Here’s to hoping you’ve hit rock bottom on this piece and will never stoop lower.
Thank you for this. You might also want to add the fact that Darren Wilson bagged his own gun for evidence (pg. 88 of the trial transcript).
Thank you for this. One thing she missed: Darren Wilson also bagged his own gun for evidence, against standard police procedure (see pg. 88 of court transcript).
A strong arm thief and bully attacked a police officer, regardless of race, sex or
religious conviction–good riddance.
so you just decided to make up a bunch of crap…. Most, if not all of this, is not true.
A lot of your info isn’t fact
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/18/1322560/-Ferguson-Store-Owner-Says-NO-ONE-From-His-Store-Called-Cops-To-Report-Cigar-Theft
http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/08/15/attorney-dorian-johnson-michael-brown-robbery/14118769/
So yes, he grabbed a couple cheap cigars- the store didn’t care, Wilson didn’t know, Brown was shot anyway. But it was him in the video.
Nothing justifies Wilsons actions. Nothing.
Why can’t all news be this straightforward, honest, and simple?
I am sorry I ever gave this story another read. Its utter trash. Do I think Wilson did not make mistakes? No. But this story and many of its points are entirely false.
She is wrong about several things: First of all, they were not the same size. Michael Brown weighed 285 and 289 pounds during the respective autopsies. That’s a difference of at least 70 pounds.
The second set of points she cites her source as a NY Times article that is rife with opinion, not the facts from the actual autopsies. The source cites is the private autopsy requested by the family which, if you go to the actual submitted documents in the case it shows that all three autopsy reports deliver the same information WITHOUT opinion.
The third point is from an interview with Dorian Johnson, not official credible documents given to the Grand Jury.
The fourth point about the Medical Examiner is true, however if you read on, you find out that there was an officer following the examiner photographing everything needed. There was also another medicalegal representative on the scene that did a full video walkthrough of the crime scene.
I went through the rest of her “points” but they are all unfortunately based on articles written by other journalists. And most of them have been corrected.
As a journalism instructor, I recommend that Shelby first of all, stop citing other journalists as expert evidence; second, spend the time reading more than just the parts of the grand jury documents that she finds interesting; and finally, get the very basic facts right. One of her “sources” said that there was no gunshot residue on the body of Michael Brown when in fact all three of the autopsy reports show gun powder residue on the right butt of his hand where he tried to grab the gun off of the officers hip when they struggled in the car.
I teach high school journalism and I would NEVER allow this type of regurgitation. That’s what is wrong with journalism. Don’t trust anyone else’s information, Shelby. Go find the truth for yourself.
Unfortunately, I cannot continue to read this when the first point you make is incorrect. Yes, officer Wilson was the same height as Mike Brown but Brown weighed 289 pounds. A 79 pound difference makes a huge difference when you are considering the difference in size of two men that large.
Mike Brown was 6’5″, and 289 lbs. That’s 79 pounds more that Officer Wilson. Still, saying that they were the same size is the most accurate thing you said.
A lot of this information is true, but a large chunk of it is entirely false. Please research the matter before you make any accusations. Here are some actual facts that you completely left out:
(1) You linked the PRELIMINARY Autopsy reports. Several autopsies were conducted afterwards and confirmed that the bullet wounds and other factors indeed match a man in a LUNGING position.
Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Oh, and the autopsy expert is under investigation for FRAUD.
Source: http://hotair.com/archives/2014/11/29/cnn-michael-brown-autopsy-expert-may-be-a-fraud/
(2) Officer Wilson at 210 lbs at 6’4″. Michael Brown, the same height, but 292 pounds. Do you know the MASSIVE difference 82 pounds has on a person with the same weight? No, same height does not mean same weight. Someone heavier than you will have more mass in a punch, hence the BROKEN ORBITAL on Wilson. That being said, HOW THE HELL can Wilson get a BROKEN ORBITAL if Michael Brown was just running away? Someone landed that first hit..
(3) You mention that the witnesses all said that he was surrendering. Here’s what they actually said, read this.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2014/11/29/b99ef7a8-75d3-11e4-a755-e32227229e7b_story.html
(4) I’m not gonna refute that Brown was shot 148 feet away from the vehicle. But you think that Darren Wilson stayed in the damn car when he got shot? No, Wilson would have followed Brown regardless of whether or not he shoots. You think an officer would in ANY case stay put against an unarmed criminal? No, any officer would have gone in for a chase. This is common sense. Wilson was not 148 feet from Brown, the car was. You’re basically saying that Wilson was leaned against the car.
(5) Michael Brown’s own mother testified that the person in the video was Brown. But who cares, there are too many varying accounts of the video now.
(6) Self defense protocol is extremely vague and there is a huge room for variation. Using deadly force is permitted when the officer believes that he is in imminent danger. It’s simple: if he thinks he’s in danger than it’s permitted. Brown was lunging (as confirmed by autopsies that you failed to research), so it’s pretty much permitted.
You are a Journalism major. You should know better than to provide shoddy sources or unupdated sources.
Wrong on most points
I can find several things wrong with this just off the top of my head. I have read most of the grand jury transcripts and I have completed reading ever single supporting document that the grand jury received.
First: Mike brown was 79 pounds heavier than the officer. While yes, they were both the same height, by no stretch of the imagination were they the same size.
Second: Brown’s DNA was found on Wilson’s gun
Third: The shot to Brown’s hand occurred while he was struggling with Wilson in the car, skin, matching his palm was found on the vehicle. That shot had nothing to do with the allegations that his hands were up. And even the doctor who performed the private autopsy said that it entrance wound were consistent with many positions his arms could have been in, having his hands up was only one of them.
Fourth: All three autopsy’s performed found Gun Shot residue on Brown’s right hand. Again even the private doctor said that the shot to his palm could have occurred at a distance no greater than a foot.
Fifth: The source you post relating to the distance shows only the distance from SUV, not officer Wilson himself as you purport.
Sixth: The store owner did not call but the call was still made, and even his accomplice in the robber does not dispute that the guy on the tape was Mike Brown in his testimony.
This is exactly how misinformation gets out. It is disappointing. My source for all of this is the documentation and testimony that was released by the New York Times. I will comment on only what I have read and do not speculate on the rest of it until I have completed reading, as I wish everyone else would do.
Point A: He was 80 lbs heavier
Point B: He doesn’t say he was fatally shot when he was fleeing. He said he fled at one point. He pursued him (Michael Brown had just assaulted a police officer) then the shootings occurred. This KU Journalist is absolute shit at looking at facts.
Point C: He shot him once in the head and you can’t predict a persons movement when shooting people. IF he aimed center mass dependent on body movement he could still hit a person in the head.
Point D: Um…speculative.
Point E: Um…someone can get batteries on the way to the hospital.
Point F: He said he grabbed for the gun and all witnesses confirmed that he did…just because he grabbed for the gun doesn’t mean his fingerprints are on it.
Point G: Witness accounts corroborate his testimony. Why would they spend more money to analyze blood spatter patterns?
Point H: Okay 4 witnesses claim they saw it and claimed that police didn’t interview them. They have 14 other witnesses. Do those not matter?
Point I: All the other witnesses refute this explanation of events!
Point J: Wounds to his arm were incurred prior to being fatally shot…these wounds happened in the car. Those wounds don’t suggest anything about his final position.
Point K: Then why do witnesses say there was a struggle in the car? Are they lying?
Point L: Okay they were off on the distance. That doesn’t mean anything
Point M: But we know that Mike Brown DID have the cigarillos…so it was Mike Brown and the store owner has terrible eyesight apparently.
Point N: IDK…that could be a conflict of interest idk if its true or not.
Point O: All o fthe police departments have bad relations with the community..that doesn’t mean all officers had bad relations with the community. This doesn’t prove anything.
I’ll try this again, since you deleted my other reply. Mike Brown was 6’5″, and weighed 289 pounds. That’s right there in the autopsy report. Let’s see how long it takes you to delete this one. I know it doesn’t fit your agenda.
Just three of your points I fact checked because misinformation is everywhere and some of yor sources are emotionally charged subjective articles.
Mike Brown weighed nearly 80 more lbs than Officer Wilson (a quick lookup of the height weight of the two would have provided you that). It is consistently reported.
Mike Brown is in fact shown on the surveillance video. Dorian Johnson who was with him during the robbery confirmed the robbery in his testimony. A comparison of the clothes of Brown was wearing leads to that conclusion as well.
http://www.vox.com/2014/11/25/7287443/dorian-johnson-story
And if you compared the preliminary autopsy by Baden (hired and paid by the Brown family) to the official autopsy (performed by the St Louis Medical Examiner) you will see residue consistent with materials discharged by a gun was in fact found on his hand and the official report does not support any idea he was shot with his hands up. It supports a struggle in the car and a gunshot to the thumb at close range.
http://m.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed&mobile_touch=true
There are more flaws in your article (there is no source listed by you or report I can find on my own credible enough to comment on his supposed “last words”) but I think I’ve poked enough holes here to make a point. Hopefully, as a Jounalism Major you’ll learn to better fact check next time as this is just perpetuating misinformation.
Good job cherrypicking on this and leaving out important information.
Apparently 289 pounds and 210 pounds are the same size.
On the same page of the transcript about photographs, it reveals that they did direct photographs by other crime scene investigators. As is standard when they run out of batteries.
“Claiming that a missfire is impossible and untrue” You don’t know firearms then, a missfire can be everything from a failure to fire to a failure to eject and even a failure to load. The autopsy report has two wounds that are consistent with close-in shots when someone is being attacked by someone else, wounds #10 and #11.
Of course stories change, when they don’t change and are consistent and the same between people is a sign that they are being groomed or are collaborating with their stories.
Wilson also states that Brown was fleeing, and then had turned and placed one hand into his pants and appeared to be getting ready to charge. No sign of surrender at that point.
And using a partisan site such as the Daily Kos as a source? For shame.
There are some discrepancies in your article. They were not the same size for one. 6ft 4 in vs 6ft 5 in, and almost an 90 lb difference between them. That is a significant size difference. Also, citations should not be other journalism sources. Citation should come from the proverbial horses mouth. Don’t use KOS or NYTimes, find who they used and read the original source yourself and report that. I fear your teacher in journalism has failed you.
I seriously hope that this girl is not a journalism student at KU. The Slate and Vox are not creditable sources of information. This article does nothing but prove your ignorance.
I’m impressed……that anyone was able to pack so much ill-informed stupidity into one Facebook post:
1) Officer Wilson is NOT “the same size as Mike Brown.” Although both stand (or stood) 6’4″, Michael Brown weighed ~295 lbs. He outweighed Wilson by 85 lbs, or a hair over 40%. Brown was 140% the size of Wilson. Only a complete moron would declare that to be “the same size”.
2) Wilson did NOT confirm that Brown was “fleeing” when fatally shot, nor does the physical evidence (no rounds struck Brown from behind). In fact it was Wilson’s testimony…as well as that of some eye witnesses…that Brown was “charging” Wilson when the final shots were fired.
3) Wilson did not break police self-defense protocol. That assertion is a classic example of an ignorant commenter simply making up complete nonsense. Unfortunately, the commenter appears to be a one-trick pony, as that same dishonest tactic constitutes nearly the entire remainder of her fantasy-based rant.
DailyKos and Americans Against the Tea Party for sources? Really? Just go ahead and throw Wikipedia and the National Inquirer in there while you’re at it.
Article is so full of third party information and questionable sources it isn’t funny. You didn’t do any actual research. You’re just quoting other people with an agenda.
I’m impressed……that anyone was able to pack so much ill-informed stupidity into one Facebook post:
1) Officer Wilson is NOT “the same size as Mike Brown.” Although both stand (or stood) 6’4″, Michael Brown weighed ~295 lbs. He outweighed Wilson by 85 lbs, or a hair over 40%. Brown was 140% the size of Wilson. Only a complete moron would declare that to be “the same size”.
2) Wilson did NOT confirm that Brown was “fleeing” when fatally shot, nor does the physical evidence (no rounds struck Brown from behind). In fact it was Wilson’s testimony…as well as that of some eye witnesses…that Brown was “charging” Wilson when the final shots were fired.
3) Wilson did not break police self-defense protocol. That assertion is a classic example of an ignorant commenter simply making up complete nonsense. Unfortunately, the commenter appears to be a one-trick pony, as that same dishonest tactic constitutes nearly the entire remainder of her fantasy-based rant
Most egregiously…
“that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
…is a flat-out lie. Even the DailyKos propaganda piece cited as the “source” of this claim does not say that.
Even Wikipedia as a source would be more credible than those she has cited. Apparently her Journalism degree is in danger as each of these “stories” has been debunked.
Facts, how do they work?
This is the most horrid source list I have seen. Not only including op ed pieces, but sites of dubious content and bias. If this is what we are teaching journalism student to source and where to source from, then journalistic integrity is already dead.
Furthermore, almost every assertion made has been refuted by the actual transcript of the grand jury proceeding, which she claims to have sourced, but was released until after the announcement.
I am truly Smdh at this piece, which is yellow journalism at worst and outright lies, which is where I am leaning.
Thank you for putting all of this together. Now, I’m seeing a good deal to do with Micheal Brown (may he rest in peace, and may his family and friends find peace) not being ‘such a good boy’ and having prior arrests, etc, etc. Do we know if any of that can be verified? I’m tending towards all of it – especially his supposed criminal record, in which he was tried as an adult – as being fabricated, but maybe not. The whole THING was full of inconsistencies, and while the rioting and burning is the wrong way to deal with it … justice was not served, and people are angry.
I appreciate what you did here – hopefully, it will be shared around widely enough so that we can get a grasp on the facts, and not just the passionate soundbites which sell the news.
Citing watchdog websites. That KU education is really paying off.
What utter unsupported bullshit…..look at me….look at me….I’m somebody
Great article! Please note Dorian Johnson admitted robbing the convenience store with Michael Brown. I would include that fact with the convenience store owner’s account so the full picture is painted.
i’m about halfway through the grand jury report, glad to see some analysis happening.
I’m not saying Darren Wilson was innocent here, but I see a lot of conjecture, a lot of words being put in mouths, and a lot of unverifiable sources, and a few statements contrary to fact. I want to believe in Mike Brown’s innocence, but it doesn’t do anyone any good to promote conjecture as fact. I think if we really focus on the evidence what we see is a lack of proof in favor for Darren Wilson’s testimony, save his own testimony, and yes a lot of breaches of protocol, and a lot of testimony flip-flopping.
Going to call this young lady “The Credible Hulk” for her use of documented sources
Thank you for exposing this “good old boy” network of injustices.
How does this article and linked document prove that Wilson and Brown are the same size/weight? They are not. Brown was significantly heavier.
This article is full of holes. Michael Brown had a 50% weight advantage. THAT IS HUGE. Secondly, Wilson did not shoot Brown in the head twice. There was one head wound to the top of the head, which Wilson said occurred as Brown was rushing him, as if trying to tackle him. The eyewitness do NOT all agree that Wilson was the aggressor, although Wilson was trying to detain Brown as a suspect in a strong-arm robbery. Several of the witnesses who said Brown was shot with his hands up ultimately admitted that they hadn’t even witnessed the shooting, but were simply repeating what someone else had told them. The owner of the Ferguson Market did not call 9-1-1 because a customer who witnessed the robbery did, negating the need for the storeowners to do so. Brown was never 148 feet from Wilson. He was 148 feet from Wilson’s car, then turned back toward Wilson.
Thank you for sharing
Actually, it was Mike Brown in the video. He had the cigarillo’s in his hand when he attacked Wilson, plus his friend admitted to the theft which has been reported on by the attorney. Whether or not the store clerk thought it was him or called 911 is irrelevant. He committed the crime. Furthermore, there were witnesses that stated Brown instigated the attack which can be found in the same grand jury testimony you received your other information from. The autopsy revealed that he was not shot in the back which discredited a few witness statements. It does not mean he had his hands up, that’s an opinion formed from the autopsy results. In fact, several witnesses also claimed he did not have his hands up to surrender. Brown did run from Wilson and then turned around and charged at him resulting in the final shot to the head, which is also sourced in the autopsy report. Initially, Wilson did make contact with the two because they were jaywalking, but then realized they fit the description of the theft he had just heard of on his radio. This is irresponsible journalism. You can’t pick and choose which facts to ignore and which to praise. I don’t think Brown should have died, but I don’t think people should further the misconception of what happened by reiterating only what they find important.
Michael Brown measured 6’5″ and weighed 289 pounds at his autopsy.
How does this article and linked document prove that Wilson and Brown are the same size/weight? They’re not. Brown was significantly heavier.
You lost me when you said they were the same size. Same height maybe, but about 80lbs difference.
head shots at fifty yards??? wth did you even look at the police report or eyewitness accounts? What is this even about ????
Why don’t you use current sources and the actual investigation notes instead of biased sources. Hell, you might as well cite wikipedia!
By the way, you forgot to mention that Brown was high when this whole incident even happened which could have impaired his judgment. You also forgot to mention that Wilson didn’t have a taser on him and was afraid to use mace because he was in a confined space which means it could have affected him as well. Wilson shot him in the head because Brown was charging at him even after being shot before. After assaulting an officer in Missouri, police have more leeway in excessive force justification. If he feared for his life, which he claims he did, Missouri law recognizes it as self-defense. That’s the law, not a news story fact.
The same autopsy report you link says that all shots entered him from the front, which means it is impossible that he was fleeing. Double check please, you’re just spreading further misinformation!
LOLs, and she calls herself a journalism student? There is only ONE unbiased source and that is of the Grand Jury Testimony and really the only on she should be using since that is the most through report at to what happened.
I guess she will be a great fit at MSNBC….
Your assessment isn’t very accurate, Shelby.
Although your argument is very convincing, not all your sources are accurate. The source about the autopsy is not on an official website, and anyone can alter the website it was posted on. You have no actually proof that Mike Brown was indeed surrendering with his hands up when he was shot. Again, almost convincing until the said person reading your article actually does some digging of their own on your sources. I do wonder though, if Michael Brown was in fact a white man would this be as big of an issue? Anytime an African American is in trouble or disobeys the law and is repermanded, everyone is quick to use the race card. I understand African Americans have been mistreated in the past, and sometimes still are. But good grief people, not everything involving African Americans has to do with racism.
Official autopsy lists Brown as 289, and 77 inches(6’5″)(New York Times says 292, state autopsy lists 289), Wilson is just under 6’4″ ,210 and lbs. 80 lbs. is a heck of a mistake to make… Ever wonder why boxing, judo, MMA, all have weight classes that are generally in small increments(5-10) weight=power and 80lbs is a HUGE power advantage?
Also the hands WERE found to have “particulate matter consistent with discharge of firearm” on them… (St. Louis Medical examiner case 2014 5143)
How does someone running away get shot in the front? According to the autopsy report(see any of the autopsy reports), all shots were from the front. Officer Wilson states on page 281 that he pursued the Brown NOT that he fired at his back while he was running away. For a college attendee the author of these case shredding claims seems to lack basic reading comprehension.
Maybe she should entertain the thought of switching majors… perhaps a B.S. in Childhood Fiction.
Extremely inconsistent. I got pasted the first couple points and found inconsistencies in what you’re claiming and what was actually said.
But I suppose you’re practicing real journalism by taking things out of context. Good on that.
Hahahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahaa
Everything you posted is factually incorrect, I am actually not sure if this is a parody or another misguided “college student” studying nothing important and contributing nothing to society. Good luck with life, you’re going to need it.
According to autopsy Mike Brown weighed 292 pounds. So he was the same height as Officer Wilson but not the same weight, therefore not the same size.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=0
More excuses for Michael Brown. He also didn’t have to steal from a cigarette store, he could have simply got out of the street and obeyed the police officer.
I guess the women/gender studies/sociology/journalism major knows more that the grand jury. You’d destroy them in court if they’d only heed your wisdom.
You go girl. You have clearly done your research. Thank you very much for putting in the time to make this an accurate tell-all. Great performance ma’am.
Not the brightest bulb are you?
Didn’t Brown weigh 292? Seems larger to me then 210.
Also 49 yards with a compact size handgun, normal trigger and non specialized ammo… Officer Wilson was able to make a headshot at that distance, 49 yards. The OLYMPIC world record is a 10cm(4 inches) at 50 yards with specialized ammo, specialized pistols and several HOURS to fire 80 shots. So Wilson will have a career after the PD now, he can go on to win several gold medals.
Cognitive dissonance, this gal has is…
Great job interpreting what you want from a report, and having zero background to do so with any authority. Keep on being a student.
Michael Brown was 90 lbs heavier. They were the same height, but not the same “size.” Also, Wilson did not deliver the fatal shots while Brown was fleeing. The fatal shots were delivered after Brown stopped fleeing, turned around, and walked (or “charged” Wilson and some witnesses claim) toward Wilson.
A worthy entry for this year’s Leni Riefenstahl Agitprop Competition. Police self defense protocol does not teach “disarmament and body shots.” It teaches officers to stop the threat. Period.
Your sources are from third party internet websites and are not from the actual court transcript.
Yeah, there’s a video…don’t charge the police when they say freeze!
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson” should read “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson’s SUV.” Brown was not 35 feet away from Wilson when Wilson murdered him.
Your “analysis” is sadly full of innuendo, misinterpretation of facts and reliance on witnesses who lied, did not actually witness the shooting, or gave inconsistent and unreliable testimony. These are some of the reasons the prosecuting attorney presented all the information and testimony to the grand jury. Is 210 pounds the same as 300 pounds? They were not the same size. Isn’t it assault even if they were? Legitimate, unbiased forensic science proved that Michael Brown never raised his hands, several reliable witnesses corroborated this fact, despite their being threatened by people in the neighborhood if they did. Officer Wilson did stop the pair for jaywalking, but he was certainly aware they matched the descriptions of suspects in the just committed robbery. Michael Brown would be alive today if he had not strongarm-robbed a store followed by assaulting an officer. Any loss of life is tragic, but it is sane advice to not do these things if you expect to live.
Your article is bad and you should feel bad
Reblogged this on mynerdgasm and commented:
Wonderful piece with amazing citing making it simple to understand and argue the case to anyone who might disagree with defending Mike Brown.
Hmmm
I don’t think this “shreds the case against Mike Brown”. In fact, I find that choice of wording to be quite telling of the author’s perspective, as *there is no case* against Mike Brown. This article is merely another example of a false dichotomy argument, with one side supported by cherry picking and misrepresenting the facts. (For example, this is false: “…the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” The source cited doesn’t even say that; rather, it confirms that Mike Brown *was* on the security tape, but that the footage was unrelated to the shooting.) That’s only the most obvious error–there are actually several erroneous/misleading points in this article.
So what’s my point? Surely I must be pro-Wilson or something, right? NO. That is the false dichotomy. I don’t think Mike Brown *or* Darren Wilson was right. I think Darren Wilson used excessive force, his testimony is mostly bullshit, his entire police department is incredibly shady, and the whole investigation was a joke. But I also think Mike Brown was a thug and a criminal, and in no way does he deserve to be the poster child for the fight against police brutality. He played with fire and he got burned. My point is, there’s no “right side” to this, so anyone who supports Darren Wilson *or* Mike Brown…is wrong.
Full of shit just like that Thanksgiving turkey I just had.
Those who can, do.
Those who can’t, teach.
Those who can’t do and can’t teach, go into journalism.
And those that want to eradicate the last vestiges of logic and rational thought from their brain also major in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.
Quoting news stories from internet sources hardly counts as evidence of anything, not when the average journalist is far more interested in supporting their agenda getting the story first than they are getting the story accurate. If you want to “prove” anything you need to at least cite credible firsthand sources, not some nonsense you found on the internet.
And clearly this journalist student can’t even be bothered to actually interview anyone who knows the first thing about firing a handgun in combat, or even shooting under stress. In a fight shots are fired rapidly and handgun rounds are notoriously poor at stopping an attacker instantly. Handguns are difficult to shoot, particularly when you are under stress and not in a stable shooting stance. So there is no picking your shots. You shoot center mass and hope that the bullets hit your attacker somewhere. A 50% hit rate is considered good under that kind of stress.
Maybe Brown did put his hands up in the last quarter second of his life, maybe. But that’s hardly time for a police officer to identify the motion as a willingness to surrender and stop shooting. Anyone, and I mean ANYONE who knows the first thing about defensive shootings would tell you that. But this journalist didn’t even bother to find out.
And any journalist should know that eyewitness testimony is incredibly unreliable at best.
It’s no wonder people have such low opinions of journalists these days.
At the time of his death, he was 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) tall and weighed 292 lb
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown
Really don’t know where you get your facts, but please continuet o spew your bullshit, it really helps out today’s society.
Really appreciate the thorough analysis. Facts are facts.
Shelby Lawson is an idiot
I would venture to say that in order to all yourself a journalist, you would have to publish true and accurate statements. Your “sources” are completely different than that of the Grand Jury Testimony published in the NY Times. I take it that this is either a some point you are trying to prove or just a typical “Jayhack”
Brown was almost 300lbs- hardly the “same size” as Wilson. That you dropped the ball on such a basic fact leads one to believe that your analysis of the rest of the facts of this case is as equally flawed. One other small tidbit- no police force anywhere in the U.S. is trained to “shoot to wound”
Your very first “point” is false. Same size means both height and weight. At autopsy Brown’s body was 77 inches and 289 pounds. That’s one inch taller and 79 pounds or 38% heavier than Officer Wilson. (https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370715-2014-5143-autopsy-report.html)
Everyone has known for months that Officer Wilson was heavily (pun intended) out-sized, so your willful blindness to the facts only shreds your credibility.
I’ll let someone else better acquainted with the rest of the facts shred what little remains of your credibility.
Ridiculous. The evidence is clear. Brown wasn’t shot while fleeing. All bullets entered from the front. Wilson did exactly what you claim he did NOT do, namely he shot at the torso first to subdue Brown. He only aimed for the head when Brown was charging him head down like a football player.
But even before all of that, there is ample evidence of a struggle and gunshots inside the police cruiser. Brown’s DNA was found in it! You live in fantasy land.
Amazing. A law student with more sense than the entire St. Louis DA’s office.
If this true ??? How did they not indite ?
Daily Kos as a source? Shelby, you’re what the commies used to call a “useful idiot”
All this was very true, except the part about Mike Brown not having robbed the store of the cigars.. the men on the store video were in fact mike brown and his friend dorian Johnson, and the theft was in fact called in, evidence to the with the 911 audio, even during the grand jury testimony, johnson testified to being handed the same cigar packs that he was seen stealing in the video.. none of this of course changes the facts about the shooting, but he indeed was the store thief
Brown supporters are basically equivalent to a 911 truthers at this point.
I haven’t been keeping up with the Wilson case, but I teach research methods to undergrads, and this particular article was brought to my attention by one of my students. In future classes, Ms Lawson’s essay will provide a useful teaching tool for how not to do research, or rather how to give the *appearance* of doing research in order to support a polemic.
Note the rhetorical device of aliasing the links–naming them ‘source’–which serves to obscure the lack of primary sources. Instead, secondary or tertiary sources dominate, without acknowledgment. This technique gives the appearance that the writer’s claims are supported, while hiding the weakness of that support. Or maybe this was unintentional.
Note also that even the primary sources are used disingenuously. For example, Ms Lawson claim is that the police officer and the subject were *the same size*, and purports to provide a primary source supporting this. But the source does not support that claim–it merely indicates Wilson’s size. By linking an entire volume of testimony, the writer gives the illusion that her claim is supported, hoping that the reader will not take the time to verify it. Or maybe this was unintentional.
Reading through this essay, anyone familiar with social science research is confronted with the idea that the writer is either incompetent (perhaps through lack of proper instruction) or disingenuous. I’m hoping for the former–since that’s correctable–but suspicious of the latter.
Checking and double checking facts is a good thing. Especially when posting an article remnding people to check facts. He did flee- but then turned around and charged back at the officer. He started charging with his head down which is why there was a bullet through the top of his head- which is in the coroners report. The many body wounds were shot first and were intended for him to stop charging the officer causing him reason to fear his life.
All of the above can be found in the official documents released.
please, stay in school for a couple extra years
Meh, nice try though. Truth is we will never know beyond what is reported. The only ones that know is the deceased and Darren Wilson. These witnesses can not prove a thing even if their stories collaborate.
You know Mike Brown was 80+ lbs heavier than Mr Wilson 289 vs 210
Also the crime photos confirm the empty shell casings were 8-12 feet away from were Mr Browns body laided comfirming he was shot much closer than 40 feet or the 148 feet you say it was.
And can you explain how or why Mr Browns blood was found on Mr Wilson uniform and inside of the Police cruiser?
Majoring in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies?
So you will be a career barista, huh?
Great choice.
Great points completely correct!!!
A lot of your points contradict themselves. You might want to conduct better and more accurate research next time.
Fail
Maybe you should have been on the grand jury
Are you retarded?
Unfortunately, not the least bit compelling at all. Selectively pulling pieces from the grand jury testimony that fit your subjective narrative is actually poor journalism. It is what fueled a race riot in St. Louis. As a graduate of the KU school of journalism, I am saddened by this alleged “shredding”. I can shred Shelby’s narrative as follows: Mike Brown wasn’t fleeing–the scientific evidence proved that he turned and traveled 21 feet toward Wilson as he was shot (blood drops on street). Wilson was back-pedaling in fear for his life as the shots were fired–the scientific evidence of a trail of discarded shell casings moving away from Brown proved this point. Brown wasn’t jaywalking–he was walking down the center line of the street on the yellow stripes and several vehicles had to pass and go around him. Brown and Wilson weren’t 121 feet apart during the confrontation. The space between the car and Brown’s corpse was 121 feet–but Wilson and Brown had both run from the vehicle some distance by the time shots were fired, making the estimate of 30 to 40 feet apart logical. It is uncontroverted that Mike Brown appeared on video perpetrating the crime of strong-arm robbery of cigars. Officer Wilson testified that he further delayed Brown and his accomplice when he saw the cigars in Brown’s hand and when he matched their description to the radio call about the robbery.
Oh yes, and the prosecutor did not “help raise money” for Officer Wilson. The prosecutor is an officer on the board of a police related organization that did the fund-raising. Finally, Shelby’s selective summary of the grand jury eyewitnesses is perhaps the most misleading item in her article–all journalists–even those from the most liberal newspapers, have agreed that the eyewitness testimony was inconsistent. There were plenty of eyewitness who testified in favor of Brown, but plenty who testified in favor of Wilson.
Nice job young lady. For those who have given this article a thumbs down, exactly what are you NOT agreeing with?!
All dumb. And I am now dumb for reading it
Unfortunately, not the least bit compelling at all. Selectively pulling pieces from the grand jury testimony that fit your subjective narrative is actually poor journalism. It is what fueled a race riot in St. Louis. As a graduate of the KU school of journalism, I am saddened by this alleged “shredding”. I can shred Shelby’s narrative as follows: Mike Brown wasn’t fleeing–the scientific evidence proved that he turned and traveled 21 feet toward Wilson as he was shot (blood drops on street). Wilson was back-pedaling in fear for his life as the shots were fired–the scientific evidence of a trail of discarded shell casings moving away from Brown proved this point. Brown wasn’t jaywalking–he was walking down the center line of the street on the yellow stripes and several vehicles had to pass and go around him. Brown and Wilson weren’t 121 feet apart during the confrontation. The space between the car and Brown’s corpse was 121 feet–but Wilson and Brown had both run from the vehicle some distance by the time shots were fired, making the estimate of 30 to 40 feet apart logical. It is uncontroverted that Mike Brown appeared on video perpetrating the crime of strong-arm robbery of cigars. Officer Wilson testified that he further delayed Brown and his accomplice when he saw the cigars in Brown’s hand and when he matched their description to the radio call about the robbery.
Oh yes, and the prosecutor did not “help raise money” for Officer Wilson. The prosecutor is an officer on the board of a police related organization that did the fund-raising. Finally, Shelby’s selective summary of the grand jury eyewitnesses is perhaps the most misleading item in her article–all journalists–even those from the most liberal newspapers, have agreed that the eyewitness testimony was inconsistent. There were plenty of eyewitness who testified in favor of Brown, but plenty who testified in favor of Wilson.
At this point, anyone can print anything about the Mike Brown case and reference just about anything to “support” their editorial, but 12 people would never agree on what was “justice” in this case. In my opinion, a criminal robbed a store, assaulted a police officer, and struggled for the officer’s gun (dna and hand-prints on the car door; blood, dna on the gun and shots at close range on Brown’s hand). When the officer pursued, the suspect bum rushed the officer who had no choice but to kill the suspect. The criminal in this case was Mike Brown. The victim was Darren Wilson. Liberal race-baiters and the media fueled a race riot in St. Louis and got what they wanted. There isn’t enough evidence to prove an unjustified use of force in this case and that is why the prosecutor declined to pursue it. What the liberal media hoped for was a barrage of bullets in Brown’s back–nope, did not happen that way.
Concise and clear – much appreciated
Newspaper accounts do not equate to credible sources.
Thank you so much for putting the facts/sources out there. The injustices must stop. It’s so shameful that it’s always tragedy that forces change.
hi shelby – please check your FB messages!
Race trader
Wait, but if Mike Brown was shot while he was fleeing, why didn’t he have any bullet wounds in his back?
thank you. a student with knowledge to shed truth & light when others could not.
thank you. a student with knowledge and truth, when others could not.
Awesome, you are on the way to becoming an investigative stalwart.
What a shitty and biased article. Journalism is a joke, populated by people who have an agenda and no ability to distinguish reality from fantasy. She’s a useful idiot.
Blessings to you and yours Shelby. I appreciate your thorough study of the facts. No question that there is a fox in the Ferguson County DA’s hen house.
You need to really reconsider your major, and stop feeding lies to people too lazy to do their own reading. Most of the summary is misinterpretation of the testimony to the point of fabrication. The testimony is available on the NYTimes site for download. They were not “stopped for jaywalking.” They were walking down the middle of the street, and the cop ASKED them to walk on the sidewalk. A not unreasonable request. Then they mouthed off to the cop a bunch of times, and when the cop finally asked them to stop Brown rushed the car and started to fight through the car window. The very next point you make is also not representative of the facts. Yes, Brown ran. BUT, he also turned around and rushed Wilson. That’s when he was shot again. The ME images do not show ANY entry or exit wounds on the back. So Brown was not “fleeing when he was fatally shot.” He was fleeing, Wilson caught up to him and told him to turn around and get down on the ground, AND THEN Brown rushed him and got shot again. These are just the first two points you make (repeat?). Don’t they do fact-checking in journalism school anymore?
A major statement of yours contradicts with the article that you used as a source.
“-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
According to the NY Times article,
“One of the bullets entered the top of Mr. Brown’s skull, suggesting his head was bent forward when it struck him and caused a fatal injury, according to Dr. Michael M. Baden, the former chief medical examiner for the City of New York, who flew to Missouri on Sunday at the family’s request to conduct the separate autopsy. It was likely the last of bullets to hit him, he said.
Mr. Brown, 18, was also shot four times in the right arm, he said, adding that all the bullets were fired into his front.”
Unless Michael Brown was “fleeing” by running backward while bending his head forward, it was NOT physically possible for the bullets to be fired into his front.
You should re-read page 280 and page 281.
According to page 280, deadly force was used when Michael Brown was approaching Darrel Wilson.
“…
11 You felt like
12 your life was in jeopardy when you were sitting in
13 the vehicle?
14 A Yes.
15 You felt like when you
16 exited the vehicle and the interaction with Michael
17 Brown, he was advancing towards you, you felt like
18 your life was in jeopardy?
19 A Yes.
20 And use of deadly force
21 was justified at that point in your opinion?
22 A Yes.”
On page 281, Darrel Wilson only stated that he thought Michael Brown would still be a threat to justify a pursuit.
“…
7 running away. People asked why would you chase him
8 if he was running away now.”
Excellence at work! Way to go! Well done!
Your source on the first point only shows the size of Wilson. What’s the source showing that Mike Brown was also 6 ft 4 210 lbs?
Wow. You have some pretty impressive revelations. While I admit that there are some disparities in this case, you, ms. journalism major really need to check your sources. To name a couple, there was no evidence of gun shot residue? If you read the source you provided, you’re right. Dr. Baden was the family of Mike Brown’s personal autopsy choice. The body of Mike Brown had already had 2 other autopsies prior to Dr. Baden’s results. You reference the Slate and the Dailykos. From what I read of those, they appear to be opinion pieces. Brilliant sources. The body comparison? You can be harmed or killed by same sized persons. However, I read in the Grand Jury evidence that Michael Brown was 295 lbs. That seems to me like an 85 lb difference. You also have written this after all the facts were released. So, that being said, why are you sourcing the NY Times from August 17th, 2014? All of the facts are out and at your fingertips. It’s easy to hide your sources in hyper-links in the hopes that your readers take your word for it. Perhaps you, like a lot of prejudice persons commenting, need to read the factual evidence. You sourced it a couple of times. I couldn’t agree more with those. Or at the least respect your findings even if I don’t agree. But you got your name out there. You “shredded” the case all right.
“and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
BZZZZZZ, er, wrong. It is Mike Brown, as confirmed in the Grand Jury’s statement of evidence and numerous other sources including the FBI. You can’t be fucking serious expecting to persuade the social media dipshits on here.
I’m glad we’re holding a college student’s Google-searching skills up against the actual evidence as researched by multiple criminal and federal agencies. You’re right, viral articles from Facebook hold immediate credence and logical suggestions over everything else we know now.
Fcking unbelievable.
About size. Yes Wilson was 6’4 and 210 but you stated Brown was the same. Untrue. Brown was an inch taller and 290 lbs. if you are wrong on this one what else is not totally accurate?
This article is flawed is several areas. One is the decision to not note the difference of weight between Officer Wilson and Mike Brown. An 80 pound difference does not make them “the same size,” and should clearly be mentioned. Another is using Slate.com, Vox.com, DailyKos.com, atop.com (Americans Against the Tea Party) as sources. These are well known as being left leaning according to their wikipedia pages. The first DailyKos article cited also fails to notice that Officer Wilson left his car for the second round of shots fired, which negates the entire argument that he was 148 ft away. I’m not saying that Officer Wilson was not negligible or that it was correct that he was not indicted, but credible sources as well as full disclosure of details such at that weight should be expected of a journalism student.
This is very informative and needs to be exposed thank you for what you’re doing keep up the good work and keep me informed.
Grateful
Your source is bunk
Wow this is very sad to hear. We need to do diversity training in Police Departments across America we also need to change the way that the Justice system deals with people of color. socia- economics is a key factor in all of this. We all are connected in the United States with all of the cross cultures. It’s about dignity & respect.
Shutup
browns weight was 294 I stopped reading the crap after that inconsistency… She must cover the football team…
not sure how u can honestly say that is not mike brown on the store security footage. that is 100% him
not sure how u can honestly say that is not mike brown on the store security footage that is 100% him
Shelby, interested party here:
A lot of these objections are ones I have seen stated elsewhere, and I appreciate you compiling them. This is the second time I have seen today, however, that the owner of the store has testified or otherwise stated that Mike Brown was not the person on the security footage and therefore was not involved in the robbery. Testimony of Dorian Johnson states that he was with Mike Brown when he robbed the store, however.
I was curious if there was a secondary source you were using aside from the August 18th article to validate that point. Thanks in advance. I appreciate the work.
Mustiado
the first “misconception” is completely incorrect and i can’t take this law student seriously if she thinks that 210 is the equivalent of 292. get your facts straight before you start blabbering on the internet
There are so many things wrong with this article. Let’s start with the assertion that Mike Brown was running away. According to Dr. Michael Baden, a noted forensic pathologist who performed a second autopsy at the request of the family, the fatal shot was fired at close range (but not point blank), into the top of the skull, leading Dr. Baden to suggest the possibility that Brown may have been going after Wilson. Further, all the other five entrance wounds were found to be to the front of Brown’s body, contrary to eye-witness testimony.
Source: http://nation.foxnews.com/2014/08/18/dr-baden-michael-brown-autopsy-contradicts-witnesses-points-excessive-force
Let’s not get caught up in the fact that the independent autopsy results are sourced through Fox. Instead, focus on what Dr. Baden says in the article about wound placement.
Next, her claim that Brown was shot from a distance of 148 ft. That is two feet shy of fifty yards. For Wilson to have hit Brown at such a distance with a pistol, he would have to have aimed nearly fifteen feet above his head. That’s not even taking into account the fact that his target was moving, his hands would have been shaking, and his respirations would have been elevated, from adrenaline if not from the exertion of a physical struggle. Speaking as a combat veteran, that is a nearly impossible shot under such conditions. To successfully hit the target six times while firing rapidly at that distance and with those impediments is a feat not even a world class competition shooter could match. And yes, Brown was struck by six rounds, not twelve.
Next, the idea that if he grabbed Wilson’s gun and caused a misfire, he’d have gunshot residue on his hands. That is one of the most ludicrous arguments Ms. Lawson makes. You see, a misfire occurs when the weapon fails to fire. I.e., a round is not discharged. Which means there is no powder discharged from either muzzle or chamber. Which means, if he caused a misfire by grabbing the slide on the pistol, there would be zero gunshot residue present, because it is simply not possible for there to be any present until a round is successfully fired.
Incidentally, “soot” was found in the first of Brown’s wounds (to his right hand) by the local medical examiner, indicating a distance of less than a foot when the shot struck him.
Three eye-witnesses claimed he put his hands up just before the fatal shot was delivered and said, “I don’t have a gun, stop shooting.” But since the medical examiner hired by the family already refuted the testimony of supposed eye-witnesses–and apparently Officer Wilson himself–I’ve little confidence in their testimony. There is a reason why testimony alone is not enough to close a case anymore. Evidence trumps witnesses, every time. And again, that last shot was to the top of his head, which means the top of his head was toward Wilson.
Several times, the author mentions protocols. One being that officers are trained to shoot for the torso. In fact, they are trained to shoot center mass of the largest pay of the body they can see, just like soldiers. And just like soldiers, if the first couple shots fail to put the target down, they are trained to adjust fire to the head, and finally the pelvis. One could argue that he didn’t hit him in the torso until the fourth shot, instead striking his hand and and arm with the first three. But I sincerely doubt that the person who would make that argument has ever fired a weapon in a real-world situation.
The owner of Ferguson Market claims no one called the police and he doesn’t know how they got the video. He also says he’s terrified he’ll be a target because of this. Draw your own conclusions.
She mentions that Brown and Wilson are the same size. While both are listed at 6’4″in height, Wilson was recorded at 210 pounds. Brown was 292 pounds at the time of his first autopsy. That is a difference of 82 pounds. That is slightly more than the difference between a 120 pound woman and a 200 pound man. But hey, same height and both men. It’s all the same, right?
It should be noted that I think Officer Wilson could have done things differently that day. But it is very easy to look back on an event with time, and distance, and your comfortable biases, between you and that day and “analyze” it. It is very easy, when one has never truly felt the certainty that they must kill or be killed descend upon them, to condemn a man whose actions they have no hope of comprehending.
It is easy because you have no frame of reference. In those moments, seconds stretch into minutes, minutes into hours, and hours into eternity. It’s strangest the first time you go through it. Your vision begins to narrow. You hear the shouts of those around you as if echoing from a distance, and your heart slams in your chest like a drum. Your palms are slick with nerves and raw fear. Your breath comes in ragged gasps as though you’ve just finished sprinting. You feel the hollow tickle of butterflies in the pit of your gut, and it seems as though time has slowed to a crawl.
And in that split second, the decision is made. Sometimes you don’t even know what path you’ve chosen until you hear the first shot, feel the weapon buck in your hands, and realize you’re the one that squeezed the trigger.
Judge if you will. But do so with facts, not with poorly researched assertions and the righteous fervor of your misplaced personal guilt.
You will fit in with all the other journalists out there. You pick and choose what fits your story the best without looking at the whole story. As an example your first comparison relates to their size being the same, except you leave out that Mike Brown was almost 300# compaired to wilsons 210#. You lost all credibility at that point.
An 80 lbs. difference isn’t considered considerably different? That’s a third larger, I would say they aren’t the same size. So i stopped reading the shoddy research right there, what is this, Fox News?
Reblogged this on Totally Unqualified and commented:
Well written.
210 lbs vs 289 lbs? Brown was 1/3 larger in mass, that’s significant so I stopped reading the shoddy Fox News esque research right there.
This girl should stick to working at Pizza Hut. Her “sources” include a debunked DailyKos op-ed, news paper articles that did not have access to the information and out right lies.
I hope this piece remains active when she attempts to get a job so editors can see how poorly she researches.
You are wrong in many ways. Michael Brown was never shot while fleeing. There are no entry wounds in his back. So unless he was running backwards while fleeing, this did not happen. He was also shot in the top of the head, not straight on. Which means he was bent over as he was charging Office Wilson. And because of the angle, the fatal shot was to the head. Have you ever seen someone who is bent over? It’s hard to see their midsection because their head is in the way. With that being said, charging at an office is not a sign of surrender, it’s a sign of aggression. Anyone who has been trained in combat situations (cops, military, etc,) knows what it takes to neutralize a threat. If the threat continues towards you after being shot, then you shoot again until the threat is no more.
If Mr Brown had his arms outstretched before him, and Wilson fired one round, the bullet could easily enter his hand, exit his hand, enter his fore arm, exit his forearm, enter his upper arm, exit his upper arm, then enter his shoulder/upper chest area.
Might I suggest that focus your time on your studies instead of producing propaganda?
First of all, you didn’t mention that the young black guy was 80lbs heavier than the white cop.
You also fail to mention that all shots to the head were from the front and not the back. ” all the bullets were fired into his front.” Shots to the head probably happened at the window first. “It was likely the last of bullets to hit him, he said.” likely is the key word, when we as living humans think of severe brain trauma we think instant death but that is not the case, ask a vet. A cop who has just shot a person sees a dying man, does he let that man suffer or does he think I should worry about the legality of all of this bullshit?
There was a county, a state, and a federal examination of the body. Were you aware of that?
But the rest…seems factual, even true maybe.
Why are you all so polarized? And I’m talking to both sides here! You fuckers! This was a terrible situation, and no body likes it! I don’t know the wilson chap but I question the assumption that he is racist!
But what we are feeling is a deep seeded unrest that goes through race relations and extends to the homeless, the poor, ME, and the people who can’t find a job where they are treated like a human being. Let’s draw focus to the real issues… nuff said, for now.
Thank you for your dilligence, persistence and attention to detail.
Thank you for your persistence, determination, sharp eye and attention to detail.
This has really open some doors with the case. You are awesome Shelby and this should at least bring some closure and peace to the case and his family.
So I left a rather lengthy comment not long ago correcting some of the factual mistakes Ms.Lawson made in her article, and it’s gone already. I’m wondering why. There was no profanity. No personal attacks or insults. Is dissent discouraged here?
You are an idiot. God save us from your stupidity.
And now I must correct myself. After passing my wisdom about my previous comment, I was suddenly able to see it, where before it was not visible. Please disregard my last. I didn’t realize these stay hidden until you check them.
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
These are contradictory. How can he have been shot while fleeing, if he was shot while surrendering with his hands in the air?
here is some facts, you can’t bring the dead back to life. you cant undestroy a career. you cant undestroy a town that business owners arent willing to rebuild. it is an unfortunate situation all the way around. kudos on the research kid.
This is why I don’t trust journalists. Sorry honey, but I stopped reading after you tried to make your first point which was false. Brown was 75 pounds larger.
http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/08/15/attorney-dorian-johnson-michael-brown-robbery/14118769/
Newspaper articles are not a sources for actual information when dealing with legal cases. Go dig up the Grand Jury transcripts and take a look at the evidence presented before you make a yourself.
Oooh, damn…too late.
don’t forget the 500k darren wilson received for this abc interview officially putting him at millionaire status for murdering an 18 year old
Oh my God, thank you so much for shedding more light on the Mike Brown case. After looking at MSNBC Lisa Bloom and Lawrence O’Donnell, plus Nancy Grace, you are on the same page as they are. They said this case was full on lies and deception and your article confirms what they are reporting as well. Thank you for seeing the case through the lens of your heart and what is right. This case has bothered me for months, it just did not make any sense. Your article was very enlightening, God bless you!!!!!
Mike Brown was 6’4 285. I know 75 pounds doesn’t seem like a huge difference, but there’s a reason the NFL won’t take players to be certain positions if they are even fifteen pounds under the average weight (Michael Sam). also there were two autopsies performed. Before the first was performed, photographs showed black soot on his skin and the microscopic sections showed gunshot particulate matter under the skin. That is DIRECTLY from the official first autopsy report. Wilson initially approached them for jaywalking until suspected of robbery WITH probable cause. Also, according to his testimony he chased Brown until Brown stopped, then told him to get on the ground. That’s when he says Brown charged him and he killed him. These are sources you say support your points, but you are picking things out of context to support your side. Incredibly poor journalism.
Where does it say Michael brown was 210? He clearly is not, you can tell by even looking at him. According to the autopsy report, he weighed 292lbs and measured 6 foot 5…
Don’t spread lies, spread the truth..
This is insanely inaccurate. It is wrong to spread lies and have people make judgements based on falsification. I’m not on either side, because I wasn’t there. I stand by making a solution out of this tragedy. Vox.com as your source for ‘witnesses testimonies staying the same?’ That’s false as well, use reputable sources or don’t speak at all..
How is it that YOU were able to learn all of this, especially the video and the store, but everyone else who reported got their ‘facts’ wrong? Way to go, Shelby!
This article is biased. The sources all come from the same website, which is also incredibly biased. Both continue to make “speculation” on events which have already been explained and often proven. I suggest that you use the articles from NPR which are taken from the jury.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/11/25/366507379/ferguson-docs-how-the-grand-jury-reached-a-decision
Oh and here is another bit of misinformation- why say they were the same size when Mike was 280 pounds? Wilson was 210?
And for a diagram of the crime scene showing the spent shell casings that reveal the shooting and confrontation took place when the police officer and the criminal were within 25-30 feet of each other go to the st. Louis post dispatch and download a pdf of the crime scene. Think about what you see on the crime scene diagram and compare it to the testimony and what you have written…also read the washington post summaries the abc news summaries…
His fingerprints were on the gun
So much of this is untrue. All of the transcripts from the grand jury have been published online, and the fact that anyone can, with the evidence so readily available, make any of the above statements is bewildering. Almost half of the eyewitnesses that say Mike Brown was surrendering admitted to lying about their testimony. Gunpowder residue was found in the thumb of Mike Brown. Mike Brown most certainly did rob that convenience store, and Dorian Johnson testified to that fact.
Wow… I literally couldn’t get through the first two paragraphs due to the inaccuracies in this. A. They are not the same size. You can look at them and tell Brown in much larger. B. Brown wasn’t really “stopped”. He was told to get out of the road because he was walking down the middle of it. When he refused and Wilson started to get out, he slammed the door on Wilson before commencing a struggle through the window. C. You say he was fleeing when the fatal shot hit, yet the fatal shot hit the front of Brown’s head. How was he fleeing? Did the bullet pass him and turn around to come back? D. He had no shots in the back, so once again… he wasn’t running away. E. You have literally NO CLUE what police are trained to do. And if they’re trained for body shots, isn’t that EXACTLY what the first five shots were, you know, before Brown leaned down and caught one in the head? I guess we should jail and fire every cop now who has a kill shot, right?
That’s as far as I could get before becoming INSANELY disappointed that my liberal brothers and sisters have proven that they have as little use for the facts or common sense in this instance as the conservatives do for everything.
Well, this is embarrassing for you. It’s clear you didn’t even bother to read the transcript before writing that. Not only does Wilson not even address the fatal shot on page 281, but the fatal shot is discussed on page 229 and before – 52 pages earlier. Those aren’t the only inaccuracies in your piece which were refuted in the transcript.
This isn’t journalism. This is misinformation, gossip and rumor desperately masquerading as journalism, while making it clear that your credibility means nothing to you.
The officer is around 210-ish if you actually read your next source it says that Brown is 292 lbs. I’m not sure what fairy tale land you live in but someone that has 80 lbs on me is quite a bit larger and more threatening. Just this alone discredits anything else you have to say on the matter.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
This is not what the cited source (a Daily Kos article) says. The DK article does not include the claim the man on the security footage is not Brown. The DK article says, and I quote, “[T]he Ferguson Market attorney also says any alleged theft of cigars had nothing to do with Michael Brown being shot to death by Ferguson police.” In short, Brown was not stopped by police due to a report of a robbery. Everyone, including the Officer involved, agrees with this. Brown was initially stopped for walking down the middle of the street.
I think you are an idiot
FINALLY THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If you attempt to grab a cops gun, you will get shot. End of the story.
I checked p. 281 of the testimony which you cited saying that Brown was fleeing when he was shot. You were incorrect. This seriously calls your journalistic skills AND reading ability into question. On that page Wilson is talking about Brown fleeing after the initial altercation. There may have been racism in play, but Brown got shot because he was a violent criminal.
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Again, the cited source doesn’t say the prosecuting attorney is helping to raise money for Wilson. What is says is the group raising money through tee-shirt sales will split the money with some going to an organization with which Prosecutor McCulloch is associated. For Lawson’s claim to be true, she’d need a source claiming the involvement, or at least the approval, of The Backstoppers in the fundraising effort. The cited source does not make such a claim.
What a liar!!!! May the devil sift his soul as wheat
Ms Lawsaon. Your item #12 is incorrect. A semi-automatic handgun can be caused to become “out of battery” if someone grabs the upper slide and moves it even a fraction of an inch. The gun will “misfire” meaning the bullet will not discharge, and there will be no residue. A misfire is not a type of bullet fire, it is the situation where a bullet does not fire. So it is not, as you claim, “impossible and untrue”.
People like you are part of the problem , you weren’t there ,your going on 2nd,3rd, and 4th, hand information. Ballistic’s showed GSR on Mikes head and on his clothing means up close!. I not saying what the officer did was right I have seen cops do the wrong thing to very innocent people.Less lethal means could have been used ie Taser , pepper spray, beanbags etc..etc… But journalist like you, like to stir up drama. I bet you believe Vietnam and Beirut never happened and were just a republican ploy
This is great…However the man on the security footage IS actually Mike Brown. So you may want to strike that from your article. Everything else looks good.
Although Washington Post, The Case Report, and New York Times are all legitimate sources, the majority such as Slate, Vox, Kos, and Americans Against the Tea Party are completely bias news sources. For a serious article, it’s funny you use sources equivalent to that on my news feed. If you truly believe these are reliable sources you can’t be doing that well in college. Also, even with the use of legitimate sources you twist it to a complete bias. Yeah they were both the same height but what I’ve heard from most major news sources, Mike Brown was nearly 80 lbs heavier which does account for a lot when it comes to self defence. Hun, if you want to be taken seriously, use credible sources and actually elaborate on the issue rather than post a bunch of muddled opinions. I’ll be sure not to read your articles once you become a journalist.
I’m sorry, but at least several of your sources were newspapers. Those are not credible sources. Also, of the two times that I went to the jury document that you sourced, both times the information on the page that you indicated did not match up with the information that you provided in your article. But thank you for at least being a mind trying to find out the facts instead of blaming one side or another.
I don’t think Wilson’s testimony on page 281 confirms he admits that “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot.” He merely explains why he followed Brown when he ran. Am I wrong? Please clarify. Thanks!
JOURNALISM. Thank you for such a concise and thorough examination.
Mike Brown was only 210lbs?
excellent Shelby, you’ll make a fine democratic and lying reporter when you grow up………..it is easy to say you researched all this, but we know that is a false statement, and I bet you have never been to Ferguson
Suggest you pursue another career other than journalism. Unless this is some sort of experiment to see how gullible Internet readers are.
Have you bothered to read the Grand Jury transcripts? Hard to have all the wounds on the front of the body when “fleeing.” And all the GSW from a distance of 148 ft. Heck of a marksman. And if you had read the transcript there was discussion of dusting for fingerprints or swabbing for DNA as you can only do one. Since Wilson never lost control of the gun and Brown’s fingerprints, if any, would be smeared, the decision was made to swab for DNA. And there were 131 photos takes at the site of the shooting tho you are correct about the dead camera. And on and on with the misstatements
the people have a right to protest, but not with violence.
In regards to your point about the Ferguson Market owner: Although it is true the store didn’t call the police, your source doesn’t state that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown. Your source states: In a separate news video (embedded below) the Ferguson Market attorney also says any alleged theft of cigars had nothing to do with Michael Brown being shot to death by Ferguson police.
Long list of problems in this “journalism student” writeup. The sources state none of this (and I see one correction has already been stricken out). In fact, I went to “page 281” (vol. 5) and he states why Brown fleeing would have presented a problem anyway, on why he tried to stop him after Brown got away from the car and BEFORE he turned back around. No one even disputes that after Brown attacked Wilson, Brown began to flee. At that point, Wilson got out of his car and attempted to stop Brown – a suspect in a strong-arm robbery and who just assaulted a police officer. HE MAKES NO MENTION THAT IS WHEN THE FATAL SHOT IS FIRED.
The forensic examiner did not take photos of the scene, correct. She was, however, present when ST. LOUIS examiners took their photos of the scene. Not that no photos were taken, nor that no photos exist or that she had no other means of procuring photos.
Another glaring problem is the “he was 148 feet” away argument. That was distance between the car and the estimated place of the body by someone who only saw photos and “guessed”. It was NOT Wilson and Brown’s body. It was a frickin YouTube video for goodness sakes. The casings were photographed and noted for location, which proves Wilson wasn’t standing at his car anyway (unless we are also to believe Wilson suspended gravity to help “cover up” his “crime”). (Grand Jury evidence photographs) Not to mention the documented trails of blood down to where Brown stopped – then RETURNED at least 15 feet.
Nearly every cute, little bulletpoint here has major problems, is outright lies or is conjecture.
Sourcing blogs – is not “proof” of anything. What we DO have is proof all the above is not true. This is the shoddy “reporting” we get through social media that gets people ticked off at the wrong things and leads to the screams of injustice where there isn’t (which leaves the REAL cases of injustice in the dust) and leads people to rioting.
Shameful!!! Such a bad message sent to the country of the United States. How do you people sleep at night!!! You may not answer for your sins now but you will one day!!! Good luck!!!
Great work and attention to detail here! I appreciate your dedication and sharing!
Reblogged this on Welcome to Kenya's Keys Voice & Piano Studio and commented:
True, or nah?
From the transcripts, autopsy report stating mike Browns height as 6’5, weight as 289.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/2014-5143-autopsy-report.pdf
So why would this journalism student make a statement that both the officer and victim were the same size? Because if she uses facts, she can’t make her case.
Let’s take her claims one at a time:
1) “The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was
significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect.”
Both men are around 6’4. Wilson weighs 210 lbs, Brown weighed 292 lbs. Eighty-two pounds qualifies as “significantly larger.”
2) “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Agreed. But he wasn’t killed for jaywalking. He died because he attacked a police officer.
3) “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Wilson says no such thing. He says he ran after Brown, but he only after Brown turned around and started coming after him again did he fire.
4) “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
She might have a point there. But even if he broke “protocol,” did he do anything illegal? That’s the key question.
5) “Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”
That’ll probably be a factor in the Brown family’s expected civil suit against the Ferguson PD. Doesn’t make Wilson guilty of a crime, however.
6) “The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.””
“Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.”
“Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.”
See my response to claim 5. This might also play into the expected civil suit against Wilson.
7) “While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Were they interviewed by the Grand Jury?
8) “These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.””
Other eyewitnesses refute this.
9) “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
The official autopsy refutes this.
10) Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
Official autopsy says Brown suffered a graze wound to the right hand, near his thumb. Particulate matter in the tissue is “consistent with gunshot residue,” according to the autopsy.
11) Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
See civil suit, above.
12) Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
The Daily Kos article she sourced says NOTHING about “the man on the security footage [not being] Mike Brown”. There’s also NOTHING about the owner saying Mike Brown wasn’t involved with the theft. The owner’s lawyer said “Whatever the police are looking for on the surveillance tape, has nothing to do with what went on in the street.”
13) “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Apparently her reading comprehension is frighteningly bad. The article she sources contains an update refuting her claim.
14) “The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Yep. I’ve heard that too. I’m not sure it’s relevant to Brown’s death, however.
From the transcripts, autopsy report stating mike Browns height as 6’5, weight as 289.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/2014-5143-autopsy-report.pdf
So why would this journalism student make a statement that both the officer and victim were the same size? Because if she uses facts, she can’t make her case.
Your source never claimed that it wasn’t Michael Brown who stole the cigars. Not sure about the validity of this article.
Most of this has been proven wrong by the Grand jury.
Private autopsy report, from the transcripts state gun powder residue on the right hand of brown indicating he was shot at close range…maybe while struggling for officer Wilsons gun?.
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/michael-brown-private-autopsy-report.pdf
Private autopsy and coroners autopsy both state all gunshot wounds came from the victims front, not back side, indicating he was facing Wilson , not running away, unless he runs backwards.
Reblogged this on africanarchy.
How about that. After almost 25 years as a forensics examiner, a journalism student tells me everything is not as it was proven and found true by a grand jury.
So much for earning my masters. Should have taken a journalism class learning how to spread BS instead.
If you are going to research the facts of the case, make sure you get both sides next time. Michael Brown made plenty of ‘mistakes’ as well. If you’re going to try to write about something then atleast attempt to include the whole story, not the sorry excuse for research that clearly displays bias.
Pure bullshit and cherry picking, read all the autopsy reports
From the autopsy report, one bullet entered his right hand and exited near his wrist. If his hands were thrown up in the air above his head, how did the bullet exit closer to his wrist instead of out the back of his hand? Bullet isn’t going to change direction passing through his hand.
I have 3 words for you AWESOME! AWESOME! AWESOME! I wish your information could help change things, its too bad that so many people have been so willing to overlook the blatant in this case. You are going to make a great attorney and we need more like you who actually read and work with the facts not bias as was the case in this situation and many others like it.
Reblogged this on House Mom Tales.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”.
Here Miss Lawson takes the owners statement out of context. Reading her source, you will see that the owner says ” that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Browns death.”
You lkely won’t approve this post since I’m calling you out on your so called source. Odd it varies from the original
please up your body copt color to #ccc! thx. (great write up)
I expected nothin different. Every time they kill
An unarmed innocent Black male they lie and distort the facts and do a complete cover-up to prevent anyone for being held accountable for their MURDER! This is the way of the good old racist, murderous, prejudice, heinous crime committing usa! I expect nothing less from these racist crackers!
Dorian Johnson, when interview by CNN in the presence of his attorney, stated unequivocally that Mike Brown stole the cigarillos from the convenience store. How the author can give such sparse and apparently incorrect treatment to Brown’s involvement or non-invvement in the convenience store robbery casts doubt on the remainder of the claims she makes.
All your points were addressed in the hearing. I am appalled at your thinking that you are smarter and more impartial than everyone else. This is done. Of course-the race baiting, riot invoking, and illegal activities of the Browns are not being investigated-and should be.
should say “now” being investigated
Love the work you’ve done. The one correction I’d make is that Mike Brown wasn’t 148 feet from Darren Wilson, he was that far from the SUV. I haven’t been able to find just how far Darren chased him. But all the same, it’s significant for people to know that Mike Brown ran for his life, and Darren Wilson literally chased him down. And by multiple accounts Mike Brown stopped running only after being struck by another bullet.
Lots of twisted misinformation. Sad.
I truly appreciate the fact that you took the time to gather and print this information, What’s surprising ( or not) is the fact if you were able to obtain this information and publish it, WHY are none of the major new outlets, TV/cable station, and newspapers not reporting this? They were ALL showing a handful of anger black people looting and ,vandalizing on the night of the indictment announcement , that was by the way stage for the events that happened to happen just that way… Great job, and PLEASE, PLEASE Please, forward and keep posting this, it needs to go all the way to Attorney General Eric Holder. Also I saw an article on MSNBC where the asst. AG gave the grand jury s wrong instructions, and a copy of a law that was ruled unconstitutional back in 1985, check out The Last word with Lawrence O’donald
All of your sources should be from official documents. You’re just as bad as everybody else picking and choosing details that support your side instead of looking at a full body of evidence impartially. The witness statements were put together nicely here: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/newly-released-witness-testimony-tell-us-michael-brown-shooting/
Examples of shoddy journalism?
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
on page 281 he says Mike Brown was still a threat while running away, not that he was ‘fleeing when shot’ like you write. On pg. 227 Wilson says that Brown stopped running, faced him, and began charging him, which was when he shot.
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime”
While correct still misleading
pg. 209- Mike Brown was not stopped because of the robbery, but soon after stopping them Darren Wilson saw the cigarillos and realized they may have been the suspects.
And I know you crossed it out, but:
‘Wilson is..6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown’
Mike Brown was 289 pounds. 80 lbs ain’t nothin.
If you want to educate people point them to the documents:
http://qz.com/302421/see-for-yourself-this-is-the-evidence-the-ferguson-grand-jury-saw-before-making-its-decision/
instead of shitty biased ‘news’ sites like dailykos.com. It isn’t hard to find ‘sources’ to support your view but it sure as hell is unethical. This is a hot button issue and people like you just serve up more misconceptions shrouded in half-truths.
I’m all for having the truth come out from reputable sources. It’s important to get it out there. However you quote other media outlets and fail to account for the other pages of testimony. As a journalism student, I suggest you keep studying.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that … the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” Where does he say that? I couldn’t see it in the page you linked to.
His hands were not up…the official medical examiner and and the private autopsy proved that Brown had his hand near his waist and his other arm out. Both of his hands were not up when he was fatally shot. Also, part of Brown’s thumb was shot. Which means his hand was in fact near the gun. Did you even go through the entire case report? A lot of this is completely wrong…This is the type of false journalism that gets cycled through Facebook and is the first to pop up when you log in.
The article about the Ferguson Market never says it was not Mike Brown that robbed the store, it only states the robbery had nothing to do with the shooting in the street.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/. The mainstream media is finally coming to grips with the truth. You are weeks behind and serving the misinformed narrative, which is why I find your title and information so hypocritcal. If you really dig you can set some peole straight…..
Shelly, Mike Brown was not fleeing when the fatal shots were fired. There is nothing on page 281 that says shots were fired as Brown took off. He said he pursued for public safety which is what you are supposed to do as a cop.
Also, he never stopped the two at the initial interaction as Wilson said so on page 282. They kept walking. Then after the exchange of words, Wilson took notice of Brown and the cigarellos (which are used to put weed in by the way) which caused him to put the vehicle in reverse to go back to them. That’s when the real incident started.
I haven’t even looked at the rest of your points, but the first two aren’t off to a good start. If you are the future of reporting, then an objective journalism is dead. I bet you have never gone on a ride-along or studied police training tactics.
Thank you for making the truth as clear as possible.
It’s obvious what was going on
Hmmmm posting liberal bias articles from sources like the New York times is supposed to establish credibility to your ridiculous claims?!? Brown was fleeing when he was shot? And P. S. The autopsy report posted on said source confirms all bullets entered the front of his body …..Go to a coffee shop and spout your bullshit where your liberal sheep will join you reciting fallacies that are not supported by the forensic evidence not to mention the video evidence of what brown did and the type of man (18 years old) he was…… This garbage sickens me
I think I would have fun tearing apart this article and disproving most of what she’s claiming is the “truth.” How could Brown have been running away from Wilson when he was shot in the front? There’s some major problems with fact checking. Was a nice attempt though. Good start to becoming a biased journalist.
Your sources are liberal websites and bias garbage…. Not Mike Brown on the video?!?! You are out of your mind… The liberal indoctrination center known as KU has rotted your brain…. You are in the right profession where you can lie and spit fallacies all day that lack and intelligent substance
Officer Wilson was tried by a jury of his peers and found to be not guilty of the accused crimes. It is insanely ignorant to assume that Fox News or Slate have more evidence than the jury.
Verbs like “shred” in the title of this article are absolutely laughable.
Sorry, but the Daily Kos is not a source. As a university student, she should know that. Her professors would “shred” her for that one. The only statement she made that includes a proper source (the grand jury report) didn’t even specify who it was that contrasted heights and weights of Wilson and Brown.
And?
Your claim that Mike Brown’s arms had to be in a “hands-up” position, based off the autopsy, is false. In looking at the autopsy, two bullets entered the right arm on the outside (the side opposite the palm) and one bullet entered on the inside of the forearm. The entry and exit points of the first two bullets mentioned are inconsistent with the claim that the palms were facing the officer, and based off the third bullet the direction the arm was facing can not be determined, due to how the forearm moves while in a running motion. Also, there was gunpowder on Brown’s right hand at the base of his thumb and exiting out of the wrist. This seems to be the initial shot during the struggle, and for gunpowder to be on his hand the gun would have to be 6-12 inches from his palm. We can be sure that when the officer fatally shot Brown it was from a distance. The officer did not advance towards Brown to the point where Brown’s hands were up in surrender and the officer placed the gun less than a foot away from his hand and then shot. Your source for this claim is biased, is not the official autopsy, and shares similar claims that can be debunked (“[Brown] did not have control of Darren Wilson’s gun because no gun shot residue was found anywhere on Brown’s body and that includes Michael Brown’s hands.”) This quote from your source is incorrect, as there was gunshot residue found on Brown’s hand. I do not have time to investigate each one of your claims, but in refuting this one, and by the looks of the source you used, I will not waste my time reading.
He couldn’t have been running away your own sources show that. All the bullet entry points are in front of his body. Maybe try reading your sources.
This is a discouragingly shoddy piece. It catalogs all the evidence that supports her claim, and ignores anything that doesn’t. It can’t be called an objective piece, and as such doesn’t ‘shred’ anything except the credibility of the young author and ‘Kansas Exposed.’ Actually, mostly just Films for Action, because she just wrote it informally to her Facebook friends; you are raising it up as credible journalism. It isn’t. It is a long form example of the ‘cherry picking fallacy.’
> -Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
page 209 indicates that he told them to get out of the road, then noticed the cigars and decided to apprehend.
> -Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Page 281 isn’t talking about the moment of the shooting, but before. Wilson chased Brown, then Brown stopped and turned around.
> -Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Wilson was a bad aim. Shooting four times in the arm demonstrates this.
> -Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Dorian Johnson’s testimony was taken multiple times and included in record.
> -The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
Well, somebody took loads of crime scene photos.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
> Procedure wasn’t followed
This is true. But it doesn’t substantively change what the physical evidence reveals.
> While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times,
No source for this.
> -These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
And other eyewitnesses said that Brown charged at Wilson in the last moment of his life. She includes one set of witnesses and ignores the others.
> -This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119949/new-autopsy-indicates-michael-brown-didnt-have-hands-surrendering
Also, this choice line: “Finally, the Post reports that “seven or eight African American eyewitnesses have provided testimony consistent with Wilson’s account, but none of them have spoken publicly out of fear for their safety.””
> -Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
There were three autopsies. Two of them found close-contact gunpowder on Brown’s skin.
> -Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
This is false. Brown was 148 feet away from the police SUV, but not from Wilson. Wilson had exited his car and chased after Brown before Brown turned around towards Wilson.
> -Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
This is true, but everyone else agrees that Brown was in fact the thief. Dorian Johnson testifies that Brown did steal the cigars. Meaning, the store owner just didn’t want trouble with the community.
The last two points are true. Out of all the points she makes, about 80% are complete and utter horse manure.
This article reveals, more than anything, just how badly college education is failing. Almost every ‘source’ is based on the biased, non-objective DailyKos. I’m not saying DailyKos is always wrong; I am saying reading 100% biased news sources and basing your opinion solely on that is a recipe for a profound type of ignorance. There is not a single link presented here that could be considered politically neutral. We are teaching our youth to trust the sources that conform to their existing biases, rather than fearlessly seeking truth wherever it may lead from a variety of sources. The fact she is a journalism student is apalling.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-witnesses/
This is a discouragingly shoddy piece, about on an undergraduate level. It catalogs all the evidence that supports her claim, and ignores anything that doesn’t. It can’t be called an objective piece, and as such doesn’t ‘shred’ anything except the credibility of the young author and ‘Films For Action.’ Actually, mostly just Films for Action, because she just wrote it informally to her Facebook friends; you are raising it up as credible journalism. It isn’t.
> -Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
page 209 indicates that he told them to get out of the road, then noticed the cigars and decided to apprehend.
> -Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Page 281 isn’t talking about the moment of the shooting, but before. Wilson chased Brown, then Brown stopped and turned around.
> -Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Wilson was a bad aim. Shooting four times in the arm demonstrates this.
> -Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Dorian Johnson’s testimony was taken multiple times and included in record.
> -The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
Well, somebody took loads of crime scene photos.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
> Procedure wasn’t followed
This is true. But it doesn’t substantively change what the physical evidence reveals.
> While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times,
No source for this.
> -These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
And other eyewitnesses said that Brown charged at Wilson in the last moment of his life. She includes one set of witnesses and ignores the others.
> -This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
http://www.newrepublic.com/article/119949/new-autopsy-indicates-michael-brown-didnt-have-hands-surrendering
Also, this choice line: “Finally, the Post reports that “seven or eight African American eyewitnesses have provided testimony consistent with Wilson’s account, but none of them have spoken publicly out of fear for their safety.””
> -Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
There were three autopsies. Two of them found close-contact gunpowder on Brown’s skin.
> -Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
This is false. Brown was 148 feet away from the police SUV, but not from Wilson. Wilson had exited his car and chased after Brown before Brown turned around towards Wilson.
> -Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
This is true, but everyone else agrees that Brown was in fact the thief. Dorian Johnson testifies that Brown did steal the cigars. Meaning, the store owner just didn’t want trouble with the community.
The last two points are true. Out of all the points she makes, about 80% are complete and utter horse manure.
This article reveals, more than anything, just how badly college education is failing. Almost every ‘source’ is based on the biased, non-objective DailyKos. I’m not saying DailyKos is always wrong; I am saying reading 100% biased news sources and basing your opinion solely on that is a recipe for a profound type of ignorance. There is not a single link presented here that could be considered politically neutral. We are teaching our youth to trust the sources that conform to their existing biases, rather than fearlessly seeking truth wherever it may lead from a variety of sources. The fact she is a journalism student is apalling.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-witnesses/
Interesting, but not surprising: my previous comment wasn’t accepted. If you expect to be a regular left-wing nut media employee, you’re on the right track. But if you want to actually speak to truth, you need to do better at analyzing evidence. I have a journalism degree and have worked as a reporter. What you are doing is called “flack journalism” because you are letting your own preconceptions affect the story.
But “Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies” really says it better than facts. This is a sham course of study.
Did anyone actually check there sources @dailykos @foxnews
“-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
The 148 feet represents ONLY the distance between Brown’s body and the police SUV. That does not mean Wilson was at the vehicle when the shots were fired. 148 feet is nearly 50 yards (or half a football field). That is a long way to be firing and consistently hit a moving target. It’s much more logical for him to fire form 35 feet (or 11 yards) and that distance can go from 11 yards to 1 yard pretty quickly. He said he went after him and when Brown stopped, Wilson stopped and stood his ground (so he wasn’t at his police SUV).
You say “that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” but the source you give after this says nothing like that.
This whole hatchet job against Darren Wilson is a bunch of bullshit. I seriously doubt s grand jury report had been made publicly available.
Once again the left is attempting to twist the facts around to suit their narrative.
If Officer Wilson shot him at 148′, he is a hell of a shot with a pistol. Like as in pretty amazing. This has inspired me to do some reading to see how many shots he fired and how many misses ther were. That’s half a football field. A millimeter change in the position of the barrel would have created a gap of 3 plus feet by the time it reached 148′. I’m sorry but I can not believe that distance to be correct. I’ll do my research on that one.
Lol….. You think bc you are some 20year old with a B.A. degree you know more then the Grand Jury who spend hundreds of hours going over every single testimony… every single picture… heard live in person testimony’s not read something as you did…
Brown deserves what he got for attacking a officer. THE END
Thanks for gathering all of this. Do you have a source for, “, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Nice of you to pick small parts of the fact to twist how you want.
Hahahahahhahahhaahahahahahaha
Really. Sad what an education isn’t buying these days – a real education. Shall I shred your really feeble attempt at doing whatever it is you are trying to do – and I don’t think it’s making a fool if yourself, but that is exactly what you’ve done. First: an extremely biased, opinion based web site as a point of fact? Second: you think you are medical examiner? Your a stupid college student. Nothing more and nothing less, well maybe less. Me. Brown, 210lbs? Surely you jest. I’m 5’10” 210 lbs, not over weight and you say he weighs the same as me. Jeez
What you need to understand is that because you don’t agree with something, don’t think you are going to find things the experts, the witnesses, the investigators, and the grand jury didn’t. The anti Tea Party site reference places you in an extremely biased position and you actually have facts wrong, and that is fact. I hate to see your parents money wasted like it is.
Your first point attempts to debunk the statement that Brown was significantly larger than Wilson by stating that Wilson is 6’4″ and 210lbs. While Wilson is clearly not a small man, Brown was 6’4″ and 290lbs. This is just 1″ and 20lbs shy of the average NFL offensive lineman. This is a very large man, and he was 80 lbs larger than Wilson. The statement that Brown was significantly larger than Wilson is, in fact, correct. Since you researched all the facts and left their weight difference out, it shows that you are not writing an objective report here.
Thank you.
Thank god you’re a Journalism major and not a law major. Keep writing non-fiction. You’re good at it.
Your first point attempts to debunk the statement that Brown was significantly larger than Wilson by pointing out that Wilson is 6’4” and 210lbs. While Wilson clearly isn’t a small man, he is, in fact, significantly smaller (even if not shorter) than Brown, who was 6’4” and 290lbs. Brown was all of 1” and 20lbs smaller than the *average* NFL Offensive Lineman. He was a very large man, and significantly larger than Wilson by 80 lbs. Since you researched all the facts and chose to leave this fact out, it shows that you have not written an objective report here.
yea, good luck hitting a guy in the head twice 50 yards away with a pistol.
like to know where you got your so called evidence!!!
Clearly the first point is wrong, hence the strike through. Since this is supposed to be a journalistic achievement it would be much better to remove the point entirely rather than leave an erroneous point sit there with a line through only part of it. Because it’s still wrong. Bad journalism.
80 lbs different, you don’t talk about Brown robbing the store. You don’t talk about him grabbing the gun in the car, jaywalking is a crime too regardless if its not significant, the audio shows that he shot when he rushed Wilson when Brown stopped he stopped and when brown continued towards Wilson the wilson continued to shoot.
148 feet from the SUV – not the officer.
I read her story and its filled with holes and she uses “facts” she sees fit to justify her version and puts in information not used in the case…for example -These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting. – There were also witness who TESTIFIED that Brown Charged at him. She leaves that out and that EVIDENCE shows Brown Stopped turned around and charged 35 feet before the final shots. She says -Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript. EVIDENCED PROVED he reached into the car grabbed the gun and it was fired causing the bullet would on Browns hand. She leaves that out. Also -This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did. Also not correct that was said by the Autopsy the FAMILY hired someone to do…what she FAILS to leave out is that CNN is now investigating the person who helped conduct that autopsy. That autopsy also said he was shot in the back when TWO other autopsies DENY that FACT. And her SOURCES are SUSPECT and MISLEADING TO SAY THE LEAST -Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown. Her SOURCE the DAILY KOS? doesnt say thats not him on the video and does say customers called 911 yest ANOTHER FACT she leaves out. Took me less then 5 minutes to show she;s not telling the truth and hiding facts and only picking and choosing to fit her agenda!
The only critique i can say initially is where it sounds like you are claiming that Wilson shot brown intentionally in the head and arm (at 148 feet). Chances are good that Wilson did aim center mass as taught, but missed. I don’t know about Wilson personally, but most police have never fired a gun in a real life situation and are not really that great shots.
Your a college student who is going for journalism you should know better to get your sources from non-scholarly articles rather then blogs.
One thing that’s always bugged me in similar things like this I’ve read – going to the point about Brown being “148 feet away from Wilson”.
While you may be able to demonstrate accurately that he was 148 feet away from the SUV, that’s not the same thing as being 148 feet away from the SUV – unless Wilson stayed near the SUV.
I’ve done some amateur shooting – and let me say that hitting a target at 20 yards away is challenging (headshot being extremely difficult). Claiming that Wilson was accurate with a handgun at 50 yards out (half a football field) seems far fetched to me.
Is there testimony that disputes the idea that Wilson gave chase – which would render the 148 feet thing moot?
This is why they are rightfully described as the “Drive by Media.” Ms Lawson should fit right in. From beginning to end her comments show how bias affects common sense and how young people today have been brain washed by the liberal media. The same liberal media that attempts to make a common thug into a mortar for the cause of civil rights. A media that accepted clearly bogus documents about Bush’s military service because it affirm their bias. A media that championed a sexual deviant like JFK in the White House and covered up Edward Kennedy’s cowardly behavior when he allowed a woman to drown and remain in the river for hours as he thought only of himself. A media that is complicit in the “Global Warming” hoax. A media that believed the allegations brought against the Duke Lacross players. A media that defended a sexist, womanizer (Hillbilly Bill Clinton), who used his position of power to satisfy his own sexual desires. A media that hates and treats southerner with disdain, turned a hillbilly like Clinton into an intellectual giant because he was a Democrat.They ignored the plight of the woman he harassed because he was a President from their party. They accepted lie after lie to pass Obama Care either because they were as stupid as the Obama administration officials thought they were or because their ideology blinded them from to absurdity of a plan that proposed subsidizing 30 million people’s insurance and forcing insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions could be done without increasing insurance premiums on others or increasing taxes. They believe that increasing taxes on corporations is not be a cost that gets passed from the corporation to the consumer. Again and again they are proven, by the facts, to be woefully ignorant and yet they have no trouble finding equally ignorant, up and coming, want-a be- journalist who fall for their propaganda. When will young people learn to think logically about the issues that are important to their future and not allow themselves to be swept away by the tide of conformity.
“not the same thing as being 148 feet away from Wilson” – excuse me
Your statement that Brown did not rob the cigars is misleading. “Dorian,” the notorious liar who was the first person to spin the “hands up don’t shoot” narrative admitted to being with Brown when Brown stole the cigars.
You have no evidence to support your statement that Officer Wilson’s “story” changed 3 times: in fact, his only published narrative was released at the GJ proceedings.
Your statement that there was no gunshot residue on Brown’s hands making it “impossible and untrue” that he grabbed for the gun is equally misleading per the exhaustive Washington Post report I cited, above. Per the Post the forensic evidence supporting a “grab for the gun” was quite convincing.
Your statement that Brown had his hands in the “hands up position” was not supported by the forensics, per the Post–in fact the contrary result was reached.
Absolute and utter shit. This bullshit compilation “shreds” nothing but the “Journalism Student’s” credibility.
I agree with much of what you’ve said but looked at your link to where you say “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown” and found only that that the owner and his employees didn’t call the police… no mention of him saying that the thief wasn’t Brown.
Also, I wish you’d clarified that there were 3 separate autopsies done, with conflicting accounts from the examiners.
Finally, you say no gunpowder residue was found on Brown’s body. The first examiner found residue. http://www.newsweek.com/michael-browns-autopsy-analysis-shows-struggle-darren-wilson-thc-his-blood-and-279155
Wow, this post is absolutely awful. I honestly cannot believe you managed to fit so much false information into one post.
Very interesting but suspected.
Garbage. The sources don’t agree with the conclusions.
Embarrassed to have gone to the same school as you. Amazing how you apparently know so much more than 12 actual members of a grand jury who listened to over 70 hours of witnesses and forensic pathologists, and examined over 1,000 pages of evidence. “-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” ALL witnesses, including the testimony provided by Wilson, have stated Brown ran and turned around to face Wilson. All shots entered from the front of the body. No evidence to support Wilson shooting at him as he was fleeing, none whatsoever.
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.” Police are taught to shoot until the threat has stopped. Perhaps his bad aim could be accredited to the disorientation from being pummeled by a 300 pound man from inside his police vehicle. Bruises are apparent on Wilson’s face, funny how you put quotations around “injuries” as if there were none? Regardless of the severity this absolutely eradicates the narrative that Brown was innocent, was not a violent threat, was a “gentle giant”. This is race baiting, this entire article, no way around it.
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.” Brown’s DNA and blood were found on Wilson’s gun… this is a huge piece of evidence.
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” — The witnesses, BY NO STRETCH OF THE IMAGINATION have agreed that Wilson was the aggressor! I’m shaking my head at this blatant lie of a statement you’ve typed up. All credible witnesses, as in the ones who have not been ruled out by ADMITTING THEY DID NOT ACTUALLY SEE ANY PART OF THE INCIDENT, have overwhelmingly been in solidarity about the fact that Mike Brown was the aggressor. Lies, lies, and more lies.
“-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.” The autopsy IN FACT has ruled out that Brown was in the universal surrendering position when shot by Officer Wilson. A very simple Google search could provide you with this information, for God’s sake!
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.” The autopsies concluded that gunshot residue WAS FOUND ON THE GUNSHOT WOUND–again, Google the actual physical evidence released by the grand jury themselves. They put everything out there for a reason.
“-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.” This “theory” (which has been debunked by the way) was put together by SHAUN KING, aka King of the Race Baiters. All that he did was measure the distance from where Brown’s body lay and Wilson’s SUV. Unless the story is now “SUV Somehow Shoots and Kills Unarmed Teen!” this is in itself the most ridiculous theory I’ve heard.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” The Ferguson Market store clerk said no such thing. He did not make a police report because a customer in the store reported the robbery. I mean this is just ridiculous. Dorian Johnson said in his testimony that Mike Brown had robbed cigarillos. No longer even in question.
You haven’t “shredded” anything besides my hope in humanity. Absolute garbage you have here. Shameful. Such a skewed, delusional article I can’t believe I’ve even bothered replying to such deliberately ignorant, false statements. It angers me that anyone could devote this much time into absolute nonsense based on nothing besides a very vile personal agenda.
Um, most of these are lies and untrue.
Nice and concise!
This is STUNNING news! This should be brought to the attention of the FBI!
Brilliant
I should note here that Dr. Baden’s autopsy is only preliminary, due, in part, to the fact that Dr. Baden was not allowed to examine Michael Brown’s clothing nor allowed to examine X-rays of Brown.
“Misfire” is the wrong word. That word means the gun failed to fire properly.
That is the biggest pile of steaming crap I have ever seen. Every assertion is a lie and directly contradictory to the evidence.
Every single one of your points can be disproved by reading the witness testimony and physical evidence that was given to the grand jury as evidence. Quoting a NYT article from Aug 19 as a viable source is irresponsible and misleading at best. Sorry the facts get in the way of your opinion.
I’m sorry, but most of your sources are absolutely terrible and the ones that are strong do not even support what you say. I really hope that you learn to be more responsible about your reporting.
Thank you for taking the time to do extensive research
I’m sorry, but most of your sources are based off of pretrial speculation by the media. The source by the private investigator that mike Brown’s family hired doesn’t support what any of the third party investigators found. The only valid evidence that you use, which is the testimony from the trial, doesn’t even support your claims. Try to be more responsible next time by implementing evidence from the trial instead of finding sources to support your preconceived notions. Also, official evidence will come from the trial itself. None of this was released to the media beforehand, so they are essentially speculating.
I dispite your claim Brown had his hands up to surrender, the family’s own autopsy indicates he did not have his hands up and, in fact, was likely falling forward after being sacehot.
Wilson fired 12 times
Twelve shots were fired by Wilson. Wilson said two shots were fired during a struggle at his police vehicle and that he then fired three bursts of gunfire as he chased and then backed away from Brown. He testified that his Sig Sauer .40 caliber gun held a maximum of 13 bullets.
Twelve casings were recovered and one bullet remained in the weapon, according to the grand jury documents.
http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/25/justice/ferguson-grand-jury-documents/?cid=ob_articlesidebarall&iref=obnetwork
Except on page 8… Gun jammed and he opened the slide, clearing the chamber”um. After the round was cleared out”. When you do that, the bullet pops OUT of the pipe/ chamber. A Sig Sauer P229 .40 has a 12 round mag and one in the pipe, so 13 rounds. Wilson’s testimony states that his weapon was fully loaded (page 15). So how can 12 casing be recovered and one round was still chambered? The math doesn’t make sense.
http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370766-interview-po-darren-wilson.html
#1
Brown was 6’5″ and weighed approximately 290lbs. Even if Wilson was 6’4″ and weighed in at 210lbs, there’s almost a 100lb difference. While seated in a vehicle, a 6’5″ – 290 lb. suspect poses a credible threat.
#2
This is somewhat correct. Brown was not “stopped” for jaywalking; instead Wilson testified that he pulled over to ask why Brown and his friend were walking down the middle of the street – on the double yellow lines. It was only after Brown’s response (pg. 208) that Wilson took a good look at Brown and recognized the box of cigarillos in his hand and the description of his friend matched the report from the store robbery. It was at that point that Wilson called for backup and attempted to “stop” Brown and his friend.
#3
Please re-read. In his testimony (pg. 281) Wilson explains the reasoning for pursuing Brown when he was fleeing – he didn’t state he shot him AS he was fleeing, he just explains why he took chase at all.
#4
While I didn’t have the protocols available for Ferguson, Cincinnati protocols (http://www.cincinnati-oh.gov/police/assets/File/Procedures/12550.pdf) state the following: “…At such time as a police officer perceives what he interprets to be a threat of loss of life or serious physical harm to himself or others at the hands of another, he has the authority to display a firearm, with finger outside the trigger guard and have it ready for self-defense. The finger is only to be placed on the trigger when on target and ready to engage a threat. … Self-Defense: A police officer is authorized to use that force reasonably necessary to protect himself or others from death or serious physical harm at the hands of another.” Anything short of that is to be considered a “warning shot.” There is NO mention of disarming or incapacitating. The protocol violations claimed are in what Wilson did after the shooting and how he and his weapon were processed.
By the way, the NY times report you link to on this is from August. The official autopsy report (http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html). Not only that, but the autopsy assistant from the article you linked has some credibility issues of his own (http://news.yahoo.com/cnn-investigates-michael-brown-autopsy-assistant-now-months-152339045.html)
#5
Over 24 people were interviewed regarding the case. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2014/11/29/b99ef7a8-75d3-11e4-a755-e32227229e7b_story.html). “Most of the roughly two dozen witnesses who saw the fatal gunfire Aug. 9 told the grand jury they observed something that was both upsetting and bewildering to them — a wounded black man, his hands raised somehow, walking toward the white police officer who was shooting at him. … According to transcripts of the grand jury investigation into the deadly encounter in Ferguson, three of the witnesses to the shooting described Brown’s movements as a “charge.” Another couple said Brown may have been charging but were not sure. Most of the rest saw forward motion but described it as “steps” or “walking” or “stumbling,” with about a half dozen of these witnesses interpreting Brown’s actions as an attempt to surrender.”
#6
It’s reasonable to assume that the forensic examiner can find replacement batteries at the hospital or on the way there to take photos of Wilson’s injuries. I don’t know why you felt the need to state them as “injuries,” however.
#7
Correct.
#8
Correct.
#9
Again, you’re crediting a story from September – at which time, Wilson’s statements were not made public at all! How can Wilson change his story on the events three times when his statements were never available to the public? Any assertion to what Wilson stated is completely hearsay. As for the witnesses, see #5.
#10
Witness reports from articles written in September? Use witness testimony under oath. (see #5)
#11
Again – an autopsy report from August 18th (your link). Moreover the report is the author’s own interpretation of the examination report. Since when does a blogger’s autopsy report exam count as an official source? The official autopsy results discredit much of what’s presented on this opinion piece.
#12
Again – old autopsy report. The official report confirmed close-range shots and supports Wilson’s account of the events. (see #4)
#13
The first shot was within one foot of Brown (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/26/us/ferguson-grand-jury-weighed-mass-of-evidence-much-of-it-conflicting.html) and the others were AFTER A BRIEF CHASE. The article you link assumes that Wilson stayed at his vehicle the entire time. There’s a reason no one’s making a big deal about the distance between the vehicle and Brown’s body -Wilson wasn’t at his vehicle when Brown was fatally shot.
#14
Please read articles you link to. The owner of the store says it was a customer at the store who called 911 – so while I guess you’re technically right, it’s a moot point. FURTHERMORE, the attorney does NOT state it was not Brown on the tape, he only states that they were unrelated incidents. As an attorney for the store owner, I’d imagine he’d want to distance his shop from the story as much as possible. Then again, this is an August report and completely meaningless point to make.
#15
Okay – this is just a ridiculous assertion. Robert McCullough is the president of The Backstoppers Inc., an organization that raises funds for the families of fallen police officers, firefighters or publicly funded paramedics and EMT’s (http://www.backstoppers.org/howwehelp.html). A group of individuals who supported Wilson made shirts available for sale, with SOME of the proceeds also pledged to the organization. Backstoppers issued a statement in which they deliberately stated they would not accept any funds related to the Ferguson incident.
Two things – 1.) the link you provided is from an anti-tea party group. You’d figure a journalism student would know to use credible and objective reasoning and report from reliable sources. 2.) The money that McCullough is raising would have NO BEARING on Wilson nor his family.
It’s completely reasonable for McCullough to be involved in this organization. If an officer happens to be involved in an investigation or in court – how does this affect anything?
#16
Okay, this is just ridiculous. Because the police department in Jennings, MO was disbanded (then created once again from the ground-up), this is somehow supposed to reflect on Wilson? The same story states, “… It was not an ideal place to learn how to police. Officials say Wilson kept a clean record without any disciplinary action.” Later on the same article even goes to show that in Ferguson, “Wilson won a commendation this year after he subdued a man who was found to be involved in a drug transaction, and he was honored in a ceremony in the Town Council chambers.” Interestingly, the man was subdued and not shot on the spot. So we have a good cop in a bad precinct? IS that the point you’re trying to make?
Moreover, the police department in Jennings did have race-related issues, but was officially disbanded because of corruption discovered during a federal and local investigation. That’s also in that article you linked, but neglected to mention.
Did you forget to mention or did you just omit it that Brown had 82 lbs to he’s avantage
Good journalism has proper scources, not hearsay sources. Try again!
These “facts” don’t actually match what is said by some of the sources cited. Also, Vox and Daily Kos are notorious for poor journalism. Indeed, both their stories have since been shown to be inaccurate. Here is what an example of professional reporting looks like: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Hey CNN! Heads up!
Some of your sources are sketchy, at best.
Do you have any firearms experience to back up your assertion that Ifficer Wilson broke protocol and wasn’t firing for Mike Brown’s body when he was shot in the head?
Did it occur to you that the Ferguson crime scene reporter may have had a chance to charge the camera or pick up a spare battery before taking pictures at the hospital, at least half an hour after Officer Wilson left the crime scene?
Wilson says he pursued Mike Brown as he ran away. So the distance from Wilson’s SUV is irrelevent, if Wilson was not standing right next to it.
Dorian Johnson’s testimony loses all credibility when the surveillance video shows him participating in the robbery with Mike Brown, and all physical and forensic evidence proves that Mike Brown was not shot in the back or with his hands up.
If you want to be one of the people who continues to try to make a martyr out of a criminal, that’s your right. It seems silly to publish incorrect information under your name when you’re hoping to pursue a career in journalism, though.
i have yet to comment on anyones post since this has happened. to be honest, it was because i did not know the actual facts and media always plays a huge role in swaying our views. this problem with your post is that you are quoting sources that are completely unreliable. since all of this was happening in court, they were unable to give out details about the case till recently. most of these quotes are from sources that get paid to say whatever the media wants to hear… which is the problem about our society. Trust me, being a 100% puerto rican girl, i would love to pull the race card and say that the police did it because he was black but, you cant say that is true. since you are a student at kansas, before you embarrass yourself, maybe educate yourself on these subjects and realize that you weren’t there and you dont know the story. Neither was any of the people that wrote these reports on random “facts” that they get from who knows.
Here is an article that exposes the actual physical evidence from the trial, which is now able to be seen since the trial is over. try to read it without a bias. honestly, i can’t be the one to delete this post and its nothing against you but, i wouldn’t keep this post up. it just feeds into what the media wants and doesn’t really help our society as a whole.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Thanks,
University of Illinois at Chicago’s finest
your source about autopsy: Aug 18.
this source: November. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
ignorance at its finest ^^^^^^^^
I hope that anyone willing to share this first actually looks through the “sources” provided. I’ve sampled a few and have been thoroughly dissatisfied, (nothing screams “unbiased” like being brought to a seedy “Americans Against the Tea Party” website). Not only that, but some of the most powerful claims are the ones that don’t even HAVE a source. I wonder why…?
Just to poke a few holes in this sterling display of evidence, please show me in ANY police officer’s training protocol where it teaches officers to “disarm and incapacitate” with their firearm. Tasers and pepper spray are used for incapacitation — guns are used to kill. Every time.
Next, the article claims that on page 281 of the Grand Jury testimony, Officer Wilson admits to shooting Brown while he was fleeing. All you have to do is read page 280 (go figure) and you quickly realize that the excerpt was completely taken out of context.
That was enough for me, and I decided not to waste my time wading through the rest of the nonsense that I was sure to find on here.
I loathe pieces like this because it’s basically opinion-based agenda setting and spreads falsities that your run-of-the-mill person is either too lazy to look into or is too biased to care about researching. If someone wants to post CREDIBLE information, I’m more than happy to read it. This only makes me think CONTRARY to what the author posted, since they surely must have fabricated these things for a reason. The only thing that this exposes is the author’s inability to write with integrity.
The police department, before claiming Wilson had an unblemished record, admitted they don’t keep disciplinary records on any officers in the force. Everyone in the force therefore has an unblemished record.
This is amazingly bad journalism.
I’m going to see how many I can correct:
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. ”
I’ll never get why people get this wrong. Officers are taught to shoot to kill. That’s why they aim for the center.
From HuffPo:
“Members of law enforcement are legally permitted to use deadly force when they have probable cause to believe that a suspect poses a threat of serious physical harm either to the officer or to others. In such cases, most officers are trained to shoot at a target’s center mass, where there is a higher concentration of vital areas and major blood vessels, according to a report by the Force Science Institute, a research center that examines deadly force encounters.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/19/police-deadly-force_n_5693020.html
You wrote;
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
He was running TOWARDS Wilson, which is confirmed by Wilson’s testimony and the forensic evidence that shows all of the injuries to the front of Brown’s body.
“The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. ”
The St. Louis police took photos. The examiner didn’t take them because the batteries were bad, and the St. Louis police covered the examiner. This is a non issue. You might as well say that the examiner didn’t have gloves, and had to borrow them from one of the other cops. It doesn’t change the evidence.
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire.”
It is true that Wilson put his own gun into an evidence bag. But there was no argument that he had shot the gun, or that it was his gun. Putting his own gun into a bag doesn’t change anything. Wilson had already said the equivalent of “I shot him”. We knew what gun he had used… so that doesn’t change the facts. Nor does washing his hands. If anything, washing what was presumably Brown’s blood off of his hands *harms* his evidence.
“These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.””
The bullets all hit Brown in the front.
To suggest that his hands were in the air as he was shot in the arm at least 3 times just isn’t plausible… and runs contrary to what the witnesses said who’s testimony was not impeached.
If you read the evidence, there are far, far more witnesses who say that Brown was the aggressor. As you probably know by now, several witnesses just plain made it up:
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2014/11/28/ferguson-grand-jury-documents-the-witnesses-that-werent/
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Both coroners agreed that Brown had been shot closely, and found soot in his hand wound that suggested a close-up shot. Which matches the DNA evidence found inside of the car, and on Wilson’s gun, that matches Brown (Grand jury testimony, Vol. 19, page 182.) Given the volume of DNA found in Wilson’s car that matches Brown, Brown hands were either in Wilson’s car when he was shot in the hand, or sometime recently, Brown drove Wilson’s squad car.
I’m going with the former.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
It was 148 feet from the SQUAD car to Brown. Not 148 feet from Brown to Wilson. We don’t know exactly where Wilson was standing, because he was moving at the time he was shooting. We know this because of where the casings were found.
We know that Brown was moving towards Wilson by blood evidence (the so-called trail of blood). Unless, of course, you think that the officers lifted the body, and made their own trail?
This is something that people keep getting wrong on social media, and report that Brown was 148ft. from Wilson, when Wilson was shooting. Outside of making this an amazing feat of marksmanship that Wilson was supposedly almost 150 feet from a moving target, and able to hit it with half of his shots, from 150 feet away? Outside of that… we know its not true. Wilson said that he was moving towards Brown when Brown doubled back.
So unless Wilson’s car was following him…
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Your first mistake was using DailyKos as a source.
Dorian, Brown’s friend, admitted in testimony that Brown stole the cigars from the store. No one at the store said that it was not Brown. That’s literally a myth.
Go reread Dorian’s testimony. There’s page after page of him talking about how he couldn’t believe that he had just seen his friend steal, and then shove a clerk.
Get your facts straight. Here are a few you are wrong about.
1. Mike Browns blood was found inside his car
2. Officers are trained to eliminate the threat not shoot to incapacitate or disarm.
3. If you think Darren killed mike brown with a shot at 148 ft out you are insane no one could make a shot that far with a handgun
4. You don’t mention the 4 witnesses that have never met confirming Officer wilsons story.
5. Why in the blue hell would an officer with no previous disciplinary issues want to kill someone. You think he woke up going oh yes I get to kill a kid today and ruin my career and have millions of uneducated people hate me? No stop hiding behind race and saying it is wrong if 12 members of the grand jury saw no PREOBABLE CAUSE which is an extremely low burden of proof, then how in the blue hell could they proof intent beyond reasonable doubt.
Are you kidding
There is a huge error in this story… “and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” The link to the source does NOT say that it is not Mike Brown. I have read in several places that it was Mike Brown and that he did steal from the store that day. While it is true that the store didn’t call 911 and Wilson didn’t stop Brown for the theft at first this error does not look good for the story as a whole. Please edit or add additional sources.
Why report all of this now? Nothing will ever be done about it all.
Hm. Sourcing sites that are clearly political propaganda driven, factual errors, failure to fact check. Failure to draw logical conclusions from facts? Not impressed. This isn’t journalism. This is propaganda for the small minded, gullible who don’t bother using a brain to analyze and think whether they’re reading fact or fiction.
Let me preface this by saying that I think this should have gone to trial and I haven’t read the entire transcript. So, I don’t really have all the details to pick a side on this and do think there were some mistakes, but to play “devil’s advocate,” I question some of her statements (I agree with some of them) and her inferences. And, some of her references are questionable. There is a lot of contradictory info out there, as far as opposing witnesses and even the autopsies. Why did she cross out “the same size as Mike Brown”? Was it because Brown had 90 lbs. on the cop, even though they were the same height? She also leaves out the fact that the cop said he shot him as he was running away because he thought he was still a threat to others. I am no weapons expert, but I don’t think shooting someone in the arm “disarms and incapacitates” and sometimes shooting someone in the torso doesn’t, either. Just because you go for body shots from a distance (if it was from a distance), doesn’t mean the guy isn’t gonna get hit in the head. Just because his head is down, doesn’t mean he is surrendering. There is nothing on page 95 of the grand jury transcript vol. 5, that she references earlier, where the forensic examiner said “her” camera had died. Maybe she needs to cite a different source on that, but on page 7 there is a reference to the crime scene photographer as a male and that he went to the hospital to photograph the cop. I would look into it more, but the search function doesn’t search more than one page. As far as the six witnesses saying Brown was surrendering: there were three witnesses that “described Brown’s movements as a ‘charge.’ Another couple said Brown may have been charging but were not sure. Most of the rest saw forward motion but described it as ‘steps’ or ‘walking’ or ‘stumbling,’ with about a half dozen of these witnesses interpreting Brown’s actions as an attempt to surrender” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2014/11/29/b99ef7a8-75d3-11e4-a755-e32227229e7b_story.html). This writer does not mention those opposing views. And, when Brown’s “last words were ‘I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.’, did the cop continue to fire? And, being shot in the hand does not tell you what position that hand is in. How does that prove his hands were in the air surrendering, unless a witness can testify to a bullet hitting his hand at that point? The questionable web page she references infers that to be the case, but I don’t think the autopsy implies that or could deduce that. In fact, the St. Louis County medical examiner’s autopsy report contradicts that. It indicated that there was gun shot residue on Brown’s hand and he “was shot in the hand at close range.” (http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/michael-browns-official-autopsy-report-actually-reveal/). She mentions that the “coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body”, but fails to mention that her reference states that his clothes weren’t checked for residue. The doctor in her reference was hired by Brown’s family and was on TV saying that Brown’s wounds to his arm were from behind. The last time I checked, my arms rotate. He also claims that dirt from the ground could create the microscopic appearance of gunshot residue, but doesn’t say that he actually saw microscopic particles of dirt. Maybe that falls off the skin, whereas gun powder doesn’t? I do find it interesting that the store clerk said it was not Brown that robbed him, but that is irrelevant because this writer states that the cop said he stopped Brown for Jaywalking. The fact that the police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling is irrelevant unless the cop that shot Brown had racially profiled in the past. Even so, racial profiling someone does not mean you are going to kill them. There are a lot of racists that don’t kill people.
I cannot say what the intent here was because I have never met or spoken to anyone from Ferguson, Mo. It appears that this case has been manufactured by several entities of the Ferguson government. The items listed above names the coroner’s office, the police department (including the chief of police), the prosecutor’s office and even the media in being somewhat complicent and knowingly altering the facts to create a false picture of this incident. Is this the blueprint that is going to be used in other cities as a means of official executions (murders) that will go unpunished? Most of these people are ELECTED. They can do unelected by putting forth candidates for office that are c
qualified and committed to upholding the law – and then VOTING them into office. Ferguson has a majority black population. They can ensure better treatment from officials by getting rid of those who don’t share their views.
Thank you for clarifying and speaking the truth!
Shoddy journalism. If you’re trying to present a case and reference the actual court testimony, you should then cite as the source the actual court documents not another article that references them. Also other sources are from August, prior to the grand jury testimony which have already been shown to be wrong according to the grand jury case.
So essentially you went to several different sources and picked out the most condemning information from each of them? Also, Mike Brown had 80 pounds on Wilson. You say he was fleeing from Wilson when he was shot. How is it he was shot in the front side of his body if he was fleeing? You typically use fleeing to describe someone running away from danger, I’m not sure if you misused it by accident or on purpose to give weight to your claims. And you’re completely wrong about the “incapacitate rather than kill.” Officers are taught that if and when they fire it is for killing blows. I’m not sure if you just made that up or took it from one of your “sources.” Also if Wilson and Brown were SOOOOoo far way from each other when the shots were fired, how is it possible that Wilson had Brown’s blood on him? You point out that Wilson ignored protocol to wash off Browns blood, which means Brown and Wilson must not have been as far away from each other as you lead your readers to believe. All of the eyewitnesses also refused to testify under oath (I wonder why).
Thanks for this. Great job! One question: I saw in the dailkos article that the store owner did not call the police about the shoplifting. I don’t see where he says it wasn’t Mike Brown. It is completely irrelevant to the case whether it was or was not Mike Brown. But before I tell people it wasn’t him, I just want to make sure I have a credible source. Can you please let me know where you found that information? Thanks!
Your source about them not interviewing a witness can’t be used! The headline reads “Reportedly”. Whose to say that is true? If it “Reportedly” happened, you can’t site that as evidence.
148 feet? You’ve obviously never shot a handgun… To hit a person five times at that distance is not only incredibly lucky, it would also discredit the headshot as malicious. It’s not a sniper rifle libtard
” ‘and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.’ (source)”
Your source apparently says nothing about this.
Please keep pushing this!
typical cover up. Can he be taken to trail i pray and hope that he is otherwise he has gotten away with murder. I wonder if the outcome would be different if it was a white boy he murdered. Thank you Shelby for the insight
This is the most dishonest reporting I have ever seen. Did you even read your own sources?
Wow! Thanks!
I’m really not surprised, the truth? It’s not only that they handle the truth, they don’t want to hear it. It’s easier to believe that this teenager was some big Black aggressor and deserved to die. Really pathetic.
What a great story Shelby everything is backed up and looks on point Wilson should rot in an unmarked grave
Wow…. I’m glad you are a journalism major because your dissertation of the Grand Jury Testimony is awful.
The Autopsy report definitely concludes that his hands were NOT in an up right position.
The Autopsy report definitely concludes that there was residue on Mike Browns hand indicated he was less than a foot away from the gun.
The Autopsy report definitely concludes that Mike Brown was not stopping or standing when he was shot. The kill shot was the final one to the top of his head, this was shot from approximately 8 feet away, the arm and torso shots were from further away. Michael Brown was literally charging towards the officer.
Stick to journalism, but this article is junk.
thank you for this post!
This article is such a joke. I am guessing this journalism major is thinking nobody that will read her article will have read the grand jury testimony also. I saw numerous misleading statements in this article so far, and I have only read 200 pages of the grand jury testimony so far.
Some final thoughts on this matter:
The real criminals in Ferguson are the members of the Brown family–associated with the notorious “Bloods” gang, the family wore red to their own son’s funeral and physically assaulted each other over selling merchandise. They incited the riots last Monday night by shouting: “burn this bitch down” just minutes before the burning and looting of over 15 minority-owned businesses–
The one “doctor” you chose to use about the forensic evidence in your “expose” was actually himself “exposed” as a liar and a fraud.
There is a story that a “snitch” who testified before the grand jury was murdered for giving evidence in support of the Officer.
The real “expose” in this case would be to expose that Officer Wilson was the real victim in this case–he was indicted by the media and exonerated by the Prosecutor and the Grand Jury.
http://nypost.com/2014/11/28/michael-browns-step-dad-should-be-arrested-for-inciting-riots-missouri-lt-gov/
http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2014/11/cnn-discovers-mike-brown-autopsy-expert-is-not-a-professor-or-a-doctor/
http://newsninja2012.com/mike-browns-stepfather-part-of-bloods-gang-is-it-relevant/
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/11/26/Michael-Brown-s-Mother-Step-Father-Under-Investigation-For-Violent-Confrontation-Over-Justice-For-Mike-Brown-Merchandise
Dude was a fucking ignorant nigger. You see the video of him robbing the convenience store? The kid has no respect for any authority and thought he could do what ever the fuck he wanted. We don’t need coons like him in this country.
Thanks for your research. Did Wilson explain or was he asked how his face was bruised on the right side when he was in the car. We drivers are on the left side. Did he explain how a 300 6’4″ man tried to grasp his service revolver, when it is on the right side. How can a man of this size fit through the window? Some questions
Global Abortion
Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
I don’t know if this is true or not, but the source cited only states that no one from the store called 911. Nowhere does it state that Michael Brown was not the person in the video stealing the cigars.
I hope you choose another career path. Your article is incredibly inaccurate. For example:
Michael Brown was not the same size as Darren Wilson. Michael Brown was 80 lbs heavier than Darren Wilson.
Michael Brown was shot as he was facing Darren Wilson. It is not possible he was fleeing unless we was running backwards. Very unlikely
It is ridiculous to assert that the it was not Michael Brown on the security footage. Even his own parents have not disputed it Michael Brown.
People like you are the problem. If you can’t make a case based on the facts, please stop stirring up trouble.
Your analysis could be helpful, but it has a major problem which is that you are sourcing your info from a very few sources such as Kos. So you are not really analyzing do much as repeating what Kos is saying, and they can be wrong or misleading.
For example, your point about how far Brown fled. While its important to point it out, since you only have one source for it (Kos) you do it in same mistaken way. Its significant that Brown ran that far from the SUV, but the way you and Kos state it makes it appear he was also 148 feet from Wilson when he was shot. Thats not accurate. Wilson was pursuing him, so he was closer to Brown than 148 feet when he shot him because he was chasing him.
If you want your analysis to be more impactful, you cant source so much from Kos and ignore other sources. Widen your net. If you have the time, review the stuff the prosecutor released. Its a good thing you are doing.
Mike Brown was 6ft.5in. tall 278 lbs with BIG MIKE tatooed on his arm source: autopsy report
If race was reversed would there be out cry
The Daily Kos which is the source for most of these claims is an illegitimate source, it is a political blog site with a heavy left wing influence. I don’t think anyone can or will ever know what actually happened on this day, so I think it’s better left up to trained professionals who actually know what they are talking about.
I think you need to go back to journalism school. This is atrociously written
Great post! I hope this shuts some people up and clears up all the blatant lies circulating around social media (but of course it won’t).
If he was running away, then how did blood get inside the car? source:http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/18/justice/michael-brown-darren-wilson-account/
You definitely can tell you are a journalism major for you are trying to spin a story. You can pull apart and nit pick all you want but the fact that you do not supply accurate information is ignorant and disrespectful to those who actually read the thousands of grand jury pages fully. When you take crap media as the end all be all in information, you don’t get anything but rating driven writing. 1) yes Mike Brown fled but at one point did turn to face the officer and whether or not he charged only god, Mike, Darren, and actual witness know. 2) Gun carriers and officers do not shoot to wound. 3) Mike Brown was 289 pounds at 6’5″ tall. Darren Wilson is about 6’3 210. (that height and weight much more slender) 4)Dorian Johnson in his testimony in the Grand Jury stated he ran after the shooting and changed clothes so he wasn’t recognized. Law Enforcement were trying to locate who was with Brown but did not know name. Dorian stated he feared for his life but talked to media outlets before notifying LE he was the other person. 5) The medical examiner tech and crime scene investigators were different people. Yes the ME techs camera was down but stated if needed, they would use the Crime techs photos as it was just to give ME perspective of how the body was found. Two different entities, two different roles. 6) Unlike crime solving shows, you can either take DNA or fingerprints from a weapon, not both and each process will invalidate the other. Since Wilson stated he never lost the gun, DNA was taken for the blood splatter. 7) There were shots fire inside the car. On Browns hand there was a graze would that included soot, meaning the weapon was less than 6-9 inches from the wound. 8) Typically the only time a version stays the exact same is if it is made up. When recalling events, it is typical to have slightly different versions at each time because your mind is going frantic in serious events and only focuses on what you think is necessary to your survival. 9) what versions of Wilson’s story? He never went public until after the grand jury nor should he. 10) IF Mike was running at the cop like Wilson and other witness claim, you do not run with arms at your side, you pump your arms, which could explain the injury pattern. 11) if a gun misfires, there is no gun powder period. There was a shot inside the car and soot traces in the hand wound. 12) Wilson stated Brown was 35-40 feet from him, not the car and did not begin shooting until Brown was back at about 15 feet from him. Blood traces confirm this that blood was found farther than the body was found. 13) Dorian Johnson confirmed it was them strong arm robbing the store – that story is just B.S. There is so much more wrong with your “facts” but I do not have the time and or the want to continue. People read the freaking transcripts of each person involved including witness to get the truth instead of reading a load of crap and taking it as fact.
For one issue, where on p. 281 does Wilson say that Brown was fleeing when fatally shot? To my reading, Wilson was discussing the significance of Brown’s having-been-fleeing at some time, but not necessarily at the time of the fatal shot.
Looks mostly in order & well documented but I would suggest 2 corrections: first, Brown was not shot first in the head but in the arm or chest while still being held onto by Wilson at the car and this prompted him to break Wilson’s hold on him and start running away. He then turned around as you note and said he did not have a gun and asked Wilson to stop shooting. Which Wilson did not. He approached and shot Brown several more times and the head shots would have had to have come last because they would have been necessarily fatal and this fact is attested to in your quoted source. Second, you state that Brown was 145 feet away from Wilson when shot. You mean Wilson’s SUV, not Wilson himself. Otherwise, good work
Wow….you have missed 90% of the evidence presented. Really stupid to cherry pick testimony and ignore credible evidence. If I were your journalism prof., you would be expelled.
I’m glad you’re not majoring in law, because you present a very one-sided, illogical argument. For one, Dorian Johnson, Brown’s friend, openly admitted to the theft. Also, Brown was over 80 pounds heavier than Officer Wilson. Wouldn’t you consider someone the same height as you, but 80 lbs heavier, to be significantly larger? Also, although Brown was initially told to get off of the street, Officer Wilson then turned around after hearing the description of the thief over the police scanner, which is why he turned around. An autopsy also concluded that the gun fired in the car was the shot which went into Brown’s hand, making it obvious that he was reaching for Wilson’s gun while inside the car. You also fail to mention that there wasn’t a single shot to Brown’s back, every single one to his front side. If Wilson really just wanted to kill him, why not just shoot him as he was running away? Another thing you forgot here is that when police arrived, Brown’s hand was still in his waistband, as if pretending to himself have a gun. This would waive Wilson’s duty to incapacitate and would make it totally appropriate to defend himself in any way possible. You also leave out the fact that 7 of the 8 witnesses (all of which were African-American) testified that Wilson’s story lined up with the actual events.
The sad thing here is that I have heard several logical arguments in favor of Brown in this case, but instead people will choose to believe yours, which leaves out crucial details and is painfully biased. To say that you “shred” the case is crazy, because it just shows how willing people are to believe what they want to believe while ignoring plain evidence.
Great job. Glad you’re going into journalism because everybody these days just wants to be on tv at any risk to the publics right to know. The Koch brothers can buy them faster than we can graduate them.
I am going to try and go point for point with your very erred opinions.
-Even if Ofc. Wilson is 6’4″ and 210 pounds. Mike Brown was 6’4″ and 300 pounds. That is not the “same size” as you stated. 100 pounds s a huge advantage in a fight for your life.
-It does not really matter why Mike Brown was stopped. Whether he was stopped as a suspect in a robbery or for jaywalking, he attacked a police officer. It is actually much worse if he attacked Ofc. Wilson for the simple fact that Wilson stopped to tell him and his accomplice to get out of the road.
-Mike Brown was inside Ofc. Wilson’s car and was shot while struggling for Wilson’s weapon. He then exited the vehicle and began running away. I understand you may not understand police protocol so I will help you out here. At that moment, Mike Brown turned himself into a fleeing felon. Deadly force is completely authorized for apprehending fleeing felons, especially ones that just assaulted a police officer. Ofc. Wilson was duty bound to pursue and apprehend Mike Brown at that point.
-Not sure who you spoke to that told you what police protocol was regarding using force. There is nothing in any policy I am aware of that states that an officer is to try and disarm rather than defend themselves from being killed. Mike Brown escalated this situation beyond a casual brush with law enforcement. Police are also not taught to shoot to incapacitate. We are taught to shoot to end a threat. There is a difference and you may want to take a college level anatomy course before demanding “body shots”. They may be fun on a Friday night in the local bar but, when a bullet passes through major organs in the body, the outcome is never good.
-Testimony and forensic evidence show that Mike Brown was shot while charging back towards Ofc. Wilson.
-I am not sure why you make an attempt to turn the forensic examiner into a liar. She claims her camera was not working at the scene but then took pictures at the hospital. Is it not possible that she obtained batteries or a new camera at the hospital?
-Have you ever fingerprinted a gun? Have you ever fingerprinted anything? You can put all the fingerprint dust in the world on an object and still not raise any usable prints. Why are you making such an effort to discredit these folks? What axe are you grinding? Did you write their protocol? You keep referring to them violating protocol so I am wondering if you wrote the policy and procedure manual for Ferguson PD.
-Mike Brown’s blood was on Ofc. Wilson’s gun and holster. I am starting to think that you maybe watch too many shows like CSI. I understand that you are in college and therefore you know much more than the rest of us. It doesn’t make you right, it just means that you know a whole lot of the wrong information.
-You are now making up testimony and forensic evidence. Yes, there were several changes made to people’s testimony. The forensic evidence does not support your claims that Mike Brown had his hands up surrendering. It does support the fact that Mike Brown was charging the officer.
-It has been well documented that Mike Brown did have GSR on his hand where one of the bullet wounds was. It was one of the first shots fired and happened inside the car. Unless you are willing to now deny that evidence and completely change the story again, you must accept the facts.
-Where are you getting this information about Mike Brown being 148′ away from Ofc. Wilson? If Ofc. Wilson was able to take these shots on Mike Brown after having been assaulted in his vehicle and having adrenaline pumping through his veins and hit Mike Brown at a distance of nearly 150’…well, he is a total stud then! I spent 13 years in the military and an additional 6 years in law enforcement. Taking shots with a handgun at that distance while under duress and having them hit target as many times as Ofc. Wilson did, well, that makes him very exceptional.
-You are now completely changing proven and accepted information. Whether you like it or not, Mike Brown was the “gentle giant” on the surveillance video. His accomplice is clearly seen in the video and he is wearing the exact same clothing. How many 6’4″, 300 lb, black males are there in Ferguson that dress exactly the same and hang out with the same criminal?
-You are a college journalism major and you refer to websites like “American Against the Tea Party” as legitimate sources? I think you may wish to study your chosen profession a bit more to find out what a legitimate source is. This site is an admitted militant liberal site that is very slanted in it’s propaganda.
-The Washington Post article you referenced is riddled with incorrect information and is a blatant character assassination attempt against Ofc. Wilson. They comb through Wilson’s personal life and family history in an effort to turn him into a crazed killer intent on killing black people. It would be amazing should a “journalist” turn the same level of scrutiny on Mike Brown and his family. Take a look at Brown’s criminal history. I am not even referencing the juvenile sealed record that has a charge for murder in it. I am talking about his adult record. It sheds a great deal of light on this so called “gentle giant”.
Good luck with your studies…it is apparent that you really need to hit the books!
For being a Journalism student, you really know how to use “unbiased” and “credible” news sources. Great job.
You will fit right in with today’s biased news sources. I’m a forensic science major and I can tell you first off that the chances of getting any prints of a gun from that man or of struggle is slim to none and, while Wilson should not have been allowed to shower until pictures were taken, the blood on his uniform, gun and the inside of the car indicate that your eyewitness statements quoted from Vox about his hands being outside the police car are false, which is also supported by the fact that Wilson was, in fact, injured.
You are misrepresenting your source of the gunshot residue remark as the coroner. He WAS a coroner from NYC who did the second autopsy. That is a major point as bodies are cleaned for processing. GSR is highly transient and washes off very easily. The report from the medical examiner stated that the only wound to have GSR was the one on the hand, indicating close range and is not only the source of the blood in the cruiser, but also contradicts your statement that his hands had to be up for the wounds on his hand and arm to have occurred the way they did. By the way, the wounds on the arm and hand, taken from a distance, also do not support a hands up posture, but a forearm level posture which could indicate attempting to lie down or arms being pumped during a running motion. Never trust “witnesses” to an alleged crime who insist on being anonymous.
Pg 281 shows a lack of reading comprehension on your part. In that passage, Wilson is explaining why Brown still posed a threat that he had to pursue rather than waiting for the backup to arrive. It is not a statement that he shot Brown while he was fleeing. That, as well as the eyewitness statements that claim Brown was shot in the back, is disproved by the autopsies that showed all GSWs entered through the front of the body. The pursuit is key in another matter as, due to the fact that Wilson was chasing Brown, the distance of Brown’s body to the police cruzeiro is not indicative of the distance between Wilson and Brown, a distinction that the Daily Kos intends to conflate, but that you misstated even farther. In fact, the statement of Wilson being charged by Brown and the distances between the two is once again supported by the physical evidence. Wilson stated that Brown stopped about 35 feet from him when he turned and charged. Wilson fired a series of shots, told him to stop again, he kept coming and Wilson back pedaled while firing the final series of shots. This is supported by a Skype audio recording as to the two series of shots and the fact that there were cartridge casings beyond the location of the body, indicating that Brown had passed the location that Wilson began firing moving in Wilson’s direction. This a not a breach of “protocol” as body shots were taken without stopping the threat.
As for the market owner – your own link catches you in a lie or an extreme issue if reading comprehension. At no point does he say that it was not Brown in the video. His statement was that his getting pushed around and the images in the video had nothing to do with the shooting because the police acquired the tape after the incident had occurred and that a customer called the police rather than anyone employed at the store. However, while the initial stop was for walking in the street, the two DID fit the description of the people involved in the store incident, which is why he went back. If you’re going to be a journalist, you really need to be more accurate in your statements.
BTW, CNN states that Wilson’s testimony, which as it had not been released for most if the investigation and then, only via a third party relaying what they thought were major points you have no frame of reference to determine if it had changed, remained largely consistent.
Journalists are supposed to be like police are supposed to be – interested in the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, striving to cut through biases to provide that which is real. In that refused you have failed. There were inconsistencies in the investigation. A special prosecuted should have been appointed. These are issues which should be brought up, talked about and pressed to ensure that those issues are fixed and the preservation of the truth is improved in the future. But the facts are the facts, physical evidence trumps eyewitness testimony, and you have been caught in more than one outright false statement just by looking at your sources. Be better.
Forgot to check boxes
Thank you for using sound evidence to state case most people are failing to read, I truly pray as you obtain your career goals that you don’t compromise your integrity for fame. THANK YOU FOR DOING A THOROUGH JOB
Reblogged this on and commented:
I’d like to clear a few things up. This is a general address to the long list of misconceptions and inconsistencies and abuses of power that exist surrounding the killing of Mike Brown. I have researched these points and provided sources in case you wish to do some reading of your own.
Well considering the grand jury has already made their decision and you researching facts on the Internet over a closed case is not going to change the verdict, get a life.
Don’t speak….ever. This was the most stupid thing I’ve read and you made a complete fool of yourself. Did you research at all or did you just tick down a list of blatant lies? It has since been proven that Mike Brown was ADVANCING toward Officer Wilson and his attorney isn’t the one who raised the money for his and his pregnant wife’s protection. You should consider journalism though, you’d fit right in at MSNBC
Sorry, but I see too many inconsistencies in the logic of your findings. I do not care what you read where including grand jury transcripts. The logic in what you wrote and the way you wrote it suggests grand juries, law enforcement, and courts are all corrupt and Officer Wilson knowingly and willing executed Brown.
The grand jury heard over 70n hours of testimony and said NO to indictment. You are on the outside looking in and you say yes to indictment. Nice try.
Your sources are old and have mostly been disproved
You’re either the biggest idiot I’ve ever heard of who did absolutely zero research before publishing this piece or you are gearing up for your career in mainstream media by ticking down a list of blatant lies. Nearly every single one of those “facts” can easily be proven wrong with a simple search, even by those unfamiliar with the case. It horrifies me that over 70,000 have shared this asnine post. You “shredded” nothing and you should probably try to scrub this from the Internet before you actually get out there and try to apply for a serious job in journalism. As an employer, I would ask you to immediately leave my office if I did a Google search on you and saw this.
Please when using sources make them from a highly reputable site and not the run of the mill crap. Your facts contradict one another and even the testimonies you site contradict one another from the sources you referenced. Journalism is great if you tell the truth and only the truth as you know it to be. From this article I think most of us that are not illiterate can see that you are nothing more than an average journalist, who will only spit lies to benefit herself.
My question is,if this is true what you are saying,then why did the grand jury not read this and come back with a indictment on officer 👮 Wilson? To read what you have said from your source it looks like a cover up and it smells fishy.
Thank you for being so thorough in your research. It shed light on so much and I appreciate what you have done!
Dailykos is not a legitimate source. Please try again.
Neither is aatp. Please show genuine research not left wing propaganda
Thank You!
Im impressed … You did good girl. Keep up the great work
This was fantastic, thank you for fact checking a adding sources.
Wow, you are so wrong
So many things wrong in this .you lose it when you say he wasn’t in the store even Dorian puts him there.
Good job refuting the erroneous reports, and substanting misconduct by all the professionals involved. Wilson should have been charged.
You distorted every single fact of this case. You should actually read the grand jury report, instead of repeating what you have heard.
Except you have sources with conflicting information and only took the pieces that confirm the story you’re picturing. For example, the private autopsy that didn’t find gun powder confirmed all the shots entering from the front, so he wasn’t fleeing. It’s unfortunate a life was lost but maybe it wasn’t the cops fault.
DOUBLE JEOPARDY. THIS OFFICER SHOULD WILL DIE SLOWLY AND PAINFULLY, GOD DON’T LIKE UGLY.
Some of your facts are opinions.
-“Impossible and untrue.” It may be untrue, but IMPOSSIBLE? Are you a gunshot powder expert? On that particular gun? Probs not.
-The guy on the video WAS Brown. So now YOU are lying. But again, whatevs.
– Have you ever been able to handle a fight against anyone 80 – 90 lbs bigger than you? Assuming you are an average 120 lb girl, a girl that is around 200 lbs wouldn’t kick your ass? Again, an OPINION of yours that a man 6’4″ should be able to hold his own. Not a good argument.
– The other autopsies have shown that the bullets could have entered another way. There is no way that the officer let him get 148 feet away AND THEN put 6 rounds in him. Hell putting all 6 shots on target would be tough from that distance. Not even one miss. I mean, this is what you are saying right? Again, not really a fact.
– Your argument about disarming and incapacitating. Stupid argument from either side. Either he shot someone from 50 yards in the head (again hard shot) OR he was shooting at a moving target. (Still a hard shot). Now if you had said overkill, I probably couldn’t argue very much.
– The eye witness testimonies that you brought up. Well, those citizens could have IMMEDIATELY gone to the police if they wanted to. But, instead they just held out and talked to reporters and the media. WHY? So you don’t say anything unless the police come banging on your door? HOW DO THEY KNOW WHO SAW WHAT? “Okay we’re going to have to interview everyone in this 3 block radius. All 750 people that could have seen it.” Not a logical task for the man power of the police force.
With all that being said, I am on both sides of the entire issue. I don’t think he probably had to kill the man, but if the statement about being attacked is true, it would be a pretty shaking event to not come back with some sort of force. The police don’t sign up to get their asses kicked, and they should get the benefit of the doubt. While their job description indicates they may come across danger, they have the right to defend themselves with force they deem necessary. It could have been handled better, ABSOLUTELY! But, either way we should respect the decision made by the grand jury and leave it alone from this point on.
It is funny how a professional grand jury didn’t see it the same way that a student saw it . Duhh
Nice picking of bs scientific evidence showed mike was attacking when was lawfully shot like the robbing,stealing,attacker he was to bad people like you can’t get over it I know my kids are safer with one less criminal around I’m sure this will be deleted because it is the real truth that mike. Died vomiting a violent felony NOT jaywalking
It is funny how a professional grand jury didn’t see it the same way that a student saw it . Duhh
Are you a journalist? Clearly the mam aggresively stealing cigars from the gas station was Mike Brown. You obviously have a bias for you to disregard the facts of this case. I dont think Mike deserved to die because he was a theif, byt cops are not trained to shoot at body shots. So thats another incorrect statement . You have no journalistic skills to write such an article with outright lies in it. Its kind of a disgrace for you to put false info out there to better sway readers to your opinion of the horrible situation that happened that day. The truth matters more than most things in this world, maybe you shluld reevaluate how important truth is in your journalistic endeavors.
I noticed all your sources come from opinion pieces and not actual facts.
Misfire definition: (of a rifle or gun or of a bullet or shell) to fail to fire or explode. You stated that there must have been gunshot residue on Mike Brown if he grabbed the officer’s gun and caused a “misfire”. You have no idea what you are talking about, because a “misfire” means there was a malfunction that prevented the gun from going off, NOT (as you assumed) making it go off accidentally. Thus, if Mike Brown’s hands caused a “misfire” there would not be gunshot residue on his hands. Beyond that, many of your sources are not reputable, but you cite them anyways. All of your language is charged and you draw conclusions with your phrasing. This is not objective, this is not journalism, this is trash. Journalism Major = not a journalist yet. Maybe you should hone your skills first before you put trash on the internet and fuel the flames in this tragedy.
This article is humorously embarrassing.
1. Brown was not stopped until he refused to get off the street and he wasn’t Jaywalking, he was obstructing traffic walking down the middle.
2. Yes, Michael brown was 80lbs heavier than Wilson.
3. Mike Brown was not fleeing from Wilson otherwise he would have ended with bullets in the back of his body and his body would have been farther away than the blood train instead of closer.
4. Police are not trained to incapacitate.
5. Yes six witnesses interviewed who have never met claimed Brown attacked Wilson.
6. True the store owner never reported the robbery…a customer reported the robbery.
7. And my favorite…”Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”””
Gee why would they take statements before Wilson shot Brown????….Don’t try journalism, you will starve to death.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
I don’t see support from any of your sources about the claim that Michael Brown was not the person on the security footage or that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown — the only claim the source supports is that the owners did not make the 911 call.
Thank you for doing this! The truth is important and sometimes even powerful. My daughter is a WGS major as well; it is a great place to view society from!
Additionally, Wilson testified that Brown scratched him and punched him repeatedly, drawing blood from scratch marks and leaving bruises as shown in the pictures of Wilson. However, in the official DNA analysis, Brown did not have Wilson’s DNA under his fingernails or bruising on the back of his hands. There is no way that he could have scratched Wilson hard enough to break the skin yet failed to have Wilson’s DNA under his nails. Source-http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370605-dna-analysis-report.html
Furthermore, if anyone believes that this case wasn’t biased from the beginning, look at the associations in the Crime Analysis Report. Wilson is listed as the victim, Brown as the suspect. Source- http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370599-crime-lab-firearm-evidence.html
Uh, this entire article is bullshit. Even the sources she cites often don’t even make any references to the point she’s trying to make. There’s still 70-80 pound difference in weight between Brown and Wilson, which is significant by any measure. There are no bullet wounds that show Brown was shot with his hands in the air, all of the autopsy reports that the bullets were all head-on… if his arms were in the air the arm-based wounds would correctly reflect that in their trajectories (determined by skin channeling). There is no such “protocol” that instructs a cop to “disarm” someone when life is in danger, she’s smoking crack on that one. And the eyewitnesses do NOT all “agree” that Darren Wilson was the agressor… anyone can read “Witness 40″s journal for even one example where that’s not true.
This chick is full of shit. And no, I’m not some crazy right-winged conservative gun nut racist. I’m a guy who would rather know the truth. There are PLENTY of cases out there where cops are abusing their authority and committing crimes. I do not think this is one of them.
Are all of these statements corroborated in the grand jury documents? I see that a few are, but not all, and I’m wondering if some of the news citations can’t be originally sourced in the grand jury documents.
none of the “sources” listed under her “evidence” are valid sources, they are not the official transcript.
You’re completely delusional. Just about everything you have stated is completely false. I really hope you don’t end up reporting news anywhere in this country…
Thanks for clearing this matter.
You Rock Shelby!!! Thank you on behalf of all of us who will continue to protest for Justice for Mike Brown!
I don’t want to generally criticize all today’s young people based on this one student’s journalistic prowess, so I’ll just say she’s mistaken in some of her “shredding” and those are the only one’s I investigated because once you find one that’s false, then the whole argument breaks up. Just take a look at her opinion, that’s right, opinion, the last one she makes, as an example, -The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.” She uses a quote so naturally one would expect to go to her source, search “profiling” and find the quote. It’s simply not there. The only place the word “profile” is used is in the comments. So, to delegitimize an argument the only thing you have to do is show just a single item is a lie, but really, if the Darren Wilson had really testified that he shot Michael Brown while he was fleeing, then that policeman would be in jail and Michael Brown would have wounds to the back of his body. The officer’s grand jury testimony, now available for all to read, says he fired at Michael Brown as Michael Brown came toward him. And KU student might want to accurately point out that other testimony contradicts his testimony, if you read their testimony that testimony also contradicts what physically appears at the crime scene. I don’t know of a single item in Officer Wilson’s testimony that is contradicted by the crime scene evidence. Was Michael Brown significantly larger than Darren Wilson? Well, how significant is a body weight which is 50 to 70lbs more? Let’s see, that’s 22% larger if Michael Brown weighs only 50lbs more than Darren Wilson. Actually I believe the autopsy shows Michael Brown to be 6’5″ tall (77″) and I believe 280 to 290lbs, so that’s closer to 60-70 lbs more than Wilson. I guess this is another opinion so we can ignore that if we’re trying to “clear things up”. Let’s be fair to the grand just PLEASE. They are taking all the evidence in, not just what 4 “witnesses” said. And to KU student, let’s work a little harder in class and not so much on the internet.
Thank You Shelby!!!
wow….just wow
None of this is accurate nor true. This is all lies and BS. The autopsy shows the exact opposite findings that are stated here. There was gun powder residue on Mike Brown’s hands and the bullet wounds are consistent with the angle he would have had to be in inside the police car. This article is completely untrue and it’s author is not in touch with reality.
This is an awesome piece of INVESTIGATIVE reporting – the kind of journalism so sadly missing in our mainstream news. Thank you, Shelby, for reviving this noble tradition of journalism!!!
To be specific, Mike Brown was 148 feet from Wilson’s SUV when he was killed, not from Officer Wilson. By his own testimony, Officer Wilson gave chase on foot.
Shelby,
With all due respect, your article is filled with untruth’s.
You should take it down and doublecheck your facts before this goes viral.
-Jason
Your facts are WRONG. Obviously you have no experience with firearms or you would know hitting a target with a pistol at half a football field away is a difficult task even under the best of circumstances… couple that with adreniline rushing through the officer’s body as well as the fight or flight instinct and it makes an already difficult shot nearly impossible. Furthermore, the Autopsy revealed gun powder residue on Michael Brown’s thumb. Investigation revealed his blood inside the car, ON THE GUN, and on the officer’s uniform. The autopsy also showed the bullets entered his body from the FRONT!!! The ONLY autopsy that contradicts those findings is the autopsy performed by an expert hired by the Brown family… and the motive there is simple… the Brown family is seeing dollar signs and hearing the cash register ringing. Mark my words… they will sue…
It was a good attempt, but many of the sources used are poor choices, as they are conflicting with many other sources, and some are not credible and respected sources in general. To start off saying that just because the officer was the same height as Mike Brown means their the same size, even though Brown was 80 pounds heavier is a poor start. Some other comments are from earlier reports from which evidence has changed and their is clear evidence presented in the Grand Jury testimony that you left out, like the medical reports stating blood spatter in the car was consistent with the close range steal attempt, and new medical reports have confirmed the bullet wounds were consistent with ares being stretched forward, not up, and the bullets entered from the front. The bullets to the head were from a falling forward motion, and most likely bullets aimed for the chest. I understand where you are coming from, but the decision of the Grand Jury was based on evidence, not just a racial bias. Maybe the news and some reports were poorly done and there was definitely a lot of race issue in the case, but not in the decision of the jury.
Wow. Didn’t know you had time to work with the cia with all your studies. I read the source material released by the prosecutor as well and you are talking out of your ass. Good luck with that journalism thing, you’re doing a bang-up job so far. (Vomits on keyboard)
Do you consider yourself an expert on the use of deadly force?
I cannot read this because of the background…Is this high school stuff…sheeesh ! ! !
ou will fit right in with today’s biased news sources. I’m a forensic science major and I can tell you first off that the chances of getting any prints of a gun from that man or of struggle is slim to none and, while Wilson should not have been allowed to shower until pictures were taken, the blood on his uniform, gun and the inside of the car indicate that your eyewitness statements quoted from Vox about his hands being outside the police car are false, which is also supported by the fact that Wilson was, in fact, injured.
You are misrepresenting your source of the gunshot residue remark as the coroner. He WAS a coroner from NYC who did the second autopsy. That is a major point as bodies are cleaned for processing. GSR is highly transient and washes off very easily. The report from the medical examiner stated that the only wound to have GSR was the one on the hand, indicating close range and is not only the source of the blood in the cruiser, but also contradicts your statement that his hands had to be up for the wounds on his hand and arm to have occurred the way they did. By the way, the wounds on the arm and hand, taken from a distance, also do not support a hands up posture, but a forearm level posture which could indicate attempting to lie down or arms being pumped during a running motion. Never trust “witnesses” to an alleged crime who insist on being anonymous.
Pg 281 shows a lack of reading comprehension on your part. In that passage, Wilson is explaining why Brown still posed a threat that he had to pursue rather than waiting for the backup to arrive. It is not a statement that he shot Brown while he was fleeing. That, as well as the eyewitness statements that claim Brown was shot in the back, is disproved by the autopsies that showed all GSWs entered through the front of the body. The pursuit is key in another matter as, due to the fact that Wilson was chasing Brown, the distance of Brown’s body to the police cruzeiro is not indicative of the distance between Wilson and Brown, a distinction that the Daily Kos intends to conflate, but that you misstated even farther. In fact, the statement of Wilson being charged by Brown and the distances between the two is once again supported by the physical evidence. Wilson stated that Brown stopped about 35 feet from him when he turned and charged. Wilson fired a series of shots, told him to stop again, he kept coming and Wilson back pedaled while firing the final series of shots. This is supported by a Skype audio recording as to the two series of shots and the fact that there were cartridge casings beyond the location of the body, indicating that Brown had passed the location that Wilson began firing moving in Wilson’s direction. This a not a breach of “protocol” as body shots were taken without stopping the threat.
As for the market owner – your own link catches you in a lie or an extreme issue if reading comprehension. At no point does he say that it was not Brown in the video. His statement was that his getting pushed around and the images in the video had nothing to do with the shooting because the police acquired the tape after the incident had occurred and that a customer called the police rather than anyone employed at the store. However, while the initial stop was for walking in the street, the two DID fit the description of the people involved in the store incident, which is why he went back. If you’re going to be a journalist, you really need to be more accurate in your statements.
BTW, CNN states that Wilson’s testimony, which as it had not been released for most if the investigation and then, only via a third party relaying what they thought were major points you have no frame of reference to determine if it had changed, remained largely consistent.
Journalists are supposed to be like police are supposed to be – interested in the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, striving to cut through biases to provide that which is real. In that refused you have failed. There were inconsistencies in the investigation. A special prosecuted should have been appointed. These are issues which should be brought up, talked about and pressed to ensure that those issues are fixed and the preservation of the truth is improved in the future. But the facts are the facts, physical evidence trumps eyewitness testimony, and you have been caught in more than one outright false statement just by looking at your sources. Be better.
I just sat here, and read, and viewed all pictures; made available, on the Michael Brown story. I have to admit. I didn’t know a lot of the factual details, until now. On what has been made available. I do believe the (independent) pathologist report. I believe it to be honest. Also, the report, on this distance, between the officers SUV; and where Michael Brown’s deceased body lay in the street. I, have a lot of my own unanswered questions. I have read, and seen all the pictures provided. I read and saw all, and (did not) read or view anything out of context. However, with that being said. I feel, their has been a travesty of justice, in this case. Justice must be served, in all (legal matters) wrong doing!
Very good read, the only issues that I have are from the claims that “[The] Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars” and “…the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” According to the source you linked, there is no way to make either claim. The first is misleading and the second is most likely incorrect.
While the source does say, “the 911 call did not come from the owners or an employee,” this does not mean a 9-1-1 call was not made. In fact your source says “…a customer inside the store made the call.” Your failure to include this makes the statement very misleading, as if Darren Wilson could have no way of knowing about the robbery.
The shop owner never says the man in the video is not Michael Brown. What he says is, “Whatever the police are looking for on the surveillance tape, has nothing to do with what went on in the street.” What this means is that there is no way that Darren Wilson would have known that Michael Brown was the robber.
All that said, the rest of this list and reviewing much of the evidence myself leads me to believe that Darren Wilson used unnecessary force in this situation. He should have been indicted and convicted of his crimes. I DO NOT want to be pegged as a Darren Wilson supporter because I most certainly am not.
You may want to consult more reliable and newer sources if you want to go into journalism Shelby. Quoting new articles published in August or websites like the DailyKos, which tend to have ideological viewpoints, usually would hamper, rather than strengthen, your case. Many facts have surfaced over the last week, rendering much of the information from the first days following the shooting out-of-date.
I’m not going to rebut each and every point you make, but just several of the more egregious assertions you make.
– The forensic data released have conclusively shown Brown’s DNA to be on both Officer Wilson’s sidearm and inside his car, demonstrating that Brown indeed had tried to wrest control over the firearm. As Wilson has said, he fired his handgun twice in the car, only to hear it “click,” (indicating a jam of some sort), before he was able finally to discharge properly his gun.
– The owner of the convenient store may not have called in the robbery (that may have been a customer inside the store), but there is no one now who seriously denies that that was Brown shoving the owner around like a Raggedy Ann doll.
– All the eyewitness information is conflicting, but more than a few have testified that Brown’s hands were not in the air. More than a few have testified that he was indeed charging at Officer Wilson. Eyewitnesses can often be unreliable sources. At least one supposed eyewitness who testified that he “saw” Wilson stand over Brown’s body and deliver the final shot later recanted and admitted that he had only “heard” it from someone else and that he had not even witnessed the actual shooting.
– Backstoppers is an organization that, according to its website, raises money only for those killed in the line of duty, i.e., a situation inapplicable to Officer Wilson. Your source, “Americans Against the Tea Party,” seems to have fabricated the whole nonsense about the prosecutor’s involvement in the fundraising.
The American media is no longer what it used to be back in the 1960s and 1970s. Style is substituted for substance. Using antiquated and unreliable sources to support arguments in a controversial case. To do all this means to advance an agenda or viewpoint and to fix the arguments around them. Is this the kind of journalism we hope to be cultivating?
I went to the transcripts of the Grand Jury testimony and the pages that are referenced for Officer Wilson’s testimony and do not find the comments attributed to Officer Wilson.
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony”
On pg 207 Wilson said “I see them walking down the middle of the street. And the first thing that struck me was they’re walking in the middle of the street.”
On pg 208 Wilson said “why don’t you guys walk on the sidewalk.” He kept walking, as he is wlking he said “we are almost to our destination”
Since they continued walking, Officer Wilson did not stop them but only asked his qustion as they walked past his police car.
On pg 202 Wilson describes a call that came in for a stealing on West Florissant. He heard that the suspect was wearing a black shirt and that a box of Cigarillos was stolen.
On pg 209 “When I start looking at Brown, first thing I notice is in his right hand, his hand is full of Cigarillos. And that’s when it clicked for me because I now saw the cigarillos, I looked in my mirror, I did a doublecheck that Johnson was wearing a black shirt, these are the two from the stealing.
No where on page 208 does it indicate that the two were stopped for jaywalking, they were questioned as to why they were walking in the middle of the street, but they were not stopped. When Officer Wilson noticed the cigarillos and that the other person had on a black shirt did he stop them for the stealing for the store on West Florissant.
A journalist needs to be able to do a proper fact check and use sources other than the Daily Kos, and when using the New York Times, not to misrepresent what their article claims.
you are an inspiration Shelby. Your investigative eye and journalistic skill accompanied by source notation is what journalism in our digital age should look like. Thank you for modeling the new model of journalism. If you are ever in Berkeley CA we would appreciate you making a stop here. Thank you again.
This is excellent work! While the lamestream media has been busy trying to play the race card for one side or the other, you have been researching and finding the issues that matter. Bravo to you and KU! Amerika may need to wake up soon and realize we live in a lawless police state with one set of laws for cops and another for everyone else. Most of White Amerika doesn’t yet seem to realize that what they’ll do to Black people they will soon do to everyone. Turn your phone cameras on, everyone! We need to use the surveillance state against the oppressors, or else they will selectively use it on the rest of us just as they used it on Michael Brown.
Problems with this: Brown out weighted Wilson by close to 80 lbs at 292 lbs which is almost half again Wilson’s weight. So yes he was significantly larger.
Brown was fleeing when Wilson got out of the car, not when he was shot. This is where he was shot again according to wilson’s testimony: http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370569-grand-jury…
Here is page 281: http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370569-grand-jury…
Officer Wilson acted within the protocols given. By both accounts he first attempted to speak with them to get them out of the street. After that the physical altercation happened.
Johnson was interviewed. Multiple times.
This is an interesting article on the witnesses. http://www.pbs.org/…/newly-released-witness-testimony…/
Quote by the attorney about the witnesses: “Some were relating what they heard from others or as I said, what they assumed happened ”
Disproof of the not reaching for the gun and material evidence for him not being shot while running away or having his hands up: http://www.newsweek.com/michael-browns-autopsy-analysis…
Its pretty obvious that Brown stole those cigars. His friend’s testimony even confirms it. I don’t know why she is trying to play that off.
1.) The man that robbed a box of cigarillos was indeed Mike Brown, but that point is completely unrelated to the shooting and death of him.
2.) The hands up position of the autopsy depends on which account of the atopsy report you are reading(same report, different interpretation. If you are running towards someone, your arms and hands move into the upright position alternately, which is why the bullets entered him like they did.
3.) Multiple witnesses to the crime gave statements about what they saw a few weeks after the incident. After being asked why they didn’t come forward on Aug 9th or 10th, they unanimously replied that they had either been told to keep their mouths shut, or were afraid of the retaliation that would take place. All of these witnesses also stated that Brown was running away from Wilson as Wilson was shouting to stop. They also state that Brown then turned and started charging Officer Wilson. After failing to submit to Wilson’s continued order to stop, Wilson opened fire in self defense.
4.) Every single “interview” that Dorian Johnson gave was scripted and false, including the initial interview.
5.) Who came to the defense of the white baseball player from a college in Oklahoma that was murdered by 3 black teens last year? When questioned about the motive, their response was “because he was white”. I don’t recall Sharpton or James standing up for a defenseless, unarmed, white man that was on an afternoon jog.
6.) Officer Wilsons’ driver side window was shattered in his cruiser, and there was blood found on the drivers side door exterior that was confirmed to be Mike Browns. As well as a bullet entry point on the inside of said door, with a single shell casing also inside the vehicle.
It doesn’t matter what you, or anyone else for that matter, thinks about this situation. You either think Wilson was in the right, or Brown was in the right. Mistakes were made in the first few hours of the investigation. I completely agree with that. There is rarely an investigation where everything is done according to protocol, and if you find one please let me know and I’ll give you a medal.
This is very poor journalism and you should be ashamed of yourself. Many of your points are written in a way to deceive your readers and they are not supported by the sources you list, while others are straight up wrong. As an example, you write, “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft” Nowhere in your source did it say that Brown was 148 ft from Wilson when he was shot. It said Brown was killed 148 ft from Wilson’s squad car, but that is it. Most of your other points are moot. You should consider changing majors now because you have lost all credibility and have a very small chance of getting a job.
Most of the sources she uses are not reliable and dated back to early August. Good luck finding a job, Shelby. You’re going to need it.
We already knew this is bull crap! He was lying from the beginning and he had the nerve to go on Nightline with George S. Wow how bold and brazen he is all for fame! $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ the price of a black man
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Some of your information is wrong.
http://m.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html?mobile_touch=true
I could “shred” everything you posted, but I don’t have the time. This entire posting is full of half-truths and lies… Take for example, this claim
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Only the first statement is correct according to your source. The store owner never says the person on the video is not Michael Brown. He is obviously trying to save face with the community he operates his business in. His cowardness and appeasement doesn’t mean anything at all.
Another good one is the bit about the autopsy. Your anyalysis doesn’t come from the coroner, but from another journalist in your source. The shot to the palm came from the struggle inside the car, not at the end on the street.
Ah yes, the college student who has singlehandedly blown the case by citing (and cherrypicking) a bunch of random news articles with the odd pull from the grand jury documents as it suits them. When is the movie due out then, before or after the book hits the fiction shelves?
My response to a sheep buying this crap: Greg Moore, anything can be twisted to meet your own perception (or get attention) if you believe that 80-90 lbs of aggressive young task driven and ‘high’ difference in size male doesn’t make a difference then you haven’t fought another male or even one the same size or one who is smaller, for your life. The rest? It’s crap, it’s been taken out of context and presented only in part with an ‘opinion’. Remember, three different ME’s did this autopsy.. All came to the same conclusion.. Officer Wilson said Mike Brown first fled and then charged.. He’d already presented himself as a further danger to the community.. The officer stopped the two for disorderly conduct initially( interfering with traffic) then the officer recognized them as matching the “robbery” descriptions AND being in possession of the stolen property.
If you knew anything about police work you’d understand that it doesn’t matter what you stop someone for, it matters what THEY think you’re stopping them for.. Many bad guys (killers, etc) were stopped for minor traffic infractions).
Mike Brown set the pace here.. He chose to attack instead of comply; he was the cause of his demise.
Finally a grand jury reviewed all the real evidence in its entirety and returned a “not true bill”. Who is some hack reporter to that process?
Nice you could articulate your own intelligent views tho…
Reblogged this on okieprogressive.
If Brown had his hand up how com he was sho t in the, which meas he was lunging for the officer.
The white population did not destroy their nieborhood went OJ was acquired….they destroyed their own people livelihood….
So you are telling me that he put 2 rounds in Mike browns head from 148′ away. Wow, the shit you people come up with.
Read the bottom of your “source” article from aattp.org (Americans Against The Tea Party) regarding the Prosecuting Attorney raising funds for Wilson… you’ll see an update retracting their previous claim. Irresponsible reporting…
This is literal shit, nothing about this any (for lack of better words) smart person would even consider being the truth, the name of this article should be changed to “another person trying to give there “expert” opinions about a case that was thoroughly gone over”. Some people are just idiots! And really +50 yards shots to the fucking head Yeah right bull shit, tell you what go to a shooting range rent a pistol then go to a rifle range to shoot your +50 yards then tell me how far apart your spread is!
How was Brown fleeing when shot? All entry wounds are from the front, right?
So many lies in your article that you shouldn’t even be able to graduate college due to having zero credibility. So Michael Brown was running away when he was shot but all the bullets were entered from the front? Was he moonwalking away? You also claim now that Michael Brown didn’t rob the store lmao. So Michael Brown just happened to be in the exact same outfit as the guy in the video and also looked the same, was with the same friend and had a box of cigars when shot? You’re a horrible journalist since you decide to skip over facts that have been proved simply by citing some bs website. Ok, did you know the earth is really flat? Here is a website that says it so it must be true http://theflatearthsociety.org/cms/ *rolls eyes*
Michael Brown’s mother even said it was him in the video robbing the store so at least that “fact” of yours is incorrect. You can clearly see his clothes match that of the pictures of him in the street and you can easily his friend
Testing for reality, did I not just try to post something intelligent to an intelligent news article?
Thank you for clearing up these lies and convenient lapses in protocol.
k
wow..so many lies in this list I dont know where to begin…
While the death of Michael Brown is a tragedy, I see a few flaws in your article. The biggest one being that you are using 3rd or 4th party sources. This is the worst way possible to get the facts.
If you find an article making claims you should try to find their source until you get to someone connected to the case. At least try to get as close as possible to the original source.
This is all conjecture on your part…..
A lot of these sources are hardly credible. Especially ones that challenge hard evidence. You also make the mistake of making some very broad assumptions and do what journalists and attorneys do best: leaving key elements out of your arguments. EX: shots at close range do not always leave residue. And your assumptions of the autopsy showing what the case has otherwise settled is rather alarming. Definitely a rare argument.
Also: try shooting a pistol at 148 feet. Even a skilled operator who is not under stress would struggle for .500 accuracy on a moving target.
Last: Yes, lots of protocol was broken. First responders break policy everyday. It’s just a fact when their policy manuals are a foot thick. 90% of the time they don’t know they are. Ask your local law enforcement office for a copy of their standards and policies manual including all general orders. Then ask them why crime scenes and an area such as Mike brown’s death are expedited. Yes, a lot of policy was broken. Some people will be embarrassed. Some will get jammed up for it. But give it some context. The real world is not CSI. Use your journalism skills to find some evidence and argument on both sides.
Mike brown isn’t dead, he is living with 2pac and biggie in Canada
Pg 281 of the Wilson testimony only describes why he continued to pursue the suspect after the incident in the car, it does not confirm that he was fatally shot while fleeing.
I’m not sure that any of your professors at the WAW J-school would give you a decent grade. They certainly wouldn’t have when I was there. Repeatedly using Daily Kos as a “source,” or worse yet, an anonymous contributor on the site named “keepemhonest” who offers no credentials or experience that would lead one to believe that they could be credibly analyzing autopsy results.”
I’m not saying I agree or disagree with any of your assertions, but this is a very, very shoddy example of journalism. In reading your piece, much like your sources, it quickly becomes apparent that this is a shining example of “don’t believe everything you read on the internet.”
I suppose she’s smarter than the grand jury hmmmm
Bullet casings do not travel 140 feet. Wilson had to be close for the casings to be around the body.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/us/ferguson-missouri-town-under-siege-after-police-shooting.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=b-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=2
Good grief. You are a terrible lawyer.
I honestly don’t think you have any idea what you are posting about here. You have so many sources that are either about as trustworthy as a kid with chocolate on their face, or simply contradict what you’ve said that it’s not even funny.
Thank you for putting all the facts out..in fact they said that if this case was to go into fed investigation that the outcome would be the same. I think that they are really supporting the unlawful use of a weapon in the hands of a ‘supposed” to be officer who is supposed to protect and serve. let’s see how many feds really do their job like you have done and your a student. I appreciate you taking time out of your life to do this i’m sure alot of people are upset but the truth really needs to come out that in fact he was wrongfully killed while surrendering.
And furthermore, I was interested to read this. I started to realize there were some major flaws on your very first point. You talk about what you believe to be a misleading statement regarding size disparity between Brown and Wilson, offering Wilson’s size but no information regarding Brown’s. Why was that? His weight at time of death was 292 pounds. Their difference in height may have been inconsequential, but 82 pounds? I realize this is subjective, but would not consider this to be an insignificant amount. It seems highly questionable that you would raise the arguement and then only offer one half of what should be a comparison.
lame
Actually.. pages 227 and 228 describe Brown coming back at the officer when he’s shot. The page you point out (281) just explains why the officer followed him. Reading comprehension fail on your part.
Was NOT shot in the back, but in the front…..
Then they wonder why they turn to violence,without justice the only thing left is violence -its time for us to make a change black nation”any means nessasary”
Thank god no one important will actual read this filth. All of your “sources” are news articles released months before any actual evidence was made public. Prime example, you state that Mike Brown did not rob the convenience store prior to the accident, yes he did, and the footage of it is of him. The are dozens of other mistakes in this. Stop trying to get page views by exploiting a terrible incident.
Great analysis and review. The facts had me perplexed since the beginning of this ordeal..and you’ve outlined most of them here. What a tragedy. Thanks for sharing.
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs,”
Which would be 85 pounds lighter than Brown.
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime.”
He HAD, however, just committed one, and the officer WAS aware of the crime.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot.”
And yet none of the wounds entered from the back. Must have been using those new ‘boomerang’ bullets.
“This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
Actually, the autopsy said exactly the opposite.
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body”
The microscopic gunshot residue in Brown’s wounds was gathered after that press conference.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Um, no. According to the source you linked to (the Daily Kos? [snicker]), he doesn’t say it was not Brown, he says the shooting had nothing to do with what happened in the store. It has been well proven that Brown was indeed the robber, admitted to by his accomplice Dorian Johnson. And the video evidence is quite clear. Regardless of WHO called the police, the store owner or a customer, strong arm robbery is a felony and the victim does not have to report it for it to be a crime. Or perhaps you think all the unreported rapes that happen in this country are not crimes because the victim didn’t call the police?
Seriously, it’s a good thing you’re a journalism major, because criminal justice isn’t your forte. And you should have quite a career in journalism, since facts stopped being essential to reporting long ago.
Your first two claims are incorrect. According the Grand Jury report, Michael Brown was 77 inches in height and weighed 295 pounds. That’s one inch taller and 85 pounds heavier than Mr. Wilson. So yes, he was larger. Secondly, Mr. Wilson never admits to shooting him fatally when he ran away. Also, the blood evidence shows Michael Brown moved back towards Darren Wilson. I refuse to read the rest of your report due to the inconsistencies.
The code of ethics in most police departments is to ” protect their members at any cost” The truth that “they” want is the one that reflects fairness in their actions, they can’t afford to lose credibility.
Holy Jesus where did you pull these garbage “facts” from? Political websites such as “Americans Against the Tea Party”, do not count as legitimate sources. If you’re really a journalism major, you should probably re-think that.
First of all, this is great. I wish more news publications produced more work like this about all major stories. Regarding this point:
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
I believe what is meant that Brown’s hand on the weapon prevented it from firing. As a result there would have been no gun shot residue on Brown due to this reason. However, had police followed protocol and taken fingerprints from the weapon perhaps this question would have an answer.
Thanks for the post.
A link to the original Facebook page would be appropriate.
Officers are trained to aim for the center of mass and pull the trigger until there isn’t a threat anymore. The shots to the head weren’t intentional, just like the shots to the arm. It’s difficult to hit a moving target with a handgun while panicking. He did follow self defense protocol.
You leave out Mike Brown’s weight, he outweighed Wilson by 80 lbs. That IS a significant difference.
According to Wilson’s testimony he noticed the cigars and that Brown matched the description of one of the robbers.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Could you post the exact quotation that you are referring to? That page contains Wilson’s explanation of why he Pursued Brown and doesn’t mention shooting at all.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
He was 148 ft from the VEHICLE, not Wilson.
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
All of these claims are directly contradicted by the actual evidence, which is compiled and sourced handily in the wikipedia article.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown#Physical_evidence
I’m not even going to continue, this article is written with an agenda, and more than that much of it is flat out made up, deliberately misleading and/or just bold faced lies. Seriously, if you’re going to publish something how about having a little bit of objective integrity.
Thank you for your comments which some are true and others are disputed wrong. Please follow up after obtaining your law degree to see if your findings remain the same
Well done and thank you! Shared on FB and Twitter
Incredible poor reporting, you might want to check your facts and sources again… (Maybe try more than one source).
I will only name one at this time because I don’t want to write an essay on how bad this is, but you say “-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.” but if you look at the actual source, it says he was 148′ from the SUV he was driving, not 148 from officer Wilson. This whole article is riddle with falsehoods. Is this what “journalism” has become??
While we can take apart the testimoney anyway we like, we did not sit on the grand jury and make a judgement. The grand jury did that
If by fleeing you mean charging the officer.
If you based your arguments off the FACTS and not convenient findings, your article about dumbass Brown would mean something. Go over the medical examiners document, which is the most accurate and factual document, which states how much larger dumbass Brown was than officer 👮 Wilson. if you would like me to shoot down the rest of your OPINIONS and lies I can very easily do so. Bottom line….keep going to skoo cause you suck dick at unbiased information.
so how did browns blood get inside the police car??? and the bruises on the officers face were what, self inflicted???
While your analysis was good, I feel like it is important to provide a few counters to what you’ve said just to balance the argument. I am not trying to fight or argue – I’m just adding some conflict in the interest of a fair sided debate!
First of all regarding his size – Brown had 80 pounds on Wilson, you’d be foolish to say that 80 pounds isn’t a substantial size difference. Add that to the fact that Wilson was sitting in his cruiser and Brown was standing over him and it’s easy see why Wilson felt he was so large. That isn’t overly important, but I’m just going down in order.
Now lets not pick and choose and take things out of context. Originally Mike and Dorian were stopped for jaywalking, then Officer Wilson saw the cigarettes that they stole in a strong-armed robbery minutes before. That prompted him to reverse his car and go back to them. If you’re going to use Wilson’s testimony as evidence – it is important to provide the whole of his evidence as to not look biased.
Autopsy and testimony says at the time he was fatally shot he was not fleeing. He had fled, turned around, and charged Officer Wilson. The blood trail behind him further proves that he was charging when he was fatally shot. Again, don’t pick and choose from the testimony – manipulating what Darren Wilson said to fit your agenda is unprofessional.
If a cop feels his life is in danger – he has every right to shoot to protect himself. It is up to the cop to assess the situation and decide if he or she will be able to control the situation without using force. Given that Mike Brown had 80 pounds on Wilson and had already once tried to wrestle the gun away from them – I believe Darren Wilson did what he needed to do given the situation.
Darren Wilson followed his training in removing the blood from himself. Did it hinder the investigation? If so minimally. Blood splatter analysis has a minimal impact on forensic investigations and is usually only suitable for supplemental evidence and won’t make or break a case. Furthermore, the blood spatter in Wilson’s vehicle proved that Brown was in the car when he was shot, adding credibility to Wilson. Also this takes credibility away from the eyewitnesses who swore up and down that Brown never leaned into Wilson’s window or tried to fight the gun from him.
The eye witnesses have changed their stories multiple times, too. Many have retracted their original statements and admitted to lying to begin with. One eyewitness was his friend who he had just robbed a gas station with – I don’t find him to be a credible witness in the slightest.
Again, the ‘hands up don’t shoot’ story has been retracted by the eyewitnesses after autopsy and crime scene analysis suggested that Brown was charging Wilson.
Again – lets go with the full story in the autopsy. There were 3 of them. The one paid for by his family stated that he had his hands up. The first said it was likely he was charging, the third didn’t share their guess. Autopsies get less and less accurate the more times you autopsy an individual body. In case you aren’t aware, autopsies involve cutting the body open, removing and examining organs, and other manipulation of the body. After already having an autopsy, any autopsy done after that is being done on a body that has already been manipulated enough that any ‘evidence’ found can’t be credible.
The first autopsy (the credible one) showed gunshot residue on his hand, as well as trauma proving he had the gun in hand when fired.
No one from the store called in about the theft – another person present did and it has been confirmed that the message was relayed over the radio that Darren Brown was listening to.
The men on the security camera are Mike Brown and Dorian Johnson. This has been confirmed and proven.
Darren Brown was never involved in an incident that contributed to the disbanding of that first police department he worked for.
I really did appreciate your analysis and I am not trying to come off as rude – I just felt that it was unfair to use his testimony against him if you were only going to pick and choose the pieces that work in your favor, so I thought that I would just shed light on the other side while trying to be a little more transparent. I hope this isn’t taken poorly!
If you read any of the documents that were released from the grand jury you would know that most of this is not true….
Shelby deserves an F in journalism for failure to cite original source material. She is, however, an excellent reader of other reporters’ work and pretty good at book reports.
Mike Brown’s DNA was found in the police car ? Is this true ?
I find this fact quite disturbing.
your sources are other speculative articles from opinion based sites. Your sources that actually link to the court transcripts don’t say what you say they do- for example, wilson does not say that he fatally shot mike brown while he was fleeing on p 281 of the transcript… you just totally lied about that… great journalism! You’ll fit right in if you graduate.
It’s very easy to become one sided, especially on a topic like this. Check out some of the physical evidence and proposed facts as well. These really pertain to the case…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Wow. Just wow. I hate to pick on a college student here but her reading comprehension needs a lot of work. This is just sad.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
What? Brown was fleeing but he stopped and faced Wilson. According to Wilson he charged. Johnson doesn’t even claim Brown was fleeing when he was shot.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
Re-read the source. That’s not saying Brown was 148 feet from Wilson. It was saying Brown was 148 feet from Wilson’s SUV. Wilson chased Brown.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
No, the owner didn’t call police. A customer did. What does that have to do with anything. The owner said the theft had nothing to do with the shooting of Brown–not that it had nothing to do with Brown. And I have never heard anyone contend (including the source) that the footage was not of Brown.
Sorry, but gotta shred your “CASE” …and I’m not even a law student. SL: ” Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony. ” ACTUALLY, Mike Brown was never shot in the back, and blood trails show he turned around from fleeing to charge back at Darren Wilson. Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-diagram-of-the-scene/ ….pay attention to item 19 & 20 as this proves the bleeding Mike Brown turned back around to charge Wilson. SL: “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did. …Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.” ACTUALLY, gun powder residue or soot was found on Mike Brown’s as well as Mike Brown’s blood found inside Wilson’s vehicle proving Brown was in close proximity when the firearm discharged. This explains how the bullet entered his hand and arm the way it did. Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370593-2014-5143-microscopic-01.html Shelby Lawson, consider yourself shredded. Next time you want to go off about something, look at the physical evidence. People will always lie to advance their own agenda. Physical evidence cannot be swayed by personal bias.
This is the biggest trash of proof I’ve ever seen. I’m not surprised to see you’re Journalism student. Before you make accusations you should make sure to read your source material in it’s entirety, and without bias. I’ll be the first admit I have a bias. I work in law enforcement. So I’ll try to offer some perspective you may not normally have, and clear up some misconception others may have on law enforcement.
To your first point, I personally have heard anyone suggesting that Michael Brown was significantly larger than Ofc. Wilson, just that he was a large man. It was always my understanding they were of similar size. Size does not equal strength though, to which Ofc. Wilson testified, he felt Michael Brown was much stronger than he was.
On your 2nd point, Michael Brown was not initially stopped for jay-walking. This is 100% correct. The first contact Ofc. Wilson had with Michael Brown and Darion Johnson (the other male w/ Brown), was because they were both walking in the middle of the street. Ofc. Wilson had the driver side window down on his marked truck. He was driving towards the two men and they were walking towards him according to testimony. He stopped his truck next to them and reports that he asked Darion Johnson, “Why don’t you use the sidewalk?” To which Johnson said, “We’re almost to our destination.” Ofc. Wilson replied, “Well, what’s wrong with the sidewalk?” This is when Mr. Brown retorted, “Fuck what you have to say.” Which I may be wrong, would be interpreted as fairly aggressive response to a simple request. The next bit is which I find interesting, because you even highlighted it, but failed to cite it in your claim. On pg. 209, Ofc. Wilson testified that when after Mr. Brown spoke, he looked at him and noticed he had a handful of cigarillos. He reports Mr. Brown was also where a black tee-shirt, matching the description of the prior Robbery of cigarillos and made the connection between the two and the robbery. So you’re right, he wasn’t stopped for the robbery, but the connection was made through contact with them, and now Ofc. Wilson considered them both suspects in the robbery. You’re statement is extremely misleading.
3rd point. Another misleading point. I see your cite on pg. 281. Ofc. Wilson was asked to add any additional testimony two which he was not already asked. Ofc. Wilson was clarifying that Mr. Brown did indeed flee, and that Ofc. Wilson pursued him after determining to be a threat to other officers that he had called assistance of. He was just in a fist fight when a large man (equal in size – large) who tried to fight for his gun. This alone, would be enough for any officer to determine he is a threat and needs to be arrested. He was trying to protect other officers from possibly engaging with Mr. Brown because he felt he may go for another officer’s firearm, as he had just tried with Ofc. Wilson. What you failed to mention is that at no point in his added testimony did he contradict his prior testimony, by saying he shot at him while he was running away. He determined he was a threat while running away, there is a big difference. Two shot’s were fired in the car during the struggle. After the second shot, Michael Brown ran away while Ofc. Wilson pursued. According to testimony on pgs. 226-230, Ofc. Wilson reports that while pursuing Mr. Brown, Mr. Brown had stopped and at that point Ofc. Wilson also stopped. Ofc. Wilson then testifies that Mr. Brown turned and charged at Ofc. Wilson which is when he determined i was necessary to utilize lethal force again.
On your 4th point. I’m honestly not even sure to begin. I hate to make assumptions, but given the statement you’ve made, I will, and you can correct me if I’m wrong. I’m guessing you’ve never shot a firearm before. My second guess is, even if you have, you haven’t shot a handgun before. The reason I make this assumption, is that what you’ve written contradicts itself.
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
You’re claiming that police self-defense protocol teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather to kill? This is just not true. Protocol is to stop the threat. That’s it. You’re correct in that we’re trained in body shots. The reasoning behind this is because it allows for the most margin of error. The prime example being this case. If you’ve ever shot a firearm, have you ever shot a human? Believe it or not, no matter how much range time you have have, make the decision to shoot human isn’t easy, and can affect the way you shoot. Have you ever shot while under extreme stress and adrenaline? I doubt it. Have you ever shot after just being in a fight? Once again a doubt it. These are all factors which we do train for, but are still extremely difficult to control when shooting a firearm. Imagine shaking with adrenaline and trying make accurate shots. It’s not easy. Handguns aren’t like movies where you can just point and shoot, it takes a lot of concentration to land accurate shots. Take all these things into account and you’ll begin to understand why the shots weren’t accurate.
On the 5th point, on pg. 93 the examiner clearly that’s that their protocol for them is to treat anyone first and then follow them while they go to the hospital to continue a statement. They didn’t’ just leave the behind without other examiners. That’s why the ME went to the hospital with Ofc. Wilson, because she WAS follow protocol.
On the few other points, I’ve read through all the Grand Jury Volume’s and I’m not finding anything on the Examiners breaking protocols. Also, do you have a list of the Ferguson PD and St. Louis PD Policies and Procedures? I find it bold to make a statement of breaking protocol without having them. I couldn’t find anything online, did you do an open records request? Its 99% of the time not for release.
“While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.” On this point what proof do you have of him changing stories. The only released documents of his story that I’ve seen are his Grand Jury testimony and his interview on TV which are consistent with each other. I don’t know how you made this claim unless it’s from hearsay?
On the witnesses, the ones that weren’t interviewed were because they admitted to lying and regurgitating what they had heard and weren’t at the scene of of the crime. The witnesses that were heard, their stories were largely inconsistent with each other.
The evidence you’re alleging that he had his hands up (gunshot wound to arm and hand) show the contrary. According to the Microscopic evaluation of the hand wound, foreign particulate was found in the wound “consistent with products that are discharged for the barrel of a firearm” Matter like this does project farther than 3-5 feet, indicating the wounds to his hand and arm were the two that occurred in the car.
You’re point on the distance Michael Brown was shot, was already de-bunked, as witnesses and Ofc. Wilson’s testimony support that Michael Brown fled, and then charged back at Ofc. Wilson. In addition, the claim that he was shooting 135 and landing those shots after a fight would make him an ace shot, possible, but so incredibly improbable.
You’re point on the store owner not calling the police not necessarily untrue, but according to the dispatch reports in the Grand Jury file. There was a stealing call made at track 249 and 250 as clear as day. The store owner may not have called, but a witness probably did. The dispatcher refers the the caller as a “she” so my guess it was the lady Michael Brown shoved. Really an irrelevant point.
The prosecuting attorney donating money source is ridiculous. Make sure you consider yours sources before citing them.
On your last point on Darren Wilson working for a department that was disbanded for prior racial profiling, I see where it would be concerning, and honestly more-so than that. But it never connects Ofc. Wilson to being a racist, or racially profiling. The article you cite reports they hired in new officers to try and revitalize the image. Wilson was hired in 2009 an the department was disbanded in 2011, leading me to believe he was a new hire to help the image of the department. Even the chief himself claimed to have not really known him to which he said, “that must mean he never got in any trouble, because that’s when they usually came to me.”
I’m not here trying to sell you on one side or the other, but for a journalism student, your bias is extremely troubling. The physical evidence supports Ofc. Wilson’s testimony. The Grand Jury found not to indict on 6 different charges, in which the they only need to find probably cause. They determined his actions were justified. I’m not going to say that there isn’t a greater issue at hand, because there is. Racial profiling, is a troubling reality and it needs to be address, but it’s also a reality to accept that the Michael Brown case, wasn’t a case of profiling. Protesting is appropriate, but protest the right things. It’s unfortunate that someone died that night, but given the physical evidence, and testimonies of all parties, any officer would have acted the same. The man fought for an officers gun, and after direct commands to stop, ignored them, physically assaulted him. He ran, and then made a conscious thought to charge the officer. Again the officer made verbal commands for the subject to stop, in which he chose to ignore. These actions justify lethal force. The totality of the circumstances exonerate Ofc. Wilson’s of his actions that night. If you have any questions or wish for any clarification feel free to ask. I’ll check by occasionally. Good luck with your career in journalism, it’s my hope it isn’t filled with as much bias and prejudice, but alas that choice is yours to make, not mine.
I appreciate that you have tried to research this topic, but some of your sources are questionable. Very questionable. I have seen numerous “factual” news stories that attempt to sway people one way or the other to try to garner support in favor of either Mike Brown or Darren Wilson.
And just so you know, I was very heated when I first started writing, so I apogize if it seems I’m attacking you, I assure you i’m not.
Love to hear what Fox News has to say about this. What does Mike Wallace have to say about this. What do all these folk that seem to be against justice for African Americans have to say.
Um…. theres some silly stuff in this article.
1. “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.” Ok so you mean he DID follow police protocol by firing a bunch of body shots first? You literally said that he didnt follow police protocol, then used a completely conflicting sentence to back that up.
2. ” The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs”. MIKE BROWN WAS OFFICIALLY 292 LBS. So what the hell are you talking about?
3. “The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.” Ok so theres no way to charge batteries after leaving the crime scene? You’re saying the photographer couldnt have charged his/her batteries at the hospital?
4. “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.” Actually the autopsy from BROWN’s family suggests he was shot from behind. But since Brown’s autopsy guy was a mere morgue tech, he doesnt know what hes talking about. The actual autopsies done by legit autopsy experts show he was shot ALL from the front.
5. “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.” You need to look up what a conflict of interest is. You’re using that term incorrectly.
As far as your “source” about the video witch your source is only an opinion not fact nowhere in your “source” does it say that is not mike on the video actually the store owner was busy trying to stop a felony while a customer called police let’s not mislead people the truth by the way you blog and leave a source that isn’t even fact it is an opinion Shane on you
While I won’t say there isn’t any social injustice in the US (or even in this case) – it would be nice for journalism major to research her facts before posting a story. This is the problem with news media today – they post whatever they want with little regard to checking official sources for their facts.
One inaccuracy in this article relates to the size of Mike Brown and Darren Wilson. Ms. Lawson says that both men are the same size. She is partially correct – they are the same height. HOWEVER – according to the autopsy report, Mike Brown weighed 285 lbs — approximately 75 lbs more than Darren Wilson. See the first page of the private autopsy report. http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370608-michael-brown-private-autopsy-report.html
On to your next point – while they were initially stopped for jaywalking (and causing traffic issues while walking down the middle of the street) Darren Wilson realized during the interaction with Mike Brown that he was a possible theft suspect (see page 209 of Volume 5 of the Grand Jury Testimony). The cause of the stop has never been in question – but circumstances change all the time and the police need to be able to react to the changing situation around them.
You claim that on page 281, Darren Wilson admitted to shooting Mike Brown when Mr. Brown was running away. If you read more carefully – you will see that the only thing Darren Wilson admitted to is chasing Mike Brown. Nowhere in his statement on page 281 does he say he shot at Mike Brown while Mike Brown was running away. However, if you go to page 267 of his testimony – he clearly stated that at no point in time did he fire shots at Mike Brown while Mike Brown’s back is turned. While it can be argued that this is a “He Said, She Said” situation since the private autopsy says that there were wounds that are consistent with being shot from behind, the argument you present is faulty and listing incorrect references / reading out of context.
As far as the other witnesses who have reportedly kept their stories consistent throughout the entire process – my question is were they called into the Grand Jury and if yes — did their testimony show that Darren Wilson was lying about everything he claimed?
With all that said – please know that I’m positive there are things about this case that should have been handled differently. What I do have a problem with is the fact that the media freely distorts facts and claims them as truth as witnessed above. I applaud you for wanting to make a difference – but without verifying your facts completely or by taking pieces of truth out of context to make the case you want made — you are only hurting your credibility as a professional journalist, hurting the credibility of your profession and leading people astray. Stories like this do not further the cause of fixing what is wrong with the situation – they only perpetuate the issues incorrectly – keeping tensions stirred and no real justice is ever accomplished.
what a bunch of nonsense and waste of time for you – mike brown was a thug criminal – he’s dead and the world is safer
Once again you try to use lies from people that the forensics have proved to be a lie they didn’t need to question them because their story doesn’t add up to the science and a lot of the eye witnesses recanted their lie when the report came out ….oh one witch was done on behalf of the browns
Would LOVE it if you actually DID investigate your claims a little better. Dr. Baden did a follow up interview (October to your August link) which blows at least two of your points out of the water. I’ll go slow and let you correct that before bring up the other 8 points I found incorrect (based on newer proof and grand jury FACTUAL testimony) in your piece. Makes me sad if this is what our future journalists will be like….no fact checking :-(
You brought up some interesting points. However, many of your links do not provide support for your arguments. I looked on page 95 and it says nothing about the forensic examiner failing to take crime scene photographs because her camera had died. You claimed Wilson confirmed that Brown was running away when he was fatally shot on page 281, but I read the report and he never claimed that. Could you maybe show me where you are talking about. I read that in the evidence released by the St. Louis County Grand Jury, they claimed to have found Michael Brown’s blood on Darren Wilson’s gun. Could you explain where you think it came from. I’m only interested in finding out the truth about this incident. Thanks, for your time.
Your pulling information out of context to make a point. He ran away AFTER he attacked the officer and tried to take his gun. The officer made the decision to shoot Micheal brown because he believed he was still a threat and if he encountered another officer he would attempt the same thing (attack the officer and try to steal his gun).
You also contradict yourself when you say “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots”. He went for body shots because police are trained to AIM at center mass and shoot to kill not to disarm and incapacitate. How could officer Wilson break police self-defense protocol when police protocol says to aim for center mass “body shots”?
What you have written is plain terrible. I could go on point for point for everything you said but it would be a waste of time.
Why was Brown’s blood inside of the police car if he was not trying to attack the officer?
How come none of your sources are linked to the report with all the avalible information released last Monday? I’m only saying this because these source about the autopsy came out before the story on Shawn Parcells making claims he was unqualified to make.
It’s clear you didn’t read the indictment hearing transcripts as much of your article in inaccurate. Brown was fleeing Wilson in the sense that he ran from the scene but the autopsy, eye witness, and forensic evidence proves that he stopped fleeing and was running toward Wilson when he was fatally shot.
Your sources are also wrong. Try using the indictment hearings as a source instead of two month old newspaper articles. Wilson followed protocol as the conflict was past the point of peacefully disarmament the moment Brown escalated the encounter by assaulting Wilson while attempting to procure his firearm.
You also don’t provide any sources proving that this is in fact police protocol. If you knew anything about department protocols you’d find that nowhere does it state officers are required to incapacitate suspects. It’s clear you know very little about conflict or firearms. Unlike what Hollywood would have you believe aiming to wound or incapacitate is next to impossible in real life. Departments instruct their officers to aim for center mass. The fact that Wilson hit the arm and head is evidence of how difficult it is to hit center mass to begin with. Other shooting autopsies will reveal the same types of patterns. Hitting Brown in the head was purely coincidental and not something even the best IDPA world champions could do on purpose. The same Hollywood misconceptions apply your ideas about hand to hand combat. Brown had nearly 100 lbs on Wilson and in the real world that is a massive advantage in combat.
The rest of your article is littered with similar inaccuracies as well. Brown was confirmed to have robbed the store and the owner did call in the incident. Brown’s accomplice testified and confirmed that Brown was the man on video. The 911 call used in the grand jury hearings is proof of that.
Seriously, did you do ANY research before writing such an inaccurate article? Why are so many people looking at racism as the problem but completely ignoring the irresponsible journalism that’s caused this?
I wonder why you have not allowed even one comment on this LIElets call it what it is
Shelby I have learned that people choose to believe what they would like to believe. Thanks for the info but now that there isnt a trial taking place , its like it does not matter.
-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs,
Completely false, you conveniently/dishonestly omit stating how big Brown was, for a very good reason; he was 292 pounds, this is big, this is NFL lineman big, and it is around 40% larger than Wilson. Further, if you look at pictures of Brown, he was not even really that fat; he was not a flabby puffball 292 pounds. Brown was significantly larger than Wilson.
-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
Not relevant even if it’s true; it doesn’t matter if Wilson had no knowledge of what Brown had done before and he was only contacting him for the jaywalking.
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Completely false, unless Brown was running away from Wilson backwards, which seems unlikely.
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
No, if the officers’ life is being threatened, his “protocol” is to stop the threat in any way he can. And in a high adrenaline, life or death struggle, even someone who is a very good shot cannot choose and pinpoint specific acceptable spots to shoot an attacker, especially at 135 feet as you later claim, a distance that is, well it’s ridiculous; shooting at night, with a pistol, he would have been lucky to have gotten within five feet of him at that range. And what does it matter if he hit him in the head? A shot in the vital organs will kill someone just as dead.
-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Not even sure what you are claiming here, are you making the accusation that the police never interviewed a particular relevant eyewitness?
-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
So I guess the forensic examiner is in on the conspiracy? She is lying about her camera not working? Maybe the battery was dead and she was able to plug it in at the hospital; regardless, I’m sure adequate video evidence was taken at the scene….or… are you trying to say that you think there was no video evidence taken? Really?
-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
Stop saying “protocol”, you have no idea what their “protocols” dictate or call for them to do. If they actually did neglect to fingerprint his gun ( I read page 39 and it does not say anything about this, your source citations are below amateur; it’s not really helpful to link as “source” for many of your claims the entire 286 page document, what kind of a journalist are you?) it may or may not have been an oversight, depending on other circumstances. This would at best be a very minor piece of evidence.
-Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.
The sergeant on the scene testified that he saw no blood on Wilson at the scene, but this is again a possibly valid point, If the police actually did not take a single picture of Wilson before he washed up or took off his uniform, then they should have.
-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
Then who interviewed them? How did you find out about their stories? They might not have even been in the state of Missouri at the time of the shooting. Maybe they can fill you in about the JFK assassination too.“The Washington Post, meanwhile, reported that seven or eight witnesses largely backed up Wilson’s account of the shooting in testimony before the grand jury. Those witnesses, like most of the people in Ferguson, are African-American.” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/24/michael-brown-grand-jury_n_6159070.html
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
The evidence and witnesses do not support what you say, here’s the deal; Brown may very well have wanted to surrender or stop hostilities in some way and was perhaps trying to do this; but when someone has initiated and escalated a fight with a cop, including reaching into his car, punching him and grabbing at his gun, then when that person decides they want to stop fighting they are left with fairly limited options. You can either run, run as fast as you can and try to put some large objects between you and the cop who is under the impression that you were just trying to kill him, or you can immediately fall to the ground, face down, spread eagle with your hands out far and wide. Then maybe he won’t shoot you, but I won’t give you a guarantee. If you turn around, face the cop, maybe move back towards him, and you sort of think about putting up your hands, and you kind of say something that the cop is not going to be able to comprehend at the time, then my bet is you will get shot up a bit. Cops are not robots, they cannot within a fraction of a second suddenly determine that, oh, now you are no longer a threat, everything is OK now. People who hold a cop to this unrealistic standard are people who have never been in a situation like this. You have never been filled with the terror that you could be dead or dying in a second if you don’t react effectively, do you fight, or take cover, or run? You are reduced to instincts, there is no “thought”.
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
This is simply false, Wilson shot Brown once at close range (inches) inside the car, there was gsr on him.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
Go to a shooting range, in bright light, sit at a table with a typical handgun (with no scope on it), with the gun resting comfortably on the table, shoot at a man sized target at 148 feet. You might hit the target 2 or 3 times out of ten if you’re lucky and you have 20/20 vision. It’s an outlandish claim, I don’t even need to try and figure out where you sourced this claim to know someone is sorely mistaken.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
OK, now I just think you may have been trolling me this whole time.
-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
This is the one really valid point that you have unintentionally raised (though it almost certainly has no relevance to the Brown shooting), one of the worst, if the not the worst flaws in our criminal justice system is the incestuous relationship that exists between county prosecutors and the police departments that they work with. They are so disinclined to hold police accountable for actual cases of abuse and misconduct that a cop basically has to shoot a nun in the back in front of 3 cameras and 12 witnesses for anything to happen to him at all.
-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
The word “after” is used here in a way so that people will think the police department was disbanded because of racial profiling. Even if it was true, how much would it have to do with Wilson? He has no complaints or accusations of racial profiling or excessive force in his past. Keep it up, I think you will make a very good lefty “journalist”.
You set out to clear up the misconceptions in the mainstream jounalism about the case.
You then quote mainstream journalists as sources to nearly all your bullet points.
What will happen now that this has been exposed. Will lawyers take the new evidence to the grand jury? Or will this just make everyone outraged again? Will this be justice for Mr Brown’s family? Is this the only publicity for the truth? Or does anyone really care?
My buddy is a cop, and they were trained to neutralize a threat. Also, that document is from the NY times, and even so, still says all shots were fired from the front, who flees backwards? Finally, transcripts from the grand jury testimony says that of the 50+ witnesses interviewed (yes they did interview witnesses) most of them corroborated Wilson’s story, and a few even testified that they provided false information to the police at the scene, at least one because he/she was told by peers to lie to the cops for the sake of incriminating them.
There is also a video on Liveleaks.com that was taken shortly after the shooting, it features Brown’s body on the pavement and in the background you can here someone describing the entire situation as it happened to another unseen person. The story he recounts also corroborates Darren Wilson’s version.
Michael Brown was not a saint
Just because he wasn’t pulled over for strong-armed robbery does not mean he didn’t just attempt to commit a strong-arm robbery. If you burn down a house and are pulled over for speeding are you still not a criminal?
I wasn’t a journalism major, but do opinion articles from biased blogs count as sources when analyzing a court transcript?
And 6’4 210lbs is pretty close to 6’4 290lbs… I can definitely tell you which side of that fight I would like to be on.
So this is some kind of hoax???? either that or she did not even read the report . Mike brown was 300 lb which is much more than 210 and the report said his skin tissue was found in the care and he had residue on his thumb. In my eyes that makes the author of this article pretty stupid if she is real and wrote it.
This is brilliant
Ottawa hometowner here! (now in VT)
You should really update/strike the ‘has raised $600K for the defense’ bit- it has been snopesed.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
Also, please change the description of “the” coroner to “a” coroner or specify which one- there are many in the country and multiple in this case. Thank you!
Thanks for the citations. One important point to clarify is that Brown was 148 ft. from officer wilsons SUV and not officer Wilson’s person.
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Nope, he was fleeing and then turned back and charged officer wilson when he was fatally shot. page 281 is where officer wilson explains why he felt that he needed to pursue michael brown.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
There is a detail missing here, Mike Brown was 148ft from officer wilson’s car. Officer wilson was in fact closer to Mike Brown, according to his testimony, as he pursued michael brown out of the car and down the street.
thank you for this
Excellent research. I’m sharing this…
Your story has many inconsistencies.
The very first fact that you have wrong is the store owner saying it was not
Mike brown in the store, because it was. His friend Dorian admitted to being there, and the store owner said he didn’t call police because he was afraid of rioters. St. Louis has suffered
Over 15 businesses burned to the ground. So they made the claim a customer called police.
Your second wrong fact was the autopsy results stating the hands were up. I have an entire article debunking your opinion because it is based on truth. There was a shot to his thumb and his blood found on the door, so yes he was inside the police vehicle and at close range with his hand near the gun.
Also, many witnesses came foward and said they openly lied. So your witness claim is false as well.
Please get all of the facts. http://m.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html?mobile_touch=true
There are a lot of claims that you make here that are not shown in your sources and not true. Page 281 of the testimony does not give any evidence that brown was fleeing when shot. Mike Brown and Officer Wilson may have been similar heights, but there seems to be no evidence of similar size. Wilson claims to be about 210 in his testimony, and most reports put Brown at close to 300. That is a BIG difference. Also, the prosecuting attorney did help raise money for the police department, but never helped raise money for Wilson specifically. If you’re going to do a fact checking article, all bullet points should have a source and you should double check your facts.
Officer Wilson’s claim of misfire could be true. A misfire won’t necessarily leave a powder mark, as in most misfire situations, there’s no detonation of the powder.
Although Mike Brown was shot in the head, it doesn’t imply Office Wilson attempted to shoot him in the head. At 148 feet, or assuming he was fleeing and the shooting started at a closer distance, we’ll call it 100 feet to be generous, a person running is incredibly difficult to hit. Don’t believe Hollywood portrayals of how it goes down. Officer Wilson was lucky to have made any hits on his target at all. He’s apparently a really good shot.
That being said, Officer Wilson still broke protocol. Chances are good he profiled Mike Brown, and exercised a severe abuse of power. Officer Wilson is a blight on the police officers all around the world who performed their duties in a respectable and honorable manor.
I reached the same conclusion ,also to cut him off ( Wilson) without any benefits
tells volumes. The police are trying now to downplay any civil actions from the family. the prosecutor did a better job for Wilson than the defense lawyer, after he helped to raise money for Wilson.
I appreciate that you want to destroy the misconceptions, but what is your point. The only thing that’s stated here is that cops take care of there own, and that some of the facts of the case are ambiguous. A court of law operate under the concept of reasonable doubt, and if anything you prove here that there is more than ample grounds for a mistrial.
Your “slam” or “case shredding” has a LOT of inference and supposition that isn’t supported by facts even from the testimony, and doesn’t take into account the summation of the testimony, but rather cherry picked excerpts, that read alone may sound or support what you’ve said. This is a short post but I offer one example – ‘-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Officer Wilson only responds to a question that was Mike Brown a threat while retreating and he carefully explains that he felt like he was. This only serves to confirm that the officer thought he was a threat while retreating. This infers that at some point, Mike Brown retreated AND that the officer gave chase.
It does not, however, confirm that Mike Brown was fatally shot while retreated, it does not rule out the other testimony that Mike Brown STOPPED retreating and charged the Officer as the officer testifies in pages 227-230 of the same testimony document. The transcript is merely a precise chronological following of the grand jury proceedings, not the incident.
Also, the source for “Autopsy suggests Michael Brown had his arms in Surrender Mode (paraphrased)” is dailykos submitter ‘keepmehonest’ were his own observations of Dr Michael Baden’s preliminary autopsy; not those of Dr. Baden, who said explicitly that “Right now there is too little information to forensically reconstruct the shooting.” in a video, here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=1
More than one ‘source’ is the blogger site ‘dailykos’ as well. A single source with known as well as clear bias simply should not be used alone to substantiate claims like those made in this article, especially with the rampant appearance and disappearance of ‘eyewitnesses’.
Sorry, Michaelshatz and Shelby Lawson, but this too is a poorly assembled spin piece with demonstrable fallacies. Disclaimer: it is a fallacy to believe the entire article is written and researched poorly based on demonstrated fallacies. Some of the claims may have merit, I have simply not chosen to include all of that information and research in the limited time I’ve had to respond.
May want to check some of your sources lol vox.com wow!
Darren Wilson is 290lbs and the same height. What kind of reporting is that when you say “The comparison doesn’t add up” but then only add one side to the comparison? 80 lbs, or 33% of someone’s body weight, is what I would definitely call “significantly larger”.
You must have read a different autopsy report.
Hi. Why no mention of the witnesses who claim the officer was the aggressor who also claim they saw Brown face down on the ground, while the officer “finished him off” with shots to his back? Or any of the witnesses who claim Brown was shot in the back? Or the adolescent boy who watched from his window and reported that Brown reached in the officer’s car and wrestled with him? The officer didn’t know Brown had just strong armed a store, but it’s relevant to show the suspect’s state of mind. The police officer didn’t know, but Brown didn’t know that.
This is merely a burglary suspect trying to take a police officer’s weapon, and being shot when charging said officer. If I try to take a cop’s gun, I should expect to end up dead. Not wounded. Not arrested. Dead.
To continue on this awful display of journalism, pg 281 of the testimony says nothing about him running away as he was shot. If you’re going to say that, please quote it. In actuality, the autopsy shows all entrance wounds to gunshots as Michael Brown was FACING Darren Wilson.
Also, I made a mistake in my first comment, I meant to say Michael Brown was 290, not Darren Wilson. Darren Wilson is 210. 33% difference.
There was a gunshot in the car; it seems pretty obvious that there was an altercation in the car.
You can have your hands up while running at someone.
Witness 10 is against most witnesses you cite, and most witnesses stories were also just as bad and sloppy and very influenced by what they heard from the community and the media.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/12/01/witness-10-proves-darren-wilson-had-a-reasonable-belief-he-needed-to-shoot/
You should include the image of the security footage; it’s pretty clear it’s Michael Brown.
Nearly 50 yards with a handgun is impressive. And to get that many shots off accurately is nearly impossible.
The sources sited are not reputable … they are merely previously written journalism … if you want to ”build a case” read and quote the transcripts from the trial
You need to source the testimony the grand jury heard. All but one witness ended up changing their stories different times, and most admitted to not actually seeing anything at all. The ones that never changed their stories were the drivers in the cars on the street, who were not related or friends with Brown. How could a journalism major think that another news story is an actual source?!? The only thing you have a point on is that the camera was broke. That was inexcusable.
Try wrestling off a man attacking you, who’s got both feet on the ground, and over 50 pounds on you, see how you come out.
Also, please source this police protocol you keep mentioning. Every department has their own standard operating procedures. Blood splatter on a body doesn’t tell you hardly anything, and according to blood born pathogen training, it’s a bio-hazard to walk around with someone’s blood on you.
You have fallen under the spell of the CSI effect. Spend more time with your local police departments and less time watching TV.
Gotta agree with Bobby. The witness statements were laughable. One guy couldn’t figure out which window he saw the shooting from, and another testified there were two white cops.
Dorian Johnson started this mess telling the media his friend was shot in the back when that clearly didn’t happen.
Never stop! Not just for this case, but your journalism. In the beastly world of interweb rumor-mills, bloggers, and just about anyone who can scrawl (yes, you can scrawl with a keyboard!), you still have to dig through lots of coal to reach the diamond…good luck, and good night. And that’s the way it is…and I’m not sure if Woodward and Bernstein had a ‘catchphrase’, but their work speaks for itself. Kudos.
What absolute rubbish. Quoting Daily Kos and the like as a “source” – how ridiculous.
Almost every one of your claims is demonstrably false – in many cases ignorantly so.
You need to spend more time reading transcripts and reviewing the real physical evidence – and not garbage from the Daily Kook.
Brown was 290lbs and 6’4″ … he had 80lbs on the officer. He was also acting in an irrational crazed fashion. No rational human being attacks and officer. No rational human being runs away from a cop with a gun. No rational human being turns and charges an officer shooting at them, and continues that charge after being hit multiple times.
Brown WAS committing a crime – jaywalking. He told the officer to fuck off when asked to use the sidewalk. When the officer backed up and stopped in front of Brown Brown attacked the officer inside his car, hitting him repeatedly in the head.
Brown then grabbed for the officers gun and attempted to shoot the officer. This is FACT – directly supported by physical evidence. Browns DNA and blood was on the officers gun.
After the officer was able to fire a shot from inside the car Brown ran away. The officer got out of his car and followed commanding him to stop. Brown did stop, and turned and “charged” at the officer. The officer repeatedly told him to stop and when he dd not fired 5 or 6 shots. When Brown continued to charge at the officer the officer fired 5 or 6 additional shots with at least one being fatal.
The fatal shot entered the TOP of Browns head and traveled down thru his body. The only way that could occur is if Brown was moving toward the officer with significant momentum – which is exactly what the officer and several credible eyewitnesses (incl African American’s) stated.
It is also what the physical evidence – including a blood trail also showed.
Brown did NOT get shot 143 feet from the officer, nor was he shot while “fleeing”. He was charging towards the officer and within 30 feet or less when finally stopped. Again – direct fact – supported by the physical evidence and credible eyewitness reports.
Had you read ALL of the officers testimony and not just the parts you wanted – that support your claims – you’d have found the officer most certainly WAS aware of the robbery. His testimony clearly states, while he did not initially realize Brown was the suspect, he DID realize he was the suspect due to his clothing and the cigarillos in his hand, prior to Brown attacking him in his squad car.
Your claims Brown was shot in the back while running away are simply laughable. All of the wounds were to the front – none in th back.
You also show you are completely clueless about “Use of Force” rules. Officers have a clearly defined use of force escalation policy. The officers are explicitly authorized to use a firearm when at risk of great bodily harm. Brown had already attacked the officer, grabbed at his gun, turned it toward the officer and tried to discharge it at the officer.
Your claim the “prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson” is also an outright lie. Your alleged “source” was Americans Against the Tea Party, an even more worthless source than the Daily Kos. And the claim is outright false – a quote from the organization you claim the prosecuting atty was raising funds for:
“Contrary to recent posts on social media, BackStoppers is not participating in or has benefited from any fund raising activity involving the Ferguson matter. We scrutinize our contributions and if we receive funds involving the Ferguson matter, those funds would be rejected by the Board of Directors.”
What a sad and sorry excuse for an alleged “journalism” major. Your entire commentary is full of outright provable lies, half truths and unsupported claims. Your “sources” are almost entirely highly biased nutjob blogs … just 2 of your alleged sources are grand jury transcripts, and even there you falsely report what they show.
Really? Her own sources refute some of her statements. (Same Size) False. OW 210lbs MB 292lbs, and that is her first so called Fact??? (Mike Brown WAS fleeing…) False! MB turned around and traveled 21 ft back towards OW according to forensic evidence at the scene. (Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did). False! Source information nor any of the 2 Autopsy results corroborate any such statement. Only Dorian Johnson and few witnesses claim hands up. They fabricated this scenario and some of the witnesses renounced their testimony, this testimony is deemed not credible. The hand injury happened in the SUV. (no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.) Absolutely possible OW explains exactly what and why it happened in testimony. St. Louis Autopsy found microscopic traces in the hand wound. Unfortunately Dr. Badens Autopsy was corrupted. Dr. Baden is 80 years old and the assistant that the family hired to help Dr. Baden, is not a Dr., has no degree, and no license, and under investigation for Fraud. (The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson,) False and Libelous statement. Backstoppers has not participated in nor benefited from any fund raising activity involving the Ferguson matter. Just because Teespring wanted to donate to backstopper doesn;t mean they did.
Really? Her own sources refute some of her statements. (Same Size) False. OW 210lbs MB 292lbs, and that is her first so called Fact??? (Mike Brown WAS fleeing…) False! MB turned around and traveled 21 ft back towards OW according to forensic evidence at the scene. (Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did). False! Source information nor any of the 2 Autopsy results corroborate any such statement. Only Dorian Johnson and few witnesses claim hands up. They fabricated this scenario and some of the witnesses renounced their testimony, this testimony is deemed not credible. The hand injury happened in the SUV. (no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.) Absolutely possible OW explains exactly what and why it happened in testimony. St. Louis Autopsy found microscopic traces in the hand wound. Unfortunately Dr. Badens Autopsy was corrupted. Dr. Baden is 80 years old and the assistant that the family hired to help Dr. Baden, is not a Dr., has no degree, and no license, and under investigation for Fraud. (The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson,) False and Libelous statement. Backstoppers has not participated in nor benefited from any fund raising activity involving the Ferguson matter. Just because Teespring wanted to donate to backstopper doesn’t mean they did.
Ms. Lawson “shredded” nothing. She DID show the future of our country – when an “jorunalism major” is writing such seriously flawed work, and using sources such as the Daiily Kos and Americans Against the Tea Party as source.
Work which contains entirely and completely false claims, wholly unsupported by the facts and evidence – all of which is readily available in the public domain.
This is not “journalism” – it is a witch hunt, supported by ridiculous partisan sources. And yet people believe it.
Extremely sad.
lol great piece of satire.
Incredible. I knew there were several inconsistencies but this is bonkers! Spread this truth everywhere.
This is exactly why American society is fucked! Some people pass on false info as facts. Shelby i will only make 1 rebuttal for you and i will destroy your entire “factual” case.. MIKE BROWN WAS NOT FLEEING WHEN HE WAS SHOT. FORENSIC EVIDENCE SHOWED HE WASN’T SHOT AT THE BACK! There! Your whole case was blown! You just lost credibility!
she should work for STL Post Dispatch
Are you high?
are you high?
Uhhh… The only thing she shredded was her credibility, and hopefully for the good of the public, her future in journalism. I’ll correct a few of her errors all of which occurred only in the first few points, so I’m sure the rest of it is just as incorrect. 1. Michael Brown was 290-300#. 290-300# is not the “same size” as 210#. What a just pure flat out lie to start off her article. 2. He actually was stopped because he was suspected of a crime. The part of the grand jury testimony she points to says Wilson did initially tell them to get off of the road, but he continued to testify (conveniently left out by this dishonest “Journalism major”) that he saw Cigarillos in his hand and thought he might be the suspect from the recently reported robbery and that is when he decided to confront him. 3. Michael Brown was not “fleeing when he was shot”. He did initially flee from the officer after he assaulted him in his car. All physical evidence and most witness corroboration says he was chased by Wilson as he was waiting for backup and Brown turned around and all shots were into his front side. There is zero physical evidence that supports being shot while fleeing. Zero. This girl can’t even get her first 3 points right or with honesty, the rest of the article is clearly garbage. I’m extremely open to hearing all angles of this case, but the one thing that becomes clear to me the more i discuss it with people in person and on facebook, is that most people have not even looked at, or read any of the actual evidence. This girl did something even worse, which was she read the source material and then actually used it out of context on purpose to “support” her biased point of view. Police brutality exists, racism exists, and they’re both real and horrible. This is clearly not the case to put those things on display and it actually pisses me off because using this case is actually damaging race-relations. How about the 12yr old kid in Cleveland who was fatally shot from 10ft away bc he had a bee-bee gun that looked real at the park? Now THAT’s a story to follow and discuss police abuse and racism, but all I see is Michael Brown everywhere when he’s probably one of the least deserving of all of this attention. I just don’t get it. Why this case???
The only thing she shredded was her credibility, and hopefully for the good of the public, her future in journalism. I’ll correct a few of her errors all of which occurred only in the first few points, so I’m sure the rest of it is just as incorrect. 1. Michael Brown was 290-300#. 290-300# is not the “same size” as 210#. What a just pure flat out lie to start off her article. 2. He actually was stopped because he was suspected of a crime. The part of the grand jury testimony she points to says Wilson did initially tell them to get off of the road, but he continued to testify (conveniently left out by this dishonest “Journalism major”) that he saw Cigarillos in his hand and thought he might be the suspect from the recently reported robbery and that is when he decided to confront him. 3. Michael Brown was not “fleeing when he was shot”. He did initially flee from the officer after he assaulted him in his car. All physical evidence and most witness corroboration says he was chased by Wilson as he was waiting for backup and Brown turned around and all shots were into his front side. There is zero physical evidence that supports being shot while fleeing. Zero. This girl can’t even get her first 3 points right or with honesty, the rest of the article is clearly garbage. I’m extremely open to hearing all angles of this case, but the one thing that becomes clear to me the more i discuss it with people in person and on facebook, is that most people have not even looked at, or read any of the actual evidence. This girl did something even worse, which was she read the source material and then actually used it out of context on purpose to “support” her biased point of view. Police brutality exists, racism exists, and they’re both real and horrible. This is clearly not the case to put those things on display and it actually frustrates me greatly because using this case is actually damaging race-relations. How about the 12yr old kid in Cleveland who was fatally shot from 10ft away bc he had a bee-bee gun that looked real at the park? Now THAT’s a story to follow and discuss police abuse and racism, but all I see is Michael Brown everywhere when he’s probably one of the least deserving of all of this attention. I just don’t get it. Why this case???
The footage of the gas station robbery is of Michael Brown. His mother even says that short video isn’t enough to judge his character.
Great work, but I don’t see where in your sources that anyone says the man in the market footage is not Mr Brown.
You should double-check the one about the distance MB was from DW. It was how far away he was from the SVU that was under dispute, I believe, not how far away they were from each other.
Ugh, not impressed with your twist on this. This is drivel.
Most of the sources the author uses are JUNK NEWS, just like this story.
Shelby Lawson, I got one word..priceless….. Okay I got two more… Thank you’
The author conveniently ignores many details which don’t support her narrative and otherwise cherry-picks details which do support her narrative. Given the way things are these days that means she’ll have a bright future in journalism at the left-leaning publication of her choice.
These article is full of factually incorrect statements. But at least this “journalist” waited until facts became available before massaging them.
I come from a family full of law enforcement and have spoken with them about this on many occasions. Every conclusion is as simple as when questioned by a police officer, comply with their commands and everything will be fine. No police officer starts his day hoping to kill someone. However, multiple eye witnesses confirmed a struggle inside the vehicle. If a suspect makes the decision to physically assault an officer, they are immediately treated as a threat. Not only to the officer, but also the general public. This is a sad case, but Mr Brown would still be alive today had he decided to put his ego aside and comply to the officers commands rather than fight.
Very good article…job well done!!!
Not saying I agree with every suggestion, but the sourced material does raise some valid questions: Why no crime scene photos, why no gun shot residue, and why the discrepancy in distance (35ft vs almost 150ft)?
The issue relating to $600,000 is unfortunately only sourced back to an anti-tea party attack website. Claims of benefit or fundraising for Wilson from Backstoppers is refuted here (no other credible or semi-credible sources turn up the $600,000 figure). If you have another source, please share it:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
Free thought project has the article but seems to rely on the information discredited by snopes:
http://thefreethoughtproject.com/st-louis-county-prosecutor-mcculloch-raising-money-darren-wilson/
Other than that the issue of the fundraising, this collection of information did help to challenge some assumptions I made regarding this case.
I feel I must respectfully disagree with much of what I read in this article. You put they were the same size crossed out, I’m assuming that’s because one of the documents you put as your source says that Brown weighed 80 pounds more than the officer? While weight doesn’t imply size, looking at photos of both I think it’s easy to see they are probably not the same size, just similar heights. Next up they weren’t originally stopped for the crime of taking the cigarillos by force, but in his testimony the officer claims to have noticed that the suspect matched the general description of perpetrator of the crime around the time in which he decided to put his vehicle in reverse and asked them to leave the center of the road a second time, which was well before any physical altercation occurred. His full testimony clearly states that Brown was charging towards him when he was fatally shot, not fleeing, you’re simply misrepresenting the facts by using information from only one part of the document out of it’s context in that section. Next up I feel you are subtly suggesting that officers go for body shots in order to prevent killing suspects, I’ve heard it’s because the main body is a bigger target. Also if you ever tried shooting a moving target when under duress you might be less critical of that point. Not to mention that he testifies that he did try to use get his hands on less harm inducing weapons to neutralize the threat but was unable to do so safely and effectively while in the car being hit and that he did not fire the gun until after Brown had begun manipulating it. I stopped reading this article there. All that being said I’m not even close to sure where the guilt really lies in this case. However inciting anger in people with misrepresented information isn’t a positive solution if there really was a legitimate failure to execute justice. If I made mistakes in my points feel free to correct them, they probably aren’t perfect, and in that regard I completely understand that any mistakes in this article I mentioned may have been unintentional and are understandable.
I am a 25 year Veteran of a Major City Police force, I so appreciate this information you have put together as I myself support these findings. It is my hope that even LEO’s cease to call wrong right and right wrong, if only hurts society as a whole. Those in support of this just because we are LEO’s need to recognize that if we support such things we are no better than the criminals we lock up everyday… Any Officer who did not come to this conclusion even after Mr Wilson’s interview is truly in denial and have total wrong motives and or agendas… Thank you young Lady, I know I will see more of your writings in the future as you show clear signs of a leader! Continue to Lead young Lady and I pray God’s protection ober your life in Jesus Name!
Thank u for this beautifully, articulate article.
Does she “shred” it? These sources are old and outdated. Next.
Reblogged this on Librarium.
Thank you for seeking and highlighting the truth.
BS
select facts. would love to see someone write both sides of story rather than always slanted one way.
Real interesting that Wilson had blood on him after shooting at someone who was 148 feet from him. Lol
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/12/01/witness-10-proves-darren-wilson-had-a-reasonable-belief-he-needed-to-shoot/
Im sure the washington post doesnt have any idea what its talking about.
nice article and investigation..
How long have you been in law enforcement? Oh, wait..
Too bad it wasn’t a member of your family who lost a job for doing his. See if you felt the same . I doubt it.
The SUV placement is not relevant as both men were away from the car when the shooting took place.
Compelling evidence. Pity the GRAND JURY wasn’t subjected to your slanted view.
I appreciate what you are trying to do but some of your sources are from several months before the evidence even was released. In other words, some were based off of Fox New’s pure speculation. For example, stating that there was no residue on Brown’s hands is factually incorrect. There was eyewitness reports and it was confirmed on his autopsy that there was a struggle in the officer’s car and mike brown had reached for the gun, resulting in residue on his hands. I am not condoning what happened but am just tired of a race war being fueled because of people reading incorrect information in the media all day. All this does is make things worse.
The grand jury did not indict and they heard ALL the evidence. It really doesn’t matter because the thugs were going to loot & burn no matter what. It has nothing to do with the case any more. It’s all about free stuff!
Thank you Selby for presenting the REAL facts I wish everyone could see them put this way. Of course there will still be some that will think that michael brown attacked Wilson no matter what facts are put out for them to think about.
Some of the information given in her “shred” is incorrect. The weight of Michael Brown being one of them. He was not 210…it was submitted that he was 280 pounds. And there was a video that has been released that had been taken on a cell phone getting footage of the aftermath with commentary by two black guys in the background who were going back and forth saying “did you see that…he just kept comin’ at that officer…he wouldn’t let up..he just kept comin’ back at him.” There were at least 6 other witnesses who testified to that exact same story. They were all black witnesses. At least 4 of the witnesses that gave testimony that Michael Brown had his hands up and was surrendering, recanted their stories admitting they didn’t see anything, they were just repeating what Dorian had said. Dorian has since come out and admitted that he lied. You are also incorrect about the robbery. It has been confirmed that he indeed was the person who robbed the store. This “shred” isn’t a “shred” at all. It’s disappointing that people continue to spread false information.
vox.com and dailykos.com and the like are and I do not see anything credible here.. just face it, an unarmed man attacked an armed man and was shot. No racism there, but when you say an unarmed black man was shot and killed by police officers, leave out that he attcked the police, and sprinkle in some urban legend that he neither stole, nor attacked,and was also surrendering, and well, that’s what I call character assassination of Darren Wiilson. Shame on you all.
Y’know… rather than use secondary sources like Daily Kos (or, just as bad in the opposite way, things like Fox), Ms Lawson really should have studied primary sources. Unusually for cases like this, they’re available. Four credible witnesses– all of whom were within 150 feet of the shooing, and incidentally, every one black — verified the cop’s description of the event. And “witnesses” like the guy in the link below are what a sensible judge or jury would call “not a credible witness.” One, an apparent illiterate who (interestingly) came to court with his own lawyer, who interceded several times– claims to have seen the incident clearly, and knows that it was deliberate murder. This, despite the fact that he was (by his own testimony) two blocks away in a third floor apartment, on the telephone. He doesn’t know his own Social Security number, claims not to have a home address, won’t give any personal information, yet repeats his description of the event word for word several times (most often an indication of deception. People telling the truth usually tell a story differently each time, with variations or additional details. Or didn’t you know that?). He claims to be the blood cousin of Michael’s little accomplice — yet can’t remember the guy’s name. Like I said,,, “not a credible witness.” http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370785-interview-witness-35.html
This passes for journalism?
So 12 people just spent the last 3 months wasting their time. Ya right! The word ‘KU” in title proves you’re incompetent to start with!
so many holes in your argument. You will do well as a journalist.
Note the descriptions of the action in the three separate witness statements. Oddly enough, each describes exactly what the officer described, each in their own way:
“The dude turned back around and started charging the police officer. The police officer told him to stop at least three times. And the boy wouldn’t stop, he fired three rounds, the dude kept running, fired four more rounds, and then he finished off the rounds I guess, and he fell dead on the ground.” – Witness 48.
“And all of a sudden the young man he turned around and started coming back towards the officer yeah right.” — Witness 34.
“He started charging towards the police officer,,, and then Mr. Brown continued, started again to charge towards him and after that the police officer returned fire.” — Witness 10
Well this is complete bull shit.
Total misconceptions on your accounts. Most of the things you wrote about are false and were taken out of context of news reports on what people think happened.
Mike brown was close to 300 lbs. 80 lbs heavier than officer? So how is your story true?
I can go on and on but this is what the news displays. Only what people want to see not the true facts laid out simply put.
I have also read numerous articles stating the exact opposite of somethings you “cite” here. Like that it’s impossible his hands were actually up and that the autopsy shows evidence that he was running towards the officer, not away.
Just because one website says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. Truth is, no one will know exactly what happened that day. I think a lot of police officers are out of control are are abusing their power (not just talking about Mike Brown, but the numerous accounts of police shooting unarmed people) and that some serious revamping of police protocol should be done.
Shelby, if all of this correct information was given to the grand jury, why was Officer Wilson exonerated? I honestly want to know, I am not asking in a rude way at all. If all of the above is true, then this is bullshit that he was absolved by the grand jury.
Wow. There is so much bad information in this KU student’s Facebook post, it’s disgusting. I’ll just name a few…
Shelby claims that, “Michael Brown WAS fleeing Officer Wilson when he was shot,” as to infer that Michael Brown was shot in the back. She is purposely taking what Officer Wilson was saying out of context.
Officer Wilson never said he shot Michael Brown while he was fleeing. In fact, he was speaking of chasing Michael Brown and why he would chase him. Pages 227-229 of the Grand Jury report speak of the actual moment when Michael Brown was fatally shot by Officer Wilson. Michael Brown was shot while charging at Officer Wilson.
Shelby also claims that, “Officer Wilson broke police self defense protocol,” by not attempting to incapacitate Michael Brown with body shots. Well, Officer Wilson had attempted to incapacitate. Michael Brown was shot four times in the torso and arms before being shot in the head and then on top of the skull (which was the fatal shot). This is confirmed by Shelby’s “source article”. Shelby even says, ” Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
How can Officer Wilson not be following self-defense protocol and then Shelby actually state that he did by shooting Brown in the torso and arms? Oh and by the way, shoot to kill is the final step in police self-defense protocol.
Another gem of Shelby’s is that Officer Wilson and Mike Brown were the exact same size. Officer Wilson did testify that he was just under 6’4, 210ish lbs. The autopsy shows that Michael Brown was 6’4, 298 lbs. That’s nowhere near the same size. Great Job Shelby!
I can go on all night, but this is the last one. Shelby claims that her “source article” proves that Michael Brown was killed 148 ft from Officer Wilson. Wrong again. Her “source article” in fact states that Brown was killed 148 ft from Officer Wilson’s SUV, not Officer Wilson himself. This would make sense because Officer Wilson did exit his vehicle and chase Michael Brown. Did she even read the article?
One more. Store owner also stated that Michael Brown was not on video surveillance from store? Wrong. Store owner never stated that. This brought to you by Shelby’s “source”
Did Shelby actually think that no one would fact check her and her sources? I got all this info from her own named sources! Just because she can get away with turning a source page with her papers at KU and her professor not actually checking those sources, doesn’t mean that she can get away with it in real life.
Again… Great Job Shelby! Maybe you should find another major.
Check this out.
All of this information is wrong and even some of the sources posted directly contradict the claim they are supposed to support.
If you take anything more than a superficial look at this it doesn’t hold up at all.
You seriously read different documents than I did….. WOW, talk about biased journalism!
http://www.stltoday.com/news/multimedia/special/the-testimony-the-grand-jury-heard-in-the-michael-brown/html_47d95368-a8f2-5ae1-9173-6653c15d0f0e.html
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Where did you see this? Officer Wilson talks about Mike Brown running away, but no where does he say he shot him *while* he was fleeing. It is possible for someone to flee and then later turn around and threaten the pursuing officer. I’m not condoning what happened, but people are going to read your blog and think your interpretation is what is in the transcript when in fact it is not.
None of the “sources” listed here support the claims made by the article. Where is the 148 feet claim substantiated in your source material? All it mentions is the distance from the SUV, nowhere does it mention the distance from Darren Wilson. You mention the witnesses who said Brown was surrendering, but don’t mention that they recanted statements later on, many admitting they weren’t even there.
Nice job of just picking certain parts of the testimony. I could sit here a pick apart every point you just made. But I’ll just start with the size thing. See you left out the weight of Mike Brown, which was 300+, easily 90-100 or more pounds heavier. THAT makes a huge difference. But you go ahead a believe what you want, but just think about this. Have someone who weighs 90 pounds more than you violently attack you and see how you feel about defending yourself. THEN and only THEN, would your opinion mean squat!
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
Effective range of his service weapon is 96′. You mean to tell me he landed 7 shots at 148′ ..some of which were arguably the smallest areas of mass?
Most of what is written here is totally untrue… Incorrect facts
It’s awesome to see that her school is teaching her to use The Daily Kos and Americans AGAINST THE tEA pARTY AS “SOURCES” RATHER THAN THE ACTUAL EVIDENCE AND TESTIMONY…LOL
i THOUGHT i WAS READING AND ARTICLE ON tHE oNION!
And how come your Eyewitness’s stories “that never changed” source isn’t of the official grand jury testimony interviews? Don’t bother to answer, cause the answer is that the REAL witness interviews don’t match YOUR agenda, that match those of Officer Wilson! Did you really think people wouldn’t do their homework on this? It’s all good though, you’re on your way to becoming a great Liberal journalist… you know the kind that doesn’t care about facts, just whatever fits into what you want it to be.
Oh, so now this “student” is the self proclaimed expert on the incident, along with all her unnamed sources??? Not the grand jury that spent months going over all the evidence, and hearing all the testimony??? Not the forensic experts, some hired by the defense?? She is just another victim looking for an excuse to protest (loot & riot). HEADLINE: Violent 300 lb man with extensive criminal history shot and killed while fighting for a police officer’s gun” No news here! The racial details were emphasized by Sharpton and the community thugs to get the reaction we’re seeing now and the media played right along! Don’t take my word for it, look it up!
You fail to mention several other key facts,
Mike Brown had attacked Officer Wilson. First. All citizens, even police, have a right to defend themselves.
Brown tried to take a police officer’s gun. The officer had not drawn his weapon at this point. Why do you think he wanted the gun? What do you think he would have done if he’d gotten the gun?
Brown refused the officer’s order to “lie down” as he was walking away. Had he complied he would be alive today.
It scares me that people like you are going into journalism. People who want to push propaganda rather than reporting all the facts with objectivity.
Good work….. Thank you.
The moment you said “ya’ll” you lost all credibility.. Stay in school. By the way, journalism is a terrible profession.
The first 5 points are blatantly wrong:
1. Lawson says that it is a misconception that Brown was larger than Wilson. Wilson weighed 210 pounds and Brown weighed 292 pounds.
2. False, they were not stopped for jaywalking. If you actually read the source, it states that Wilson initiated contact with Brown because he was jaywalking. However, it was not until he noticed the stolen cigarillos that he attempted to stop Brown.
3. Blatantly wrong, as shown by the autopsy. There were no entrance wounds in the back. He was not shot while running away.
4. You claim he violated police protocol by taking “kill” shots, and give no source. Not only is there no source, but this is false. http://www.pfoa.co.uk/110/shooting-to-wound
5. What protocol does this violate? You say “police protocol” several times but do not cite the protocol in question. Further, Johnsons testimony was given to the grand jury: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370493-grand-jury-volume-4.html
I would appreciate if you carefully reviewed all of the points you made.
All of the “source” hyperlinks go to dailykos stories… Have you fkn idiots ever heard of a conflict of interest? Moron lemmings
The title of this reply is “Police officer shreds KU journalism major’s poor journalism”.
Far be it from me to dispute a Facebook expert but here we go, point by point:
Brown was larger than Wilson by about 60-70 pounds. That is a huge difference in a fight.
Wilson DID stop Brown due to the robbery. See Page 209. He had driven past the two in the street, and only reversed and attempted to stop them after he realized they were the robbery suspects.
Brown was NOT fleeing when he was shot. Your cited page 289 of the testimony was Wilson explaining why he PURSUED Brown after the altercation at the squad car; it says nothing of shooting.
You have a fundamental lack of understanding regarding police use of force (what you call “police self defense protocol”). Now I admit that I’ve never been a journalism student or anything, but I did attend and graduate a police academy and served as an officer for 9 years. So I figure that evens us out. First, police are NOT trained to “disarm”. “Incapacitate” and “kill” are often the same thing, and not mutually exclusive as you imply. Police are trained to shoot at the “center of mass” (“body shots”, as you say). This is to avoid missing. Center of mass shots are frequently fatal. The fact that Brown was shot in his arm is irrelevant. Firing at a running target, whose arms would be pumping in front of him as he ran, would cause shots to go into the target’s arms. But again, completely irrelevant to the case. The head wounds are also irrelevant. When deadly force is justified, DEADLY FORCE is justified. Nevertheless, police try to shoot center-mass to avoid missing. However, when center-mass shots are not effective, they are trained to aim for the central nervous system in order to stop the threat.
You moan that the Ferguson Police didn’t interview Dorian Johnson, but you’re forgetting that the Ferguson Police didn’t conduct the investigation. St. Louis County did. Besides, you’re really using Dorian Johnson’s public statements from August 12th as a “source”? He has been proven, by other witnesses and by forensic evidence, to be unreliable and dishonest.
For someone who clearly knows nothing of police “protocol”, you certainly use the word frequently The medical examiner’s camera battery went dead, but the St. Louis County Police Department’s Identification Unit took photographs. So you can relax about that.
As for not testing Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, the detective decided to test for DNA instead. The respective tests for fingerprints or DNA can ruin the accuracy of the other. So you can only pick one test to do. They did DNA, and they found Michael Brown’s DNA on the gun.
Now about the blood on Wilson: I don’t claim to be familiar with Ferguson PD’s general orders – certainly not as familiar as an esteemed journalism student like you. So I can’t say whether it was a breach of “protocol” to wash blood off his hands. It might not have been the best evidentiary practice, but as someone who has had someone else’s blood on him, I can tell you that the urge to wash it off is quite strong. Ultimately, it made no difference in this case since Brown’s DNA was on Wilson’s gun, and Brown’s blood was in Wilson’s squad car.
Regarding changing stories, you cite as a “source” a website from mid-September, with “witnesses” who keep citing the “hands-up” or “back turned” bunk. Those stories were soundly defeated by other witnesses and by ballistic evidence. Regarding Wilson’s testimony, the dazed, excited blathering of someone who was just in a life-or-death encounter will frequently leave out details, or highlight insignificant ones. The website you cite plays on out-of-context statements. Wilson told the grand jury that he had not been aware of the incident at the Ferguson Market when it occurred, but later heard the description of the suspects. So he was not aware of the robbery, until he was. Ultimately, it was up to the grand jury to determine the truthfulness of all the testimony. They believed Wilson. But whether Brown was stopped for jaywalking or for robbery, his subsequent attack on Ofc. Wilson determined his fate. It doesn’t matter WHY he was stopped; Brown’s response to the stop is what mattered.
Your witnesses who claim Wilson was the aggressor were all discredited by their own contradictory statements, other witnesses, and physical evidence.
Your repetition of Dr. Baden’s public statements are irrelevant. He said that the shots to the arm/hand were “consistent with” a “hands-up” position. “Consistent with” means “a possibility”. The wounds are also “consistent with” a person being shot as he pumped his arms in front of him while running.
Your “information” on gunshot residue is also out of date and debunked. Gunshot residue was found in the wound on Brown’s hand, corroborating Wilson’s statements. This is really where the whole case hinges. All the other perceived inconsistencies really don’t matter. You try to take a cop’s gun, you’ll be lucky to live through the encounter.
Brown was shot 148 feet from the SUV, not from Ofc. Wilson, who had exited his squad to follow Brown. But if you’ve just tried to take a cop’s gun, and then turn around and charge at him again, 35 ft vs 145 feet doesn’t matter. The question is “If that person reaches me, could he kill me?” The answer to that question, in this case, was “yes”, and deadly force was justified.
Whether or not the Market employees called 911 is utterly irrelevant and just underlines the ability of you and people of your ilk to leech onto completely useless information. A customer called 911 and reported the robbery. Who cares WHO called? A robbery was committed and SOMEONE called 911. (And it was a ROBBERY – not a shoplifting, as your “source” website calls it.) You also add your own little spin to your source (the sign of a great journalist – adding spin). The store owner did not say that Michael Brown wasn’t the person on the security footage. Hell, even Brown’s family concedes that point…
Your statement about Prosecuting Attorney McCulloch fundraising for Darren Wilson is patently false. If you won’t do actual research, AT LEAST check Snopes… This doesn’t bode well for you as a journalist.
Finally, the Jennings, MO Police Dept. was disbanded after alleged corruption internally, such as missing evidence. There has never been any allegation or evidence that Ofc. Wilson was involved in those concerns. Again – irrelevant.
I truly hope that your journalistic skills improve before you get a job and screw up someone’s life with false allegations, out-of-context information, or assumptions.
I could poke so many holes in your article. Just one being, he was shot in the head because Mike Brown lowered his head and started charging Wilson to possibly tackle him. So, when Wilson was aiming center mass and Brown lowered his head the bullet hits his head. Several other BS points in your article, but not worth my time to respond to.
Not to defend the choice of McCulloch, but that last point is pretty misleading. Might want to correct it before the rest of your post gets dragged down. http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
Regarding the cigar theft–your source doesn’t say that the shop owner denied that it was Brown, nor does anyone’s testimony deny that it was Brown in the footage (if i am not mistaken).
This is what journalism looks like. Snap shot your screen because you won’t see another article done this well again, unless this talented young lady starts her own blog/paper
Is this a joke? 1. Michael Brown was MUCH larger than Officer Wilson. 2. Michael Brown was NOT fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was shot. He fled, was chased, then turned to attack Officer Wilson. 3. You can’t disarm an unarmed person. 4. Brown was shot four times in the arm, once in the neck, and once in the head. There were a lot more than 6 witnesses, and the witness accounts were pretty split, and the questions asked to them were vague. The only one that the majority of witnesses agreed upon were that Michael Brown charged at Officer Wilson, and Michael Brown’s hands were in the air when fired upon. Not specifically in the air signalling surrender, just in the air at all. 5. Your source for being shot at 148 ft is a joke, and can logically be discredited. Anybody who has ever fired a pistol knows how hard it is to shoot a target that is 50 yards (150 ft, roughly the same distance as your source claims) away. Hitting a MOVING target from 50 yards with a pistol, SIX TIMES, is a miracle. Each shot would have to be carefully aimed to adjust for recoil and the target’s change in movement. In addition, the bullet entry wounds from the autopsy report were determined to come from the front, not the back. There were six entry wounds and three exit wounds, not ten entry wounds like your source claims. Michael Brown would have had to turn around and either stand still or charge from there if he was shot from that distance. Your source disregards Wilson’s account that he CHASED Brown, which means he would have been much closer to him when shooting. The 148 ft was from Brown’s body to Wilson’s car, not from where Wilson was standing. 6. Once again, this Daily Kos is not a reputable source. The wound in his hand could not have possibly been from a “hands up” gesture, unless Brown had rotated his arms in midair while being fired upon. Gunshot residue was also found on Brown’s right arm, which only occurs if you are very close to where a gun was fired. In addition, if Brown had surrendered and Wilson intended to kill Brown anyway, he would have shot him in the chest or head, not his right arm multiple times. 7. The PRELIMINARY autopsy revealed no powder burns, but the microscopic analysis later concluded that there was gunshot residue on Michael Brown. 8. There was never any question that Officer Wilson didn’t know about the robbery at the time of this incident. In fact, it isn’t even relevant.
The only thing you were right about was the failure of the system. That’s not Wilson’s fault, and he should not be prosecuted just for that.
Read the grand jury report and then rewrite. You’ve cited erroneous sources.
You have conflicting arguments posted above. You say he WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson, however even the private autopsy reports all 6 gun shot wounds entered from the front.
Also this whole argument about how far away from the police vehicle is pretty messed up as well, as Wilson states he got out and chased him in his testimony. The max effective range of most hand guns is barely 150 ft.
Also your sources pointing to the dailykos are hardly worth citing. How effective in proving a point are you if you are citing someones political blog? Blogs are non credible and that is pretty well known.
Grand Jury heard ALL the evidence and found that there was not enough evidence for a trial!!!!!!!!!! CASE CLOSED. Someone always trying to stir the pot.
I thought you said you got the info from official grand jury transcript not from a bunch of website’s geared towards race baiting propaganda. However you seem determined to agree with the yet another outcome different from the GJ transcript. Good luck working for the media where your opinion should always match those who sign your checks. You seem very well on your way to a seamless adjustment. Congratulations.
Wilson gave chase, meaning the 148 feet from the car was not 148 feet from Wilson.
You’re an idiot. Stop spreading lies. DOES ANYONE REMEMBER THE FACT THAT THIS KID STRONG-ARMED A HELPLESS STORE OWNER, ROBBED HIM AND THEN WHEN CONFRONTED, PUNCHED A POLICE OFFICER AND GRABBED HIS GUN?!?!
You should check your sources. They are not entirely backing up the claims you make. This seems to add to the mess of information you seem to try to clean up. Good luck with whatever you think you’re doing.
You are as ignorant as the rest of the liberal creatons….you people set back race relations decades….your are nothing but an enabler…
Why are all of your “sources” from obscure and relatively unknown blogs and “media” outlets? You site these sources as concrete facts and as the only justification for your point of view. So why would you use these unreliable/unproven sources? If you are stating facts about what happened then please site supporting facts from honest, reliable, indisputable sources, so people have no question on the validity of your claims. Witness statements have been scientifically proven to be VERY unreliable on their own. It would help if you can present undisputed physical evidence along with those statements. Can you please provide them?
Can you also please explain the “misconception” of how a 300 pound man is NOT significantly larger than a 210 pound man? Any reasonable person would agree that even if two people were exactly the same height, a difference of 90 pounds is extraordinary.
Thank you for your time and I look forward to your reply.
A lot of discrepancies for not even one charge. Makes you say ummm.
MSNBC has a position for you. No need to apply, just share your investigative reporting skills used here
Thank you for analysing this. maybe now someone will understand the complete frustration felt by those who are protesting
This post has renewed my faith in the future of journalism in the U.S. I hope students in journalism schools across the country are as aware as Shelby seems to be of the critical need to get the facts straight and present them clearly to the public. Thank you.
so your saying if you gained 90 pounds your not much bigger? i would like to see you fight someone 90 pounds bigger then you. I am 5 10 and 200 pounds. 6’4 and 210 pounds is a tall very skinny guy .
you need to be a better journalist michael shatz. you have twisting of words not facts
I’m going to further discuss these arguments:
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot.” Autopsy clearly states he was shot front to back so unless he was running backwards or there are 6 magic bullets this is highly unlikely.
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots.” There is this thing called recoil. When you shoot in rapid succession such as in a panic your aim will travel upwards. He most likely started at the torso as shown in the 4 shots in the torso/arms and traveled to the head.
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.” The source you are using clearly says that this was the preliminary autopsy and the doctor did not have the ability to check for gun shot residue, that it would be done on the follow-up which did in fact show gun shot residue.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.” The altercation started at the vehicle where the first shot happened (hand) Brown ran, let’s say 148′ from the vehicle, and then began a second assault which led to the remaining 6 shots.
the remainder of your arguments don’t warrant any comment as they are not directly related to the verdict.
It’s easy to twist evidence to suit whatever conclusion you have. Try being unbiased when you “report”
Not to mention, a public servant shot an unarmed citizen.
Didnt mikes friend say he or they stole the cigars?
if he was 148ft away thats enough for civil court and for the feds to charge the grand jury process. Why didnt that come out. If thats true 148ft the oag should be sued to safeguard future grandjuries
Not trying to offend you, but you really need to double check the information you present.
If a gun is misfired, there would indeed be no gunshot residue on Mike Brown or Officer Wilson due to the round not being fired.
When describing the fact that Mike Brown was not significantly larger, you should not only present Officer Wilsons’ size, but also Mike Brown’s (80 pounds heavier).
Also, as someone presenting their information as “clearing up misconceptions” you should not create more misconceptions and thus seek to cite sources that are at least slightly more reliable than the ones you chose. For example, your source on the store owner not calling 911 or identifying Mike Brown in the video, does not change the fact that someone did call 911 about him stealing cigars, nor does it change the fact that is was Mike Brown.
I hope some of these suggestions help you with future research and writings.
While your analysis was good, I feel like it is important to provide a few counters to what you’ve said just to balance the argument. I am not trying to fight or argue – I’m just adding some conflict in the interest of a fair sided debate!
First of all regarding his size – Brown had 80 pounds on Wilson, you’d be foolish to say that 80 pounds isn’t a substantial size difference. Add that to the fact that Wilson was sitting in his cruiser and Brown was standing over him and it’s easy see why Wilson felt Mike Brown was so large. That isn’t overly important, but I’m just going down in order.
Now lets not pick and choose and take things out of context. Originally Mike and Dorian were stopped for jaywalking, then Officer Wilson saw the cigarettes that they stole in a strong-armed robbery minutes before. That prompted him to reverse his car and go back to them. If you’re going to use Wilson’s testimony as evidence – it is important to provide the whole of his evidence as to not look biased.
Autopsy and testimony says at the time he was fatally shot he was not fleeing. He had fled, turned around, and charged Officer Wilson. The blood trail behind him further proves that he was charging when he was fatally shot. Again, don’t pick and choose from the testimony – manipulating what Darren Wilson said to fit your agenda is petty, for a lack of a better word. Also:
“Melinek (forensic pathologist) was quoted as saying that the autopsy did not support witnesses who claimed that Brown was shot while fleeing the crime scene or with his hands up, noting that the direction of the gunshot wound on Brown’s forearm indicated that Brown’s palms could not have been facing Wilson”
If a cop feels his life is in danger – he has every right to shoot to protect himself. It is up to the cop to assess the situation and decide if he or she will be able to control the situation without using force. Given that Mike Brown had 80 pounds on Wilson and had already once tried to wrestle the gun away from them – I believe Darren Wilson did what he needed to do given the situation.
Darren Wilson followed his training in removing the blood from himself. Did it hinder the investigation? If so minimally. Blood splatter analysis has a minimal impact on forensic investigations and is usually only suitable for supplemental evidence and won’t make or break a case. Furthermore, the blood spatter in Wilson’s vehicle proved that Brown was in the car when he was shot, adding credibility to Wilson. Also this takes credibility away from the eyewitnesses who swore up and down that Brown never leaned into Wilson’s window or tried to fight the gun from him. (Your source failed to mention that there was blood splatter in the car)
The eye witnesses have changed their stories multiple times, too. Many have retracted their original statements and admitted to lying to begin with. Many witnesses claimed that he got shot while running away and that is not true. There are no entry wounds to his back. One eyewitness was his friend who he had just robbed a gas station with – I don’t find him to be a credible witness in the slightest given his criminal history and ties with Mike Brown.
Again, the ‘hands up don’t shoot’ story has been retracted by the eyewitnesses after autopsy and crime scene analysis proved that it was impossible for him to be in that position. The first eyewitness was Dorian Johnson – who I’ve already mentioned isn’t credible – he started the hands up don’t shoot. The next two witnesses later admitted that they only saw the aftermath of the shooting, even though they originally went along with the ‘hands up don’t shoot’ lie. I recommend that you look into Witness 10’s testimony.
Again – lets hear the full story when talking about the autopsy. There were 3 of them. None of them show that his hands were up, in fact they suggest the contrary. The source you are using is an uneducated member of that website’s community making his own interpretation of the autopsy. Autopsies get less and less accurate the more times you autopsy an individual body. In case you aren’t aware, autopsies involve cutting the body open, removing and examining organs, and other manipulation of the body. And in this case, his body was washed and embalmed after the first autopsy, removing important evidence. After already having an autopsy, any autopsy done after that is being done on a body that has already been manipulated enough that any ‘evidence’ found can’t be overly credible.
The first autopsy (the credible one) showed gunshot residue on his hand, as well as trauma proving he either had the gun in hand or was in incredibly close range (~an inch) when fired.
No one from the store called in about the theft as they were busy being strong armed by Brown and Johnson – another person present did and it has been confirmed that the message was relayed over the radio that Darren Wilson was listening to.
The men on the security camera are Mike Brown and Dorian Johnson. This has been proven and is not up for debate. Dorian Johnson has confirmed this, as have the videos.
Darren Wilson was never involved in an incident that contributed to the disbanding of that first police department he worked for. As far as the case against him goes, this is irrelevant. Although the fact that it was racist is unfortunate.
I really did appreciate your analysis and I am not trying to come off as rude – I just felt that it was unfair to use his testimony against him if you were only going to pick and choose the pieces that work in your favor, so I thought that I would just shed light on the other side while trying to be a little more transparent. I hope this isn’t taken poorly!
For future reference, the Dailykos is an incredibly biased left extremist blog that can’t be used as a source in an argument as proof for anything. The specific article that you referenced several times was written by a community member, not a professional. That was his interpretation of the autopsy based completely on his (nonprofessional) opinion, and unfortunately he must not have read through the evidence very thoroughly because he presented inaccurate information several times.
First of all you sources are not credible, and there for I do not believe you are an actual journalism major. If so have fun writing for enquire.
Well…. we all knew he was working more to clear him than
to charge him….
there is no shelby lawson at kansas university.
Love the work she has put…disagree with one statement. Mike Brown’s body was found 148 ft from Darren Wilson’s car…which shows Brown ran from Wilson and was chased down and shot…”Why Mike Brown’s Grand Jury Decision is Causing Unrest,” a must hear podcast…Also, breaksdown the Asst DA giving misleading instructions to the jury – and left them with the gj for weeks before exchanging them for the corrections on use of force. However, she never explained to them what was different in the two documents.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/centerstage/2014/11/29/why-the-mike-brown-grand-jury-decision-is-causing-unrest
Shelby Lawson, may God bless you.
How were they able to get away with this?
Ha ha give me a break your sorces are from other news articles, post and other peoples work? Why dont you research it yourself straight from the source instead of basing your argument from others.. I can do the same thing from the other hundred news articles that go against what you just said. I would say your failing at being a journalist but your actually fitting right in spweing crap you hear second hand just for a review….
Show me where it says police must go for body shots??? Your actually taught not to maim…
Mike Brown weighed 289-pounds and was 6-foot 5-inches tall.
No spin? More like no balance.
Cop did his job. Jury did theirs. Violent criminal got what he asked for. Ferguson, hands down, and go to work.
This is very good work!
Wow your smarter than the whole grand jury, prosecutor, and judge, and the FBI investigation that found the same things as the grandjury. Also most of your “sources are left leaning, and hardly reliable or objective. Way to use that great college education.
After further perusal, things look even worse. Writer claims that Wilson admitted that Brown was running away *when he was shot*, citing p.281 of the testimony. But anyone who actually reads the cited page will immediately notice that this answer does not refer to the shooting at all. Rather, it is an abstract aside regarding perception of threat, and yet it is represented by the writer as a narrative account of the shooting.
Wilson’s actual account of the shooting episode begins on p.224, and the fatal sequence of events begins at the bottom of p.227. Again and again, Wilson describes Brown as advancing towards him, which is the motivation for discharging his (Wilson’s) weapon. When asked, Wilson clearly states that he did not fire while the subject was retreating (p.233 line 14).
So once again, the journalism student claims that her sources say one thing, when they actually say the exact opposite. Granted, there is no ethical standards for Facebook posts (or blogs), but as a social science researcher, I find this behavior tremendously disturbing from an aspiring journalist.
Doesn’t it bother you?
You are going to make one hell of an investigative journalist, young lady!
You are going to make one hell of an investigative journalist, young lady. Fantastic work, and you are to be commended for being brave enough to throw your hat in this ring. Thank you for searching out the truth and sharing it with the world. This world needs a lot more people like you in it.
Many of your comments are not correct. See a few spots that are errors:
Your article says on page 281 that Darren Wilson stated that he shot Michael Brown while he was fleeing. I am currently staring at the page. That is false. He stated that when Michael was fleeing, Wilson still found him a threat because he could be dangerous to the other responding police officers. He never says he shot him while he was fleeing. Further, the autopsy report revealed that there were no shots fired from the back that hit Michael. That is physical evidence that cannot be falsified. People’s memories can be.
Your article states that they were pulled over for jaywalking,which is true, but incredibly misleading to imply that this was just over jaywalking. Darren Wilson had already heard over the police radio a description of the alleged perpetrators of the theft and could have reasonably made the identification after pulling them over for jaywalking. (Wilson Testimony p. 202, lines 12-18; p.209 lines 2-8) He heard black shirt, cigarillos, and they were reasonably close to the alleged incident.
Your article claimed that Darren Wilson did not use less fatal alternatives. This is somewhere between wrong and misleading. Darren Wilson’s testimony went into why he did not grab the mace or flashlight. You may find his explanation using deadly force unsatisfactory, which is fair, but he does offer an explanation why alternatives could not be used. For example, he thought the mace was just as likely to end up in his face as Michaels, the angle to grab it was difficult, and he did not think it would land in Michael’s face given the positions. (Wilson Testimony p. 204-206, p. 213 lines 10-20) He was sitting on the asp and the flashlight was out of reach. (Wilson Testimony p. 213 line 21- p. 214 line 17)
Your article said Darren Wilson changed his story three different times. However, the source cited does not describe this at any point. The other witnesses were not under oath and some of their testimony conflicted with the physical evidence.
Your article stated that the man in the security camera video is not Michael Brown. The video is widely available. If this was the case, why did not others, including his parents make this statement.
Your article noted that the autopsy stated that Michaels hands were up when he was shot. The article cited was written by “keepemhonest”, which hardly seems like a qualified expert on autopsies. Further, the article is unscientific and was not performed by the author of the article. The article does not offer a through explanation for stating why his proposition must be the case. Further, it stated they are “keepemhonest”‘s observations. Dr. Bates was quoted only twice, neither time speaking about the hands needing to be up.
Your article implies that Darren Wilson and Michael Brown are the same size. This is partially true. Darren Wilson weighed approximately 85 pounds more. They were the same height.
You say he was fleeing when he was fatally shot, but your cited source says all the bullets hit him from the front. This doesn’t add up to me. Was he running backwards?
In regards to the distance between Wilson and Brown, press conference statements and filed forms are not the same thing.
If you check the CSI map and key, it details locations and distances of the crime scene evidence.
Shell casings were found between 31 and 36 feet from where Michael Brown died. Given the direction Brown was running, we can surmise these casings were from the final and fatal shots meaning Brown and Wilson were between 30 and 40 feet of each other when Brown was killed.
Further, it is easy to see how a discontinuity of this type would come about in press statements.
Your sources include the slate and dailykos.. You are a moron. Good luck finding a job with your worthless degree.
nice.
Reblogged this on syndax vuzz.
Alright is not a real word, but it was your first word used in your post. If you are a true student of journalism, please learn the language. Ijusst couldn’t get past that.
The level of ignorance displayed in this article is only eclipsed by the intentional maligning of facts to fit an agenda. A journalist highest goal should to reveal the truth and let it stand for itself. If this is the best you can do then I would suggest you switch majors.
http://www.stltoday.com/online/pdf-autopsy-report-for-michael-brown/pdf_ce018d0c-5998-11e4-b700-001a4bcf6878.html
Yes he was fatally shot from behind. However, you failed to mention that he was first shot multiple times from the front, while he was bearing down on the officer. Multiple autopsy reports confirm this.
“-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
If you read p. 281, you would find this claim is blatantly false, and Wilson is describing Brown as a threat to justify his pursuit of Brown, rather than shooting. Wilson never shot Brown as he ran away, rather he fatally shot Brown when Brown turned around and charged Wilson.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
This is also incorrect and misleading according to the source you provided. The article you cited states that the theft was phoned in, yet by a bystander rather than the owner. Also the source never mentions that Michael Brown was not the man in the security footage, and rather implies that he was. It is pretty much undisputed that Michael Brown committed petty theft, so that aspect of your argument is invalid and unsupported.
I would say that 80lbs is significantly larger. Where does it say they were stopped for jaywalking? It just says he told them to move to the sidewalk. Where does it say Brown was running away when he shot him? Where is your source for “police self-defense protocol”? Where on page 95 does it say the camera was dead?
Am I missing something, your comments don’t match up with the transcripts.
Not even worth refuting. Every point you make has been disproven more than once. You have cherry picked “facts”. Much of the BS you are shoveling comes from the before grand jury and were proven not to be facts.
Without actually having each and every individual piece of evidence that was presented to the Grand Jury and the transcripts from the proceedings a clear and educated decision as to what confirms or denies testimony given from any one asked to speak to the Grand Jury.
As it is, a Grand Jury is employed to take all the physical evidence, hear the testimony of witnesses and subpoena anyone they determine to have relevant testimony to offer. The defendant is NOT given the RIGHT to be present during the proceedings at all. They can however subpoena the defendant for questioning.
This IS NOT a hearing to determine “probable cause”.
If that were the case a judge and ONLY a judge would have the lovely task of sifting through the evidence for themselves and determining if there is enough there to warrant “probable cause”.
A Grand Jury does not determine whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty, nor do they determine if there is enough evidence in their opinion meets what they believe is “probable cause”.
This is due to the fact determining “probable cause” is not as simple as it may seem. The task given to a Grand Jury is to determine if there is enough evidence to support filing criminal charges (indictment) against the defendant.
Obviously several months of studying the evidence and hearing the testimony of witnesses, debating and bringing into question what any one jury member may or may not be completely clear on at any given time led the Grand Jury to determine there was not enough evidence to support an indictment.
Grand Juries are routinely employed by the courts to in regards to “sensationalized cases” this is felony charges. This particular case was not out of the ordinary.
There was no conspiracy. Being the prosecuting attorney was NOT “arguing” the case…Prosecutors only role is to throw all the evidence out on the table and leave it to the jury…they do not attempt to sway the jury in one direction or another. Therefore there was NO conflict of interest on the part of the prosecutor if there was IN FACT any involvement with raising legal funding for the defendant by the prosecutor.
ALSO a prosecutor is out to WIN a case…this is their “bread and butter”. I have yet to lay eyes on a prosecutor who would throw a case (jeopardizing their winning streak and putting themselves in a position to ruin their careers…even for a “buddy”). Let me throw this tid bit of information out there to chew on…typically police officers and the prosecuting attorneys office are not the best of friends…it is safe to say for the most part police officers feel prosecutors undermine them when they allow plea bargaining and or charges are dropped out of the blue when the evidence is solid. That being said…your logic is flawed.
Now pertaining to the evidence in general…I would have to take a look at the evidence as a whole. Testimony, police reports, transcripts, autopsy and forensic reports, maybe even an actual physical reenactment of what witnesses say they saw. I would also have to study the procedures and policies as they are written to determine whether a true violation of those procedures and policies occurred.
The problem with “eye witness testimony” is the witness is HUMAN. There is absolutely NO WAY every witness can have the same testimony and it be TRULY what they THEMSELVES witnessed with their own eyes. This is due to perspective and their each individual variables.
Example: Consciously go to a venue with a crowd of people. They are NOT aware of what it is YOU are planning to do. Out of the blue you execute your plan. NOW gather your “eye witness testimony”. No two people will have the same story…this is due to no two people will be looking in the same direction from the same angle at the same time. Each individual was also in their “own little world” when the incident occurred. The many variables that accompany each individual will vastly affect the “eye witness testimony or truth” of each person….GRANT it they are actually testifying to ONLY what THEY THEMSELVES ACTUALLY SEEN, HEARD AS “THEY REMEMBER IT” WITH NO INFLUENCE FROM OUTSIDE SOURCES TO SWAY THEIR TESTIMONY. There will still be discrepancy in their stories…some minuet and some extremely important to the case. This is what is meant by “there’s your side, my side and the truth”. It is all about perception and influence.
The influenced or swaying occur’s when the individuals gather and immediately begin to discuss what just happened. This is a major problem. They may not be aware they are being influenced by another. In their mind the info they heard from another fills in the gaps somehow. Then there are incidences when witnesses decide to “agree” on a story for whatever reason they collectively see fit…which is “lying” or “bearing false witness” so to speak.
It takes an extremely strong, conscious mind to determine and acknowledge details they know for a fact they did witness themselves and not allow themselves to be swayed by others…and honestly admit they did not see something they did not see with their own two eyes.
It also takes a person who carries with great conviction the concept of holding true to themselves and not cowering when others want them to follow their lead testifying to the story that was “collectively agreed upon” for them.
Me personally, I do not trust any testimony individually provided by a group that is “dead on” in details with one another. It immediately raises a red flag and tells me that they have spent entirely too much time together comparing notes…which is NEVER reliable.
And Yes I have vested a lot of time studying crime, criminals, psychology, sociology, crime scene investigation, forensics and the legal system…just for starters.
This article is at best misleading and mostly false. Please, read your sources before you use them to ‘prove’ a baseless argument. Also, use more credible sources, unlike those you listed that can be proved wrong with a quick read of more established and reliable news sources – I encourage you to read the transcript and use NYT for the majority of your research, as you have obviously had a difficult time separating fact from fiction. Since you have personally struggled with this task of sifting through incorrect information, I implore you to modify or delete this article until you remove your baseless claims and prove the remaining ones with facts.
Not only do your bogus sources bend the truth to fulfill the shock value drama that they are trying to lasso people in with, you yourself obviously didn’t fully research the resources and/or are lieing. Thank you for wasting my time just like so many other internet opinion articles.
You is dumb
I disagree with a few of your arguments/claims, whatever you want to call them. The most glaring error you state is in saying that Mike Brown was not the one who robbed the store, the Ferguson Market, or at least he wasn’t the person on the security footage. Dorian Jackson later stated that he and Brown did rob the store of the cigarillos and if you view the tape, the most obvious same characteristic is Browns hat that has become all too recognizable. Secondly, on your claim saying Wilson’s previous police department was disbanded due to instances of racial profiling, this isn’t true. There’s no possible way a police department can be dispensed first off, due to the fact it is government agency integral to every town in the US. There may have been officers terminated for racial issues, not a whole department. This also does not make Wilson guilty of racial profiling. Example: just because you’re a Muslim, it doesn’t mean you’re a terrorist. As for your claim that there was no GSR found on Brown, this, again cannot be true. It’s been confirmed by multiple witnesses that Wilson first shot Brown while Wilson was in the car and Brown was in the window. GSR can travel up to 5 feet, meaning he would have it on his clothes either way if he were grabbing the gun or not. My last major issue is in your claim of police self defense protocol. Police self defense protocol is not to “disarm and incapacitate.” If this is a true self defense situation, protocol is to shoot until the target is neutralized, dead or on the ground unable to do anything. You even say yourseld, it teaches to shoot for body shots, which would be lethal injuries, not say an arm shot which may be used to disarm an assailant.
For the rest of your claims, I have no major issues. There were a lot of problems and grey areas in this case and I don’t have all the answers, I don’t claim to. I do admire the fact that you sought out the information you did and compiled it in a very good, concise fashion. If I were to make a suggestion, I would present from both sides next time, in order to appease those on Wilsons side and give yourself a little more credibility in the fact that you appear objective. You would still be able to state your claims, it might even make them more effective.
Again, keep up the good work, good luck on your senior year.
p281 does not say he fatally shot Brown as Brown was running away. It only talks about Wilson chasing him and why. (because he is a threat to others, he already attacked a police officer) He does not say he shot him at that point. Please make correctiion, http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.html Check this out too: SEVERAL Michael Brown Witnesses Admitted They Lied about Shooting!: http://goo.gl/hpoGN1
You have inconsistent facts featured than I have heard through recorded interviews of the coroners, eye witnesses, and video. As well as what evidence the grand jury reported. There was gun powder concentration on Mike Brown’s hand that proves his hand was near shots fired from close range. How did Mr. Browns orbital bone get broken if there was no physical confrontation? Have you considered that a camera being charged by a mobile charger eventually gets usable and that because she took pictures at a later time does not mean she was lying because of this. If a police officer is trying to wound – not kill -he would not shoot first shots into center mass. Just because something appears in a report in isolation does not mean the whole content represents the isolated or “featured” content of your article.
A lot of your arguments aren’t true, pictures were taken, just not by the medical investigator, his battery was dead and the dectectives took pictures of the crime scene, blood etc. Here you should look into this .. http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?_r=0
You are citing all your “information” from the media…. You should know better than this, read the actual evidence that the jury reviewed, full transcript of the trial and questioning
You do realize that when you click on these “sources” (and I used that term loosely since some of them are just reports of secondhand hearsay), most of them disprove your claim, right?
6.4 and 210 lbs, is not the same size as 6.4 and 292 lbs.
Source #2 doesn’t address what you say it does, but there is a quote from a pathologist saying: “This one here looks like his head was bent downward,” he said, indicating the wound at the very top of Mr. Brown’s head. “It can be because he’s giving up, or because he’s charging forward at the officer.”
The eyewitness they refused to take a statement from is Dorian Johnson, according to your source. Pretty sure he’s given a statement.
There’s nothing anywhere in your source that says the robber on the recording isn’t Michael Brown–the only thing that article says is that a customer called in the robbery (probably because the shop owner, like many witnesses feared retaliation from the local residents).
The body being 148 feet from the vehicle is not the same thing as being 148 feet from the officer–he didn’t shoot the fatal shot from inside the car.
Snopes, the urban legend site clarifies the issue of whether the prosecutor raised money for Wilson–he did not. Search “Brown Recuse” and you’ll find out that the major fundraiser for Wilson (who according to IJR is a woman whose own father was killed by a cop after committing a crime) offered to donate part of the proceeds to Backstoppers, a local first-responder charity that McCullough is president of. Backstoppers said they would not accept her donation.
I could go through the rest, but why bother. Clearly whoever put this together didn’t read past the headlines on most of these articles so why would I expect you to read this?
You did your homework and i am so proud of you, samething I have been saying all along name of the game CYA cover you ass, and I fearef for my life, same lie they always say, thank you so much.
Reblogged this on St Louis Renewable Energy-Scotts Contracting and commented:
Mike Brown #Ferguson Prosecutorial misconsistancies
Thank you for formally (via social media) sharing your compiled list of facts in a very neat comprehensive format. A lot of this information (not all) I have gathered myself and shared with people, but only in fragments as people are all over the place with facts, half truths, and fabrications. Thank you once again!
Michael Brown outweighed Darren Wilson by 82 pounds. If you’re going to write a big post clarifying facts for people, best to maybe know the facts yourself. Especially on the first item.
She is wrong on several points here, especially the most important one. Forensic evidence shows that Mike Brown was shot in the TOP of the head, the fatal, final shot. In no way does the forensic evidence show that Mike Brown ever had his hands in the air. In fact, the bullet wounds and trajectory clearly indicate that Mike Brown was, in fact, charging forward towards Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Before forming an opinion, I would keep an open mind and look directly at the forensic evidence itself, not the eyewitness accounts (eyewitness accounts are the most flawed factually: see the research) or media reports or social media accounts and opinions. Let the forensic evidence itself speak to you. Then, and only then, form an opinion.
Hmmm…anyone who is a “gender studies” major, really is an expert on police tactics, crime scene procedures, and forensics! Wtf!!!
This is very interesting. Thanks for your research.
you have no facts. This is why little college kids should be seen. not heard.
Alot of this is completely WRONG.
210 lbs vs 292 lbs… 28% larger is not the same size. 292 standing and beating down on a sitting 210…. First shredded fact inaccurate.
We know officer first saw them in the middle of the street he was driving down… asked them to move to the side. Wasn’t until moments later that he realized they were the two from the strong arm robbery, and he put his truck in reverse to catch up with them…. second shredded fact inaccurate.
Victim was running away as stated on page 281…. don’t skip over page 227 where he testified: He stops – I stop…. He turns around… He’s coming back towards me.
Page 281 went on to say he posed a threat to anyone else he confronted. (He already attacked the officer in his vehicle)…. third shredded fact inaccurate.
I have searched all over the web for “Police Self-Defence Protocol”, but can’t find a source you seem to have knowledge of. I did find the 1985 Supreme Court rule on excessive force. Seems an officer, during the split second decision making, can discharge a weapon with excessive force if the officer fears the suspect is a threat to himself or others. The officer was already assaulted, and the suspect was coming at him again… the body falling forward towards the officer and the vehicle backs this up…..fourth shredded fact inaccurate.
Police refused to interview eye witness… according to your source, The Slatest on August 12. But then your same source, The Slatest reports on Nov 24th that this same witness provided testimony to the Grand Jury. Was he a surprise witness? I don’t think so. ….. fifth shredded fact inaccurate.
Crime scene photos not taken, but hospital photo’s are taken: The page 95 you reference clearly states “she” made a call to the “crime scene unit” and asked them to meet “her” at the hospital. It goes on to say “he” took the pictures at the hospital.
“her” camera did not magically start working…. sixth shredded fact inaccurate.
I’m tired of going over this! I don’t wish to waste my time any longer. The future of journalism is in a sad state if this is what we get to look forward to… journalist’s cherry picking excerpts to meet their agenda…. oh wait… what am I thinking? You’ll do great.
I feel sorry for this woman who can not see obvious right from wrong and is so easily mislead. Seems the owner of the market was trying to protect himself from retribution — (as it is OBVIOUSLY Mike Brown in the video, so his Attorney is lying) – did not work as the mob of thugs looted his store.
Hate to be a jerk, but you’re posting 3 month old now-proven-to-be-false media spin when the grand jury testimony is out in the public. Even the AP is reporting these “witnesses” are lucky they’re not being charged with perjury: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/ferguson-grand-jury-papers-full-inconsistencies-27219098?singlePage=true
He had 85 pounds on the officer, that is a significant difference! 210 + 40% = 294 Pounds ( Michael Brown’s weight). Their respective BMI’s were 25.6 and 35.8. In the world of any organized fighting, they are multiple weight classes apart. It’s like a lineman in football fighting with a wide receiver. Then you did link the autopsy report, which disproved the point blank range lies that were everywhere. He was shot in the arms, it suggests that the target was moving. Had he been stationary and surrendering, the officers grouping would have been much tighter.
Your source regarding the Ferguson market and the theft of the cigarillos does not, in fact, state that the man on the tape is not mr. Brown. I agree that the theft had nothing to do with the later confrontation with police but please correct your statement or provide further sources to clarify.
Another “error” is that while the coroner did state that arms over the head was possible and consistent with the evidence, he also said that a hands down charge was also possible, not “impossible”, as you say. Be careful with your language.
They were walking down the middle of the road not jaywalking. Not going to waste anymore of my time.
Nice cake, stupid. You better stick to writing about shit you can actually understand. How cute of you to attempt to interpret forensics, medical evidence and witness testimony. Shot while fleeing? Tell me, which autopsy report shows bullets entering from the rear? NONE. Not one. You’re dumb as a box of hair honey.
I did read your article. It is slanted crap and devoid of fact! If you want to blame the cop, fine. You are an empty-headed zealot on a crusade, to prove a lie! Good luck you dumb bitch!
How cute! A girl that’s dumb as a box of hair interpreting forensics, medical findings and witness testimony. Since he was shot while fleeing, why do all of the autopsy reports share the same fact….ALL BULLETS ENTERED FROM THE FRONT. How do you get shot 6 times from the front while fleeing? You better stick to writing about shit you understand, which likely isn’t much.
Interesting info, the question that I have is that you stated that it isn’t Mike Brown in the security feed from the store where the cigars were stolen. Clicking your source, it never denies that it isn’t Mike Brown. The source does say that neither the store owner or employee’s didn’t call 911 over the incident. The tape wasn’t discovered until later. I’m sure if the video wasn’t Mike Brown then it would have been nationally refuted.
This is the dumbest piece of garbage I have ever read. Most of the “sources” are from second-hand accounts from other newspapers or websites (with equally bad journalism skills). Trying reading the evidence that was presented to the grand jury.
To argue the first point she makes. How is 6’4″ 210lbs and 6’4″ 290lbs, the same size? Anyone she meant to say same height. But an 80lbs difference is not even close to same size.
The legal name fraud is exposed! Lose the name win the game! Babylon Is Fallen! http://losethename.com/babylon-is-fallen-words/
The truth shall prevail!
Just Say OK, OK?
I love armchair analysts, so clueless as to how things actually are. Have you ever shot a gun at a moving human that you just fought with? It’s not as simple as placing “body shots”. In less than a second a calm “Hey why are you jaywalking?” situation escalated into a situation where a police officer felt he had to take some one’s life. Do you know what was running through the officer’s head? Me either, but I can guess. What has this individual done that would make him run from the police for a simple stop and talk? Has he hurt someone already? Is he going to hurt more people? If I let him go and he hurts more people then you’ll all blame me for not doing my job. I appreciate the thoughtful effort you put into trying, and without critical thinking we would not be able to keep the powers that be in check. However, there is no way your analysis of the situation in any way can account for the split second decision needed after fighting with a resistive person, for a stop as harmless as this.
I have been looking everywhere for something like this to show to people that say they support Darren Wilson. Thank you so much.
Appreciate all your imput,its make things much clearer, Ms.”S”
This information/analysis is not accurate and relies mainly on very liberal interpretations of events. A grand jury reviewed the facts of the case and decuded not to indict (which is a pretty low legal standard). Quoting the Daily Kos as fact is akin to relying on John Stewart for an unbiased view of the world.
Why would officer Wilson decide to execute someone, as suggested in this analysis, and end his career for no reason.
If you attack a police officer inside his vehicle, attempt to acquire his gun and punch him in the face, you are a danger to the public and to the officer period.
Also a 6’4″ 300 pound individual is a very large man, and can easily overpower someone who is 200 pounds. Ask a QB, receiver etc on the Jayhawks’ football team to go up against an offensive lineman a see what happens. The QB loses.
I’m a little confused:
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
BUT
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
AND
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
So how was he fatally shot while running away yet he was also shot while surrendering? Was he moonwalking really fast from the officer while surrendering? Or did he start running away from the officer, and when he got 130 ft or so away from Wilson, he decided to turn around and surrender?
Wow. Thank you Shelby Lawson. I really appreciate you.
/* -Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony. */
Er, no, I’m afraid that he doesn’t. That seems to have been more of a general question posed about why Wilson might consider a fleeing suspect a threat. In addition, that also conflicts with the results of the private autopsy — which says that Brown was facing towards Wilson during the fatal shot. (Brown *was* shot from behind once, possibly twice — but both of those shots hit his right arm, not his head or chest.) See here: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/michael-brown-private-autopsy-report.pdf
That is so very sad that you can’t even trust some of the police officer that are suppose to protect and serve, can be so conniving and deceitful and have that much hate for another human being that you can just gun them down and then lie about it with no remorse. You have to be a cold hearted person who can do that to a child.
Brown was a convicted felon exhibiting poor decision making. Most of the “facts” in this article are contrivances that skew the truth. I wouldn’t expect anything else from a KU student though. Do something useful babe , go to an army base and lay on your back.
you are a liar and are twisting the facts!!!!!!
Who the hell is this person? No link to the person making these claims with some very unreliable “sources”. Why can I not find the original post supposedly on facebook? This seems like more fear mongering and using real tragedy to boost readership with fluff and crap journalism.
I will trust court documents more readily that a foolish student with an agenda.
SEveral of your falsehoods are negated by the documents here http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
This article would seem to call your “evidence” into question: http://reagancoalition.com/articles/2014/michael-brown-shooting-witnesses-admit-they-lied-were-intimidated-by-community-of-color.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook
I keep trying desperately to have my friends and associates actually read the testimony instead of relying on a biased news account. Just not possible when dealing with a population so intellectually lazy they’d rather have someone else think for them. Frustration at every turn.
Thanks for the insight.
I hope this is a joke…
So this is “journalism”?
Complete and utter bullshit.
148 is nearly 50 yards. One hell of a shot with a pistol.
Where in the related source is this claim made? “and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” BTW when people say source, they usually mean primary sources, not a blog post on Daily Kos
Mike Brown was not in the convenience store video? I had not heard that one.
What a crock !!!!!
Thanks for pulling this info together. It’s good to have some facts at hand. I’d suggest adding Mike Brown’s weight for clarification. He was actually much heavier than Darren Wilson.
You consider unfounded statements a “Shredding” of the grand jury’s findings?
LOL….you got so many of the facts wrong on here. A journalism major? Seriously? Maybe you should try a different line of education.
The prosecutor was smart to use a grand jury rather than decide on prosecuting outright. This way he could wash his hands of this and tell the populace that it was a randomly-selected jury of their peers, in effect, their own kind that set him free, and not the people charged with keeping the peace.
I like the way you laid out your case. Your credibility as being object and reasonable took a severe hit, in my opinion, at the very beginning when you act as if an 80lbs difference is not a significant size difference.
I thought the misconception about why he was stopped was already cleared up, but I do wonder why that matters in reference to how Michael Brown acted towards the police.
You’re reference to page 281, he does not say that he fired on Michael Brown while he was running away, as you implied, he gave reason as to why he pursued Michael Brown and didn’t let him just flee the scene.
I initially liked this article but it takes just a few lines to realize you are not being objective, as you try to portray yourself. I could go on with telling you why your paper is misleading and wrong but I sense that you won’t care.
This is cherry picked information and leaves out lots of testimony. Anyway, how did Officer Wilson get blood splatters on him if the shots we not at close range. He was stopped bevause Mike Brown just robbed a store!! ,
And what’s the point? You belive a cop shot a guy for no reason other than being black? And the author claims to know more than the Grand
Jurors and the judge who made desicion based on the whole of the testaments. Is this even a real article?
Some valid points but one very important ‘sourced’ fact you include stands out as misleading. The theft of cigarellos at the market captured on videotape was reported by a customer, not the owner but it was indeed reported to the police. Also, Dorian Johnson testified in detail the incident at the market and it matches every detail of the videotape. Officer Wilson testified he had heard the theft call broadcast over his radio just before encountering the jaywalkers and telling them to get on the sidewalk. These are all in the transcripts and easy to find.
Shelby, most of your research is sourced from media reports and journalists sorting through and in many cases speculating on and interpreting statements derived from leaks and second hand sources. The actual transcripts of testimony and autopsy reports as presented to the Grand Jury would be the most legitimate sources don’t you think?
Let us know when Shelby has corrected all the factual inaccuracies in her post (like Mike Brown’s weight, the autopsy report results, the source of Darren Wilson’s fundraising, and especially the theft of the cigars, which everyone involved admits actually did happen).
Lies, misstatements, and biasing the truth in reporting. One example – hands up when shot. What I read was hands reaching forward while charging the officer. Bit difference. Many more misreported items.
Thank you. Hopefully the Feds will come up with the same results as you.
I’ve never seen anything more biased…with most sources taken from biased media articles as well.
This writers statements do not align with the forensic fact/evidence in the case. She must be living in some sort of Pollyanna world without any critical thinking skills.
How can someone be fatality shot in the front of the head if they’re fleeing? That 148+ft is not the distance Mike Brown was from Wilson. That is the distance Brown was from Wilson’s vehicle. Johnson and Wilson both stated that Wilson gave chase to Brown. Johnson stated Brown and Wilson had ran past him.
Eyewitness testimony is varied between witnesses. while it was close one or two more witnesses testimony matched Wilson’s account than not.
Not taking a side, but the wording of the facts shouldn’t be changed.
As a retired police officer I’ll tell you can’t comment from your dorm room and continue to Monday morning quarterback about a situation and tactics you know nothing about as you haven’t been through the training or been presented with a confrontation that requires only seconds to make a decision. The grand jury made of the general public made a decision right or wrong. You can take the transcript and tear it apart just as any one can take the bible and create what they want out of it.
Wow a new and upcoming race baiter! this is great. Where in this report does it explain how officer Wilson got a fractured eye socket? I suppose you can dig up some other evidence and twist more facts around. You must be so thrilled about the riots and the tension between the races. How does one take forensic evidence and twist it the way you have just to create more tension between the races. Your a pig
God sees all and Will not forget. Every knee Will bow before him it’s not over!!!
Shelby Lawons of KU – “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Shelby skipped the beginning of page 208 and also page 209, apparently. Or she’s just a liar.
Page 207 – And then the next thing I notice was…
Page 208 – …that Brown had bright yellow socks on that had green marijuana leaves as a patter on them.
Skip to Page 209 – When I start looking at Brown, first hing I notice is in his right hand, his hand is full of Cigarillos. And that’s when it clicked for me because I now saw the Cigarillos, I looked in my mirror, I did a doublecheck that Johnson was wearing a black shirt, these are the two from the stealing.
Look for yourself: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/…/grand-jury-volume-05.pdf
You claim that “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
However, in the source provided below (NY Times), the autopsy report shows all gun shot wounds are from the front. How is it possible to recieve a gunshot wound from the front when running away from the shooter?
Micheal Brown was also roughly 75 lbs heavier than Officer Wilson. This is a contradiction of your claim that they were the same size. It appears you may have redacted that statement. 75 lbs is hardly a small weight difference.
Reblogged this on Strange Writes and commented:
This is a very comprehensive and well put together examination.
Reblogged this on The humanist view and commented:
Something for journalists in Uganda to learn – Investigative Journalism at its best.
About half of her “sources” come from a 3rd party propaganda site that is stated in an opinion. Also. There are plenty of pictures of Mike Brown in the street before they covered him with the sheet. Clearly wearing exactly the same outfit that was worn by the criminal in the convenience store video. Furthermore, the store owner did not want any repercussion from the locals as he is reliant on them for his well being. That, in conjunction with the possibility of threats, is a huge conflict of interest. By stating there was no call that would cut his connection to this case, which would then save business. I don’t see this as “Shredding” the case. The majority of officers wash their hands after an altercation. There is a substantial risk of contracting a disease with the amount they interact with the public. Was there some areas where direct protocol was not followed? Perhaps. But the bottom line is Mike Brown committed multiple crimes. You have a choice as to where you place yourself and how you conduct your actions. Stealing from a convenience store and walking down the middle of a road are both illegal activities. However minor they may be, Michael Brown would have had no run in with the law that day if he had followed the set of rules that we all live by on a day to day basis. That in itself by no means would validate shooting him, but my point is that you or I would never have the chance to be shot by a police officer because we make decisions that do not provide those types of actions to occur.
Here are another couple of points.
#1 – Dorian Johnson, who was with Michael Brown when he was shot, who was his best friend, has had constant holes in his story. These holes continued to be there until the family lawyers got to him and provided him with a step by step story to support their side. Also, in multiple interviews and in several court proceedings he failed to clean himself up and present himself in a positive fashion. To me, that demonstrates that he does not at all respect the system or authority.
#2 – Officer Wilson had been in law enforcement for several years. He had plenty of opportunities to commit racist acts against people he arrested. But he has not had issues with excessive force or any racial problems in the past. To think that a man would go from an outstanding officer to wrongfully shooting a young man, and including that the primary reason he did is because Michael is black is ludicrous.
Also, all of the media outlets keep putting up pictures of him graduating and smiling. But what about the pictures of him showing gang signs and flipping off the camera?
Do not allow yourself to just succumb to whatever the media feeds you. They make their paychecks off of a good story. By pushing the buttons of the American public they get paid. Just keep that in mind.
This case greatly caught my attention so I have looked into transcripts that were made public by the court in this case and in my personal opinion Officer Wilson was clearly doing his job and defending himself. This should not be a race issue. This should be an issue of establishing to our youth that you should conduct yourself in a way where you do not make the CHOICE to place yourself in a situation where you would have a negative interaction with someone in an authority role.
Thank you for your information we need to spread this information so others can read this.
Shelby, it saddens me that you are going to graduate from college with a degree in journalism. The few sources I clicked on to fact check your claims ARE NOT CREDIBLE SOURCES. Shame on you for spending so much money on an education and not being able to learn a damn thing from it. Damn shame. Please pick a different career. We do not, as a society, need more gossip and bullshit.
I like what you are doing here, but I disagree on a few statements.
Police officers are trained to aim for center of mass when shooting because training this way maximizes the likelihood of achieving a hit, not because it reduces the likelihood of killing the suspect. Military personnel are also trained to aim for center of mass. During an adrenaline dump, like one would experience in a life or death struggle, fine motor skills decrease dramatically which also decreases accuracy with firearms dramatically. Multiple shots fired or head shots do not necessarily conflict with claims of self defense, because pistols are not very effective at stopping a determined attacker unless a heart, spine, or head shot is achieved. The wound that most conflicts with Wilson’s self defense claim, as you point out, is the gunshot wound to Brown’s hand.
Brown was not 148ft from Wilson when he was killed. Brown was 148 ft from Wilson’s police vehicle when he was killed. This is a very important difference. As stated, you imply Wilson sniped Brown from a great distance. The distance from the vehicle is still important as it demonstrates Wilson pursued Brown, and weakens Wilson’s claim of self-defense.
Overall I enjoyed the post and found it educating, thanks for doing the research!
Great Assement and detailed work. You are on your way to being an excellent journalist.
Only a few of these points are correct, and many of these sources are just media articles.
It’s hard to believe much of anything. Using other media as a source doesn’t mean it’s true either
This is a very uninformative and biased piece that is backed by liberal blogs. Shame on you for pretending to be a news provider when it is clear that you are part of the propagandist problem that exists today. Truth no longer matters–only foggy perceptions.
Your first source: Daily Kos
“Daily Kos is an American political blog that publishes news and opinions from a liberal point of view. It functions as a discussion forum and group blog for a variety of netroots activists whose efforts are primarily directed toward influencing and strengthening the Democratic Party with a particular focus on progressive policies and candidates.” [Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Kos%5D
I will not waste time to look up the others.
Your key source is a liberal, poitical blog with a twisted view that does not take into account actual facts.
Shame!!!
What are you even talking about? No, the shop owner didn’t call the cops – he didn’t have to, his customers were already on with 911 before Brown was even out of the store! (Now, can you imagine why a store owner would VERY PUBLICLY deny calling the cops in a tense situation like this?)
As far as the video – it is clearly big Mike, other than bloggers like yourself, nobody has disputed this. Even Dorian Johnson sells Mike out for stealing and “strong arming” in his grand jury testimony beginning on page 31. There is a lot of discussion about the robbery and no denial whatsoever from Johnson (except to put 100% of the responsibility on Mike, washing his hands of any personal liability…)
Please check your sources and stop spreading misinformation.
Does a kid deserve to get killed for stealing some rillos? Hell no. But, attempting to cover up his actions directly prior to the altercation in the street is simply dishonest and inflammatory.
JUST BECAUSE YOU WRITE IT AND CITE IT TO BE TRUE, DOESN’T MAKE IT TRUE. THIS WOULD, HOWEVER, PASS TODAY’S STANDARD FOR JOURNALISM. WELL DONE.
Nice list but you’ve got some key facts wrong, like the store video not being Mike Brown, the distance at the time of the final shots, Michael Brown fleeing at the time of the shots, hands being raised and bullet pattern. Questions to explore. Did Wilson ever tell Brown he was under arrest. Do police have a legal right to grab citizens and detain them without telling them why. Did any credible witness, besides witness 10, say that Brown was actually charging. Trajectory of bullets that hit buildings, was Wilson firing wildly. When did Wilson testimony first include store shoplifting info. How many witnesses saw Wilson illegally grab Brown’s shirt and instigate the unlawful stop and shooting.
Typical “sit on your butt” journalism being taught in our universities today–not one original “source” in this so-called article, everything is pulled off of google. It is a simple collaboration of cherry-picked pieces of 2nd, 3rd, and 4th hand information pulled together to prove an agenda vice what actually happened. I would throw this girl out of college for trying to publish something like this.
One of many notes- according to your source, the owner never denies it is Brown on the tape. He simply denies calling the police(and who can blame him, he doesn’t want to be the one to put the wheels in motion.) And while what happened at the store should not justify his death, it definitely speaks to his character.
By the way, your sources are hardly of any substance. Sure, anyone can stand in front of a camera and tell a story…however, the statements from those ‘witnesses’ can’t be verified and that is truly a shame in this case.
As a journalism major you might want to learn to find legitimate sources before you publish an article.
Mike appears to have been a bully and had no respect for the law.
You get so much wrong in here… nice attempt at “journalism”
Got Mike Brown’s weight wrong right off the bat.
Mike Brown was 148 ft. from the officer’s SUV… not the officer…
Autopsy did NOT support the “hands up” witness accounts.
Most journalists don’t get a bunch of facts wrong just to stir up unrest.
I think you are wrong ! They do have D&A of his blood in the police car and on the gun .
She hopefully is only a freshman. The very first point, that Mr. Brown and Officer Wilson were the same weight, is wrong. Mr. Brown actually weighed 80 pounds more than Officer Wilson. So right off the bat she destroyed her credibility.
Reblogged this on evanjpflu and commented:
Everything you need to know, broken down perfectly.
Reblogged this on sacredsymbol and commented:
In the wake of this sad event I was very pleased to stumble across this article, which essentially mythbusts a lot of murky information circulating about the facts of the case. All sources are cited, and paint a clear picture of what took place.
Shreds? You used partial use of full statements and the questions that were the basis in order to convolute so your story seems logical. Maybe wait until a year after you graduate to try and think on your own.
I’m sorry but there are multiple mistakes in this.
To name a few an officer of the law is *never* trained to “shoot to wound” if an officer is going to draw his weapon to fire he is trained to end the threat.
And multiple accounts as well as three separate official autopsies report Mr. Brown being shot as he “lowered his head and charged” Officer Wilson. Not a single entry wound was found in Mr. Brown’s backside. They all entered through the front or top of the head and chest.
Also he may not have been significantly larger… but 6’4″ is very large and easily capable of injuring and killing another man unarmed.
Please stop fueling the fires of anarchy by disputing the many truths surrounding this case. You’re not helping anyone by bringing it up, and certainly not by getting it wrong.
I read the source claiming that Mike Brown was not the man in the shoplifting security footage. It didn’t look like they had actually proven that. It seems to be making the point that the police saw the footage after his death and that the shop owner didn’t call 911.
I followed the source link regarding the Ferguson Market and nowhere does it state that Michael Brown is not the man in the footage robbing the store. The man in the footage is Michael Brown. I believe the friend who was with him all day confirmed that Brown stole the cigars in his grand jury testimony.
THANK YOU so so much, and with that the fact justice was not served? disgusting
You are not a very good journalist as if you actually read the whole transcript you would realize some of your points are actually invalidated later in the testimony. Or you are a good journalist cause you pick and chose what you want to report like most other american journalism companies. Just to be clear I do not think Officer Wilson is completely innocent but he is not guilty of murder.
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Not only does the linked ‘source’ not include any mention of a $600,000 figure, but this claim has been deemed ‘False’ by no less than Snopes:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
“-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Size does not constitute build. They are separate items when describing someone.
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
If he had been carrying the limited quantity taser, yes. However, Brown had already demonstrated his intent of violence/deadly actions by reaching for Wilson’s weapon. Use of deadly force, at that point, was authorized. Had Brown STOPPED and stood there, he would NOT have been shot. His actions of moving towards Wilson will flag danger in any person’s mind after an altercation like he just had.
“-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”
This is a week citing. This is an alleged report. There is no evidence (that I have come across) to support the story of his friend in this article. Not to say I am the ultimate authority on this, but this is just a rather week attempt on your part.
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.”
Are you aware of how fingerprints work? This isn’t Hollywood, you can’t peel ‘layers’ of prints. He (Wilson) put his hands on his gun again. Brown would unlikely have any prints found on the weapon.
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
Because walking down the middle of a street, and a police officer telling them to get out of the road, is legal. Really? This is a load of crap. Also, he said he had his hand raised. Not in a position of surrender. Couldn’t they have been raised towards Wilson in anger? Have you ever seen someone charge another person out of anger?
“-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
No. Where are the suggested degrees of angle of entry into the body? This would be quite the indicator as to WHERE the hands and arms were at the moment of the shots. Also, when you hit a body, you don’t go flying backward (unless hit by a LARGE caliber gun (240B and bigger) or round. .50 cal or maybe a 40mm grenade round to the chest?) The natural reaction is to curl in towards the shot. Factor in that he was running at Wilson, and being fired upon at center mass, and natural reaction to curl into one’s self with injury, it makes perfect sense that in those 90 secs that a round or two would hit him in the head as he’s falling.
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
This was a private autopsy. While those are encouraged, and usually back up an initial finding, this one did not do anything to calm anyone. I also believe that the person who helped with the autopsy has a questionable history in this department. Another week attempt.
“-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
There were no locations of casings mentioned here. Are you saying that Wilson just stepped out of his vehicle and shot from the open door? Didn’t he give a short chase? Do you know how quickly someone who is 6′ tall can close distance while running?
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
First I have ever heard this. But if that’s not Brown on the video, who is it then? Just happens to be two 6′ tall people in Ferguson, MO with the same outfit on in the same area? Very improbable.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
So how did the theft get reported to the Police? The interview linked in the article is non-existent. This is a very biased article to boot. That video of the Brown doppelganger is indeed pertinent to what happened on the street. Because it played into why Wilson continued to ‘be an aggressor’ (as stated earlier).
“-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Just because you work somewhere doesn’t make you like them. There are rapists in the military. Just because someone joins the military, doesn’t mean they are, or become, a rapist.
If I didn’t copy it here, I don’t have an issue with what was presented.
Overall, I find the OP uninformed, and blithering perpetuated bile. If you want to feel good, feel good by sticking to the facts. Journalism isn’t supposed to be about personal feelings. It’s supposed to be about FACTS. It’s supposed to give you CREDIT, not take it from you. This person needs to learn how to research things. As for THIS page. The only thing she shredded was her credibility, and yours, for posting this.
Brown was a punk who picked the wrong fight.
Have you poured over the same evidence as the Grand Jury, Shelby?
Many accounts say all the bullets went into the front of Mr. Brown, the report you linked for the source of “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony” says the fatal wound was on the top of his head. How can one be hit fatally at the top of one’s head when fleeing 148 feet away from the person shooting you?
There is so much wrong here (meaning the case, not this post) that it is hard to know what to believe, and I doubt we will ever get the whole story. I can only hope this case helps to fix what is wrong in our judicial system.
There are many many things wrong with this analysis. Obviously written by someone with no training or experience. One example: 148 ft is almost 50 yards. A 50 yard head shot on a moving target with a handgun is an exceptionally difficult shot and nearly impossible under stress.
What would happen if Black Officer’s would begin to “SHOOT TO KILL?”
Thank you!
Very well written article. Thank you for all the sources and good luck in your studies
You use the Daily Communist and Americans against the Tea Party which calls Rudy Giuliani a White supremacist as your sources. Sorry that is a fail sweetheart you`ve been propagandized.
Your source should be the the Grand Jury transcripts. I suggest people who want facts read the transcript and the Grand Jury findings.
Do not rely on media or rabble rouser summaries.
http://www.npr.org/2014/11/25/366504683/ferguson-grand-jury-testimony-made-public
Don`t be a political party tool
You do realize virtually every single statement this journalism student makes is not supported by the sources she cites, many of the sources are poor secondary sources, like DailyKOS, etc…
This some weird journalism student experiment in getting people to believe things that are not true? Because nothing here is correct.
you realize maybe 2 of your sources ware credible right….
You learned how to do all this “research” in Women and Gender Studies and Journalism class? Right! And the Grand Jury got it all wrong?
Where does it say that he was not the one in the surveillance video? I clicked your source and read it. All it claims is that it had nothing to do with the shooting and that a customer called, not an employee or owner. It does not ever mention that it wasn’t him in the video everyone has seen. Plus the man (Michael Brown) in the video is wearing the exact same outfit he got shot in.
And if that isn’t enough, here is a source of his friend who was with him ADMITTING they stole them. http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/08/15/attorney-dorian-johnson-michael-brown-robbery/14118769/
District Attorney Bob McCullough needs to be exposed for his corruption and backroom dealings with the corrupt Ferguson Law Enforcement.
Please send a copy of this report to Joe Scarbrough of MSNBC.
Sorry to burst your bubble, this actually is not factual being that one of the first claims she makes is completely false. I’d also say it is sad that this article is getting so much attention.. Here is the quote directly from the article, “-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
This is not true. There are several different volumes of testimony from the trial, which she apparently doesn’t know. I think i was able to find the ‘page 281’ she was talking about in volume 5 of the trial. If that is the page she’s referring to she must have made a mistake or something because, as you can see here http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1371057-grand-jury… , that page doesn’t even discuss the ‘fatal shot’. On the other hand, the link below is page 229 where he discusses shooting the fatal shot and he says that MB was charging at him about to tackle him, not fleeing. http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1371057-grand-jury-volume-5.html#document/p229
This article claims to “shred” the case against Michael Brown. However, there are some serious issues regarding the credibility of this article. While there are some valid points made in the article, the negative of poor research far outweighs any positives that might be found.
1. “The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was
significantly larger than Officer Wilson.”
-Michael Brown was 6’4” 290 lbs.
-Darrin Wilson was 6’4” 210 lbs.
-Eighty pounds is a SIGNIFICANT difference (Source: Private Autopsy Report)
2. “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his
friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking…”
-While this is may be true, the very next page in the testimony states that Officer
Wilson said “when I start looking at Brown, first thing I notice in his right hand, his
hand is full of Cigarillos”.
3. “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot.”
-Page 281 was cited for this when, in fact, page 229 actually gives details of the
fatal shot.
4. “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and
incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots.”
-It is true that you are to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill. It is also true
that deadly force is authorized when protecting the safety of another person. This
includes yourself.
5. “Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement
from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown
until his death.
-While there may have been no initial interview, Dorian Johnson testified before
the Grand Jury on September 10. The testimony begins on page 17.
6. “The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos.”
-I do not know protocol for this particular medical examiner, but having a camera
with a dead battery certainly seems suspect. If nothing else, it is a major
oversight when dealing with a dead human being. The examiner later states that
he was instructing someone to take photographs at the crime scene. (August 20,
pg. 77) Is it safe to assume that he did the same at the hospital? Either way, the
medical examiner’s credibility could certainly be questioned here.
7. “Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for
fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to
misfire.”
-There may have been no testing for prints, but there was a swab sample taken
of “reddish-brown and black stains” from Wilson’s department issued firearm.
However, the lab report states that the “quantity was not sufficient for
confirmatory testing”. You can also see the full results of the findings in the DNA
Analysis report regarding Q19.
8. “Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of
himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood
spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson
first shot him.”
-As stated in his interview with an investigator, he washed the blood off and
proceeded to remove his belt and place his weapon in an evidence bag.
Photographs and swabs of the blood should have been taken from Officer
Wilson’s hands. This is also another oversight by the investigators.
9. “While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least
three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other,
all have identical accounts of what happened.”
-The source cited here was written over two and a half months prior to the Grand
Jury decision. After testimonies and evidence was made available, is this article
still a valid piece of evidence to support your claim?
10. “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown
would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand
and arm the way they did.”
-The private autopsy results actually states that the shot to the palm occurred in
close proximity to the weapon due to gunshot residue found on the the palm.
This is the only such example of this type of residue on Brown’s body.
11. “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson
when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
-In Wilson’s own testimony he states that he ran after Brown when Brown started
to run. He also states that when Brown stopped he stopped. The source cited
for this point is another article published prior to the release of evidence by the
court system.
12. “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of
cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the
security footage is not Mike Brown.”
-Watching the surveillance video speaks for itself. The man in the video seems to
be wearing the exact same clothing as Michael Brown. Additionally, the man in
the video can be seen shoving the store owner. As for irrelevance, can it be said
that the same fate awaited Brown regardless of the events that took place in
Ferguson Market?
13. “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise
$600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
-While the attorney is the President of Backstoppers, an organization designed to
assist families of those in public safety who have died on the job, there is no
clear evidence that Backstoppers is associated with fundraising efforts. However,
upon the controversy surrounding this case, a change in attorneys could
have possibly aided in avoiding further controversy.
14. “The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to
Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
-While there is evidence to suggest that racial tension was a contributing factor to
shutting down Officer Wilson’s former place of employment, there is also
evidence that shows Wilson had a clean record while employed there. To infer
that all police officers employed there were racist is akin to saying “All Muslims
are terrorists”. It is very sloppy and completely absurd to suggest that.
As previously stated, there are some valid points in the arguments made here. There are also some very troubling issues in this article regarding sources, assumptions, and a vague review of the evidence. All of the documents, including photos and testimonies, can be seen here: http://tinyurl.com/n4cfgze
District Attorney Robert McCullough needs to be exposed for his corruption and backroom dealings with the Ferguson Law Enforcement. He should disbarred!!
St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar needs to be exposed for his corruption and dealings with DA Bob McCullough.
Judge Carolyn Whittington needs to be exposed for allowing serious legal Grand Jury issues occur in her courtroom.
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/11/26/3597322/justice-scalia-explains-what-was-wrong-with-the-ferguson-grand-jury/
Quick, get this to the grand jury lol. Once you venture deeper into journalism, please don’t rush to get a story out first. Please make sure it is fact based. Although there is little accountability these days, please have integrity. What did other eye witnesses say? How great must his aim be to shoot a moving target multiple times from 45 yards? Gee, I wonder why the owner of the store, and an attendant would deny calling the police? Not like it matters. But I think the answer was pretty evident after the market was looted. Still, the employee is safe hopefully. I mean, lord, numerous people called Charles Barkley an Uncle Tom and he’s received a lot of anger for stating his opinions. I wonder what it must be like for someone in that community to try to give an honest recount while not fearing for their safety. I think this is part of the larger issue. Now I do agree there should be attention to the general subject, and that video cams for officers is a good step. However, I just don’t believe it’s this case. Had Mike Brown been leaving a church function, and walking his grandma across the street when this went down then yes, bring on the protests.
However, can you imagine the complete lack of authority you have to have to steal from a store (please don’t say that’s not Mike Brown on the video), and then to walk in the middle of a road like that. Most people would be ducking the cops. Next, please tell me one cop, that would pull someone into their car closer to their weapon. Nobody would be that stupid. That would be like a cop leaning into someone’s window when they pull someone over. They are going to want to keep a safe distance because they’re vulnerable if they don’t. So we know there was an altercation in the cops vehicle. From there, nobody will know for sure because everyone has an agenda. Unfortunately if that protect-your-own culture wasn’t in place then there would have been more consistency to these accounts rather than stories shifting as more information was released to the public.
I think to better prove your point, you should post these links as well as those that favor both sides and people could determine which is more believable. I’m not sure how credible VOX is, but it doesn’t seem reliable to me personally. Obviously you’ll get a lot of likes from those on Team Mike Brown regardless of what information you throw out there, but kudos I guess to getting a good amount of attention.
Thank you for your work!
Very difficult to read, because of the background. Please change the background to make it more legible.
You’re going to hear this a lot in your journalism career, “You are full of $hit !”
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
How do you know it isn’t Mike Brown? Also the fact that the owner didn’t call police and he is having his lawyer present that to the media, is just the store owner trying to prevent more chaos and damage to his store from the “protestors” that feel he is at least somewhat responsible for something. I don’t think not reporting it is relevant at all to anything. You say it isn’t him, but every other report says it is, even the source you used for this section of your post. While i won’t ever disagree that the police covered somethings up, this part isn’t one of them.
BOMBSHELL: New Autopsy Report Changes Everything About the Michael Brown Shooting
Wednesday, October 22nd, 2014
The county autopsy report on Michael Brown largely corroborates the account of the shooting given by Ferguson, Mo., Police Officer Darren Wilson. Two independent doctors reviewed the report from St. Louis County for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, KTVI reported.
According to the report, the first shot fired from Wilson’s gun was at close range and hit Brown’s right thumb, adding weight to Wilson’s testimony that the two struggled for the gun in Wilson’s police cruiser. Previous reports confirmed that Brown’s blood was found on Wilson’s gun and uniform, as well as inside the car.
The wound on Brown’s thumb contained “microscopic matter from the barrel” of the officer’s pistol, according to the report.
Wilson’s other five shots hit Brown from the front, contradicting some witness reports that Brown had been running away from the officer when he was shot. The angle of the wound to Brown’s forehead indicated that he was either falling or lunging forward when the bullet hit him.
Perhaps most importantly, the autopsy report indicated that Brown did not have his hands in the air when Officer Wilson shot him.
In addition, the county toxicology report on Brown was positive for marijuana
Jaywalking isn’t a crime?
Is this what is taught in KU journalism? As a “source” for a dispute in measurements you video of a guy rolling a measuring wheel around? And I don’t know what transcript you were reading…
If this is how students are being taught at KU, I might steer my child in another direction.
you will make a fine Liberal Journalist one day
If I remember correctly, Brown weighed almost 90 pounds more than Wilson. They may have been the same height, but weight is what really matters in an altercation.
None of this is correct ask for a refund on ur college tuition
The fact that most of your assertions are easily proven to be false by clicking the source links somewhat undermines your message.
” I have researched these points and provided sources in case you wish to do some reading of your own.” Linking blogs does not constitute research
Know the sources you cite. Rule number 1 of college level writing. When you quote directly from sites that have obvious agenda, you lose all credibility to your argument.
Also, citing that a force was disbanded is making the assumption that everyone on that force was racist.
This is ignorance at its best.
I’m sure this will immediately be deleted since your bias can’t handle the truth of logical argument.
your main source for information: http://aattp.org – Anti tea party site, obvious political agenda.
so much of this is wrong. You need to edit it.
“-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
I looked up page 281 of the testimony and it only stated that Officer Wilson chased after Mr. Brown. There is no suggestion of firing his weapon, only that he chased him.
Additionally, yes it was not the owner but rather a customer that called the police as listed in your source. The source does not include that Mr. Brown was not the suspect in the robbery as stated by the owner of the store.
I’m sure someone with more time and energy could dissect a few of the points made but overall you made a decent but pretty closed argument. I wish the points were more objective rather than accusatory, but I digress, this is journalism and not science.
Poo Poo caca
These comments are false and inaccurate.
To the readers here I suggest you see what college teaches us is a FIRSTHAND SOURCE, aka the court case itself.
Don’t rely on a biased secondary source like a “women and gender studies journalism student” for facts. Don’t even expect her to not be biased
hello
I have to say the links are not solid and there are many things that are incorrect. Nice try though.
If I find a comment on the internet that says the author of this article is an idiot and then I site that comment when I say she’s an idiot, thus “proving” that she’s an idiot, does that make her an idiot?
eat a fat dick
Funny… My comment was deleted.
That guy got what he deserved, in my opinion. After all, he WAS jaywalking.
Thank you for providing sources.
Pathetic and one sided…. Must be a democrat. So sad that she is a Jayhawk and felt the need to post such a skewd version
#1 Wilson “6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs” is not the same as 6 ft 4 292 lbs. 82 lbs is quite a difference.
#2 Sure he was stopped for jaywalking, but you conveniently dismiss that Wilson saw the cigarillos in Brown’s hands and backed up to keep the suspects busy while his backup arrived.
#3 “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot” Autopsy shows all wounds are from frontal hits. i.e. not running away. None of the wounds are in his back.
#4 “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol” thats not in the source article you point to.
I could go on but this is some of the shoddiest analysis of articles I have ever seen. Perhaps Fox news has a position for her.
These sources don’t seem too reliable.
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs,”
So he was still larger than the Officer just not “significantly”.
“-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
And once stopped, he happened to be holding a bunch of cigars in his hands and matched the description of the person who just robbed a store?
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
And now you’re expecting the police to have perfect aim. They aim for center mass because it’s the center of the body, meaning if they’re off a bit they’ll still hit something.
“-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”
Valid point, I’ll give her that.
“-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.””
Car chargers are a thing.
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.”
I’m pretty sure half of that’s just plain false, given he admits he shot brown, and that there was a struggle for it but didn’t say he’s actually managed to grab it.
“-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
There’s been several accounts which varied a bit from a number of sources. The “identical accounts” didn’t start coming out until this had hit the news and people got organized, more than enough time for people to agree on what to say.
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.””
If the Officer’s already started firing, it’s a bit too late to ask nicely for him to stop. You put your hands up when you’re told to, not after you’ve been shot once already.
“-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
see above
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Again, we know it wasn’t a misfire.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Given the guy in the film is him, this just sounds like a lie.
“-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
…what? No, it’s his job to represent him. He’s supposed to do this stuff.
“-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.””
That’s just going for guilt by association.
Fucken bull shot you are publishing lies.
You are the lowest of the low. Start a riot sure you can do you feel better.
Clearly you haven’t done enough research, especially to one of your points. Clearly you don’t know how hard it is to leave a fingerprint on a gun. The material in which most of the gun is made does not allow for a proper medium to even lift a print. And if by some slight chance, a fingerprint was left, it would have been swiped off due to the struggle over the gun. So…I’d suggest some editing.
There are some fact based problems with your story.
1. Mr. Brown was 298lb and 88 pound difference is significant.
2. Mr. Brown was not stopped, he was asked to use the sidewalk. His response led Mr. Wilson to notice the cigarillos and that he matched the description.
3. Since no autopsy so far has said that he was shot anywhere BUT the front, the fatal shot could not have been while he was running away.
4. Never in any law enforcement protocol (or personal defense for that matter) should anyone “shoot to wound” It implies a unrealistic idea of the capabilities of a firearm and of a person welding a firearm.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-grand-jury-findings/
http://www.pfoa.co.uk/110/shooting-to-wound
The protocol failings after the shooting should be investigated. But trying to debunk rumors and misconceptions with misleading and/or falsehoods doesn’t help. The world would be a little better if the media reported facts or the lack of fact instead of filling the gaps with personal opinions. I am on a personal note happy Mr. Wilson got out of Law Enforcement I don’t believe he had the temperament for the job.
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Wrong. Clearly you haven’t read this. Try reading p281 again, slowly this time. Keep trolling.
I don’t understand, that video take footage was clearly Mike Brown. I don’t think that makes him guiltier of anything than what I did when I was shoplifting at sixteen, but yeah he did steal and yeah, he did push the store-owner. That doesn’t mean his death was justified, because WIlson’s and Brown’s interaction had NOTHING to do with the shoplifting.
To claim it wasn’t him just makes the movement look bad, citing unreliable sources makes this entire post a joke.
I just have to clear some things up that this girl ‘missed’
1. Wilson and Brown may have been the same height but Wilson was 210lb vs Brown being 292lb so he was larger.
2. While pg 208 says they were stopped for jaywalking, it does not say how it also says that Brown refuses to listen saying ‘Fuck what you have to say’ and in that moment Wilson discovered the stolen cigarillos and also noting his friend matched a black shirt description, so at that point they were being stopped for robbery.
3. pg 281 does not say he was shot when fleeing, it says he chased him because you dont let a suspect escape especially when he just assualted uou and could do the same to another, also he couldnt have been shot while fleeing because there were not entry wounds on his backside.
4. She has no proof citing that he broke protocol, her source does not speak of protocol, in fact, Missouri state laws says the use of deadly force is allowed when in a self defense situation, which Wilson was.
5. She used ‘slate.com’ as a reference to say that no one was interviewed, this is false as there were dozens of witnesses interviewed for the case as shown in the official documents, i also dont think slate.com is a reliable source.
6. She saying the examiner lied about her camera died. this is falso for if you continue on pg 95 it says while going to the hospital she contacted a detective to meet her there to take photographs of wilson
7. She says the gun was not fingerprinted, sourcing pg 39 however pg 39 does not say anything about that nor do any surroudning pages
8. She says Wilson had blood on him but pg 38-39 actually tells us how a first responder noted there was no blood on his clothing. Instead there was some on his hand which he was allowed to wash off because blood on skin is not helpful unlike blood on cloth that cant be mixed with other bodily fluids unlike skin.
9. She uses ‘vox.com’ to tell us Wilsons story changes but witnesses did not. vox.com again not a reliable source, also nothing points to this in official documents, in fact it was said that a few witnesses lied on their interviews, only to change their story regarding where shots where fired, after official autopsies were revealed
10./11. Another non reliable source dailykos.com which posted its article august 18, way too soon to be assuming anything, nothing was proven that his arms were up and witnesses changed their stories on the events to match more updated evidence, as said in official transcripts.
12. This is bogus because she is trying to tell us that Wilson told us he misfired the first shot into Brown, which is false, Wilson said in the struggle he pulled the trigger twice without anything, then fired a third shot that went into the vehicles door, not Brown, so she mislead readers on this one
13. Another non reliable post from dailykos.com. Though they may have a video i cant not find any reputable source proving the same, however whatever the distance the shooting was done for the same reason.
14. Again, dailykos.com and again this can not be proven because there isnt reputable sources saying the same. Nor do transcripts state this,
15. Another odd source, an anti republican website that is slandering the prosecutor who said in an interview he does not know who was making the shirts and was not accepting any money. Again, no reputable unbiased sources can prove this to be true either.
16. (Finally a reputable source), She says the the PD was disbanded from racial tensions, that is true, however the articles states “Wilson kept a clean record without any disciplinary action.” So this is irrelevent to the case. ‘He had a rough upbringing and just wanted to help people’ was also said about him. Nothing proves the incident with Brown was because of his previous employment.
This is ridiculous lol. Did you even read the transcript? For one, Officer Wilson states that he left his SUV and chased Brown. Distance from Wilson to Brown when he was fatally shot = 35ft. Distance from Brown to SUV = 148 ft. No matter. If you assault a police officer you are asking to be shot. If you run after assaulting a police office you should be shot as it’s the police’s duty to now prevent the assailant from being a danger to the rest of the population. And if you charge at a police officer you deserve to be shot. He was asking for it. White, black, asian, hispanic…I’d read the article and come to the same conclusion. Dude deserved it.
You’re dumb.
Typical college fool that studies sex. You left out the fact that Mike Brown had already assaulted a police officer and then tried to take his gun. He was not shot until he turned around after he walked away. It is the police officers job to arrest him. Are you an idiot. If you going to go to all the trouble, how about you take tell the whole story not just the parts that fit your narritive. I seriously fear for our future if you are an example of a college graduate.
Johnson’s testimony – the guy who was with MB during all these events – directly contradicts what you have written here. For instance that Mike handed the stolen cigarillos to him while struggling with DW? So do most of the 60 witnesses before the grand jury. Who is paying you? You don’t know what you are talking about.
Not much of a shred.
Thank you for reading and citing these things.
I find it difficult to believe that every National News Outlet missed all of this… as well as the Grand Jury.
One of the claims you make is that, according to Wilson’s testimony, Brown was fleeing when shot. You cite page 281 of Volume 5 of the Grand Jury. 281 is where the detective ends his testimony. According to Darren Wilson’s testimony on page 227 of Volume 5, Michael Brown is shot when charging after attempting to flee, not in the process of fleeing.
Another claim you make is that the distance between the officer and Mike Brown was 148 feet. However, the source claims this to be the distance from the vehicle to the shooting site.
This is literally the worst analysis on the Internet.
Shooting someone in the head is not proof they didn’t aim for the body… are you being serious?
You incorrectly say they weight the same when there was an 80 pound difference?
You are lying about them being 148 feet apart when he was shot. He was 148 feet from the car, not from Wilson.
You are lying when you say the store owner didn’t call the cops or that he claimed it wasn’t MB in the video. straight up lies.
You say he was fleeing but he was shot in the front, and every single eye witness to the grand jury confirmed it he had turned around? You literally contradict this lower in your own article.
Wow. There’s a lot there that doesn’t stand up. 1. You say MB wasn’t stopped because of the store theft. On p. 209, Wilson says he recognizes the cigarillos, and “these are the two from the stealing.” (line 7) Dorian Johnson testified he was very surprised MB stole the cigarillos, because they both had the money to pay for them. I believe the gun was tested for DNA, and MB’s DNA was found on the gun. Apparently the lab can test for either DNA or fingerprints, but not both. 2. The examiner absolutely concluded that MB was shot in the car, at close range http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html 3. I believe it’s generally agreed that the store owner did not call police, a customer did. Dorian acknowledged that it was he and MB at the store, so your comment that MB is not on the video is the most ridiculous of all. Publishing such garbage is hurting, not helping, our country find reconcilation.
Shelby (Ms. Lawson)
I honor and praise your angelic support via your education and expertise as a journalist regarding the Michael Brown demise in August of this year. I too, am an educated investigative journalist who never volunteers input on a subject I am not familiar with which is why social media is not my chosen way for communication.
As a 39 year old black male in the United States, I grew up under the teachings of my parents just as they did under theirs by not recognizing race as a sole problem in America. Trials people experience are due to ignorance and social economics. Social economics, I believe, is the main cause of social divide among United States citizens. There are white people who are profiled just as there are blacks. Maybe not at an equal rate, but is does exist.
The problem with Officer Wilson having made a serious mistake causing his resignation from the Ferguson Police Department was something of again ignorance, horrible decision making and ultimately poor training in the academy where h graduated. I’m not an expert, but I know through simple training that pulling your firearm is always the last line of defense. Officers these days are armed with mace, peppers spray, metal batons, and tazer guns before the firearm is even thought about.
Missouri is not a state that has the same high rate of crime per capita such my where my family is from in Los Angeles, California or any other big city such as Chicago, New York or Houston. These officers are trained and held to higher standards prior to being released to attacking crime among their streets.
Race will always be an excuse for mistreatment in the U.S. It’s the easiest way to claim injustice. For example, Americans will never turn on the television and see European, Aisan or African countries fighting against each other regarding racial descrimination. Im not saying it doesnt exist, but if people would educate themselves first, think second and respond last the outcome would be significantly less.
I remember reading Dr. Suess when I was a kid over 30 years ago about the Sneeches. Some had stars on their bellies and some did not. The ones who had stars were treated better than the ones without. They were the same color, however, were still not treated equal.
These are topics civil rights leaders fought (peacefully) for during Jim Crow and the Civil Rights movement in the 50’s and 60’s. The fight is not longer blacks having rights. Blacks can go to the same school, use the same latrines, eat in the same restaurants and live in the same neighborhoods as whites. The sad point is that the media is the only organization capitalizing on the the ignorance of racial divide. Black on black crime does not get the same attention, neither does white on white crime.
I just thought that I would bring to light a point other than the shooting of Michael Brown. I wanted people to think a minute or two about what the real issue is and not constantly post personal emotions on Facebook, Twitter and other social media outlets
Again, thank you for your personal and professional input on this topic.
Jason Burling
Thank you for that info
If the angle of the wounds on his hands and arms indicate that Brown had his hands up, do you really believe the officer would aim and shoot at his hands? Why would the officer do that? And the shop owner may have said it was not Brown, but it was in fact Brown.
I’m not making a statement on Brown or Wilson, but i’m tired of seeing articles being shared on facebook with cherry-picked misinformation that are borderline propaganda. Without much effort I can already tell you that the NYTimes article you cited contradicts your statement of Brown fleeing while shot. The dailykos.com article you cited also contradicts your statement of Brown not being the one on the security footage. A lot of the articles cited also appear to be from heavily liberal slanted websites that don’t appear to be reliable un-biased sources. In the future please don’t go out of your way to find obscure articles just because they support your argument.
You noted Wisons weight, but not Browns. What was his weight?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-grand-jury-findings/
The person in the store surveillance video was the same build as Michael Brown,wearing exactly the same clothes and was with his friend who testified they had been there. If you read all the testimony, are you saying that you don’t believe that it was Micheal Brown and his friend in that store surveillance video?
This article is terribly written and poorly researched. None of the sources check out, and there are no facts to support your opinions. Several of your sources date back to August and September, and state things that have been proved wrong by recent findings. I hope your school work isn’t this terrible
Reblogged this on Warmchaos.
I was very surprised by how 12 grand jurors got it wrong. The burden of proof is so, SO small in a grand jury that there doesn’t need to be much compelling evidence to recommend taking the case to court. I had to read your “shredded” grand jury testimony for myself to make an impartial, fully informed decision on how I felt. I in no way shape or form condone the actions that day. With that said, I tried to put myself in the situation of the officer being assaulted, chasing a suspect who then turns on me and won’t stop after being shot four times before the final two shots had to be fired. We have to assume Mr Brown was full of adrenaline after assaulting an office, running from the police, and turning back to do what we’ll never know to the officer…its just a terrible, horrible sad situation for everyone.
While I won’t take the time to go through every one of your cherry picking “shredded” evidence I did read the Grand Jury Record on the first three points.
1: Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
Reply – you are correct because he wasn’t STOPPED at that time for jaywalking or being a robbery suspect either at that point. Officer Wilson found it strange they were walking in the middle of the street, stated “why don’t you walk on the sidewalk”. Brown and friend stated they were almost at their destination followed by Brown saying “F what you have to say”. Only then did that get Wilson to take a closer look at Brown getting additional attention drawn to him by his actions. Wilson drove past, realized they were the possible robbery suspects, backed up, then stopped them (pages 209/210).
2: Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony
Reply: Yes, and it was Wilson himself who described why he chased a suspect in a robbery case and now a suspect in an officer assault. Wilson who had called for back up essentially said if Brown was still running the back up officer would go around the apt complex to cut him off, if on the ground he knows he isn’t a threat. I also think there would be no reason to NOT chase the man who just assaulted an officer. It was during that chase that Brown stopped and came back at Wilson. Brown stopped, put his hand under his shirt(imagine the officer having to react to that as a possible gun after being hit by this person), Brown was told multiple times to stop and get on the ground when Wilson fired. 226-230.
3: Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Reply: This fact is correct – he aimed at his head when he was within 8-10 feet, one arm under his waistband, head down (like to tackle or run right through him), if you consider how the body would be curved you would have no shot to take…Mr Brown had multiple opportunities to stop prior to the final shots. If I was the officer, fired for non fatal shots, told the suspect to get down and still had a suspect coming within 8/10 feet of me, I would hate to have to make that terrible decision, but not sure what other choice he had to incapacitate Brown at that point, again after multiple shots and warning to stop and get on the ground.
Again, this is a horrible tragic situation that happened and I really, really wish Brown had stopped and not run…I know he was young and it was just a terrible decision that ended extremely tragic. My points aren’t about the case, but more about raising awareness to you, as a future journalist, to not flame the situation with cherry picked information and not sharing the entire story. Sadly most people won’t do the leg work to read the Grand Jury testimony themselves, but I appreciate it being linked so I could see how inaccurate your “shredded” claim really was. As a future professional journalist, please, please act with more integrity in the future, try to report both sides of a story and not be slanted by personal bias. I promise as an informed reader to evaluate both sides presented to my as impartially as possible to make an informed decision on the entire story as you present to me.
You forgot to mention that they found Browns DNA on Wilsons gear and uniform which verifies that there was an altercation after he was initially shot
Good job….I am sure you probably have been told this….but you have a bright future ahead of you.
You know why there’s only one comment? Because this blog moderates any comments that disagree with the article.
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso”
Have you ever shot a firearm? Let alone in a position of a life or death situation? Police officers are trained to hit centre mass, that doesn’t mean every shot is going to hit centre mass. Police shoot to kill, that means firing as many shots as neccessary, you don’t ease up because you don’t know when the target is dead, or if your shots even hit the target.
The rest of this article complete garbage. Sources like “thevox.com” and “thedailykos” are such obviously falsified sources with extremely biased agendas, it quite honestly speak volumes on how poorly educated the author is. Take a 1st year level history class to learn how to gather information and cite sources.
WOW!! even i could tear ur so call findings apart!! total BS!
Oy vey! This unequivocally proves those Jew-hating white supremacists killed that little innocent negro boy! The Jewish community stands with people of color in their fight against the oppressive white racism! Never forget the 22 million who perished in the holocaust!
Shalom.
misinformation and lies, is this what you are trying to get a Diploma for? If anything you should make a good politician.
Lady you better do some more checking on your facts. Proof has been made that Mike Brown was not shot in the back. He was also quite a bit larger than the police officer. Try again sweetie & join the people who want the TRUTH to come forward. Not garbage.
So much misinformation and inaccuracy in one post. Your parents tuition money has been well spent.
Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies………..of course
While I appreciate the effort put into this, there is one glaring problem with it that even the smallest amount of research or technical knowledge could have avoided:
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
If the gun misfired, it didn’t go off. If it didn’t go off, there would be no residue. This is quite obvious. The lack of residue would do nothing to refute Wilson’s testimony that Brown caused the weapon to misfire. This inaccurate comment proves that the writer has zero knowledge of law enforcement tactics and techniques save what she’s read on the internet. It also overshadows the rest of the article and casts doubt on the accuracy, source material, and interpretation of the “facts.”. The bottom line is that the 12 grand jury members had access to more information than the writer of this article. They spent more time and energy analyzing the information than the writer, and the majority of them came to the same painstaking decision that ignited riots and violence. It would have been easier for them to indict and be done, but the facts they saw did not support such a conclusion. To imply that her meager amount of research holds more weight than the decision of the grand jury is arrogant and purposeless.
You are going to make an amazing journalist if you never look for the actual truth, base everything you publish without actually going to the source, and not looking at all the facts. You are basing everything you said off of what was posted by news outlets, rather than actually reading the official transcripts from each interview conducted. By saying that the media reported everything factual is in itself a flagrant disregard to find the truth. The media constantly omits and rearranges statements to present the story how he or she wants to portray it. Secondly, do you know what a misfire is? A misfire is when the bullet FAILS to fire, meaning the primer did NOT ignite the powder causing a bullet to fire. Since you like to source stuff, Merriam-Webster defines misfire as “to fail to fire properly : to fail to shoot a bullet”. Since no powder was ignited, and no bullet was shot, no trace evidence of gunpowder would be found on Mike Brown. Please don’t be like the rest of the majority of journalist in the world and do a half-assed job at reporting something. I have a feeling, from what I have read, that you are not going to be one of those. As a result of people like you, journalists have ZERO respect in the world.
Better to be thought to be an idiot than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt.
I am confused. Her sources are other biased newspapers? Wow. Not very academic, in my opinion. I think she should shred her own paper. The exact reason why the test of how reasonable an officers actions were is tested by what another reasonable officer would do and not by people who have no training and no idea what cops do think. The fact of the matter is the two were the same height but Brown was 80lbs heavier and reportedly much stronger than Wilson. For those who think 80lbs is not significant you are wrong. If he had just moved out of the middle of the street instead of causing the confrontation, he would still be here. Attacking an officer that is seat belted and sitting in his car causes a major disadvantage for the officer. Try it sometime. Then he gets punched in the face and Brown reaches in and tries to grab his gun. Shots are fired and Brown tries to leave. Now he is not being arrested for robbery or jay walking but aggravated battery/assault on a law enforcement officer. The officer has NO duty to retreat. The Supreme Court is clear on this topic. If Brown is violent enough to try to take an officers gun, then was the general public in danger? A logical conclusion. Through GJ testimony it was shown that Brown charged at Wilson. Wilson knew he had just gotten his ass kicked and Brown was shot but he was still charging. If Brown took his gun away what would happen to Wilson? Would he take the gun and yell at Wilson and then hand him the gun back? I doubt it. Wilson did what he had to do in that split second to survive. Most people don’t understand this because the only confrontation they have ever had is on the Internet. Did he aim for Browns head? Highly unlikely. Under stress it is very difficult to have such precision accuracy on a moving target. He fired until Brown stopped. Is this death tragic? I would say it is. Death always is. Are there bad cops out there who discriminate based on race? Yes, but they are in the minority and departments do the best they can to weed them out. Being a police officer is one of the toughest jobs out there. Nobody likes you. You do your job and risk your life everyday and nobody respects your authority. You tell somebody to move along and they tell you to F$&@ off. When I was a kid, I would never dream of talking back to an officer, let alone try and punch one. America has lost religion, and values. People just don’t care anymore. Can there be a relationship with police and the community? I think there can be. Will people who break the law ever like the police? Not a chance. So there needs to be work done on both sides. People in the community need to understand real life is not like TV. The police need to spend some time listening to what is wrong. Community leaders need to lead, not cause more problems for everyone. Maybe some day it will happen but I don’t see it happening in the next 10 yrs. until then report the facts, not made up lies and rumors.
You can pull any content from a testimony and turn it anyway you want, but the forensic evidence shows Officer Wilson was telling the truth when he described what happened. Your lack of professionalism insults all journalist around the world. Please stay in Lawrence, Kansas and only do farm reports, so we can be spared your horrific and unfounded opinions.
This is a pathetic article written by someone with an agenda and no journalistic skill. Don’t investigate, just pick and choose your “facts”.
I dont think you know much about real world violence , i do think your an idealist . The problem is easy Browns parents failed him and he never learned how to behave properly. Its
Is this a serious article? You think Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown in the head, multiple times, with a pistol – at 50 yards? That’s ridiculous to the point of absurdity.
I disagree and refute quite a few of your “sources”. Using blogs or completely bias liberal media websites has helped you paint a certain picture. If you had used other articles from websites such as Forbes, Time, and the BBC, you can come up with evidence to counter most of the claims you’ve posted here. Blogs and MSNBC are certainly not credible sources.
Sorry but the only thing Lawson has “shredded” are the facts –
He also out weighed Officer Wilson by almost 100 lbs., The testimony recorded in the transcript as well as the police dispatchers call in log report that Officer Wilson requested immediate back-up as he saw the possibility that he had the two men who fit the description of the reported strong arm robbers of a convenience store.
Brown did initially try to flee the scene after first having fought with the officer by trapping him in his own cruiser and then began to pummel him while attempting to get the officers gun. The officer only started firing again when Brown began to approach him in a threatening manner and he never shot the fleeing brown in the back as the forensic evidence clearly showed
I’m well past bored with trying to respond to those who are being willfully ignorant of the entirety of the evidence and the testimony as they pursue their mission to find fault with the officer. They pick and chose the testimony, even that which was subsequently shown to be false by subsequent testimony and twist the physical evidence to meet their viewpoint even when those expert in such things found it to reveal something quite different.
It’s a waste of my time as people like this woman aren’t interested in truth or justice but rather to be seen as politically correct with a certain segment of the population. Where are they when a black policeman shoots an unarmed white teenager. Where is this young woman when some old man or old lady is knocked to their knees or worse by a black male out tp prove his worthiness to be a gang member?
The answer? No where to be seen or heard.
Sorry but the only things Lawson has “shredded” are the facts. This is a very shoddy piece of journalism – from simple inaccuracies (Brown weighed 290 pounds, not 210 like the cop) , to completely misrepresenting things – read the source for her claim it was not Brown on the video clip robbing the convenience store – she has completely misrepresented the testimony – no one claimed it was NOT him on the tape) to Lawson’s disturbingly dishonest claim the DA presenting the case to the grand jury has raised $600,000 for Wilson – again, Lawson has completely misrepresented or misunderstood her “source”). Her selective quoting of witnesses ignores abundant testimony contradicting the “hands up” story and the claim Brown was shot in the back, which the autopsy report completely undercut. I am no fan of Wilson but Lawson has a lot to learn about journalism.
Incredible analysis for the laymen who couldn’t be bothered to read the full case. This clears alot of discrepancies amongst Wilson supporters and other naysayers.
Example: according to the officers interview, it would be more accurate to differentiate between the first contact, then a secondary attempt to detain Brown and Johnson. The reason for the contact want necessarily the talk for attempting to detain them. Which do you mean when you say ‘stop’ them?
Correction “want necessarily the talk” should be “wasn’t necessarily the same”… Autocorrect doesn’t always help.
But none of what you said is true!
Looks like you have a bunch of BS here. Lack of gunshot Residue does not indicate a misfire did not happen. This type weapon normally will not fire if the slide is pushed rearward putting it “out of battery” meaning it is not in a position to fire for safety reasons. Wilson must be a hell of a great shot if he can get two head shot hits from 148 ft.
More Liberal BS
Interesting story to say the least, however it seems rather bias. I understand a lot of people have strong feelings and want to be heard, but it is imperative that a mutual understanding of what facts there are and what are opinion based statements. To begin with, all statements, testimonies, and interviews of witnesses and such should be disregarded as they don’t all coincide and some won’t be accepted as fact based on opinions. That aside, take a look at the evidence you provided and re-examine the statements you have made as I have found many to be incorrect or unlikely to be true based on facts. To start, the size difference, you say Darren Wilson was not smaller than Mike Brown? The article with the autopsy report disagrees, weighing Mike Brown in over 80 lbs heavier. I’m sure that doesn’t seem like much to… oh wait, nevermind, that is a lot. Weight classes in fighting vary by 10 lbs, so Mike Brown clearly had an advantage when it comes to size. If you wish to argue height, remember Darren Wilson was seated inside his cruiser so his height didn’t matter. Nextly, I’d like to point out that Mike Brown was walking in the middle of the road, and the officer had every right to stop him for jaywalking. Mike Brown was fleeing when he was shot? In what direction would one face when leaving? Normally I walk in a foward manner to avoid tripping so I can see where I go. Mike Brown was only shot in the front, which means he was facing the officer who was pointing his gun at him. Officer Wilson broke self defense protocol? I believe officers are suppose to use a higher force than what is recieved and seeing as he was puched in the head which could incapacitated the officer allowing the perpetrator to conduct heinous acts such as take the officers firearm and vehicle, kill the officer, and then continue to use the firearm and vehicle on other victims. As an escalated use of force to protect himself and others from harm, Officer Wilson was authorized to use deadly force to stop the threat he was presented. Mike Brown had the capability to knock Officer Wilson out, he had the intent to as he was doing so, and he had the opportunity to do so when he reached into the cruiser. That completes the triangle of deadly force, which means Officer Wilson was right in using his sidearm for defense. You say Officer Wilson wasn’t trying to disarm Mike Brown? Mike Brown was “armed” with his arms, and since he was reaching with his right arm and most people are right handed, he was shot in his right arm. Officer Wilson probably shouldn’t have shot Mike Brown after the initial incident, however it is hard to prove intent after the initial fight other than Officer Wilson had used his gun already and would be likely to do so again due to Mike Brown’s violent acts. I won’t debate whether or not there are bad cops out there because that isn’t what this is about, this is already deliberated upon by a prechosen Grand Jury and the prosecuting attorney helping raising money for Darren Wilson didn’t matter since he left the decisions to the Grand Jury. I believe the police need to be better trained to handle situations, better trained at shooting or armed with tasers or other non lethal weapons. I don’t believe Mike Brown should’ve died and what happened was wrong, but looking at the facts, there isn’t much that can be said to put the blame entirely on Officer Wilson. Police don’t get trained as well as people would like to think, they don’t spend all day shooting at targets, doing drills, and practising being a cop. They are out there on the beat, trying there best to keep the peace and now there are riots, violence, murder, vandalism, threats, weapons, and theft. All for what end? Do we really wish for a world without police? Descrimination or not, who punches a police officer? Who attacks someone in their car and think that’s ok? Are we not civilized people, with ways to express ourselves other than violence? Violence begets violence, and if change is what you seek, a war against humanity isn’t the answer. I understand the world isn’t perfect, but rationality is the only way we can make it better. I shouldn’t be afraid to go to work, go to the store, or go home without being attacked or finding the place destroyed. I weep for the land that was once known for it’s freedom and democracy, the place that was known to change the world. “Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster… for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche
Though it may not be so for this jurisdiction, some use both film and digital images, as only film images are acceptable in court as evidence. Another article added that the examiner accompanied an investigator with a camera to record images of the scene. Is it relavent that some anomaly occurred without an explanation of why it matters? Could the examiner have gotten more batteries, another camera, or obtained film instead of digital images between locations?
This is just hot garbage. The grand jury has made a decision already and half of Ferguson has burned as a result, not to mention a few “youths” beat a man to death with a hammer “fo justice.” Please stop trying to cling to this case as it is already over, how about you seek justice for the shop owners who’s business were destroyed “fo justice.” Seek justice for the Bosnian man who was killed by protesters screaming kill whitey.
Your article, while interesting, in filled with inaccuracies. One of which is what is taught in regards to self defense for law enforcement. Also is the autopsy which you claim says he had to have his hands up, complete lie. You merely posted what a third party said about the autopsy, so complete BS. Browns blood was found INSIDE the police unit, how did that happen without him being close to the officer? Also you are the only person on EARTH claiming that Brown wasn’t the one who committed the robbery. Also you lied about anyone claiming that Brown was 35 feet from Wilson at the time of the shooting. The original claim was 35 feet from the SUV. I suggest you learn a little more about journalism before you graduate.
Good reading, if all are real facts
she needs to see a doctor her mind is warpted
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.-
This is in error; there’s a difference between ‘how far from the SUV and how far from Wilson’ he was. It’s not the car that was at risk. And he was shot in the head as he went down, which is what finally stopped him. After the point where he reached into the car and tried to wrestle the gun away from a police officer (undisputed with gun residue on Brown’s hand and his blood in the car), turned and ran but then turned back again and approached without getting down on the ground, he was a continued threat. His demeanor was probably exactly what we see in the store video, which isn’t exactly nonthreatening.
Amazing job Shelby!!!! We need the current media to actually DO the work that you have done and broadcast THAT!!!!!!!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/12/01/witness-10-proves-darren-wilson-had-a-reasonable-belief-he-needed-to-shoot/
Read that for more info
Which of Wilson’s accounts have changed? One article noted that he had not mentioned facts on an initial conversation, which he later did. But why? Was he simply not asked in the first conversation?
Which witnesses had the same testimony but not interviewed by police? Did they testify to the game jury? Are they any of those witnesses whose testimony also changed, or was contradicted by physical evidence? How many more witnesses corroborated the officers account? How many of them were found later by the FBI, instead of the local police first on the scene?
Wilson only admits to chasing after Brown on page 281. There is no mention of shots fired on that page. Also, all the autopsies proved that there was no bullets that entered from his back, meaning he was not shot while running away. I stopped looking at your sources after this point, because if you made such a brazen lie with that point, it is likely that you manipulated evidence to support your other points.
For example, the autopsies show that the bullets that entered his arms proved his arms were open. They DID NOT, however, prove that he was surrendering. He could have had his arms out for any number of reasons, including the “he charged like a football player” line mentioned in the journal of Witness 40.
I’d say your not cut out to be a journalist if you somehow read “I shot him while he was running away” from,
Wilson: “… was Michael Brown a threat while he was running away. People asked why would you chase him if he was running away…”
Was then asked: “Along those lines, you feel like as a police officer it is your obligation to follow that suspect?”
Wilson: “Yes sir.”
The unfortunate thing is, your distorted view of the evidence fits right in with how journalism is nowadays. So you’ll probably do great in the business.
>majoring in Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Stopped reading there.
I would give this an F but would allow you to complete an extra credit assignment on the meaning of conformation bias, another on white guilt, and yet a third on journalistic integrity, which, if all completed satisfactorily would bring your grade up to a D.
Excellent writing and not frilled up but straight facts that make good reading. I work for a newspaper in Minnesota and would be delighted to have her on my staff.
Not that I believe any of this it goes against all the forensic and physical evidence, but to say he didn’t rob the convienance store makes this whole thing garbage, there is a video everyone has seen it. What a BS reporting job.
I see a lot of either incorrect information or completely biased sources. In order to “shred” the case against Mike Brown you will have to use actual facts which are in there nature unbiased.First, Mike Brown was 6’4” 294 lbs. while officer Wilson was 6’4” 210 pounds. I don’t think you understand how big of a difference 84 lbs. actually is. Second, there actually WAS evidence consistent with gunpowder residue on Brown’s thumb and the medical examiner says that in every interview. Third, if you actually read the entire statement with the autopsy the wounds are consistent with the story of Brown charging officer Wilson, this is also stated in the medical examiners interview. It is also noted that it is virtually impossible to determine what position Brown’s arms were in due the the amount of joints in the arm. Fourth, Mike Brown was shot 148 feet away from officer Wilson’s vehicle not officer Wilson himself. When you spread misinformation to appeal to the crowd you make the tragedy worse than it already is.
Most of your sources are other media reports. If I had a quarter for everytime the media misreported something I would be very rich. I have read so many conflicting media reports on this case alone that I would call it anything but research and reliable sources.
This… entire dissection of the case is extraordinarily biased. I really hope you reconsider becoming a reporter if you can not separate personal feelings from what you are telling people. You should be reporting, not trying to convince someone of one thing versus the other. Tell people the facts on all sides, let them decide for themselves.
Your “sources” cannot be other news outlet articles. That makes for inefficient and unreliable journalism.
Alright y’all. I’d like to clear a few things up. This is a general address to the long list of misconceptions and inconsistencies presented above in the case of the killing of Mike Brown. I haven’t really researched these points, but a journalism undergrad did provide some links to a grand jury testimony and a few news websites, and I think that’s probably good enough.
I’m going to put my conclusion here, since I doubt anyone is going to bother reading the whole thing: Maybe a college undergrad isn’t the best person to try a case, especially since the only evidence available to them is the evidence publicly released by the police department she is condemning for malpractice, incompetence, and racism. There’s no doubt in my mind that this case was handled poorly. I have no doubt that someone could have done it better. Treating this like an episode of CSI, and trying to uncover the “truth of what happened” before the 44 minute show ends does nothing for Wilson, Brown, Ferguson, or anyone else.
Point:
The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
Response:
What’s important to remember is that being hit by someone the same size as you means it doesn’t hurt. You can only be injured by someone taller than you. That’s why Yao Ming got into wrestling, and not basketball.
Point:
Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Response:
What wasn’t reported is that Mike Brown also has the unique ability to run in one direction, while facing another. As the evidence proves, all gunshot injuries were to the front of Brown’s body. This is explained by Brown’s aforementioned ability.
Point:
Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Response:
The gunshot injuries to his arm and torso (also known as “the part of the body that would be disarmed” and “the body”, respectively) clearly came after the two head wounds. Science has proven that once being shot in the head, it is still easy for you to continue running. Or are you suggesting that Wilson shot Brown in the head, and then stood over his body, and fired several shots into his torso and hands, which was not suggested by any of the evidence provided.
Point:
Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Response:
Alternate wording of the above text? Mike Brown’s death was investigated after he was killed, and not during the events that led to his death. As is standard for literally every crime.
Point:
The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
Response:
The forensic examiner didn’t take crime scene photos? No, fair enough. They messed that one up. By crime scene photos, you of course mean “autopsy photos”, though, since that is what she says happens, and she is the one in charge of autopsies, not crime scenes. But that’s neither here nor there, I suppose.
Point:
Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
Response:
Jeez, they really messed up on that one, again. I’m going to assume they did take fingerprints, and they were just never entered into evidence. I’ll need a source confirming there were no fingerprints to allow this point.
Point:
Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.
Response:
The shots that were fired from between 35 feet, and 138 feet, depending on which official source we’re reading. A troubling distance we’ll get into later. I don’t know much about fluid dynamics, but I don’t suppose that blood has a tendency to jump 38 feet through the air, and still produce splatter patterns worth investigating. Maybe we can call Dexter to get his take on it.
Point:
While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
Response:
One highly trained officer recalled more, or forgot to include, aspects of his testimony over the span of the investigation, but four total strangers have identical stories that haven’t changed at all? I mean, jeez, have you ever read a crime novel? They were clearly coached. Or maybe not. I dunno. But I don’t know the 4 strangers with identical accounts to which you are referring, so I guess it’d be foolish to pass judgement without sufficient evidence.
Point:
These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
Response:
Literally none of the above cited reports include the the quote “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” I suppose learning how to use quotes is a master’s level course in journalism. Ok, that was an ad hominem attack and it’s really ruining what I’ve got going here. I apologize for that one. But my point stands: who said the quote you are attributing to several people? I can’t find a source for anyone saying that.
Point:
This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
Response:
So Brown was running away, 138 feet from Wilson, facing Wilson, shouting “I don’t have a gun, stop shooting”, with his hands in the air. Gotcha. Oh, and this is confirmed by the evidence we were going to ignore earlier because it wasn’t done by police protocol. Can’t have your cake and eat it too. Pick one.
Point:
Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
Response:
No trace of Gun Shot Residue (GSR, if you want to sound all cool, like you’re in the know) around the bullet wounds, or the hands? Did they test the hands? Do you have those results? Can you cite in the press conference when, exactly, the medical examiner made this exact claim?
Point:
Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
Response:
When did they claim it was 35 feet? When did they claim it was 148 feet? Why are you assuming this is a lie, and not the much more likely case, which is that someone is bad at estimating distance, and some time later someone else grabbed a yardstick? Never attribute to malice what can be equally attributed to incompetence.
Point:
Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
Response:
Not being involved in an earlier crime doesn’t really factor into the whole “Did Wilson and Brown get into a fight where Wilson feared for his life?” business. That isn’t what’s on trial here, so I think we can just ignore this all together (unless you just wanted to clear that up, in which case super, glad that’s done).
Point:
The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
Response:
Yep. Fair enough. Someone can’t possibly separate private from professional life. (No, but seriously, you’re right and they shouldn’t have been involved.)
Point:
The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Response:
That article says that Wilson had a clean record, with no disciplinary action ever taken. I guess we should ignore that, given the mountain of evidence before us, though.
Alright y’all. I’d like to clear a few things up. This is a general address to the long list of misconceptions and inconsistencies presented above in the case of the killing of Mike Brown. I haven’t really researched these points, but a journalism undergrad did provide some links to a grand jury testimony and a few news websites, and I think that’s probably good enough.
I’m going to put my conclusion here, since I doubt anyone is going to bother reading the whole thing: Maybe a college undergrad isn’t the best person to try a case, especially since the only evidence available to them is the evidence publicly released by the police department she is condemning for malpractice, incompetence, and racism. There’s no doubt in my mind that this case was handled poorly. I have no doubt that someone could have done it better. Treating this like an episode of CSI, and trying to uncover the “truth of what happened” before the 44 minute show ends does nothing for Wilson, Brown, Ferguson, or anyone else.
Point:
The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
Response:
What’s important to remember is that being hit by someone the same size as you means it doesn’t hurt. You can only be injured by someone taller than you. That’s why Yao Ming got into wrestling, and not basketball.
Point:
Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Response:
What wasn’t reported is that Mike Brown also has the unique ability to run in one direction, while facing another. As the evidence proves, all gunshot injuries were to the front of Brown’s body. This is explained by Brown’s aforementioned ability.
Point:
Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Response:
The gunshot injuries to his arm and torso (also known as “the part of the body that would be disarmed” and “the body”, respectively) clearly came after the two head wounds. Science has proven that once being shot in the head, it is still easy for you to continue running. Or are you suggesting that Wilson shot Brown in the head, and then stood over his body, and fired several shots into his torso and hands, which was not suggested by any of the evidence provided.
Point:
Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Response:
Alternate wording of the above text? Mike Brown’s death was investigated after he was killed, and not during the events that led to his death. As is standard for literally every crime.
Point:
The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
Response:
The forensic examiner didn’t take crime scene photos? No, fair enough. They messed that one up. By crime scene photos, you of course mean “autopsy photos”, though, since that is what she says happens, and she is the one in charge of autopsies, not crime scenes. But that’s neither here nor there, I suppose.
Point:
Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
Response:
Jeez, they really messed up on that one, again. I’m going to assume they did take fingerprints, and they were just never entered into evidence. I’ll need a source confirming there were no fingerprints to allow this point.
Point:
Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.
Response:
The shots that were fired from between 35 feet, and 138 feet, depending on which official source we’re reading. A troubling distance we’ll get into later. I don’t know much about fluid dynamics, but I don’t suppose that blood has a tendency to jump 38 feet through the air, and still produce splatter patterns worth investigating. Maybe we can call Dexter to get his take on it.
Point:
While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
Response:
One highly trained officer recalled more, or forgot to include, aspects of his testimony over the span of the investigation, but four total strangers have identical stories that haven’t changed at all? I mean, jeez, have you ever read a crime novel? They were clearly coached. Or maybe not. I dunno. But I don’t know the 4 strangers with identical accounts to which you are referring, so I guess it’d be foolish to pass judgement without sufficient evidence.
Point:
These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
Response:
Literally none of the above cited reports include the the quote “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” I suppose learning how to use quotes is a master’s level course in journalism. Ok, that was an ad hominem attack and it’s really ruining what I’ve got going here. I apologize for that one. But my point stands: who said the quote you are attributing to several people? I can’t find a source for anyone saying that.
Point:
This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
Response:
So Brown was running away, 138 feet from Wilson, facing Wilson, shouting “I don’t have a gun, stop shooting”, with his hands in the air. Gotcha. Oh, and this is confirmed by the evidence we were going to ignore earlier because it wasn’t done by police protocol. Can’t have your cake and eat it too. Pick one.
Point:
Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
Response:
No trace of Gun Shot Residue (GSR, if you want to sound all cool, like you’re in the know) around the bullet wounds, or the hands? Did they test the hands? Do you have those results? Can you cite in the press conference when, exactly, the medical examiner made this exact claim?
Point:
Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
Response:
When did they claim it was 35 feet? When did they claim it was 148 feet? Why are you assuming this is a lie, and not the much more likely case, which is that someone is bad at estimating distance, and some time later someone else grabbed a yardstick? Never attribute to malice what can be equally attributed to incompetence.
Point:
Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
Response:
Not being involved in an earlier crime doesn’t really factor into the whole “Did Wilson and Brown get into a fight where Wilson feared for his life?” business. That isn’t what’s on trial here, so I think we can just ignore this all together (unless you just wanted to clear that up, in which case super, glad that’s done).
Point:
The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
Response:
Yep. Fair enough. Someone can’t possibly separate private from professional life. (No, but seriously, you’re right and they shouldn’t have been involved.)
Point:
The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Response:
That article says that Wilson had a clean record, with no disciplinary action ever taken. I guess we should ignore that, given the mountain of evidence before us, though.
Over generalizing and re-writing information from a number of these sources such as source number 9 and source number 10. Can you find some sources that ACTUALLY say these things and can prove them without a doubt? If you cannot, then do not post as if they ARE set in stone, its misleading.
Police officers are never trained to take body shots. They are trained to shoot the torso and if that is not effective alternate shots between the head and pelvis area. Shooting to wound is never taught nor advised for a plethora of reasons.
It seems quite concise.
Police officers are never trained to take body shots. They are trained to shoot the torso and if that is not effective alternate shots between the head and pelvis area. Shooting to wound is never taught nor advised for a plethora of reasons.
Your third to last claim is dubious. I’m not a journalism major, but “Americans Against the Tea Party” doesn’t strike me as a strong source. http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
I’m going through her points and looking at her sources and they are really, really problematic. Sometimes one of her points disagrees with another one of her points, sometimes they disagree with the source they reference. There was evidence of a struggle for the gun at the car, the struggle at the car was acknowledged by everyone, there was agreement (from her own source) that the first four shots were to the arms just like she argues they should have been (showing in my mind that he WAS following the protocol she indicates), he was killed 148 feet away from the car, but 35 feet from the officer, as they had both traveled in a foot chase, (he wasn’t shot from a football field away) and each of those things is from her cited sources. Her ‘coroner’ isn’t the coroner, it was the doctor who performed the private autopsy and didn’t have everything the coroner did, clothing, original swabs from the hands. The store owner didn’t call the police, a customer did, but since nobody every actually CLAIMED the store owner called the police, I’m just not sure what in heck she’s arguing about on that one. In short, if this girl were in my corner, I’d count on getting the chair. She does not appear to have even halfway kept up with the case, but is simply presenting arguments against fictional claims and supporting arguments for the things that were accepted. Oh, and 210 pounds is not the same size as 285, the kid actually was 30% larger by weight. Don’t they teach math at KU?
dirty hippy
either way it does not excuse what the people in ferguson are doing and across the nation. If you want to get your point across do it peacefully. This is not a race issue it is an issue of how the people in our society think. And unfortunately they think racially.
6 foot 4 210….same as 6 foot 4 292. Stopped reading right then. Guess this j school student couldent get into MU
please get this article out to the media somehow!!!!
Whatever…he was shot in the top of the head because he slumped over after being shot in the body.
I don’t have a lot of love for the police but people need to pick another guy too prove a cause other than this thug.
I pray you don’t come to TEXAS with the way you assume stuff based on what you think you read. You’re not as clever as you think.
in the source posted about the owner of the market not calling 911 it doesn’t say that Mike Brown had nothing to do with the shoplifting. It says the shooting had nothing to do with the shoplifting. Basically it says that yes, Mike Brown stole the cigars, but that is not the reason he was shot. You are a little misleading on that point.
My question is : “What do you think happened inside the police car ?” The journalist’s case is silent on that.
It also cherry-picks things like what three witnesses say. Yes, three witnesses say he was trying to surrender. Three said Michael Brown was charging. 2 witnesses say he was running away and was shot in the back. Still, three others say he was moving toward the officer and they were unsure what he was doing. You can’t pick the witnesses you like and leave out the others.
So, what do you think happened inside the police officer’s car ? I don’t know, but the coroner in fact says there was gun residue on Michael Brown’s hand.
And, 148 feet ? That seems like a precise measurement.
What happened that day ? None of us know for sure. But we do know this analysis is cherry-picking.
Can’t get anymore cut and dry than THAT !!! Of course, the police will just explain this one away, too. Or just go get some army tanks and assault rifles and threaten us to shut up, or else . . .
I hope you can use this for future job prospects because with reporting like this you can surely get a job with MSNBC. If you want to be a real journalist, you should learn to be objective and not selectively pick “sources” that only agree with your point of view. That’s called blogging, not journalism.
The first three claims this student makes are all false and blatant misrepresentations of the truth. I would debunk more of them but I think debunking the first couple should prove that this article was biased and looking to assign blame from the start.
First, Ms. Lawson begins by leading with a point that she admittedly has to retract: Mike Brown and Officer Wilson are the same size, and Brown was not significantly larger than Wilson. Brown is 37% larger than Wilson, with Wilson weighing in at 210 and Brown weighing in 289 pounds at his autopsy (http://qz.com/…/see-for-yourself-this-is-the-evidence…/ see “medical examiner’s report”) I would say that that is a sizeable difference, but honestly not important to the case.
Secondly, Lawson writes “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.” Now this is closest thing to a true statement that Lawson has made, yet she willingly omits the important context of the statement: that these two men were walking in the middle of the road and forcing cars to go around them, which I think most would argue is a good reason for a police officer to suggest that these men get on the sidewalk. Then one of the two men said “Fuck what you have to say” and they continue to walk in the middle of the road. At this point Officer Wilson attempts to get out of his vehicle to confront the men and the rest of the situation unfolds. I would say yet again that this isn’t important to the shooting, but the claim that the men “were stopped for jaywalking” is slightly different from the reality that they were walking in the middle of the road obstructing traffic, and refused to move to the sidewalk when directed to by a police officer, after which the confrontation took place.
Third: “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” I felt that this was the most important claim made in this article, and also the most unsubstantiated and inflammatory. The evidence in favor of Mike Brown still being in the process of attempting to assault Officer Wilson is insurmountable. First, let’s go check the source that Ms. Lawson claims to have. On page 281 of Officer Wilson’s testimony what you will find is not at all what Lawson claims you will. Instead of Officer Wilson admitting to shooting a fleeing suspect, you see him justifying why he would chase a suspect who is fleeing the scene of a crime. This has never been called into question: Police Officers have a right, and a duty, to capture fleeing suspects who are a danger to the community, or themselves. There is no mention of shooting on this page. However where Officer Wilson does mention the shooting (pages 33 and 34), he does not mince words:
“So when he (Brown) stopped, I stopped. And then he starts to turn around, I tell him to get on the ground, get on the ground. He turns, and when he looked at me, he made like a grunting, like aggravated sound and he starts, he turns and he’s coming back towards me. His first step is coming towards me, he kind of does like a stutter step to start running. When he does that, his left hand goes in a fist and goes to his side, his right one goes under his shirt in his waistband and he starts running at me… when he gets about that 8 to 10 feet away, I look down, I remember looking at my sites and firing, all I see is his head and that’s what I shot.”
This should make it clear that Wilson does not think that he shot a fleeing suspect. In fact it is clear that Brown was facing Wilson at the time he was shot. The autopsy, both the official and that conducted by the Brown’s doctor agree on this point: “One of the bullets entered the top of Mr. Brown’s skull, suggesting his head was bent forward when it struck him and caused a fatal injury … Mr. Brown, 18, was also shot four times in the right arm, he said, adding that all the bullets were fired into his front.” (From the Brown family’s examiner) “This one here looks like his head was bent downward. It can be because he’s giving up, or because he’s charging forward at the officer.” Only one of those two options is possible, when taking into account witness testimony: Brown was “charging forward.” This is justification for Officer Wilson to protect himself with deadly force.
Lastly “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.” The source provided for this claim doesn’t support this claim at all, continuing the trend of Ms. Lawson deliberately misrepresenting facts and relying on her audience’s bias to let it go unnoticed. Search the article listed as a source yourself if you don’t believe me, but not one of the words “body shot” “disarm” “incapacitate” is in the article, and no mention is given of protocol or self defense.
Believe what you want about this case, but it is not the rallying cry the movement against the police state needs. As someone who strongly disagrees with the War on Drugs and the militarization of the police I beg you to make a different case your rallying cry. Eric Garner, a black man choked out and killed by the NYPD, would probably be a better case-study for abuse of power and over-zealous use of force. Aiyana Stanley-Jones is the most obvious case, and I was amazed by the lack of protests. This 7-year-old girl was shot in the head and killed by a SRT team member in Detroit during a no-knock raid ON THE WRONG FUCKING HOUSE. Where were the riots then? President Obama can’t condemn the murder of a sleeping child directly caused by militarized policing, yet a man who had just robbed a store, assaulted the owner of that store, then resisted arrest and assaulted a police officer is shot and killed and now it’s time for the executive branch to hop on their high horse and preach about “accountability” and “responsible policing.” That’s fucked. This whole situation is fucked. But quoting terribly researched, poorly written, and misguided articles written by a student at Kansas is not going to help the cause of demilitarizing our police and ensuring rights for all Americans regardless of skin color. How about you write your congressman (https://himes.house.gov/contact-me/email-me) or either of your senators (https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/contact/ or http://www.murphy.senate.gov/contact) and tell them how outraged you feel as a constituent of theirs that the police aren’t held accountable and are given enormous latitude to enforce the law. Tell them how infuriated it makes you feel that the mandatory sentencing guidelines that the war on drugs gave us has saddled us with a justice system where more than 1% of Americans is currently incarcerated, and more than 3% of the population is “in the system.” Tell them how unjust it is that our addiction to incarceration has caused our prison system to be stuffed to the brim with prisoners, 53% of whom are non-violent. How about we as a generation of Americans who live in fear of police get together and vote in officials who will put an end to the privatization of prisons, no-knock raids, and the criminalization of drug users. It’s obvious that the militarization of our police force is bad for America, so go out and protest that. But for the good of your argument, and society, don’t use the death of Mike brown as the centerpiece of your argument, and don’t implore others to “burn this bitch down.”
Mike Brown was served justice the day he died.
Mike Brown was 6’5″ & 289 lbs. He was taller and weighed 79 more pounds than Wilson.
He actually does NOT confirm that Michael Brown was fatally shot while fleeing on p. 281. All he says is that Michael Brown was initially leaving the scene after the altercation, and that Officer Wilson pursued him (as he was supposed to) after that. After Officer Wilson again tell him to stop and put his hands up, Michael Brown charges Wilson. It’s all in the Grand Jury documents. Your bullet points are largely false and the majority are misleading.
You’re an idiot.
Most of this is wrong/non-credible. I just spent way too much time reading about this, because I am a fact-driven person. Try to use better sources, use them correctly, and leave out irrelevant/misleading information. For instance, http://www.dailykos.com is not a good source; it. Also, “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony,” is not accurate to what is on page 281 of the Grand Jury Transcript. Lastly, you say police didn’t interview the eyewitness (Johnson according to your source) until Brown’s death? The confrontation was over in 45 seconds, so there was no time for an interview. I wouldn’t call that a refusal…..I’m not saying I know who was right or wrong in Ferguson. I’m just saying most of this is wrong/non-credible.
Mike Brown weighed 290lbs. How is that not larger than 210lbs?
Max effective range of a glock is 50m 150 feet your telling me the officer hit 2/4 in the head at the max range of his pistol. Seems a little far fetched to me. Most people can only hit a target at 25m let alone shoot someone in the head at twice that
Sad. She’s going to be just like every other ass-backwards biased journalists who does not post complete facts and twists words and statements around to better suit her own cause or beliefs. Don’t we already have enough of these types… My recommendation – find a new major. What you posted is not all 100% entirely accurate
This facts are so far out of wack with the actual facts and the police protocols. Better investigative reporting should be done before you post something so opinionated as this.
Using news articles, which can be skewed, incomplete, or entirely inaccurate, as sources, is probably a bad idea. Some of the sources even contradict each other in certain details.
Too bad your so called “sources” are news articles from other bias media outlets. Why not use transcripts from the hearing as your source?? Oh, BC that really does build a case against him.
Did you actually read any of the articles you cited? You completely distorted the facts or meanings from several I’ve looked at:
– You say Mike Brown was 148 feet away from the officer when he was shot… That would make Wilson a crack shot, but the distance you referenced was the distance from the SUV, which Wilson had left to pursue Brown, not the distance between the two.
– You say the owner of the store states he didn’t call, it was not Brown, etc. That is not what the article is stating. He said he did not call, a customer did, and he never denied Brown robbed him, but that the robbery and shooting were separate incidents, probably in hopes of not having his store burned down.
– You said Brown being much larger than Wilson is a lie. While similar in height, Brown had about 100 pounds on the 210 pound Wilson. Someone who has 50% more body weight than me can generate a lot of force. Leaving out the weight difference when discussing size is pretty obtuse.
– Your article citing protocol for use of deadly force has no such information supporting your claim. While the Brown’s family lawyer and private autopsy made comments about the number of bullets and disregard for the public, those are their accusations and are not citing any actual protocol. While not being familiar with that Ferguson or Missouri policy specifically, I can tell you that officers rarely fire their weapons unless they need to use deadly force, incapacitation without killing is not the goal, but rather other options have been exhausted. Wilson deemed Brown had the opportunity, capability and intent of doing him serious bodily harm or kill him, so he made the split decision to pull the trigger until the threat was stopped.
As much as I’ve read about the case I can tell you that half of your statements are outright false or at least grossly misleading. There are a comments you made I would be curious to look into further if I wasn’t already seeing a disturbing trend. Should you care to reply I’d gladly look into those a little more for you.
Extremely inaccurate and misleading…
LOL! The sources you used are debunked news stories based on tweets. Nice clickbait.
Thank you for this information. I will check the sources you sited. Much appreciated
BS Shelby. You’re either a liar or incompetent.
1. Brown was also 6’4″, but 280lbs +/-, much BIGGER than Wilson.
2. Pg 281 does NOT say Brown was “fatally shot” while running away, it says Wilson pursued Brown while he was running away.
3. Pg 39 says nothing about Brown grabbing Wilson’s gun.It DOES say Wilson was pursuing Brown, and Brown turned and charged Wilson, and – QUOTE – “and then he shot him”. Pg 39 also mentions Wilson’s facial swelling and injuries.
4. Police officers are not REQUIRED to ONLY “incapacitate and disarm” when their lives are in danger.
5. Your autopsy report claims all shots were from the front, yet your eyewitness #3 says he was shot while running away, implying in the back.
6. Brown’s body was 131 ft from the vehicle, Wilson chased him, yet you claim he was shot from 148 ft away? Did Wilson chase him, then stop and run back to the fire hydrant, all while Brown just stopped and stood there, and then Wilson turned around and fired from 148 ft away? And your citing the Daily Kos?
7. You actually cite the police report, but fail to mention Wilson’s testimony of being punched in the face; the comment “I started off with my mace…couldn’t reach it with my right hand”; “next I go to my asp. I couldn’t get on it, it sits behind me, I couldn’t reach it”; “he had me completely overpowered while I was sitting in the car”; “when he grabbed my gun, he twisted it, pointed at me and into my hip”; “he had already manipulated, I was not in control of the gun”.
Officers should never draw their gun unless their life is threatened. When and if they do, they are shooting to kill not mame or incapacitate. Check into this bc as far as I know, this is protocol for police.
Ms Lawson, I see a number of your assertions are followed by ”(source)‘‘. This is in blue lettering. The references to Grand Jury report are OK. But there are great number of volumes of information. Even, the media here haven’t completed their analysis. Lastly, your claim of protocol, a policeman is to first disarm, then if shooting is required, to make body shots. Ms Lawson, my guess is you have not fired a weapon at someone in a combat stress situation.
My experience is from VietNam. Purposefully shooting to injure, not kill is a pipe dream. Body shots are lethal as are head shots.
Here is my take. Jaywalking is crime, a misdemeanor, but still a law violation.
When a UNIFORMED & BADGED LAW OFFICER says something you are wise to heed it. If you don’t heed it, you are at the risk of arrest. In Missouri, not heeding Police Orders are grounds for arrest.
First let me say that although I did find this an interesting read it does have some issues. Unless you plan on being a Tabloid writer I would suggest finding some for credible sources than most of what you have here. The Slatest and Daily KOS for example are not credible sources; they are more like blogs that people posted. Show me the same stories and facts from the AP and that will make them more credible. Now let me run through your facts here and talk about them.
1. The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft. 4 and weighs 210 lbs., the same size as Mike Brown.
– Just because they were the same size (Height / Weight) doesn’t mean they had the same build. Michael Brown could have had more muscle on him which would make him stronger than Darren Wilson.
2. Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
– How did he break this when he did shoot him in the arm and chest area first before firing at the head? Tennessee vs Garner clearly states “deadly force…may not be used unless necessary to prevent the escape and the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious bodily harm to the officer or others.”
3. Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
– There is nothing in his statement that says Michael Brown was fatally shot while fleeing from Darren Wilson, if this was the case Wilson would be behind bars right now. All he said in his statement was why he was chasing the suspect.
4. Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
– Again Slate.com is not a credible news source. With that being said number 4 is more of He said She said.
5. The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
– I could not find anywhere on page 95 of the transcript where she claims this. She does state however that she called an unknown detective to meet her at the hospital and that detective took the pictures.
6. While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other; all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
– As you may or may not know, many of the “eyewitnesses” are not credible because they just heard the events on the news or from someone else.
7. -These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
– Again Daily KOS is not credible. Numerous Medical Examiners who performed an autopsy on the body never once stated that he had his hands raised.
8. Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
– Never did Dr. Baden state this. What he actually said was “Dr. Baden says all of the gunshots appeared to have been fired into Brown’s front. He didn’t find any gunpowder residue on his body. This suggests the shots were fired from a distance.” Also in the second Autopsy performed by a different medical examiner it was stated that Gunpowder Residue was found near Browns fingers.
9. Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
– This is in fact false. If you read the Grand Jury transcript than you would know that Wilson was in pursuit of Brown to which he could have closed the gap. The distance of 148 ft. was from the officer’s vehicle to the spot that Brown was killed at.
10. Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
– Just because the call did not come from the owner or employee of the store (which I don’t see why they wouldn’t report a robbery) but could in fact have come from a bystander.
11. The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
– This article was a laugh in itself, I’m shocked and amazed you would even think this was credible. They should have added a story of Bigfoot supporting Wilson as a punchline.
12. The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
– So just because there were a few bad apples in this police department that makes them all bad? If your answer to this is yes than you are just pulling a double standard.
Did Wilson use Pre-emptive Self Defense? No
Is it sad that a young man was tried and prosecuted in the streets? Yes.
But so is this story http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/st-louis-bosnians-edge-hammer-death-27305854 as well as many others.
I believe you are a young and talented writer, but you have a long way to go before a career in journalism. Unless like I stated before you want to write for the Tabloids.
Welcome to the Democratic Party. “Your findings” do not agree with the findings of the Grand Jury. As is usual for Liberals, you have taken pieces of the pie and made a car. Your preference of “Y’all” is a racist insult and has no place in your “dissertation”. As a retired officer that included 8 years of investigative experience I hope you don’t feel that the Ferguson Grand Jury lied to you.
First let me say that although I did find this an interesting read it does have some issues. Unless you plan on being a Tabloid writer I would suggest finding some for credible sources than most of what you have here. The Slatest and Daily KOS for example are not credible sources; they are more like blogs that people posted. Show me the same stories and facts from the AP and that will make them more credible. Now let me run through your facts here and talk about them.
1. The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft. 4 and weighs 210 lbs., the same size as Mike Brown.
– Just because they were the same size (Height / Weight) doesn’t mean they had the same build. Michael Brown could have had more muscle on him which would make him stronger than Darren Wilson.
2. Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
– How did he break this when he did shoot him in the arm and chest area first before firing at the head? Tennessee vs Garner clearly states “deadly force…may not be used unless necessary to prevent the escape and the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious bodily harm to the officer or others.”
3. Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
– There is nothing in his statement that says Michael Brown was fatally shot while fleeing from Darren Wilson, if this was the case Wilson would be behind bars right now. All he said in his statement was why he was chasing the suspect.
4. Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
– Again Slate.com is not a credible news source. With that being said number 4 is more of He said She said.
5. The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
– I could not find anywhere on page 95 of the transcript where she claims this. She does state however that she called an unknown detective to meet her at the hospital and that detective took the pictures.
6. While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other; all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
– As you may or may not know, many of the “eyewitnesses” are not credible because they just heard the events on the news or from someone else.
7. -These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
– Again Daily KOS is not credible. Numerous Medical Examiners who performed an autopsy on the body never once stated that he had his hands raised.
8. Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
– Never did Dr. Baden state this. What he actually said was “Dr. Baden says all of the gunshots appeared to have been fired into Brown’s front. He didn’t find any gunpowder residue on his body. This suggests the shots were fired from a distance.” Also in the second Autopsy performed by a different medical examiner it was stated that Gunpowder Residue was found near Browns fingers.
9. Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
– This is in fact false. If you read the Grand Jury transcript than you would know that Wilson was in pursuit of Brown to which he could have closed the gap. The distance of 148 ft. was from the officer’s vehicle to the spot that Brown was killed at.
10. Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
– Just because the call did not come from the owner or employee of the store (which I don’t see why they wouldn’t report a robbery) but could in fact have come from a bystander.
11. The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
– This article was a laugh in itself, I’m shocked and amazed you would even think this was credible. They should have added a story of Bigfoot supporting Wilson as a punchline.
12. The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
– So just because there were a few bad apples in this police department that makes them all bad? If your answer to this is yes than you are just pulling a double standard.
Did Wilson use Pre-emptive Self Defense? No
Is it sad that a young man was tried and prosecuted in the streets? Yes.
But so is this story http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/st-louis-bosnians-edge-hammer-death-27305854 as well as many others.
I believe you are a young and talented writer, but you have a long way to go before a career in journalism. Unless like I stated before you want to write for the Tabloids.
At leat you’re unbiased and report both sides of the story including all of the sources that counter what your sources say… oh wait
Man if you wrote a book based on your facts I am sure it could be a number 1 best seller, but it needs to be in the Fiction section. You don’t have a clue as to what all the facts are in this case.
What a joke you are..
I like how you pick and choose your facts. There is witnesses that tell the story exactly like the cop said. How can that be ? maybe because its the truth. Do you ever wonder why the people that say he had his hands up all went on TV for their 15 minutes of fame. The ones that told the truth didn’t want the attention they just wanted to say what they saw and not what they think happened. They ones that said he had his hands up told different versions like there was two cops in the car….lol Did you even read the grand jury witness statements or view the crime scene photos or all the other evidence that proves that this all was a fraud.
The majority of your sources are extreme left leaning news sites. Why?
some of the weakest research i have ever seen in an article
If you are accurate in your reporting I believe the left leaning media would have been on this story and fanning the flames in Ferguson MO. I have not heard on word from the major news networks confirming your statements. Mike Brown was close to 300 pounds, not the 210 pound hat you implied. Crossing out the text and not removing the text is totally unprofessional. Were you sleeping when this was taught at U of K. The fact that officer Wilson had blood on him to wash off counters your statement that he was shot at 148 feet from the officer. That would make a blood spatter test a non factor. Was the statement about the Market owner taken from grand jury testimony or did you add it for effect at the end of you report? Also was the fact that the prosecutor helped raise money for the defense, was that also taken from testimony from the grand jury ? As a KU JOURNALISM MAJOR I would have to give you a D- on this report.
So you’re saying you know more than all the medical examiners that did the autopsy up close and personal.. My my aren’t you intelligent.. Since you know all. how about cluing us in when we will get rid of all the racism crap starting at the top.
There is plenty of evidence against Wilson & the prosecutor was more defense atty &You did well until the end.. Ferguson were not accurate about distances but the 148ft is difference between car & Browns body not distance shots were fired from.
While shop owner didn’t call cops & the shoplifting had nothing to do with the shooting..it was Brown on tape according to his friend Dorian Johnson. http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/key-eyewitness-contradicts-wilson-s-testimony-363704387739
Prosecutor did not raise money for Wilson http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
Again plenty of evidence against Wilson & prejudicial behavior of prosecutor but we’ve got to be sure we get whats real out there because stuff that’s not hurts cause
Re the story, the use of y’all has to go. Re the statement that the police lied that they were 148 ft from Michael Brown, not 35 ft, maybe she should have read her own source. It said the boys were 148 ft from Dorian Johnsons SUV, not 148 ft from police. Then she made comment that the person who stole the cigarillos from the store was not Michael Brown, that the tape didn’t even look like him. Well he had the cigarillos in his hand when he was confronted by the cops, and Dorian Johnson along with his attny stated yes he did steal them from that store.
I found these discrepancies in a few minutes, then decided to not even bother with the rest of it. I consider this to just be a fictional story. I don’t claim to know all there is to know about this incident, i dont even really take a side between Michael Brown and Ofr Wilson. From what I read, I don’t think I would want to be associated with either of them. So the fact this story was written definitely skewed against the police isn’t really my motivation. It’s just a poorly written piece with no substance.
Have you even read the court documents that were released? This post is so full of factual inaccuracies that I can’t even take it seriously. Go read the autopsy (both the city’s and the private one). Go read the hundreds of pages of witness testimony. Look at the crime scene photos and compare them to the wounds and DNA sample.
Instead of Vox (what?), DailyKos (what?), and local news stations, you should go straight to the source. Frankly you should be embarrassed that your name is tied to this.
thanks for the info.
Except Brown’s DNA was found on Wilson’s gun. Except there were burns consistent with close range gunfire on Brown. Except the autopsies confirmed there were no entry wounds on Brown from the back. Except many witnesses confirm that Brown was half inside of Wilson’s car. Except that Wilson was 6’4″ 300ish, nearly a 90lb advantage. Except that when an officer with a lethal weapons tells you to do something you do it and fight in court later. And if you’re going to cite sources how about you use the actual case files, which are freely available? Not third party reports from biased media outlets. You should be ashamed. You are using a tragedy to promote yourself as some half-assed SJW. Maybe write about how the the majority of low-income black communities are ripe with crime because they are victims of a system that keeps them hopeless, desperate, and uneducated or how police forces are the go-to jobs for High School bullies rather than educated citizens seeking to bring justice to all.
wow.. shared
Most of the time when a person who is sitting behind the steering wheel of a vehicle is attacked through the window, the drivers damn near always speed away, dragging the attacker or yanking the crap out of the attackers arms. In fact I bet you it’s the drivers first instinct / reaction is to speed away unless the attacker already have a gun pointed at the drivers head like in a car jacking situation.
I bet even if a person has a gun in the vehicle as protection, thier first instinct would be to still speed away from a dangerous situation before they would try to reach for thier gun in the vehicle. Wilson claimed that Brown reached through the window for the gun in his holster on his right hip. Wilson had the advantage in that type of situation because all he had to do is smash on the gas pedal if the vehicle was still running and in Drive. Witnesses said that Wilson drove right up next to Brown and was able to reach out the window and grab him. Obviously the vehicle was still running in that instant , because if he was to out it into park and turn the vehicle off, that would have given Brown time to put distance between himself and the officer reaching out the window to grab at him.
But……. If Wilsons claim is true that brown attacked him through the window??? Again why didn’t he just speed away like most other victims in that type of situation would naturally do?
Is there a way to read all the details of Wilsons Statement on if the vehicle was running or not during the whole confrontation?
why are the sources hyperlinks to fox news?
Some of your points are not accurate. They even contradict some of the Dorian Johnson testimony (Brown’s friend and only witness to the whole day’s events and shooting)
You need to re read some of your sources because what you are claiming is not even written in there at all….
Error 1, Mike Brown WAS NOT the same size as Darren Wilson. Mike Brown weighed an additional 82 pounds. Tell me, what does more muscle/fat look on a body to someone who has less? Anyone? Anyone? Buehler? Buehler?
Error 2, Darren Wilson DID go for body shots because that’s what police officers are solely trained for. By the time the final bullet was fired, Mike Brown was falling forward, meaning the bullet trajectory would be lower than center mass on his body, IE the throat or head.
Error 3, how in the hell do you disarm and incapacitate someone who is crazy enough to reach into the door of your patrol vehicle, slap you around, and go for your firearm? Wilson did not have a tazer, the gun was his only weapon.
Error 4, Mike Brown’s blood was found 20 feet PAST where his body had fallen, indicating that he was bleeding from the initial hits in the car, stopped and returned to charge Darren Wilson. Darren Wilson WAS NOT 148 feet from Mike Brown, Mike Brown’s body was 148 feet from the patrol car. Darren Wilson had run after the fleeing Mike Brown, and fatally shot him after he charged. 148 feet is approximately 50 yards. A person firing at a moving target at 50 yards is hard to hit for anyone, including soldiers. A person firing at a moving target with a pistol is exceptionally hard to do…and if so…good luck on getting your center mass stopping power and overall accuracy. This is the most retarded argument you have made. Please, for the love of God, shoot a handgun and maybe you will notice that most pistol ranges stop at 25 yards.
Error 5, there was a phone call that was made to the police department about a theft, if not, then why in the hell did dispatch receive and then further broadcast the overall description of Mike Brown on the Police Band? Yes, there is a call, regardless on whether or not the owner made it.
Error 6, Dorian Johnson was already once convicted of false testimony in Jefferson City. Dorian Johnson is a lying POS who was doing anything to save his ass, including lying and saying that a man from a seated position in a car or vehicle had enough force AND leverage to pull a man that 80 pounds heavier than he is inside of the drivers side window of his patrol car. That’s the most retarded argument anyone would ever make. Yeah, I’m going to have enough strength in ONE ARM to pull a nearly 300 pound man in to a drivers window and proceed to choke him….
Error 6, you need to quit school and learn common sense….or get out of the computer and learn real life. If this is what you’re learning in school, I fear for the future of the human race.
I think you also have to show the full story, rather than using one-sided evidence. For example, why not discuss the fact that the shop owner who later testified could have said so under duress or coercion. After much pressure from the community, as well as personal harassment, any wise individual would recant that statement. If you dug into the history of what that individual underwent following the release of the video, perhaps that may change your view. In only that regard, I don’t agree. In other aspects, I appreciate your work in gathering these thoughts and they definitely shed some light on the case. Thank you.
Almost as good as Sharpton. Know your place and get back in the kitchen.
Relook the background of the shop owner who recanted his statement. Any wise individual would do so under duress or coercion. I would advise looking into what this individual underwent following the incident, the pressure from the community, and the personal harassment. With this knowledge, perhaps we can all come to a fair conclusion, without one-sided evidence. In all other aspects, I appreciate your research. Thank you.
Thank you for Shelby Lawson… she put it all together in one post.. I’ll be sharing this liberally…
Great work, Shelby–thank you.
Maybe I should continue? Ok, I will. The Prosecuting Attorney, this horrendously prejudiced, racist, callous soul that was on this board raising money for Officer Wilson….yeah they weren’t. It’s a lie drummed up by liberals. The organization only raises money for FALLEN POLICE OFFICERS FAMILIES.
Also, this callously racist Prosecuting Attorney who couldn’t find his ass with a telescope and a mirror, has held that post through about 6 reelections, his most recent less than 30 days ago. AND, he’s a Democrat…yes it’s true….as is the majority of St. Louis, Ferguson, and St. Louis County….Democrats hold the power. Seeing all these liberals attack one of their own in a case of eating their own children is pretty damn amusing…to say the least. When Obama says change is not made by rioting it’s made by voting….he’s essentially saying to VOTE OUT ALL THESE DEMOCRATS IN ST. LOUIS COUNTY HOLDING THE BLACK MAN DOWN….VOTE FOR LESS RACIST DEMOCRATS!
If you want to tie Wilson to his former department disbanded for racial non-harmony….well then I guess it’s time to tie Barack Obama to Jeremiah Wright and that terrorist Bill Ayers, and Al Sharpton to all of the rioting that he’s been involved in since the 1980’s…..after he pays his millions in back taxes.
Man, do I really need to continue? How much more do I need to shatter here?
6’4 210 is MUCH smaller than 6’4 290
Almost everything in this list is either a blatant lie or misrepresented or twisted to appear a certain way it wasn’t. Pathetic, absolutely pathetic. But TBH sounds about right for a journalism major, you’ll fit right in with the race baiting, fear mongering media!
First point, incorrect.
Second point, correct
Third point, Incorrect and your citation says absolutely nothing to back yourself up. Unless your definition of fleeing means “running towards an officer” then yes he was fleeing. Otherwise this is a lie.
Fourth point is misinterpretation at best, woeful ignorance at worst. Disarm and incapacitate is what officers attempt to do first, if that fails and the situation calls for firearm use **you shoot to kill** there is no such thing as **shooting to incapacitate** if you shoot to incapacitate courts have ruled that firearm usage was unnecessary and you can be legally bent over a barrel for it. And yes when you shoot to kill you shoot center mass because thats your best bet to hit something. Also your source says jack shit about what you claim.
Fifth point, Probably true? I dont know, not gonna bother to look.
Sixth point,True
Seventh Point, True
Eighth point, True?
Ninth point, False, the accounts do not match each other, they also dont match the forensics. Eyewitness testimony is also the worst evidence there is bar none. It should only be used when there is literally nothing left.
tenth point, false, this is not the case, and plenty of the witnesses in the GJ testimony say this isnt the case… oh wait, are eyewitnesses only legit when they support brown? The responses ran the gambit because as i said eyewitness testimony is ass. What the evidence does show is that he was moving when shot, not standing still with his hands in the air.
eleventh point, False, and your source doesn’t back this up at all. His hands couldve been hit like they were if he was running too, like the officer claims… oops.
twelfth point, LIAR LIES DAMNED LIES AND THEN HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU PANTS ON FIRE LIES. You should be fucking ashamed of yourself. You link to an article from august. Guess what came out in the GJ testimony? GSR on his hands, and his blood in the car… oops.
thirteenth point, blatant misrepresentation. He was 35 ft from the officer when killed, and 140 ft from the cruiser when killed. Not 140 ft from the cop when killed. I’d like to see you shoot someone with a handgun and adrenaline pumping from 50 yards. But dont let facts get in the way, spin baby spin!
fourteenth point. first part is true, he didnt report the crime, second part is a blatant holy shit what is wrong with you??? lie. Michael brown did steal from the bodega, end of story, stop trying to whitewash his bullshit. His fucking friend copped to it, he said they stole. Unless his friend is trustworthy enough to comment on the murder but lies about them stealing from the store….
fifteenth point, maybe?
sixteenth point, true.
You should be fucking ashamed of yourself to have attached your name to this list of blatant lies and diarrhea.
I really don’t know where to begin…. Did you really think that no one would check your linked sources? Let me give a few examples…
1) When you mentioned the fact that there was supposedly no gunshot residue found on Michael Brown’s hands, you cited the PRIVATE forensic examiner, who was paid by the family to do his work (obviously he has to take their side). The official autopsy by a state examiner found just the opposite, they found “particulate matter consistent with gunshot residue”.
2) You suggested that the man on security footage who shoved a store clerk is “not Mike Brown”, but I clicked on your source and read the whole article. Nowhere does it mention that the man on the security footage is not Michael Brown, in fact it quite casually talks about how it IS Michael Brown. You can’t cite a source and then proceed blatantly lie about it’s content. I would think a supposed journalism major would know better.
3) You claim that Officer Wilson “broke protocol” because two of the shots were in the head, and that police are trained to go for body shots. This assumes that Wilson intentionally tried to shoot brown in the head. How do you know what he was aiming at? You don’t. It could just as easily be explained by the fact that he was aiming for center mass, and missed (by less than a foot). Firing a gun, especially in a high stress situation is no easy task, and your aim is not going to be perfect.
I could go on, but I think I’ve made my point.
I didn’t read anymore after I didn’t see commas where they should have been. “Misconceptions, Inconsistencies, and abuses.”
I’m a KU alum and I’m a bit disappointed in Ms. Lawson’s work. I sincerely wish her well in her pursuit of journalism but she failed miserably on this attempt. Her selective use of the grand jury testimony, source citing from dated articles that have since been refuted, and quotes from the likes of the Daily Kos and the Americans Against the Tea Party as substantive references leads me to believe she failed in her objectivity of a promising article. Examples of the missteps include:
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown. (http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.…)”
The families personal autopsy report indicated Mr. Brown was 77 inches (6 ft, 5 in.) weighing in at 285 lbs. Clearly, Mr. Brown was “larger” than Officer Wilson
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Officer Wilson, also in his testimony, indicated that he’d heard the call for the shoplifting on page 202 and later (when he came upon Mr. Brown) noticed the stolen items in his hand after asking the two gentlemen to walk on the sidewalk rather than down the middle of the street. Furthermore, according to Officer Wilson’s testimony, their clothing matched the reported description of the suspects in the shoplifting incident. You were selective in your citing of Officer Wilson’s testimony to support a particular perspective rather than applying objective journalism
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony. ”
This statement contradicts Officer Wilson’s testimony on pages 227-229. The statement on 281 is taken out of context as it dealt with the question of whether or not Mr. Brown was a threat while running away
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso. (http://www.nytimes.com/…/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was…) ”
I’m concerned that you’re drawing conclusions from an August 2014 news article on an autopsy from the renowned Dr. Baden in a vacuum without the supporting documentation of the grand jury testimony or forensics. Mr. Brown was shot 4 times in the body before the fatal head shots and as the testimony above indicated, he kept charging the officer, ignoring orders to stop and hit the ground. (227-229)
“Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death. (http://www.slate.com/…/michael_brown_witness_police_alleged…) ”
The eyewitness you’re referring to in this citation was Mr. Dorian Johnson who also stated that Officer Wilson shot Mr. Brown in the back while he was running away, a statement refuted by all three autopsies. The grand jury listed testimony from over 60 witnesses. Perhaps a synopsis of the consistencies and inconsistencies in their testimony would read more objectively
“These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
The witnesses cited in this article included Ms. Piaget Crenshaw and Mr. Dorian Johnson. Ms. Crenshaw can also be seen in security footage looting stores which she herself confirmed on the night of the no-bill decision. Mr. Johnson’s testimony has been refuted beyond the need to detail. The referenced story is dated before the grand jury decision and prior to the release of the grand jury testimony. These reported statements are in direct contrast to the grand jury testimony of 6 African American witnesses who consistently supported the events as described by Officer Wilson. Objective journalism dictates presentation of all perspectives, not just one.
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue. (http://fox2now.com/…/brown-family-to-hold-press-conference…/) ”
You’re confusing your facts. Officer Wilson’s claim of a misfire was in the context that the gun didn’t fire when the trigger was pulled according to his grand jury testimony. DNA lab results confirm Mr. Brown’s DNA on Officer Wilson’s firearm
“The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling (http://www.washingtonpost.com/…/1ac796f0-2a45-11e4-8593-da6…) ”
Not clear on your point here. The article speaks of racial tension between the predominately white police force and the black community but at no time indicates that Officer Wilson was a participant in the activities described. The article does state that he kept a clean record with no disciplinary actions.
My observations are not intended to dissuade your arguments but to illuminate the poor construct of your effort. If you truly wish to be a journalist then be a journalist. Do the work, take the extra effort, validate and re-validate your commentary. We have plenty of examples of poor journalism across the printed and television media. Don’t contribute to the lazy, mind-numbing, grossly negligent commentary that pretends to pass as journalism today. Gaining respect for your work across the political spectrum will make you a very unique and valuable commodity. True journalism occurs when reading an article thoroughly and upon completion, I cannot discern the agenda or politics of the author. If you can accomplish that perspective, you can conquer the world.
All this conflicting information…its beginning to sound like debates about the Kennedy assignation. From Home Plate to first 1st base is 90 feet. You’re saying Officer Wilson gunned down a man 148 ft away?! Hard to do for a skilled shooter even with the best handgun. Sounds suspicious to me.
Hi there, good one sided summary on the recent Brown events. I myself haven’t made up my mind on this, but I want to make sure people don’t discredit sides based on a “fact” that was referenced wrong, especially when I’ve seen this shared a ton on social media. Which is why I’m commenting. The source the person posted for the ferguson market part never says he wasn’t the person on the footage, rather that the footage didn’t have to do with the shooting. Also, some of the articles cited conflict with things in the transcript, which is also party referenced. Just hoping to keep information fair so people can make the best decision on it themselves.
Shelby, I’d suggest sticking with the Women’s/Gender Studies and leaving Journalism behind. This is as close to real journalism as science fiction – when you try to provide “facts” don’t just provide the ones that support your agenda (which you’re not supposed to have as a journalist) and then hide/obfuscate other actual facts to “damage the narrative”. Provide *all* of the facts, not just convenient ones. What you have done is provide an (quite uninformed and dangerously naive) OPINION – not Journalism.
Here’s a little dissection on just on the first four points you make:
1). Brown was the same height, but 80 pounds heavier than Officer Wilson. I suspect 80 pounds is more than 2/3rds of your entire body weight. Now imagine sitting in an SUV and having someone come through the window who is taller than the roof and yourself while you’re seated. Nice try in scratching out the “same size” part but not actually, you know, providing the size difference. It’s considerable.
2). After assaulting the officer, Brown did attempt to flee the scene and when prompted to stop by Officer Wilson, turned and charged the officer. Not walked, not surrendered, but charged. You attempt to make it sound as if Brown was shot in the back – which three (3) independent autopsies all agree was *NOT* the case. All three autopsies clearly show the trajectory of the bullets through the body of Brown could only have been caused by someone who is facing the weapon and (in the case of the last four shots) moving forward.
3). You need to separate your opinion from the real world situations that law enforcement officers face – there were (legally) at least five separate actions by Brown during the course of this which put Officer Wilson on a perfectly legal self-defense stance.
Shooting people’s arms and legs and shooting guns out of hands is Hollywood nonsense, and the human head is a very small and mobile target (a CNS “instant-kill” shot to the head is actually about a 3-inch square that’s moving around a lot). Stop thinking that Hollywood is real, and gain a better understanding of how things function in the real world.
No firearms instructor in the world *EVER* has taught people how to “disarm and disable”. Center-mass shots are what are taught to anyone, and the intent is to INCAPACITATE. The definition of “Incapacitate” literally means to cause enough damage to either the central nervous system (brain and spine) or damage to major blood-bearing organs (heart, liver, lungs) to cause immediate cessation of hostility and removal of the threat. People can (and have) continued to cause mayhem and inflict further injury after receiving numerous gunshot wounds – the *only* reliable way of instantly removing a threat is to destroy the CNS. Every instructor in the world teaches people to shoot for the center-of-mass which is the largest and least independently mobile target there is. Certainly police officers are expected to use negotiation first, and only firearms as a last resort. Also, just to bring some clarity to this, the first two shots to the arm were from when Brown’s arm was *inside* the police cruiser, and the last four shots started with the arms (which indicates that the officer was focused on the arm, not center-mass), and then shifted to center-mass as he corrected (hitting the lowered head which was more in the center-mass area).
4). The witness *was* interviewed, and committed perjury during those statements – which were later recanted. Dorian’s statements were recanted after it was revealed not only did he lie about the encounter, but had actually fled the scene after Brown went into the police cruiser and was probably hundreds of feet away when the shooting actually occurred.
I could continue, but finding the first four out of your first four statements to be factually incorrect and misleading leads me to believe that you are far better at expressing uninformed opinion rather than actual Journalistic facts. The only thing that was “shredded” here was any possibility of having a credible journalistic document.
Some
Of the statements and sources on here are absolutely false. First off the most important one that mike brown was in a surrender position to have the buets enter his arm and shoulder the way they did. Your source was written on august 18th of this year and full two months before the official autopsy report was released that disputes those claims that you made.
Typical lets blame the police mentality. Have you read the autopsy report? Your sources are questionable due to your clear bias on the issue. Did you consider that Brown’s friends may not be the most honest witnesses. Perhaps you could try being impartial, looking at it from the perspective of the police officer, presenting a balanced argument and allowing readers to come to their own conclusions. i guess you just want police to attend at your whim when something bad happens but you dont want to deal with the clear and abhorrent violence in your society. Articles like this that claim to be journalism make honest journalists look bad.
Good luck with a career in journalism. Your bias will surely lead to a job with the Murdoch press with all the other climate skeptics, cop haters and war mongering republicans where opinion is all that matters and evidence is something left for the lawyers to work out in the future.
EVERYTHING on here is a lie. WOW. Sure, and the grand jury just ignored everything. Right. Nice bait, you disgusting filth.
Your logic is faulty… your information is not correct… if you want to make up stuff yourself… that is one thing…. but you might want to come here and exam the scene yourself….. and try NOT to pass off half truths as actual facts…. and you cannot be MORE wrong about the evidence, the distance, and even your assumptions of police protocol are just boldly stated…Lies…. Really… that is NOT journalism…. I hope you don’t continue on this course of erroneous BS…. and play it off as fact….. You need to educate yourself more about forensics and police protocols and procedures. .. To say you have it Wrong… is merely an understatement!
Shelby Lawson’s assertions are based on biased sources of information which were used to draw biased conclusions that aren’t supported by facts or even the links supplied as source for the false information. Several eyewitnesses that were present at the shooting confirm Officer Wilson’s testimony. Several other individuals who supplied statements contrary to Officer Wilson’s later recanted or changed their stories or admitted that they had not been present and were repeating what they had heard. The facts of Boden’ s autopsy were consistant with Wilson’s account and disproved several “witness” statements. Bodens opinions were shown by facts to be unsupported.
Shelby Lawson’s “shredding” of the case against Mike Brown isn’t a shredding at all, more like a lame attempt to use other journalists biased debunked stories as sources to write a biased debunked story.
Not going into my opinion on the the actual case. Just the actual content of the article.
A lot of this information is not coming from reputable sources or is nitpicked.
Not to mention these are not even solid facts. One example is that the prosecuting attorney did not raise donations for Darren Wilson, that rumor has been debunked for quite some time.
Someone did call the police, a customer.
The article stating the police lied about the distance of the shooting isn’t concrete either. Using reference photos gives a good indication of what the shooting distance might have been, but in reality Wilson pursued by foot, shortening the distance.
The autopsy conducted claimed their was soot in the thumb of Brown, fired from close range. Contradicting the statement the author made about the lack of residue and that Brown had his hands up which is when he may have had his finger hit.
Not all eye witnesses agree that Wilson was the aggressor. Blatantly fabricated.
Wilson and Brown may have been the same height, but Brown had 70-80 pounds on Wilson, that’s huge.
Generalizing that Wilson’s previous department had issues with racial profiling is different than an individual basis. Generalizations are not evidence.
I worked my way up after finishing the article, double checking the source.
I agree with the statements of breaking protocol. Which altered the case heavily in Wilson’s favor (with no repercussions on the department). But did not source check.
Point is, people will read this and ultimately come to a biased decision on Wilson’s innocence based on a lot of “facts” that were fabricated, disguised, or irrelevant.
If you are really a journalism student… then you will have to learn to deal with “perception bias”.
I don’t know, based on the evidence, whether this was a justified shoot… and neither do you, or most folks who have weighed in on it.
Reading your bullet points above, you have left out important words and mischaracterized facts.
You said the shop owner didn’t call the police (which is apparently correct, a customer did) and that it wasn’t even Michael Brown on the tape. (Nowhere mentioned in your “SOURCE” link.
You are leading readers to believe that Michael Brown wasn’t even there… you are bending words of the store owner. Read it again… the store owner is saying that WHAT HAPPENED IN THE STORE, HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SHOOTING OF MICHAEL BROWN. That’s probably a fair statement… and Officer Wilson didn’t know about the store incident when he encountered Brown.
You, and many other folks, have commented on both men being 6 foot 4. If they both weighed the same, at 292 pounds, the man sitting in the car in a confined space would be at a SIGNIFICANT disadvantage, against a man standing on solid pavement, who has full body leverage. Add to this that Wilson was actually 80 pounds lighter than Brown… make up whatever you want… but NOBODY honest that studies physical conflict will ever tell you they were on equal footing.
You also failed to mention powder burns on Mr. Browns right hand. This is NOT the same thing as gunpowder residue. Powder burns indicate point blank proximity to the firearm, which is congruent with a struggle for the weapon in the car.
This entire event can be described in NO other way, than as a tragedy. Add to that what appears to be a pattern of civil rights violations and malfeasance on the part of the Ferguson PD and the Ferguson Municipal Court system, almost akin to “shaking down” blacks and the poor in the community. I hope DOJ kicks their collective asses, and brings respect for citizens back to the City of Ferguson judicial system.
It seems pretty obvious, if you look at the entire body of evidence, that a struggle started in the car. There is NO WAY a cop is going to “grab” a suspect standing on the ground, from inside their cruiser… talk to everyone you ever meet that are LEO, and they will tell you “no way”. NO cop would ever do that from a weak position inside a cruiser, unless they were trying to get themselves killed.
The evidence suggests, that Wilson feared for his life. He was punched repeatedly while in his cruiser, and the powder burns and wounds on Browns hand are consistent with him trying to disarm Wilson. Did he need to take the head shot? Was Brown still approaching? I don’t know… and neither does anyone else that was not very close to the scene. I believe, from the evidence and testimony, that Wilson shot Brown repeatedly, and he continued to move forward. Fear induced reflex took over, and the training is to keep shooting until the threat has ended. It was probably over before the head shot, if brown was, in fact, dropping to his knees. Do I think it was a “bad shoot” for the cop. No… I don’t… although it was still a horrifying event that Wilson and the Brown family will live with for the rest of their lives.
Shooting a gun, and shooting a person, is NOTHING like the movies or TV. NOTHING LIKE IT. Hitting a target with a handgun is not as easy as folks think it is… and in a situation that escalates to the use of lethal force… you shoot until the the threat stops completely. “Why? Isn’t this excessive application of force?” AGAIN PLEASE… this is NOT TV or the MOVIES. Over the last 20 years there have been dozens of cases of LEO’s (Law Enforcement Officers) being killed after firing until they were empty… unloading their weapons and HITTING the aggressor, and the aggressor continued to approach and took their lives. This is COMMON knowledge amongst those in law enforcement and related professions.
Wilson may say his conscience is clear… but it’s going to haunt him for the rest of his life… the things he should have done different. He should have driven off when Brown grabbed him, and then called for backup. I can say that from my couch, because I don’t have a huge man grabbing me.
Unless you can learn to set your bias aside… you are just going to be another media hack. If you are serious about doing good with your craft… you are going to have to learn to speak out against “power and authority” and the “popular herd” BOTH. Don’t get carried by the crowd.
This is all lies and you know it. 1st you don’t list Browns size, you claim a guy 210lbs is the same size as a man 300lbs. You claim the cigar shop owner says the guy in the video isn’t brown…..2 lies in 2 lines why should anyone believe anything you ever say again
You need to read the transcript of the Grand Jury testimony more closely. Officer Wilson never said he fired while Brown was fleeing. Only that he started to follow him. There were zero wounds to Brown’s back. The medical examiner testified that a bullet entered his hand and exited farther down his arm — inconsistent with having his hands in the air but completely consistent with the testimonies of Wilson, several other officers and witnesses that Brown was “charging” the officer he just assaulted. Most of your article is based on previously published speculation from unreliable and incendiary sources (i.e. Slate and Dailykos). I hope in your intended journalistic career that you will be more discerning in your choice of source material and more diligent in garnering factual support. This collection of half-truths, uninformed opinions and outright fiction does nothing to further honest discussion of very real issues.
Gun shot residue wouldn’t be on Mike Brown even if he grabbed the gun, a gun has to be fired in order for residue to be made. If the gun misfired while Brown was holding it, there would be zero residue. Misfire means the firing pin never struck the bullet, thus no explosion, thus no residue. Geesh.
So let’s start with this quote: “-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” That is clearly untrue. He said that Mike Brown fleed and he pursued. It does not say that Mike Brown didn’t turn around and charge and that was what led to him being shot on page 281. You’re distorting facts right off the bat.
Next, you say he kept changing his facts. No he didn’t change his facts in the source you gave. After having suffered injuries and having his life nearly obliterated by a thug multiple times, he had trouble with a few things like how many times Mike Brown entered the vehicle. The first time was a relatively short time, as he tells us, and when he changed it to three times, he was finally remembering it was three in all. However, this doesn’t undo the consistent story as he tells it piece by piece. Some things are foggy in his memory and if you had a big guy trying to kill you, and you knew every single thing you said was going to be scrutinized by others, you’d have trouble with your words too. It’s called being human. I severely hope you don’t go into journalism. Or at least get ten times better at it before you do. This is shoddy cut and paste stuff and doesn’t give alternate arguments to give the reader an option of sifting through the ideas to search for truth. Oh wait, maybe you would be a good journalist, at MSNBC. Work harder, do better, good luck and God bless.
Is this a joke? Your sources are from August and have been disproven by more recent and abundant evidence. You seriously think sources from months ago are legitimate when more recent sources are available? Well, said sources don’t agree with your view, so perhaps that’s why you ignored them.
Yikes. Is this serious? Many of these sources, especially ones in regard to supposed view on the autopsy, are from August. These sources are not in agreement with more recent and abundance evidence and sources. This is December, and the article was written at the end of November, you seriously can’t find any recent evidence/sources? Well, you’d have difficulty writing this article if you used said recent sources, because they would not agree with your view, so maybe that’s why they aren’t utilized.
Person with actual reading skills and actual experience shreds journalism student’s ridiculous version of Brown shooting
Most of her “sources” are links to online articles which link to other articles which link to other articles. More opinions by different journalists. “Officer Wilson broke self-defense protocol” ?????? As defined by whom? The author? They teach that in journalism school now? That’s nonsensical gibberish. The standard, as set by the courts, is “reasonable force”. When one can articulate that he/she is in danger (or someone else) of being seriously injured or killed then he/she is permitted to use deadly force. There is no requirement to attempt to “disarm” anyone. Never mind that witnesses, many of them black, told the EXACT same story officer Wilson did. The “journalism major” used a video shot by some random person, at night, to take measurements of the supposed crime scene. She didn’t use the crime scene diagram or photos, which absolutely exist. By the way, people usually don’t immediately drop where they are shot. Wilson DOES NOT say that Brown was fleeing when he was shot. Brown stopped fleeing, turned around, and charged Wilson (page 226 – 230). FYI you can actually still function with quite a bit of trauma. No proof that the prosecutor helped raise funds for Wilson. No proof that Wilson engaged in any profiling at his previous department. Dr Baden, who was hired by the Brown family, had no access to Brown’s clothing. As such, HE WOULDN’T FIND ANY GUNSHOT RESIDUE. The wound pattern on Brown’s body has multiple explanations, including aggression and surrender.
Another headline hunting journalist in the making whose only real goal is to stir the pot while ignoring actual facts and evidence along the way.
Are you joking? This is the most pathetic piece of crap article, so far. Read the transcripts yourselves, people.
-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
**Read the testimony completely…. PAGE 209 of Officer Wilson’s testimony “When I start looking at Brown, first thing I notice is in his right hand, his hand is full of cigarillos. And that’s when it clicked for me because I now saw the Cigarillos, I looked in my mirror, I did a doublecheck that Johnson was wearing a black shirt, these are the two from the stealing.”
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
**Read the testimony completely…. The kid completely disregards the very next paragraph which explains WHY he chased the felon. Yes, he was a felon for strong-arm robbery and assault on a police officer. “I had already called for assistance. If someone arrives and sees him running, another officer and goes around the back half of the apartment complexes and tries to stop him, what would stop him from doing what he just did to me to him or worse, knowing he has already done it to one cop. And that was, he still posed a threat, not only to me, to anybody else that confronted him.” To which a jurist asks, “Along those lines, you feel like as a police officer it is your obligation to follow that suspect?” Wilson replies, “Yes, sir.”
-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
**Consider the facts: Police already knew he was lying. By the time Dorian Johnson had come forward, his story was in the press and other witnesses with no grudge to bear had already come forward confirming what took place. Read the statements for yourselves… http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?_r=0
-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
**Focus on the first half of her statement…. Where is a credible source for the officer’s statement changing – EVER? Additionally, please, using the NYTIMES URL above, read statements from Witnesses 12, 16, 22, 25, 30, 35, 37, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46. These are all witnesses who lied or otherwise embellished in statements to the police and/or FBI and Department of Justice. The FBI and DoJ team was made up of CIVIL RIGHTS INVESTIGATORS and PROSECUTORS who were interviewing witnesses in an effort to determine if Michael Brown’s Civil Rights were violated by Officer Wilson….. Read the statements. Several witnesses were caught in lies and some were threatened by the FBI and DoJ with prosecution for lying. I’d like to know which witnesses she’s referencing….
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
**See response in previous statement. Furthermore, this journalistic genius is using outdated references instead of Grand Jury evidence. Again – read it for yourselves.
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
**Read Michael Baden’s statements to the FBI. If you can’t tell by reading it, he’s under “Witness 63,” specifically pages 29-31. He clearly states he didn’t see any gunshot residue because the body had already been cleaned and embalmed, and he hadn’t yet received some of the materials he requested. He also confirms that there was particulate in the wound on the hand, and it was evident on the autopsy slide. He confirms that the St. Louis Forensic Patholigist is a well-respected expert.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
**I’m calling someone’s journalistic integrity into question. Hell, the Daily Kos may want to recruit her today. We may see her on MSNBC soon… READ THE WITNESS STATEMENTS. Remember those witnesses she claims above who all had the same story??? NONE of them said the cop was 148′ from Mike Brown. As a matter of fact, many of them said he walked up and shot him while he was on his knees and then stood over him while he was face down on the ground and fired bullets into the body until he was out of ammo. Which fake story are you going with, lady? Figure it out.
Is there any need to go on? The writer talks about the prosecutor raising funds and if you click on the link, you’ll realize the website is clearly a far left, race-baiting website that isn’t even telling you the truth. Here’s a story from a more credible source. http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/the-backstoppers-not-benefitting-from-darren-wilson-shirt-sales/article_361f0089-a36b-5f2d-93b3-8a4f83c0351b.html
Here is the Snopes report on the same claim. http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
**This very same article states, “Officials say Wilson kept a clean record without any disciplinary action.” So in other words, the only reason to include this statement is to insinuate he’s corrupt like the former police department. Guilt by association. The article goes on, “A family friend, who spoke on a condition of anonymity out of fear of threats, said Wilson sought out a career in law enforcement as a way to create a solid foundation in his life that he’d been missing.” Wilson’s upbringing was rough with a criminal mother who died when he was 16, a father who wasn’t around, leaving him to reside with his stepfather until he was 18. “He had a rough upbringing and just wanted to help people,” the friend said.
This writer completely ignores that some of the witnesses who came forward are residents in the area and were threatened with bodily harm in attempts to keep them quiet. Thank God for good people in the world. In closing, I’d like to say that if this is the best KU has to offer, I completely understand why Jonathan Gruber said “Lack of transparency” is so key in getting things done. I guess if enough people sling lies, it becomes truth, regardless of what the evidence says.
Zzzz Zzzz
I can’t believe how quickly the ‘research’ falls apart, on her first damn point, and yet this is still being shared. Brown weighed 40% more than Wilson and all that is done is a strike-through the assertion that they were the same size. The Grand Jury transcript is the first source (the most likely to be clicked) to give the air of credibility and then it is switched to speculative articles from before the decision. This is biased garbage. I suppose it’s only the Facebook post of a student with exceptionally bad choices for employable majors. So the fault lays completely on this site.
Go Girl, you are going to be good at this job!
Very well done, Ms. Lawson.
Incredibly misleading points in this clickbait article. If you actually read the grand jury testimony you would see that the truth contradicts all of the points you provide here. Also, most of your sources are just other news articles that have no factual basis.
But hey, you’re a journalism major so you get an A!
LOL OMG how long did it take you to make up these “facts”? your just a lying libtard race baiter white guilt POS…..the true facts of the Brown case are public knowledge now and it has been proven that he was nothing more than a common criminal thug that was shoot and killed because of his actions that day….your paper is so full of lies that its not even worthy of becoming toilet paper…you and your kind are brainwashed koolaide soaked sheeple that are ruining this country…..liberal Nazi….
If a student can see through this, you know they saw through this. Sad world we live in.
What qualifications does she possess to make such claims including forensics, ballistics? Did she sit on the grand jury? Bunk!
This is satire folks. Not to be taken seriously.
Your pages of the grand jury testimony only allow a person to go to the page spread, they do not allow us to open and read to check the source and reading. It would be great if you could allow us to open up the actual document for review. Thanks.
Hi Shelby, Can you help me understand why the red area was on the right side of Wilson’s face? Wasn’t Michael Brown outside of the vehicle on the driver’s side during the only physical contact reported? Thank you for your reporting. It has helped me process this mess a bit better.
OK, you may have your sources for the facts and those I can accept. However, nothing in this statement did you make mention our prove with a source that it was race related. This just was what it is as stated above. I’m not picking sides I feel awful for the family four their loss. I could not imagine losing one of my boys. I’m just tired of having to apologize for bring white because we are so awful towards black people. I’m open to all people that respect themselves and others. Both wow m white and black need to change to come together. I want to have one race; the human race!
You will surly get a job with MSNBC, they don’t like facts either. I did check your sources, they either don’t apply or you have chose to cherry pick what you wanted rather than look at the opposing statements. Information now confirms that Mike Brown was a thug, that is as important to finding the truth as your attempt to smear officer Wilson. Funny that did not work out for you. Like I said, MSNBC, they will love you.
The first point was the officer was 210 pounds (so there was no large difference between the two people weight). The victim was reported as weighing over 290 lbs – I think 80+ lbs difference is a huge difference. Why should I bother reading anymore since the first statement is shewed to cover up the actual facts rather than her created facts?
Try getting this same conclusion using only the evidence the grand jury used. All the news outlet reports make this questionable as they are not fact they are reporter conclusions without all the facts in line
Great break down of the facts. Thanks for this.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Really, so this is from a journalism major? What an absolute load of crap. So you pick and choose the pieces of the grand jury testimony you want eh? You wrote “the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown” you write with a source given. However, nowhere on that source page is that statement made, you just made that up to try and hide the truth. In fact the truth is that nobody with any integrity is disputing the fact that that was Dorian and Mike on the footage. Only you, a racist, inciting reverse racism because of your guilty cause.
In the testimony released Dorian starts talking about the robbery. He assumed Big Mike didn’t have any money and that is why he took the cigarillos. Dorian sells out Mike here and claims he had nothing to do with it…
I think you need to change majors. I suggest law, you seem to have a knack for lying, and would make a great lawyer, the scum of this society!
Thank you for your report. Its honesty in Journalism that we can appreciate even if we suffer horrible inustices from our state and laws. The truth will be exposed. Thanks for your contribution.
problem here is you use unsubstantiated news articles as your proof, so in fact as most bullshit goes, you used bullshit to prove bullshit. real reporting, not like what is done today, is done in the field, with witnesses, asking tough questions, cone on people we want the truth here not bullshit from both sides.
Your article is misleading on the around I have heard why don’t u finish school and then try to be a journalist
Read the source again about Mike Brown robbing the store. “In a separate news video (embedded below) the Ferguson Market attorney also says any alleged theft of cigars had nothing to do with Michael Brown being shot to death by Ferguson .” That is different than what your posts says.
Also, read the source again about the T-shirts. “The Teespring fundraising effort was conducted by the “I Support Darren Wilson” group, who boasts that funds will also go to “The Backstoppers Inc.” The fundraising was indirect, and stopped once discovered.
Sometimes, we have to read between the lines that the media is publishing.
Otherwise, interesting points.
I looked up every source you used and you are twisting the situation and words to make them say what you want them to. You are dishonest and are not a true journalist. Shame on you. You are just another PR voice for the extreme left. Pathetic. Just one of many examples. You make a big deal saying that the owner of the market didn’t even call police to report the crime. True he didn’t a customer did. So what does it matter who called it in? And while speaking about the robery why doesn’t it matter to you that this man was guilty of strong arm robery? You act like he was a sweet innocent angle but he assaulted two people that day.
there is so much wrong in that entire post, its hard to find a place to start
Always easy to poke holes after the fact. Look up to fbi deadly force and tell me the whole scenario doesnt fit perfectly.
It might help if you had red the Medical Examiner’s Autopsy Report, because it debunks some of your “facts”. Here is a link that illustrates them: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
Also, Mike brown was the same height, but weighed almost 1.5 times more than Wilson, that makes him not the same size, and puts a pretty sizable difference between them.
In closing, any of the testimony from Wilson or anyone who “saw” the interaction is not fact, it is hearsay. The only facts that I’m aware of are the facts from the autopsy report and any photo evidence from the scene. This is what I base my judgement off of, not “what could have been” or “what he/she said”. Please review the facts and rethink your position.
Misconception 1: Mike Brown was then at 75 pounds larger than Darren Wilson. If you don’t think that is staggering, consider a 285 pound boxer versus a 210 pound boxer, it can make a large difference, though I am aware she didn’t say that, it just appeared implied.
2: True, initially Wilson cites the fact that Johnson and Brown are walking in the middle of the road, however, says that as he is pulling off he connects the robbery he heard reported earlier with the two individuals. Black shirt, cigarillos. If we’re to take his testimony as true, then it would be important to include that part of his testimony as well and not paint the picture you want.
3. Wilson does not testify Brown was fleeing when he was shot. Wilson says he fires the second shot out of the car after the struggle for the firearm after which Brown runs. He gets out of the car to pursue and then he claims Brown turns around and charges at him during which he says ‘Stop’ multiple times.
4. It is not against police protocol to use lethal force if the officer feels his or her life is in danger. In the case of Wilson’s testimony being true, that Brown DID grab his gun and push it into his left hip while fighting for the trigger, then he was adequately in danger of losing his own life. If Brown had gained control of his weapon he would be a dead man. That is when the suspect surrendered his right to life.
5. Is that really Ferguson police protocol to interview witnesses on the scene? Furthermore, the Ferguson police department did not conduct interviews. If you had read, the case was handed over to St. Louis police department in which case I recall a St. Louis detective who did interview these witnesses….
6. She meant to refer to the Medical Examiner’s assistant. The assistant stated in her testimony that she was not required to take photographs because the police usually covered those and would be requested by the Medical Examiner’s office if necessary. This is because the photographs aren’t necessary all the time, but can be helpful in allowing the Examiner to understand what exactly might have happened. It is to set a scene for the time and circumstances of death. Nothing more. Irrelevant.
7. Forensic investigators used DNA testing on the firearm in which case they found sufficient data to believe Mike Brown had his hand on the firearm. I am unaware of any fingerprint testing.
8. Wilson was not ‘allowed’ to break protocol, no one around him, including himself was aware that he would need to be photographed with the blood. At the time, no one believed this would be such a big investigation either. Perhaps it should have been photographed but if you think about it, we know that Mike Brown was standing at the window for the initial one to two shots anyway, so the blood splatter would tell you next to nothing about what was going on.
9. Please list what has changed about Wilson’s testimony that is inconsistent with what was said beforehand. Furthermore, several of the witnesses did change their story. That said, the only usefulness of a witness is to tell a story and set the scene. In other words, a witness can lead an investigator to more evidence. The more witnesses you have who tell the same story, the more you would be inclined to believe their story, correct? Wrong. This is irrational. You follow the evidence and ‘eyewitness’ evidence will never be true by itself. In this way, witnesses serve only to illuminate possible evidence and if the evidence sufficiently supports that narrative then you have yourself a winner.
10. Several other witnesses who claimed Wilson was the aggressor said Brown did not say a word. Several other of those witness who claimed Wilson was the aggressor said Brown did not raise his hands up. Several more said he only raised them up to his shoulders and that’s it. Several said he did not raise his hands and instead charged Wilson. Some said he walked forward then was killed. Others say he stumbled around. Other said he stood still. Other say he charged. The point is, the witnesses contradict each other as you would expect in any case of recalling an event.
11. The autopsy did not say that Mike Brown ‘had’ to have his hands up nor even did it suggest this. There are many ways in which the arms could have positioned so as to have an entrance through the ventral to dorsal upper arm. Also take into consideration that he had a wound where the bullet entered via dorsal side and exited via ventral side. It is just as reasonable to suggest he may have been charging if you can imagine the arm in full swing or arms up at one’s guard. It is absolutely ridiculous to proclaim that his arms ‘must’ have been up. The people saying ‘must have’ are wrong. So you cannot say that the autopsy ‘suggests’ that he would have ‘had’ to because that is contradictory. Either it says conclusively that he did have his arms up or not. You cannot get away with saying that the autopsy says he both ‘had to have had’ and that it suggests that ‘he may have, or it is likely that’. One or the other but not both. Suggestion by the evidence is different then a demanded conclusion from the evidence.
12. The Supplemental Microscopic report from St. Louis County Medical Examiner did show particulate matter on the right hand consistent with products discharged from a firearm.
13. Likely the police department was operating off of Wilson’s testimony which obviously can be assumed to be faulty. If we are to assume that what he said was true, that he was then engaged in a pursuit of Mike Brown, then do you think he would really notice how farm from his own patrol car he got? The point is, the only reason this is relevant is because you think that it shows that Wilson must be lying or brings suspicion onto him. Not so, because we don’t know where Wilson was standing when he shot Mike Brown. We only know where Mike Brown’s body was and where Wilson’s Tahoe was on the street. To assume anymore is irrational. If we don’t know where Wilson was standing and the only information we have regarding his location is testimony, then we should not assume.
14. The Ferguson Market owner did not say this, his attorney did. Do not twist his words. Furthermore, let’s be realistic here. Is this man the fist one to hire a lawyer to get him to lie for him or cover up something for his own protection? The man in the video IS Mike Brown and the man standing next to him is Dorian Johnson. For the one piece of testimony of which we actually have video it matches up perfectly. You look at Mike Brown at the the scene of his death, he is wearing yellow socks, flip flops, khaki shorts (more of Capri shorts really), a white/gray shirt, and a red cardinals hat. Dorian Johnson was wearing a black shirt and dreadlocks. Now if you recall, Dorian Johnson said his pants had no pockets and so he put his money in his shoe, all from his testimony. Now look back at the video of the robbery at the Ferguson Market. The same two figures walk in that door and it is exactly as Dorian Johnson describes. They walk in, Mike stands at the counter, grabs a box, gives the box to Dorian, stands there a little longer and grabs a pack of singles just as another man walks out the door but looks back so as to see if he was really robbing them. Furthermore, we see the store owner’s daughter just as Dorian describes who just before these events walks back behind the counter to the position we can assume she takes in Dorian’s testimony. Then, once again, just as Dorian mentions, they prepare to leave but Dorian places the box onto the counter because he did not intend to steal anything and wants to send a message to the daughter. At the door, Mike Brown shoves the store owner back and leaves. Exactly as Johnson describes. Mike Brown robbed the Ferguson Market that day whether you want to accept that facts or not. Furthermore, someone called and reported that crime that day and based upon the Police Dispatch it was a woman. So it was likely either the store owner’s daughter, behind the counter at the time, or the mother who had just walked into the store with her child. This is should be the least controversial fact about this case.
15. If you had read the initial documents posted by the Grand Jury, you would realize that there ended McCulloch’s involvement in the prosecution. His role was as boss, that is he oversaw that the jurors met on schedule and was there if the primary attorneys needed any help. He did next to nothing to decide this case. McCulloch really isn’t a suspicious character in this case, at the end of the day 12 jurors came to their own conclusions based upon a ton of evidence. That said, if you don’t think there is some kind of necessary evidence to include in the huge list released by the Grand Jury, be my guest. What’s missing? That said, if you scroll down on your link you will see that this Backstoppers group made it clear that they were not accepting money for the Ferguson incident and that any money given for Darren Wilson would be rejected. They deal with those whose family members had died in the line of firefighting, policing, or what have you in which case McCulloch’s own father had and that explains his involvement in the group. Slanderous to include that really.
16. This is an attempt to slander Darren Wilson. Unless you can provide evidence for your suspicion, then it is unremarkable and therefore irrelevant. Or, if you would prefer let us travel down this line of logic if we were to honor it so. So Wilson’s prior Police Department was disbanded, but what does this say about him? If Wilson has a clean record, had only been involved in a physical altercation once before and the only time he had ever fired his weapon was at Mike Brown, what are we to conclude? Oh I see, you’re trying to say Wilson is racist. Well guess, what, he’s not, and the burden of proof is now on you to prove he is. No one is automatically racist because they are white and therefore if you’re going to event suggest that he is racist then you better have some damn good evidence. Point is, maybe Wilson is racist, but it’s slanderous to say he is if you have no evidence against him.
The great problem with the title of this article, that some girl SHREDS “CASE” AGAINST MIKE BROWN is stupid. The Grand Jury did not choose to not indict PO Darren Wilson because the case against Mike Brown was conclusive, but rather, because there was no case against Wilson for which he could be brought to trial. Furthermore, the Grand Jury trial WAS the trial, a common misconception is that Wilson should ‘at least’ be brought to trial when in fact the Grand Jury already ‘tried’ him. Every piece of evidence was looked at and it was determined that to the best of their knowledge Wilson had not done anything wrong. They had no evidence against him, so maybe he’s is guilty but we will never know.
lol most of this was proven incorrect
While there be many inconsistencies in this event your article is rife with cherry picking and selective facts.
1. Autopsy indicates all wounds are from the front and eyewitnesses all of them testify that Mr. Brown was shot from the front, thus the fatal shot did not occur when fleeing.
2. No two witnesesses have the same story several changed thiers and at least one adkitted thet did not see a thing
3. There are numerous witnesses that support the ofticers story, a fact you leave out.
4. A customer at the store called about the assault and theft, nowhere have I seen that Mr. Brown ia not the one in the video and your source does not state that.
5. Several witnesees support at leat one gunshot in the vehicle and forencic evidence shows Mr. Browns DNA on the weapon.
I make no claim on the guilt or innocence of either party, hut yor selective use of facts such as believing a witness you wish and ignoring another, and making contradictatory staements as well as influding incorrrect or irrelevant information (who called 911) demonstrates to me that you have no interest in the truth but have an interest in some ideology that you feel will be served by this case.
I strongly suggest you change your major if this is the “reporting” you will do.
Shelby… any luck getting major print media to bite on this?? Nice work. I thought this whole thing had a stink about it.
OMG! Really you call yourself a Journalist? Sounds to me like you work for Eric Holder.
You have 88,908 reblogs and likes on tumblr. I thought you might appreciate knowing how many people you have reached with this information. (It is sourced to you)
Your sources are other news sights which have there own agendas which can’t be trusted
I don’t think youre gonna make it as a journalist Shelby… You’re using extreme liberal publications as “sources” even the New York Times never says that Brown was shot from behind which he would of been if he were trying to flee… Have fun writing for some liberal extremist publication cause that’s all you’ll get
Many points made here are good, but several are false, or just worded incorrectly. For example:
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
Your source for the above statement is outdated. its based on early autopsy reports from August. After several autopsys, and discovering that the eyewitnesses had changed their stories, it has been unarguably proven that everything you said in the above statement is completely false, and actually the exact opposite of what really happened (based on unbias facts from the several up to date autopsys and investigations.)
To quote a source from several months ago, that has for a long time been discredited, is frankly disappointing to see, especially from a Journalism major. As a journalism major myself, spotting the bias all over this article (which without would have had so much potential) was easy. This article has beyond a bias twist, as it literally contains several incorrect points and severely twisted wordings of the sources you provided.
3/10 would bang,
Derek
Actually there is video on you tube which was filmed after the shooting showing officer Wilson moving his vehicle away from Mike browns body. In the clip the distance from the vehicle to the body is approximately 35 feet.
Shelly writes “-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” The problem is that you go to page 281 of the grand jury testimony and it claims no such thing…..not even close. The testimony on page 281 is Wilson explaining why he gave pursuit, when Brown fled. A friend of mine used this on Facebook and I was able to humiliate him for not checking this info out.
Great article. This is much appreciated and just makes me even more pissed about the entire situation.
Wow,you are a total idiot. Why. Don’t you actually go read the evidence instead of citing exactly what the media wants you to cite?
Another wanna be armchair lawyer. Your analysis is fictional and useless. You think you know better than a whole grand jury. Get a life. Because you live in a fictional world
You’re a racist and an idiot. Your “sources” are sketchy, at best. Most of the information you used is outdated and completely wrong. You’re trying to insight violence, where no violence is needed. Every aspect of this is wrong, and anyone that takes this as truth could careless about what the truth is. You’re flat wrong. Look at the actual evidence and not reports from months ago. If you had any sense you’d do some research in how these investigations actually work. They don’t share all information with the public so witnesses don’t get confused with the actual facts. Wow, your just wrong. Stop trying to spread the hate.
This one you can here the guy state that Mike Brown was approaching the officer http://youtu.be/Icf83RBufo8
Your misinformation will make you a successful scumbag journalist . Have some integrity and report facts not feelings, you need a refund for your lack of education.
Your source citing is terrible, but your content is great. Still though, honestly, why do such a poor job of citing your sources as facts? The whole point of journalism is to be objective, from what I was told the last time I was interviewed. Citing the jury and then citing random politically motivated websites is very odd; is that how it works in Kansas? You can’t prove a point to anyone who doesn’t already agree with you if you site websites that are politically charged voicing opinions from people with an agenda. I think you could have done a lot better job. I’m not sure how you got as far in college as you have, honestly, without learning how to properly cite sources, especially with something as loaded as this topic. Anyone on the other side of this argument could post an equally compelling argument using similar types of sources. All this does is get people who already agree with you to agree with you without thinking. If that’s your goal: congratulations.
The argument could b not be more wrong. She is using bits and pieces of grand jury testimony to make it look like Brown is a victim. Just another case of a blind Brown supporter. Trying to make him a victim when they have no leg to stand on.
Read the qranite jury testimony yourself. And stop reading stupid post like this.
I’m in favor of Mike Brown, and I really wanted to believe that this was a completely credible source that would actually “shred” the case against Mike Brown…but it doesn’t.
Several points are incorrect, which take away the credibility of this article.
One example: “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
While the owner did not call the police (a customer did), that IS Mike Brown in the footage, stealing the cigars…Dorian Johnson (Mike’s friend and eyewitness) confirmed it.
The SOURCE for this is the exact same website that you sited in your erroneous statement: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/29/1325749/-So-was-Mike-Brown-a-Strong-Arm-Robber-or-Not
While I appreciate the intention behind this article, I don’t find it very helpful if the facts are incorrect and the sources are outdated.
Might I add, many of the points ARE correct! It’s just that those few bad points in this case demean the validity of the gist of the case you’re trying to present.
Interesting…given the fact that the witnesses who testified for Mike Brown are now saying they lied….and we have numerous witnesses who confirm Officer Wilsons account.
So much for ‘shredding’ anything, bubbles.
So much of this is wrong, read the autopsy, look at eye witness accounts, and even people at the scene said mike charged wilson.
Your clearly an idiot :)
would the moderator please remove the comment above! Or provide an email address where I could contact them directly. Thanks.
I’m sorry what? An undergraduate Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies Major is now qualified to provide legal analysis? What?
Just another “Natering, Nabob, of Negativism” inuendo heaped upon liberal lunacy! She will be a perfect addition to MSNBC’s line up of outstanding ( in the rain) journalists (?).
The rock bed of any argument aside from logic are what it cites. And, unfortunately, you’ve primarily use secondary sources and at least one of your primary sources was non-professional analysis of the preliminary autopsy. So, while I’d love to agree with you, the process of checking the sources undermined my faith in the factual accuracy of your assertions. For me, I’d like to see a more complete in-text citation to give me a complete picture of who or what is being cited. The simple “source” button is great, but if I have to parse through a Daily Kos article to find their primary source, I feel like I’m wasting my time. Like with if somebody does research through Wikipedia, it’s not a complete indictment of their research unless they citing Wikipedia. They are great places to start, but a professional quality piece never contains sources like that.
It is truly troubling that any reasonable person would claim this “shreds” the case against mike brown. In less than 3 minutes acting as an armchair detective, aka, checking out these sources, it is absolutely clear journalism majors from KU should avoid a career in anything litigious. One source this genius cites, is a video of two rednecks filming, on what I assume is an iphone, the distance from the shooting from the cruiser. I don’t think anyone thinks officer Wilson sat in his cruiser pumping out 9 mm rounds like a scene from boys n da hood. No, it is common knowledge he did exit his car, and perhaps a secondary conflict arose. Another source concludes that because michael brown lacked gunpowder evidence on his hands, he could not have “grabbed or jammed the gun”. A person with trisomy 21 would still gather that, hey, maybe he didn’t have gunpowder on his fucking hands because the gun DID jam. Why the fuck would you induce that because he lacked gunpowder on his hands it was impossible for him to have grabbed the gun. The very fact that the gun did not go off makes this more than obvious, nobody said Wilson let off a shot as his hand was on or near the gun. This simply restates and manipulates the words of Wilson, but concludes something that is extremely unfounded.
It is truly troubling that any reasonable person would claim this “shreds” the case against mike brown. In less than 3 minutes acting as an armchair detective, aka, checking out these sources, it is absolutely clear journalism majors from KU should avoid a career in anything litigious. One source this genius cites, is a video of two rednecks filming, on what I assume is an iphone, the distance from the shooting from the cruiser. I don’t think anyone thinks officer Wilson sat in his cruiser pumping out 9 mm rounds like a scene from boys n da hood. No, it is common knowledge he did exit his car, and perhaps a secondary conflict arose. Another source concludes that because michael brown lacked gunpowder evidence on his hands, he could not have “grabbed or jammed the gun”. A person with trisomy 21 would still gather that, hey, maybe he didn’t have gunpowder on his hands because the gun DID jam. Why would you induce that because he lacked gunpowder on his hands it was impossible for him to have grabbed the gun. The very fact that the gun did not go off makes this more than obvious, nobody said Wilson let off a shot as his hand was on or near the gun. This simply restates and manipulates the words of Wilson, but concludes something that is extremely unfounded.
You spin and twist bits and pieces of testimony to serve your purpose.
You shred nothing but the truth.
Brown was a thug, who beat the officer to a point where he was hospitalized. You fail to even discuss that part of the TRUTH.
Nice try, but you are just exhibiting white guilt. You are based on taught reactive emotion, not facts and you are not emotionally disconnected from the story, which makes you incapable of being a “journalist”, at least in this case.
You are in school still, so there is hope. But in this case you get a D-.
This is full of nonsense. The man on the video footage IS Michael Brown, wearing the same exact clothes, the white shirt, long tan shorts, and goofy shoes. Just google search. The “witnesses” who propagated the “hands up don’t shoot” are confirmed liars after the autopsy confirmed that the bullets entered his front. Multiple witnesses (all African American even) admitted that Brown was running at Wilson when he was shot.
Where to start… I guess from the top. Are you saying Mike Brown was smaller than Darren Wilson? Mike Brown was still larger. His friends called him “Big Mike”
“Mike Brown was not stopped because he was a suspect of a crime…” This may be true, but Officer Wilson was not in the vicinity looking for jaywalkers either. Officer Wilson was responding to the call of the reported theft of which Mike Brown was a suspect. The fact that he was engaged by Wilson while jaywalking is circumstancial.
“Mike Brown was fleeing when he was fatally shot…” Your own source from the New York times points out that ALL bullet entry wounds were fired into his front. how can it be physically possible to shoot someone fleeing in their front? I guess Mike Brown was running backwards.
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and to go for body shots..” First of all, Michael Brown was unarmed yet aggressive so there was nothing to disarm. Your succeding sentence that Wilson shot Mike Brown 4 times in the arm and torso before fatally shooting him in the head suggests that the “incpacitate approach” was failing which is why the fatal shot was taken.
“Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact until Mike Brown’s death.” Your source does not confirm Ferguson police ignoring protocal nor refusing to take a statement from an eyewitness. You did not define what protocol was violated, and what should have happened. If the situation is not contained at the time backup arrives, would protocol not be to contain and control the scene before taking statements and interviewing witnesses? the police telling bystanders to vacate the scene and move to the sidewalk seems like a reasonable action under the circumstances.
I will grant your comments on forensic examiners breaking of protocol, however, you failed to define the protocol that was broken. This is a reflection on the forensic examiners not Darren Wilson.
“While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times… six separate witnesses all have identical accounts of what happened.” Where is your source on Officer Wilson’s story changing? To what degree did his story change? I believe there were more than 6 eyewitnesses. The grand jury testimony of all the eyewitnesses indicate their are contradictions to all testimony. it is not as clear cut as you imply http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/newly-released-witness-testimony-tell-us-michael-brown-shooting/ After looking at the chart on this source, tell me that you are convinced that Mike Brown was shot with his hands in up in the surrender position.
“In a press conference the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun causing it to misfire is impossible and untrue.” Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. The official autopsy refealed that Mike Brown had a close range gunshot wound to the hand which corroborates Wilson’s account of the events. http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” Your source indicates that it is true that the store owner did not call police, however, it also indicates that police were called by customers of the store. I believe that most people surmise that the man on the security camera footage is Mike Brown. If it is not him, then who is the mystery cigar thief?
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest” There is no conflict of interest here. The prosecutor is on a board of an organization that supports police in general. After all, it is typically the police who brings him the cases he prosecutes. If he was actively collecting donations to support an officer he was prosecuting, yes there would be a conflict, but this simply is not the case. Additionally, backstoppers is now rejecting any donations made in relation to the Ferguson case.
“The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.” This does not implicate Officer Wilson of any wrongdoing. It is circumstancial.
I don’t see where in the cited article it says anything about the store owner saying ” the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown”. I don’t really know if anyone can ‘prove’ that now (though its totally irrelevant to the shooting, as we know). I know it’s nit picking, but its important to stick to the facts when you are trying to provide objective reporting.
Cool story, needs more dragons ‘n shit.
Someone pointed me to this posting during a discussion about the Brown/Wilson incident. I’ve been considering how to respond. I don’t know if Miss Lawson is naive, misinformed or is intentionally trying to misrepresent the facts in the case, but she makes a number of incorrect statements about “protocol”, most of her sources are inaccurate, outdated media articles from August and most of her references to primary source information is either inaccurate or misrepresentation of the available information. Unfortunately, this is what passes for journalism in today’s society, and despite it demonstrating very poor journalistic research, I’m sure she’s been praised by her friends, classmates and professors.
The first two points here would be comical if they weren’t about such a serious matter.
Point #1. The source mentions height only , not weight. I am the same height as mariusz pudionowski , does that mean we are the same size or possess similar physical strength? Of course not.
Point #2. The source provided here actually says that both autopsies concluded Brown’s head was down as if he was charging forward at the time he received the fatal shot.
In Wilson’s testimony, he does describe chasing Brown after the initial altercation(assault on a police officer). Of course the cop will chase the suspect. Hello people that’s what cops do they chase suspects. This was not when the initial or fatal shots were fired though. They were only fired, according to Wilson and the autopsies,( all of which this story provides as sources), when Brown turned and ran towards Wilson.
So what is the point of these headline grabbing stories floating around on fb? They don’t even prove what they claim to prove I mean Wtf people? They figure 99% Of people won’t ever look at the actual evidence and they are right. It took me a few minutes to “shred” this idiotic posts’ first two points. I don’t have time for the rest right now.
Hahaha. You need to find a new Major. Obviously your Journalists skills lack actual facts. You should good back to reading the whole grand jury testimony. You just lost any credibility of ever being take as a real journalist. The only thing you will be ever be reporting on is In Cosmo on how lose weight.
I would expect a Journalism major to use sources from the actual trial documents or the documents them selves pertaining you could access them. Using newspaper clippings is fine but are not likely the best of places to prove your point.
Don’t quit your day job.
Well, I guess you’re the authority. Oh, incidentally, there was a weight difference of 82 pounds (heavier for the waste-of-life thug). If you think that isn’t significant, try and lift it some time.
Justice wins, you and your ilk hellbent on relinquishing decency and respect for the law loses. Again.
Pea brain.
Much appreciated. Going to be putting this on my page.
There is nothing more destructive than misinformation
So apparently the African American witnesses that watched Michael Brown still 80 lbs heavier than officer Wilson, charge the officer like a bull with his head down were lying? You have cited great facts but only in favor of the deceased. You fail to mention that Michael Brown attacked the officer, which in itself is a felony. Not to mention if Michael was not attacking Wilson, how was his dna on the weapon? While you make an interesting argument, the author, yourself is biased by not including all the facts.
He was a thug, and he got what he deserved. Justice has been served. Move along
Boy your facts are really skewed – Brown did rob that store – his “buddy” that was with him walking in the middle of the street admitted to it! How can you say that wasn’t him in the video – THIS IS ridiculous!
I just read Page 281 of Wilson’s testimony, where you say he admits to shooting Brown while fleeing. It says no such thing. It’s him explaining why he followed Brown after the fight in the cruiser.
May we assume the rest of your citations are as incorrect as this one?
Nice work!
Mike Brown evidently did shoplift and did confront/push the store owner. His friend stated he was surprised that Brown shoplifted — that he’d never done that before w/that friend. http://www.ibtimes.com/michael-brown-robbed-convenience-store-stole-cigarillos-darren-wilson-shooting-dorian-1729359
As you say, Officer Wilson didn’t know about the shoplifting incident and stopped Brown for jaywalking. One thing you don’t mention is that Officer Wilson stopped his vehicle within arm’s reach of Brown. Either 1. Wilson was poorly trained and made a rookie mistake that put him in harms way or 2. Wilson intended to initiate a physical confrontation and did so, attempting to drag Brown into his vehicle, also a technique likely to fail, since Wilson would be seated in his vehicle, unable to get leverage and at a severe disadvantage in a physical confrontation.
Clearly, since Ferguson does such a poor job of training their officers, somebody needs to hold them accountable. Since Ferguson PD has a record of giving inaccurate information to the public, I can’t see any solution short of a civilian oversight board w/the power to discipline and cameras on all their officers.
Thank you for posting and citing all of this information! I would ask two things, however: 1) how big was Mike Brown (not that it should really matter), and 2) what source says that Mike Brown didn’t rob the convenience store? (Not that it should matter either, but your cited source only says that what happened in the store is irrelevant, not that Mike Brown was not involved)
I agree with your conclusions and thank you for posting this, but would like these minor points cleared up before I share this.
Thank you.
“Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
I find this point very interesting, but am unclear about how you know that the man in the footage is not Mike Brown. I could not find a statement confirming this in the statement you posted. Could you please cite this source?
Share this with your family
This is adorable. It’s like reading the opinion of a second grader. So much of the information you present is wrong or based upon conjecture that this article becomes almost immediately irrelevant. I admire your passion but you make some pretty serious leaps and list them as fact. You will fit in really well with the media. By the way, before you label me, I’m liberal and not a gun owner.
All your points are completely wrong if you were truly a journalist you would have read all of the transcripts like I did the one big thing that makes your points complete false and shows complete arrogance is that if you read the fire arms examiner report brown was only shot once in the head not twice also being trained. In the navy there is this thing called the triangle of use of deadly force which consists of opportunity, the ability, and the intention anyways I’m done proving your points wrong.
Ms.Lawson has done an admirable job combing through the details of the evidence against Officer Wilson in the shooting of Mike Brown. One detail of note that she ommitted : Michael Brown outweighted Daron Wilson by 80 lbs. Wilson weights 210 lbs., Brown weighted 290 lbs.
Who is the moderator for this site. Is it Michael Shatz? Why are you refusing all but one comment to this article? I’ve submitted several and you are not posting them. Can you tell me why? Thanks.
I didn’t see anything about how Mike Brown went up to the cop’s car, leaned onto the car, punched the cop in the face and got shot in the hand while trying to wrestle the gun from the cop who was seated in the car?
There are so many mistakes, untruths, lies and distortions in this piece that it must be deliberately done. No journalism student could make that many mistakes. As an example, the piece says the prosecuting attorney was conducting fund raising for Officer Wilson. First the “source” cited, if you read to the bottom, says that the organization that he works for refused to take any contributions relating to the incident. Second, it would be highly unethical for him to do something like that and he would be subjected to discipline and disbarment by the State Bar Association. This article is full of innuendo and inaccuracies.
I can’t even finish reading this article because you already got something majorly wrong. go do your homework on the forensics and you’ll see that the fatal shots for Mike Brown were in the top of his head not his back. Did that occur while he was fleeing?.) Go look it up.
You are truly a moron and a college educated idiot. You truly have no common sense and you need to take your arm chair detecting back to Crime scene investigation101.
Horrible to report and source undocumented, blog news websites. No truth in reporting just web searches to draw conclusions from others which are most confidently opinions. This just fuels the fire for media inaccuracies. The Court papers are available, all 5000 plus pages. War and Peace is an easier read, but better than the non fact based internet sourcing that takes any troll minutes to accumulate. Sorry Shelby, Thumbs down.
I’d just like to point out,
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
On the source link, it never says that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown. It simply states that the theft had nothing to do with the shooting and that the cigars were so cheap that the owner didn’t bother calling police. Other than that, good read.
• The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
It looks as if you corrected this, but it should be known that Brown was roughly 80 lbs heavier than Wilson. That is a big difference. Among other provisions, self defense law allows for the use of deadly force when there is a disparity of force involved, specifically, a disparity of size/strength. This is regardless of whether the attacker has a gun.
• Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
This is irrelevant and missing information. What you say is true, but if you read the next page (209), Officer Wilson says that after the initial encounter, he notices the box of Cigarillos and that the clothes that Mike Brown is wearing matches the description of the suspect in the robbery. This makes his attempt to detain and arrest Brown lawful.
• Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
This statement wrong. If you read the GJ testimony on page 281, Officer Wilson never says that he shot at Brown while Brown was running away from him. He very well may have, but that is not what is said on page 281. Also, if you look at pages 227-230 of the GJ testimony, Officer Wilson clearly states that Brown is coming towards him when he fires his weapon.
• -Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Where is your source for this? Pretty sure this is not true. Police officers are legally able, just like the rest of us, to use deadly force in self-defense.
• -Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
I’m pretty sure they have Dorian’s statement.
• -While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
Where is your source that claims that Wilson’s story changed at least three times? The source you link to, VOX, says the opposite.
“There are plenty of rumors floating around about Wilson’s side of the story, but no verified source has given the officer’s detailed account of the fatal shooting.”
“So we don’t really know what Wilson says happened from the beginning of the incident to the end. “
• These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
There is a lot of conflicting eyewitness testimony. So while there are some people that contradict Wilson’s version of events, there are some people that confirm his version, with a lot of people in between. See the link below to see a chart of how all of the eyewitness testimony conflicts.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/newly-released-witness-testimony-tell-us-michael-brown-shooting/
• -This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
Nope. http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html
From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch article linked above:
“Melinek also said the autopsy did not support witnesses who have claimed Brown was shot while running away from Wilson, or with his hands up.
She said Brown was facing Wilson when Brown took a shot to the forehead, two shots to the chest and a shot to the upper right arm. The wound to the top of Brown’s head would indicate he was falling forward or in a lunging position toward the shooter; the shot was instantly fatal.
A sixth shot that hit the forearm traveled from the back of the arm to the inner arm, which means Brown’s palms could not have been facing Wilson, as some witnesses have said, Melinek said. That trajectory shows Brown probably was not taking a standard surrender position with arms above the shoulders and palms out when he was hit, she said.”
• Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
Again, Nope. From the same article referenced above:
“Graham said the examination indicated a shot traveled from the tip of Brown’s right thumb toward his wrist. The official report notes an absence of stippling, powder burns around a wound that indicate a shot fired at relatively short range.
But Graham said, “Sometimes when it’s really close, such as within an inch or so, there is no stipple, just smoke.”
The report on a supplemental microscopic exam of tissue from the thumb wound showed foreign matter “consistent with products that are discharged from the barrel of a firearm.”
Dr. Judy Melinek, a forensic pathologist in San Francisco, said the autopsy “supports the fact that this guy is reaching for the gun, if he has gunpowder particulate material in the wound.” She added, “If he has his hand near the gun when it goes off, he’s going for the officer’s gun.”
Sources told the Post-Dispatch that Brown’s blood had been found on Wilson’s gun.”
• Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
You misread the report. The report states that Mike Brown was killed 148 ft from Wilson’s SUV, NOT from Wilson.
• Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
This is irrelevant to the shooting, but I’ll talk about it. Yes, this is true, but there is more to it. While the store owner did not call police, customers did. Regardless of who called police, the 911 call went out and police were given a description of a suspect. It doesn’t matter who calls 911, the police are given the details of the call, not who called. Plus, it doesn’t matter who actually makes the call.
• The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
The only reliable information I found about this was that the Prosecutor is the president of an organization that helped raise money for Wilson. There is no indication that the prosecutor himself was involved.
• The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
This is not relevant to the shooting.
recheck your sources on a few aspects, Mike brown was approximately 35 feet away at the time of the fatal shots, but was 150 feet from the patrol car. As far as what 4 of the 6 witnesses said at the time of the incident, they all in return during the grand jury testimony stated that Mr. Brown was in fact, Charging at officer Wilson. Whether the store owner called the police or not, It has been 100% verified that it was in Fact Mr. Brown, and the 1st witness that did indeed rob the store. Michael Brown in fact did flee initially, and the witnesses said that Wilson ordered him to stop. He didn’t open fire till Mr. Brown turned and started to run back towards Wilson. Wilson and Brown May both be 6’4′ but Mr. Brown was 87 pounds heavier in weight, Therefore that is a significant difference in size. My point is here, that i am 6’1 but very thin 150 pounds. Does that make me similar in size to all men that are 6’1, NO, there are many men my height or even much shorter that me, that are considerably Larger and stronger that I am. I hate to say this, but i believe that you only did this blog to show that you are not a racist. Which I’m Glad you are not, We have too much of that already in this country. If you actually have read the grand jury testimony as you say. you will see how inaccurate you really are. I believe that you merely skimmed through the evidence that you cited of you your resource links with. And have not read them thoroughly as I just did, Because your quotes on most of this are clearly not what your source links state. Journalism does not make you a lawyer, it simply is a cover up for bias decisions and if you want to tear up the case like a bias lawyer, you should consider taking some in depth law classes. I sure hope you are early in your journalism classes at this point, because you inaccuracies can be spotted a mile away. Keep up with you education, but if you want to tear apart the basics of law in this country, they you need to have a stronger grip on how our judicial system is comprised of. This article by far is totally based on you bias opinion.
Conspiracy theorist abound! So you think the Grand Jury was fixed? Come on get real!
They are taught “protocol” to do things a certain way “when possible” (ie: body shots) so thanks for the slant. Another example of this which I’m positive you will be understanding for your life’s employement is that a fast food training video shows how to make a sandwich – in a clean, well stocked kitchen without a mealtime rush. Some things are great in theory, but just don’t work in real life or at least in all instances. Real life – something few journalists get! It’s just great that folks like you want to continue to give criminals a pass including allowing them to continue to scream for justice when they are just angry because they played the race card & didn’t get the result they wanted! Athough, they’re going to get their wish now since their actions are being investigated! Let us know when you take a LAW class!!
This is fluff. There is nothing new in any of this, and it actually appears at times to be outright alterations of the truth (see: lies). Check these sources. The only one with any credibility was the grand jury testimony, which you can find in it’s entirety here http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-assets/grand-jury-testimony.pdf. I give you the link because she didn’t, and also because this hard hitting evidence that Brown was “fleeing” on pg 281 simply isn’t there. It’s not there at all. Ctrl F the whole thing. Search fleeing. Or flee. You won’t find it.
Oh, also wanted to point out how the accounts you point to don’t add up: He was running away. Then the “identical” accounts say he was surrendering. Which was it? & they “claimed” not to know each other. Do we know for sure. You know, since their stories were identical… Many more I could point out, but you get the idea.
Dear Complete Retard,
I appreciate your Afro-Centric Journalism based on Rumor. Perhaps you could explain the shell casing positions in relation to the body.
According to some sources the Thug Mike Brown had some sort of Juvenile Charges of 2nd Degree Murder?
This guy was a Negro Thug, and you are an Afro-Centric Retard. I’ll pray for your Demon-Possessed-Soul.
Sooooo how long is it going to take for them to reverse the grand jury’s decision???????
I stopped reading at the size difference. 80 pounds is a HUGE difference in an altercation. You go find a person 80 lbs heavier and see if you can wrestle with them with ease.
Your sources are vox, slate, dailykos, and the NYT? And you’re a journalism major? God help us.
How is 210 lbs the same size as 295 lbs?
I’d expect better from a journalism major. Why is she using random websites like DailyKos as so many sources? Those aren’t sources! That’s almost as bad as calling Google a source! Someone can just as easily link conservative websites with information saying the exact opposite.
Why isn’t she sticking to linking to actual case material? They did make make a bunch of the grand jury information public. Sort through that if you want to “shred the case” against Mike Brown.
She needs to spend more time paying attention in J-school. This is worth a C, at best.
This holds so much weight because I know exactly what those Women, Gender, and Sexual Studies degrees are worth.
Also, Mike Brown “fleeing” while shot is misleading while out of context. Autopsy confirms he was shot from the front every time.
Coroner explicitly said his hands didn’t have to be up for the bullet pattern.
Why are you running with made up stuff?
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Um, the same testimony, which you so conveniently ignore, shows that Wilson had heard the radio dispatcher speak of the robbery, and after seeing the stolen cigars in Brown’s hands, Wilson put two and two together. Therefore, while not “stopping him because he was a suspect”, he did, during the encounter, realize that Brown was the thug who stole from the store and assaulted the store owner. A convenient half-truth is almost as good as a lie, isn’t it?
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
From suppressing testimony to fabricating testimony. If Brown were fleeing from Wilson, he would have been shot in the back. However, forensics shows that all of Brown’s entry wounds were from the front.
Yeah, you’re a journalism student alright. Learning your craft of lying to the public well, are you?
I am not one of the millions of idiots, on both sides, who made up their minds what happened the second it happened or, hit the news. I have waited for the evidence to come out just as Ms. Lawson did. She is way ahead of me in researching the facts and evidence and presents a compelling argument.
Two things: I knew she was right about the reason for the encounter. Brown and one other person were walking in the middle of the street and officer Wilson asked them to move to the sidewalk. They refused saying they were near their destination. Am I to believe that’s all it took for the officer to open fire? Why was Brown the only one who got shot? How come his friend got off so lucky? If the implication is that Brown never attacked the officer, there’s missing information. What happened to prompt him to draw his gun and fire…over jaywalking? How did Officer Wilson suffer his injuries?
there is a video on which a witness is clearly heard telling someone that Brown “bumrushed” Wilson and that the altercation originated with both men being “in the (police) car.” This corroborates Wilson’s version. I heard it myself, with my own ears. It was possible GJ evidence.
The other issue is trust of witnesses as in, I simply don’t. If the witness on the video testified in Brown’s favor, he changed his story. Pure and simple. He (presumably) lives in that neighborhood and everyone knows he was a witness. I’ve heard black people say, “black always sides with black”. I don’t believe that’s universally true but, in the Hood…I believe it’s usually the case.
These are people who, when there’s a drive by and a bunch innocent people get caught in the crossfire, nobody saw s**t because, “snitches get stitches.” They won’t testify on behalf of their own innocent victims but, a cop shoots a black guy and suddenly their coming out of the cracks in the sidewalk to do their civic duty?
Bulls**t!
And remember, being unarmed does not automatically excuse one from being shot. He can still pose a threat to life without a gun. Brown was no innocent victim. He did something to make the cop shoot. Whether Wilson needed to fire so many times is another issue. Whether Brown had his hands up in surrender pleading, “don’t shoot, I’m unarmed” is another issue.
It’s still the wrong matter to hang the Riot Wagon on. There was a black man who was shot by a cop shortly after the Brown shooting.in NY who was not armed and not engaged in criminal activity. It appears to have been an accidental fire by the officer but, it would make a lot more sense to me for people to be losing their s**t over that incident.
Thank you so much. Keep seeking the truth!!!!!
It’s so nice to see people with no training on policing, criminal investigations, or forensics making claims about what was right or what was wrong about an investigation.
Thank you so much. Keep seeking truth and facts. The internet isn’t about facts, and that’s sad. Thank you again. Oh, and the answers to the Journalism final are B..A..C…None of the Above. Peace. :)
This is a joke right? You have completly ignored the actual evidence! There was GSR on Browns hand, and the autopsy proved just the opposite, that Brown did NOT have his hands up! And I don’t know what “eye witness” you are talking about, but most of the “eyewitness’s” that put the “he had his hands up and was surendering” have said they lied and did not actually see anything of the kind! I guess you will fit right in as a “jounalist” as it has been proven that THEY caused a lot of this to get blown out of proportion and “reported” the lies instead of waiting to get the actual “facts” because they needed a new “racist cop” story because the “trayvon lies” have run their course!!
“shreds”? The title is even more laughable than the lack of fact checking that a “journalism major” should do. Height was the same, but ~75lbs difference in weight. Big only means height to a 4 year old. Daily Kos as a source? Ridiculous. >130 feet shooting distance? There are only probably 10 people on earth that could hit someone with a pistol from that distance. More examples are there, but I’ve already wasted 10 minutes of my life “shredding” this article. Some of the worst journalism I’ve ever seen.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and that’s all this is, “your opinion”! Don’t assume you know what your talking about based off of reading a transcript! You weren’t there, you don’t know how you would react in his situation and as anyone SHOULD know, schooling isn’t the real world! I trained for years as a combat Marine but when it came down to the real thing it didn’t exactly happen the way I expected or how I was trained nor did I react the way I thought I would. The reason being is NO one knows how they’ll react to a life and death situation until the proverbial crap hits the fan! So, for you or anyone else out there to sit around behind your computer posting comments about what YOU think is right and wrong is absolute horse crap! You weren’t there but your willing to side with scum who say his hands were up? Seriously, these are people whose main source of income is robbing, stealing and dealing drugs! These same thugs despise cops because officers are the ones who put them in jail for the crimes they commit! You have the balls to sit there in the “safety” and comfort of your own home (thanks to officers like Darren Wilson) and voice your opinion on what you THINK is right and wrong. How about you get off of your ass and go do a ride along with a police officer in a bad area? Go see what the REAL world is actually like and THEN we’ll see what you think about this and everything else you read about and have an opinion on little Miss know it all who seems to think she’s special and that any of us gives two shit’s on what your opinion is! I’ve done ride a long’s so I DO know, I’ve served in combat so I DO know what the officer felt and the stress he was under! Until then maybe you should keep your mouth shut and stick to just reading instead of posting stupid comments on things you know NOTHING about!
She struck the line, “the same size as Mike Brown.” How does she know? I can’t locate Brown’s height and weight. He looked a lot bigger than the officer to me, possibly ine xcess of 300 lbs.
Please pardon “their” vs. “they’re” and misspelling of excess.
You little girl are an idiot and I hope you continue your education.
there was two white construction worker who were there and yelled that Brown had his hands up trying to surrender
You guys at The Onion should really label your satire more clearly.. For a moment I actually thought this was a serious piece..
amazing
There are serious issues with the vast majority of your statements, I’ll go through some of the obvious ones. I can’t believe this is from a journalism student, this is pathetic.
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs”
Per Brown’s autopsy he was 289 lbs and 77 inches (6’5″). He had nearly 80 pounds on Wilson. http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/2014-5143-autopsy-report.pdf
“Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
This is correct, however if you read 209, Wilson says that he then notices the Cigarillos, and the previous call he heard on the radio about the theft clicked. That’s why he backed up to stop them.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
But Brown turned around and doubled back, blood stains were found 25 feet beyond his body, indicating he came back. This doesn’t tell us if he was charging or walking or crawling, but he was coming towards Wilson. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/national/ferguson-diagram-of-the-scene/
“Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
In the very source you listed, it shows the shot in the head was on the top, coming down, and states this could have been because he was charging at him.
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Your source refers the private autopsy performed for the Brown Family. Read page 5 of the autopsy where he says that the gun shot residue on his palm indicates it was inches from his hand when fired.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Maybe he didn’t call because it was already reported to police (presumably by a customer). Either way, the police knew about it and there was a call for that (that was not assigned to Wilson but he heard about it). Dorian Johnson testified that Brown committed the robbery, so are you really going to say that wasn’t him on the video?
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
No he didn’t, his group is for raising money for fallen police officers, they had no idea who put that fundraiser up there, and apparently only 19 shirts were sold. I guess they were sold for a little over $30k each?
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
Found it: “6-foot-4 and 292 pounds” He out weighed Officer Wilson by 82 lbs. Sounds significant to me.
First glimmer of bias on Ms. Lawson’s part. She obviously knew this. Why else would she strike the line, “same size…”
Very misleading amateur reporting — you say the owner of Ferguson Market said the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown — a) I’ve yet to come across this statement (neither at the link you provide nor anywhere else), and b) it’s clearly Mike Brown — compare the surveillance tape with the picture of his body on the street, very clearly wearing same outfit considering the events were minutes apart: http://mrmilitantnegro.files.wordpress.com/2014/08/mike-brown.jpg?w=468&h=468
Secondly, you claim “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” This is just an outright lie. Wilson did not say this is when he shot him. One of your other links further proves that Brown was shot in the front — contrary to both you and Brown’s friend Johnson claiming he was shot in the back while fleeing.
It’s a good thing the field of forensic investigation has advanced beyond the field of amateur journalism.
and where is the lies and hypocrisy it has caused America so much damage and pain across the whole United States. The KKK and “white supremacy” are foul and ought to be disband, torn down, dethroned off the backs and under the guise of good Americans. According to the Bible their behavior is that of the DEVIL.
Terrible.
6’4″ 210 is not even close to the same SIZE as 6’4″ 292. There is an 82 pound weigh difference. Height isn’t nearly as important as weight when it comes to being a physical threat.
Read page 280 and 281 again. The fatal shot was NOT as Brown was fleeing, however he was seen as a threat to society when fleeing. Page 280 clearly says “when he was advancing towards you, you felt like your life was in jeopardy?” A. Yes “And use of deadly force was justified at that point in your opinion?” A. Yes…… The fatal shot was not as he was running away, he was simply a threat to society running away. The fatal shots were as he was charging the officer. Officers taught to incapacitate and not shoot to kill. He did have a few shots on his arm, but when a guy is charging you from 12-15 yards away, probably easier said than done. Also, if the first few shots didn’t stop this aggressive (not gentle) 300 lb guy on weed, what other choice did the officer have but to eventually start shooting to protect himself? Why defend a criminal who went for an officer’s gun, rather than consider it a harsh lesson learned?
You are either terribly uneducated there at KU, or you have an agenda here. Your sources are ridiculous. For example the one from Vox on the eyewitness accounts. You should be ashamed, and should be held accountable for correcting your errors. Vox takes Dorian Johnson’s eyewitness account as fact?! He has been convicted of theft AND filing false police reports before this incident, and not-so-coincidentally was Brown’s accomplice in the convenience store robbery.. an eyewitness (black, and who does not have a criminal past or reason to lie) says Dorian Johnson was also in the physical confrontation with Wilson, grabbing his leg when Brown had shuvved Wilson into the cop car. Dorian Johnson’s gold bracelet (worn by him in the convenience store video, mind you) was found right near the cop car. You don’t think he had something to hide, some reason to paint the cop as the bad guy?
Some of your sources are very outdated and have since been proven inaccurate, some take testimony from people whose stories changed on the stand, this is a horribly mistaken opinion piece written as if it was based on facts. Dailykos is a credible source on this case? Haha, wow.
Also, you wrote “police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported 35 feet but it was really 148 feet”. Brown was 148 feet from the SUV, yes. But officer Wilson wasn’t at the SUV for the fatal shots, remember? He was originally, when Brown shuvved him, went for his gun, scuffled, and the first shot went off (where there WAS gun residue on Brown’s hand… another fact your brutal sources got wrong months ago and have now been proven to support the fact that Brown was the aggressor). Once that shot went off in the cop car, Brown took off. Wilson got out of his car and pursued him. Brown got 148 feet from the SUV, apparently, before the 300 lb’er realized he couldn’t outrun the much SMALLER, 210 pound officer. The officer was 35 feet from Brown at this point. Brown stopped, turned around. Then he taunted, saying something along the lines of ‘what are you gonna do, you’re too big of a pussy to shoot me’. Then he charged the cop. The most credible and consistent eyewitnesses attested to that. Don’t give me that crap about Dorian Johnson or the numerous witnesses who changed their stories on the stand, saying ‘well I actually didn’t see it, that’s what my boyfriend said he saw’ or when told that their story is physically impossible given the evidence they replied ‘I don’t feel comfortable anymore, can we be done?’.
So Brown charged the cop. The first few shots hit him in the arm, didn’t stop him. Then the torso, didn’t stop him. What was Wilson supposed to do? It’s ridiculous to assess Wilson’s decision making at this point. A drugged up 300 lb man who has already gone for your gun is now charging you, and being hit with a few bullets didn’t stop him. Common sense adults would have put responsibility on Brown loooong ago, but even the most sympathetic adults to a misguided thug should agree that there was no choice but to shoot to kill.
You need to read the grand jury readings in its entirety. If you already have, read it again SLOWLY and pay attention to actual facts and the actual witness testimonies, not the trash you read online months ago that came from Dorian Johnson or his crew and has since been proven inaccurate.
Your Washington Post ‘source’ is brutal too. Why would you point out something that had nothing to do with him at his prior police department? Who cares if it shut down because blacks and white relations in the area were tense, it says nothing about Wilson. He was never mentioned in any lawsuits or events of unnecessary force, racial issues, etc.. He was barely even there by the time it shut down, yet that article leaves the opening for one to wrongfully assume that he had something to do with it, or was a part of it. You use this aspect as a source of fact against Wilson? What a joke. If you’re going to bring in unnecessary, open ended, historical facts about Wilson like that… What about the positives in Wilson’s past? Even some quotes from that exact article you cited? The subtitle ‘problems at home’ is awfully misleading, because Wilson never played a role in those problems. In fact, he went the opposite route and sought to live and act differently than his mother had when he was growing up.
“A family friend, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of threats, said Wilson sought out a career in law enforcement as a way to create a solid foundation in his life that he’d been missing.”
“He had a rough upbringing and just wanted to help people,” the friend said. In Wilson’s childhood, “there was just no structure.”
What about the idea that Wilson was doing Ferguson a SERVICE by being willing to work in such a high crime, low income area? No?
And if you think Wilson gunned down Brown because he was racist and (insert made-up motive), does that really make more sense than all the backwards logic that would need to be true?
-As I said earlier, Wilson never had any complaints or issues about his job performance, specifically no racial run-ins
-Wilson had never fired his gun in his 5 year career. Do you really think he’d wake up one morning and decide “I’m going to kill a black guy, even if he’s just walking in the middle of the street”?
-Even the most racist white person in the world wouldn’t just kill a black man in the middle of the street in broad daylight, while leaving his accomplice Dorian Johnson to live to talk about it.. It doesn’t make sense!
What makes a little more sense is Dorian and Mike high on weed, just robbed a convenience store, walking in the middle of the street like they’re untouchable and own the place, not liking authority, Brown thinking he can intimidate and push a cop around the same way he pushed the store owner around with no real consequences. Maybe it doesn’t mane ‘logical’ sense to a normal adult, but to a 18 year old thug on drugs… though terribly misguided, it makes more sense than a guy with Wilson’s clean history gunning down a black guy in broad daylight while others live to tell about it.
I’ll be done. I feel like I’ve wasted about 30 min of speed typing because this most likely won’t get through to you. If that doesn’t, I’ll be praying for your professors at KU and I hope that someday logic kicks you in the head.
Maybe I shouldn’t have such a strong opinion, but your article is so far off I couldn’t help but express my thoughts. Maybe both you and I should look at a piece like this below, and just keep quiet on events we weren’t physically present for.. and focus on the real problems at hand.
http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/thoughts-on-ferguson
Funny how all of this so called evidence that she presents was explained and/or discredited. Also funny how none of the posts stating this ever seem to show up.
You are a whack job. We can really look forward to “objective & accurate” reporting from you as your career progresses.
Last one and I’m done with this chick because, upon closer examination, her bias is oozing out all over this thing.
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.”
The witness testified they opted for DNA testing instead of fingerprinting, because in a struggle, there would be insufficient ridge detail necessary for a viable print. Agin, THEY SWABBED FOR BROWNB”S DNA. He then testified to proper evidence colletion protocol of that DNA evidence. No testimony here as to the results of teh DNA swab. Brown’s blood was found on the gun (multiple sources available in web search).
That’s page 39 of GJ transcript, vol 3
Here you go, the microscopic reports showing the close contact weapon discharge in Brown’s hand wounds.
http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370593-2014-5143-microscopic-01.html
Additionally, the first shot was the close range shot to the hand in the vehicle. Blood droplets, epithelials, and the chunk of the hand blasted off were found on the side of the car. Brown’s DNA (epithelials) was found on the officers pants, shirt, weapon, and inside door of the vehicle.
Witness reports (those that were total strangers to Brown, not people from the neighborhood who did not tell the truth for fear of retribution) stated that Brown charged the officer “like a football player”…reaching and grabbing while charging in that position would produce the same arm injuries observed in the autopsy. The trajectory and angle of the bullet path, from the top of the head into the chest cavity indicates Brown was crouched and advancing toward Wilson.
Shredding is not the right word at all. Repeating facts obtained from only one side of the political landscape does not entirely destroy a case. Many of these sources are biased, and do not represent recent, or sometimes even reliable, accounts of the occurrences. A total of 64 witnesses were questioned, however very few were able to provide a detailed description of the proceedings. The first two witnesses in the source provided have no context for their story. Because no description of their location other than they were able to see the shooting was given, accuracy cannot be attributed due to the distance being unknown. The second witness, being Mr. Brown’s friend, cannot be described as unbiased in anyway. The Third witness describes him as being shot from behind, this is contrary to information provided in your other sources. The fourth witness also describes Mr. Brown as being shot from behind, and is obviously a supporter of Officer Wilson’s indictment due to her presence at a rally, wearing a shirt with a quote popularized by ralliers. Now this may not make her unbiased because she believes what she states to have happened. However, this interview was conducted a significant amount of time after the Shooting. This may lead to her original story (never documented) change due to her own thoughts and the thoughts of those around her. The final two witnesses did not see the entire event, but were only present for the final moments, meaning precedence can not be set based on their stories. The two most prominent witnesses who’s stories align with forensic evidence, Witnesses 10 and 14. Witness Ten was passed by Mr. Brown shortly before the altercation occurred. The story presented by the man supports the idea that Mr. Brown had turned towards the officer and began moving towards him. When questioned about the position of Mr. Browns hands, he states: “I know for sure they weren’t above his head.” He also makes reference to some sort of motion he does before beginning to move towards Officer Wilson. This may be what others perceive as him raising his hands, or it could be the actual proceedings. Witness 14 also describes Mr. Brown walking toward Officer Wilson prior to the fatal shot. She also does not make any reference to any sort of words being spoken by Mr. Brown, only Officer Wilson saying stop repeatedly. This contradicts the various final words described by other witnesses. This witness also believes that Mr. Brown raising his hands after turning were to examine the wound, also a possibility for witness 10’s story. The Final note on the witness interviews, is that many on both sides of the controversy describe the distance as approximately 30-35 feet. Finally, there is no reference to the Forensic evidence obtained in Officer Wilson’s car, and on his gun. Both showed traces of Mr. Brown’s blood. The fact that there is blood INSIDE the car supports the events as described by Officer Wilson.
Unfortunately, we can never truly know what transpired in the car other than what is told by the hard facts of Forensics. These being, Mr. Brown was inside the car in some way, and that Mr. Brown sustained no damage from the rear, only being shot from the front. That being said, there is strong evidence that Mr. Brown did cause an altercation to be produced. In addition, claims that Mr. Brown went for Officer Wilson’s gun are not unfounded, however cannot be fully supported.
Sources: Your own and:
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/11/25/366507379/ferguson-docs-how-the-grand-jury-reached-a-decision
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/11/25/366575509/ferguson-documents-the-physical-evidence
Also, all the Jury documents are accessible on these links, the articles only summarize them, and do not entirely represent their evidence.
Terrible.
6’4″ 210 is not even close to the same SIZE as 6’4″ 292. There is an 82 pound weigh difference. Height isn’t nearly as important as weight when it comes to being a physical threat.
You need to read the grand jury reading in its entirety. If you already have, read it again SLOWLY and pay attention to actual facts and the actual witness testimonies, not the trash you read online months ago that came from Dorian Johnson or his crew and has since been proven inaccurate.
Read page 280 and 281 again. The fatal shot was NOT as Brown was fleeing, Wilson just said he still saw him as a threat to society at that point. Page 280 clearly says “WHEN HE WAS ADVANCING TOWARDS YOU, YOU FELT LIKE YOUR LIFE WAS IN JEOPARDY?”
A. Yes
“And use of deadly force was justified AT THAT POINT in your opinion?”
A. Yes……
Assuming you can read basic English, the grand jury reading you referenced does NOT say he was shot as he was running away, it says Wilson simply thought he was still a threat to society in the 148 feet (which I’ll get to later).
The fatal shots were, as page 280 says, as he was charging the officer. Officers taught to incapacitate and not shoot to kill.. yes. He did have a few shots on his arm, didn’t he? But when a guy is charging you from 12 yards away, how many chances can you give someone if they don’t stop? If a few shots to the arm didn’t stop him at, say. 9 yards away as he started going towards the cop, what would one more do at 6? One more at 3? If the first few shots didn’t stop this aggressive (not gentle; watch the convenience store footage) 300 lb guy who happened to be on drugs, what other choice did the officer have but to eventually start shooting to protect himself? Why defend a criminal who went for an officer’s gun, rather than consider it a sad, unfortunate, and harsh lesson learned?
You are either uneducated in reading comprehension as I explain above, or you have an agenda and don’t mind twisting ‘sources’ (or using poor sources altogether). Your sources are ridiculous. For example the one from Vox on the eyewitness accounts.. You should be ashamed, and should be held accountable for correcting your errors. Vox takes Dorian Johnson’s eyewitness account as fact?! He has been convicted of theft AND filing false police reports before this incident.. and weird, he was Brown’s accomplice in the convenience store robbery..A BLACK eyewitness who does not have a criminal past or reason to lie, says Dorian Johnson was also involved in the physical altercation with Wilson, grabbing his leg when Brown had shoved Wilson into the cop car. Dorian Johnson’s gold bracelet (worn by him in the convenience store video, mind you) was found right near the cop car. Go ahead, look at pictures from the scene. It is right by Brown’s hat. You don’t think Johnson had something to hide, some reason to paint the cop as the bad guy?
He also admittedly changed his shirt immediately after the incident so as not to be recognized from the crime they just committed. This is the guy CNN put a mic in front of and was the driving force behind the “hands up don’t shoot” fallacy. He is also seen on camera huddling with a few other “eyewitnesses” just before telling their stories. Over time, when they had to give their stories more than once… and on the stand for the grand jury.. their stories changed, disagreed with physical evidence, or were just plain inconsistent the more they told them. The eyewitnesses who were found to be the most credible WERE ALSO BLACK, but were NOT in said huddle after the shooting. Why would they lie? Please read the grand jury testimonies and respond to me. Why would these unaffiliated black eyewitnesses lie if they had just seen a man get slain in cold blood, unprovoked?
They wouldn’t.
When you have a police officer’s word, physical evidence, AND more credible black eyewitnesses with no personal agenda on one side to stand up against the word of a very-affiliated criminal, people who later admitted they didn’t actually see it, and testimony that disagrees with the physical evidence…. well I’m afraid it’s not that difficult. So many terrible assumptions and ‘plot holes’ against Officer Wilson and his story have come from these later-discredited testimonies. Testimonies your sources take for fact. Just because they are on the internet does NOT make them true. Again, read the grand jury readings SLOWLY.
Some of your sources are very outdated and have since been proven inaccurate, some take testimony from people whose stories changed on the stand. I’m sorry, but this is just a horribly mistaken opinion piece written as if it was based on facts.
Dailykos is a credible source on this case? Haha, wow. That told me enough.. I’m probably wasting my time if that is where you get your news. That BLOG admittedly publishes opinions on news from a liberal point of view. This is a source in your piece? What we have here is an uneducated opinion piece posing as an educated take, pretending that other slanted and skewed opinion BLOGS are matters-of-fact… when the true ‘matters of fact’ are in the grand jury readings that you either didn’t take the time nor the care to read objectively.
You wrote “police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported 35 feet but it was really 148 feet”. Pay attention to words!
Brown was 148 feet from the SUV, yes. But officer Wilson wasn’t at the SUV for the fatal shots, remember? So it IS plausible that Brown was 148 from the SUV and Wilson was 113 feet from the SUV, leaving Wilson with just over 10 yards between himself and the 300 lb man that charged him.
Wilson and Brown were originally at his SUV, yeah.. when Brown shoved him, went for his gun, scuffled, and the first shot went off (where there WAS gun residue on Brown’s hand… another fact your brutal sources got wrong months ago and have now supported the fact that Brown was the aggressor). Once that shot went off in the cop car, Brown took off. Wilson got out of his car and pursued him. Brown got 148 feet from the SUV, apparently, before the 300 lb’er realized he couldn’t outrun the 210 pound officer. Most credible evidence and testimony says Wilson was 35 feet from Brown at this point, gun still drawn but did NOT shoot with his back turned (another horrible ‘source’ that has been proven wrong since). Brown stopped, knowing he couldn’t outrun him anymore, and turned around. Then he taunted, saying something along the lines of ‘what are you gonna do, you’re too big of a pussy to shoot me’. Then he charged the cop. The most credible and consistent eyewitnesses attested to that. Don’t give me that crap about Dorian Johnson or the ‘numerous witnesses’, because when on the stand, those stories turned into saying ‘well I actually didn’t see it, that’s what my boyfriend said he saw’.. or when they were told that their story is physically impossible given the evidence they replied ‘I don’t feel comfortable anymore, can we be done?’. Or in Dorian Johnson’s case, stuck to his lie and it’s a joke that anyone would allow that to carry any weight.
So Brown charged the cop. The first few shots hit him in the arm, didn’t stop him though (try to incapacitate without killing… which you claim he didn’t do). Then the torso, didn’t stop him. What was Wilson supposed to do? It’s ridiculous to assess Wilson’s decision making at this point. A drugged up 300 lb man who has already gone for your gun is now charging you, and being hit with a few bullets didn’t stop him. Common sense would have put responsibility on Brown long before this point of the argument, but even those most sympathetic to a misguided 300 lb man (18 is an adult, not a little kid) who unfortunately made some fatally poor decisions should agree that there was no other choice for the officer.
Your Washington Post ‘source’ is brutal too. Why would you point out something that had nothing to do with him at his prior police department? Who cares if it shut down because blacks and white relations in the area were tense, it says nothing about Wilson. He was never mentioned in any lawsuits or events of unnecessary force, racial issues, etc.. He was barely even there by the time it shut down, yet that article leaves the opening for one to wrongfully assume that he had something to do with it, or was a part of it. You use this aspect as a source of fact against Wilson? What a joke. If you’re going to bring in unnecessary, open ended, historical facts about Wilson like that… What about the positives in Wilson’s past? Even some quotes from that exact article you cited? The subtitle ‘problems at home’ is awfully misleading, because Wilson never played a role in those problems. In fact, he went the opposite route and sought to live and act differently than his mother had when he was growing up.
“A family friend, who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of threats, said Wilson sought out a career in law enforcement as a way to create a solid foundation in his life that he’d been missing.”
“He had a rough upbringing and just wanted to help people,” the friend said. In Wilson’s childhood, “there was just no structure.”
What about the idea that Wilson was doing Ferguson a SERVICE by being willing to work in such a high crime, low income area? No?
And if you think Wilson gunned down Brown because he was racist and (insert made-up motive), does that really make more sense than all the backwards logic that would need to be true?
-As I said earlier, Wilson never had any complaints or issues about his job performance, specifically no racial run-ins
-Wilson had never fired his gun in his 5 year career. Do you really think he’d wake up one morning and decide “I’m going to kill a black guy, even if he’s just walking in the middle of the street”?
-Even the most racist white person in the world wouldn’t just kill a black man in the middle of the street in broad daylight, while leaving his accomplice Dorian Johnson to live to talk about it.. It doesn’t make sense!
What makes a little more sense is Dorian and Mike high on weed, just robbed a convenience store, walking in the middle of the street like they’re untouchable and own the place, not liking authority, Brown thinking he can intimidate and push a cop around the same way he pushed the store owner around with no real consequences. Maybe it doesn’t mane ‘logical’ sense to a normal adult, but to a 18 year old thug on drugs… though terribly misguided, it makes more sense than a guy with Wilson’s clean history gunning down a black guy in broad daylight while others live to tell about it.
I’ll be done. I feel like I’ve wasted about 30 min of speed typing because this most likely won’t get through to you. If that doesn’t, I’ll be praying for your professors at KU and I hope that someday logic kicks you in the head.
Maybe I shouldn’t have such a strong opinion, but your article is so far off I couldn’t help but express my thoughts. Maybe both you and I should look at a piece like this below, and just keep quiet on events we weren’t physically present for.. and focus on the real problems at hand.
http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/thoughts-on-ferguson
You are wrong on at least half of your statement.
This is the United States of America….there is no possibility of wrongdoing by a police officer when killing a black man….is goes without saying, they should all, in fact, be shot on sight. We are a very Christian Nation, you know.
Using DailyKos as a source is shaky, at best. In fact, when it comes to the autopsy parts, the NYT source suggests the opposite (Brown was approaching Wilson, as opposed to merely surrendering) of the DK piece. It’s a nice article, but someone hasn’t been following the news, apart from MSNBC talking points.
Either you are woefully ignorant, or you deliberately selectively cherry-picked bits and pieces of the evidence and grand jury testimony to push a disproven theory. Brown’s hand did have embedded powder residue, the bullet paths in Brown’s arm shows that his arms were not held up in a surrender position nor was he shot from behind, and the police are explicitly trained to not fire wounding shots but instead to shoot to stop… meaning head shots are taught as a last resort. Brown was also considerably heavier than Wilson, and blood evidence inside the patrol vehicle and on the street supports Wilson’s version of events while other eyewitnesses and significant evidence contradicts Brown’s partner in crime.
This is sloppy work and while not shocking from a college student, it should not be on the internet. Most of these sources are secondary source rags – not primary sources. We dont need an DailyKos/Salon story aggregator. Also:
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
This is lazy and does not reflect what is in the source which is sighted. 148 feet from the CAR which makes a big difference.
hey retard your facts are fucked if the dumb retard had put his hands up he be alive and he could get a affirmative action job he be unqualified for
If you could find sources for your sources you might have an actual story here. Some of your sources are really bad.
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
She has no idea what she’s talking about here. You cannot take “headshots” on a target charging at you. Every agency (police, FBI, etc) teaches to shoot center-mass with the intention that the shots will hit the largest and most vulnerable part of the body (the torso, where the heart and lungs are and the spine runs through). This is not to make the target decide to stop attacking – this is to physically incapacitate and make it so the attacker physically cannot continue attacking (and this is likely lethal).
So, not only does she not understand law enforcement training, but she also thinks that someone can fire at a charging suspect and “aim for their head” because they want to kill… but apparently Wilson is such a bad shot he mostly hit the arm and torso…
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
He *was* fleeing, then he stopped fleeing and turned around. Even the witnesses who say he put his hands up agree he turned around (as does all of the autopsy evidence showing no shots from behind).
thank you for your time and effort – so many lies circulating about. I wish you luck; we’re in dire need of good journalists.
U r dumb. Please never write another blog. U suck
Appreciate your input as well, Shelby. Your source for the prosecuting attorney having raised $600,000 for officer Darren Wilson says nothing of the sort (unless I missed something…read it twice). Please see Snopes entryt on this issue. The autopsy report seems to contradict the eyewitnesses that say he was shot in the back. All bullet wounds appear to be from the front. Not saying the autopsy report is necessarily correct, just pointing out the contradiction. Also, a quibble: as a journalism student, you should be careful when saying that people “lied” about things when there are differences in the accounts. Clearly the accounts don’t add up, but saying that the Police “lied” about something is claiming to know their intent, which you do not. I think there are numerous problems with this case, and based on the limited knowledge I’ve seen, I feel Darren Wilson should have been prosecuted.
Hopefully as a journalist you learn to be more objective than you were in the above article. I suggest taking a critical thinking class. If you are actually interested in learning all the facts and not just the ones that support what you want them to: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=a-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=1
As far as him not being at the gas station, go google the video and then tell me how both him and his friend look exactly like the two guys at the scene of the crime. You found one crackpot news source that said what you wanted to hear, when all of the other evidence says the opposite. They are even wearing the same clothes. Look at his hat in the video and then in the crime scene photos. Here is the autopsy report of Michael Brown. The shot in the hand happened from very close distance: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/michael-brown-private-autopsy-report.pdf Also read the transcripts of the police call logs.
This is interesting. There is one discrepancy in the article (at least based on the source info). “the man on the footage is not Mike Brown” is not what the source reads. It says that the theft was not reported and that the police had no knowledge until after the shooting, but I am almost certain it does not say that the perpetrator was not Mike Brown. It does not nullify your point, but for the sake of paraphrasing the source material accurately, you may want to change that. Assuming, of course, that I did read correctly.
Goes to show that even a little fact checking would have put any other person behind bars. Wake up America, don’t treat it as a black v white issue because it should be treated as a homicide – in – line – of – duty. Which Wilson did not follow protocols for in any way shape or form.
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
This is a debunked conspiracy theory. McCulloch is the president of the board of directors for a charity called Backstoppers. Backstoppers did not raise money for Darren Wilson. Backstoppers is a charity that provides assistance for the families of police officers that have been killed in the line of duty.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/the-backstoppers-not-benefitting-from-darren-wilson-shirt-sales/article_361f0089-a36b-5f2d-93b3-8a4f83c0351b.html
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
This is a debunked conspiracy theory. McCulloch is the president of the board of directors for a charity called Backstoppers. Backstoppers did not raise money for Darren Wilson. Backstoppers is a charity that provides assistance for the families of police officers that have been killed in the line of duty.
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/the-backstoppers-not-benefitting-from-darren-wilson-shirt-sales/article_361f0089-a36b-5f2d-93b3-8a4f83c0351b.html
Terrible article. but what else would you expect from a Kansas student. MIZ!
I posted this on my Facebook wall as well, but figured some direct refuting at the source would be wise, as this “journalism” major has done some very bad research, and frankly reposting it as news on this website is just bad journalism too, as clearly you did not investigate the legitimacy or veracity of any of her sources and links.
Happy reading!
——————————————————————-
I’ve read the sources, I’ve read the grand jury testimony. Guess it’s time to lay down some truth, point by point to refute the nonsense that this Shelby Lawson person has put out there.
“-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Incorrect. Michael Brown, per the autopsy report, is reported as 289 pounds (making him 79 POUNDS HEAVIER than Wilson), and 77 inches tall (6’4″). Right height, wrong weight, making Brown significantly larger than Wilson. The private autopsy says 285 pounds, but regardless, still significantly heavier.
SOURCE: http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370849-2014-5143-autopsy-re…
“-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
This is correct, as with MANY stops that result in catching someone who has committed another crime, Michael Brown was INITIALLY stopped because he and Dorian Johnson were walking in the middle of the street. Just as many criminals have gone to jail for crimes unrelated to the initial reason they were stopped – speeding, running a stop sign, a broken tail light – why he was initially approached does not change the fact that he committed the crime. Dorian Johnson CONFIRMED that Michael stole the cigarillos, starting on page 32 forward of Dorian’s grand jury testimony. So while the initial contact was not because he was a suspect, Wilson noting that the clothing description and the STOLEN MERCHANDISE that Brown was carrying matched the dispatch description, subsequently making him a suspect.
SOURCE: http://www.scribd.com/…/Dorian-Johnsons-Testimony-Before-th… (page 32)
“-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Indeed, like most criminals, Brown was fleeing from police. However, on page 281 of Wilson’s testimony, he does not say that Brown was shot while fleeing. He merely states why he went after Brown – because it is his JOB to apprehend criminals. It is not his job to let them run off.
SOURCE: http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.… (page 281, lines 4-21)
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
The source quoted by Shelby points to a NY Times article that talks about the autopsy. No where in that article does it reference police self-defense protocol, and while standard procedure is to disarm and incapacitate, clearly four shots to the right arm and torso was not sufficient to stop the forward motion of Brown. The article quoted specifically says that the forensic information available makes it impossible to reconstruct exactly how the shooting went down, but multiple grand jury witnesses stated that there were two separate bursts of fire, which tracks with Brown being shot in the arm/torso first, then continuing his advance resulting in Wilson shooting him in the head.
“-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death. (http://www.slate.com/…/michael_brown_witness_police_alleged…)”
Again, incorrect. The article quoted here is from August 12, 2014, three days after the shooting. The report given by Dorian Johnson in this article says that Brown was shot in the back while running away, which has already been proven to be false by clear forensic evidence in all autopsies performed. Dorian Johnson’s grand jury testimony, however, reveals that he again cannot be relied on for accurate testimony. The autopsy and forensic evidence clearly shows that Brown was grazed while his hand was INSIDE the car, and the bullet lodged INSIDE the car door – tissue and blood INSIDE the car confirm this without a doubt. Johnson’s grand jury testimony says that he saw the bullet travel outside the car and strike Brown in the chest. (page 106) The article originally quoted by Shelby Lawson only takes what Johnson and his lawyer said about not being interviewed, and specifically states that the police had not responded to the claim at the time.
“-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.””
Again, patently false. Page 95 of the grand jury transcript says NOTHING about the DETECTIVE (not forensic examiner) having a dead camera, and the detective TESTIFYING says that ANOTHER detective was photographing the injuries to Wilson’s face. Shelby should really get better reading comprehension skills for someone studying to go into the journalism field.
SOURCE: http://www.documentcloud.org/…/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.… (page 95, lines 18-25)
“-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.”
Again, failure at reading comprehension possible here, but possible that Shelby merely failed to specify which of the grand jury transcript volumes this page number is referenced to. Page 39 of volume 5 is the testimony of Wilson’s direct supervisor, and does not contain any information from forensic investigators in any form.
“-Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.”
Finally, a correct statement of fact with an accurate source! Yay! The interview clearly shows that Wilson did break evidence protocol by washing blood off of himself before he was photographed. The assumption by Shelby that blood spatter patterns would be intact and not have been compromised by swiping against clothing or other appendages, and that they could be used to determine Brown’s position when he was initially shot would be unlikely at best, but it would have been helpful evidence to have, regardless.
“-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Again, very poor journalism research from a supposed journalism major. The article quoted is not grand jury testimony, it is an article from September 11th, and still includes information that has been disproved by forensic evidence, like that Brown was shot in the back, that he turned and raised his hands. Multiple grand jury witnesses besides the “two construction workers” listed in the article have said that Wilson was VERY loud in his commands to Brown to get on the ground, yet one of the construction workers says that Wilson never told Brown to get on the ground. Regardless, Vox is a very biased source, and the accounts listed within that article are from witnesses who all changed their statements after the autopsy results proved that Brown was never shot in the back. I am sure that all of these individuals were interviewed by the grand jury.
“-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.””
Again, see above, same reasoning this is inaccurate information.
“-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
Again, another biased source that is written on August 19th as an opinion by “keepemhonest”, a member of the Daily KOS site. From what I can tell, “keepemhonest” is not a forensic pathologist, and is merely spinning the evidence however he or she feels it should speak. The three autopsies all conclusively have proven that the bullets entered the FRONT of the body. The article also even specifies that the evidence that is the subject of the article was only part of Dr. Baden’s PRELIMINARY report, as he had not examined clothing or x-rays of Brown, meaning his report was far from complete or conclusive at the time this article was written. Poor journalism again from Shelby.
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Again, this is the PRELIMINARY report from Dr. Baden, who conducted the private autopsy (he is not the coroner, he is a former chief medical examiner). This PRELIMINARY report, dated August 18th, lacked x-ray and clothing as specified above. This article is from the local Fox news affiliate, and it conflicts with the DailyKOS as it specifically says that Baden said all of the gunshots appeared to have been fired into Brown’s front, where the DailyKOS reported that Baden said some could have come from behind. Again, poor journalism from Shelby.
“-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft but it was in fact 148 ft.”
Again, another biased source of OPINION from the DailyKOS site. The video and stipulation that Brown was killed from 148 feet is just plain idiot math. 148 ft might be the distance from Wilson’s vehicle to where Brown was killed, but it was not the distance from where Wilson shot him. Multiple grand jury witnesses have stated that Wilson did not shoot from his vehicle, and have stated that Wilson chased after Brown. This means Wilson was not at his car, or even near it, putting him much, much closer to Brown by the time the fatal bullet was fired, given that Brown was moving back towards Wilson. This is just common sense not being applied by idiots with a rolling measure, and then being disseminated as fact by a journalism student who should probably rethink journalism as her career. Dorian Johnson’s testimony backs this up, as he clearly denotes on page 119 that Wilson was chasing after Brown, and not firing from his vehicle.
“-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown,”
Again, this statement is partially correct, but mostly false. It has been confirmed that the store owner did not actually call police, that a bystander within the store called 911. However, Dorian Johnson’s grand jury testimony says that he heard the store owner say that he was going to call the police. In addition, Dorian’s description of the theft of the cigarillos and the altercation with the store owner EXACTLY match the surveillance video PERFECTLY, from him detailing the door being held open by someone else, to how Brown shoved the store owner, and then how Brown came back at the store owner in a physically intimidating manner before exiting the store. The security footage video is 100% Brown, without a shadow of a doubt, and it is likely that the store owner was trying to do everything possible to distance himself from the event in order to protect his store from repercussions from Ferguson rioters – unfortunately, his store was looted and for all intensive purposes, destroyed, likely in retaliation for the perception that he helped police. Side note, I didn’t even have to click the article linked as “evidence” by Shelby, because it again came from the DailyKOS site, which is an opinion site, not a legitimate news site, and because frankly the evidence against Shelby’s assertion is OVERWHELMING.
“-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Shelby could have not picked a more biased “news” article to quote here – the site is aattp.org – the “Americans Against The Tea Party” organization. While Robert McCulloch (prosecuting attorney) is the President of the Backstoppers organization (which supports families of police, firefighters, and EMS), this is not uncommon for those who work in the criminal justice system to be involved in organizations that support emergency personnel as a whole. However, if one carefully reads the article, one will see that the fundraising was done by a third party person (a woman who has remained anonymous as far as I know – see her story here: http://www.ijreview.com/…/209440-3-new-darren-wilson-suppo…/ ) – she was taking all donations, and splitting them between a GoFundMe set up for Officer Wilson personally and backstoppers.org. This means that the prosecuting attorney DID NOT RAISE THE FUNDS, and the funds donated to backstoppers.org would not go to Officer Wilson directly. It is possible that Wilson would receive aid from the Backstoppers organization, but to state that Backstoppers fundraised directly and solely for him isn’t just inaccurate, it’s patently false. The funds were raised by an anonymous woman, and then some of those funds were donated to the organization that SHE chose. The prosecuting attorney had no say or part in the raising of the funds.
“-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling”
The article CLEARLY states that Wilson had a clean record while working at Jennings PD, with no complaints ever filed against him. Judging him because he joined a police force that had issues and was ultimately disbanded does not in any way prove that Wilson was prone to racial profiling, and his record there proves that.
Hopefully you’ve taken the time to read this extremely long post, and have a real understanding of just how poorly researched Shelby’s posting was, and how little her evidence backed up her statements. My statements are all backed in some form or another by grand jury testimony and the forensic evidence. Here’s hoping that you have a true understanding of the events now.
Hey there! Just a quick point, while I do think this was a travesty of justice I’d just like to point out to the author that the first part about Michael Brown being much bigger is actually true. While wilson is the same height he weighs significantly less, 210lbs against 285lbs is rather like pitting me with my hard-earned belly against my little slip of a sister. Definitely not odds I’d like to face. Otherwise a good run down of a very contentious topic!
I hope you never need a police officer to help you…
Oh yeah, because college majors are such experts in their field…NOT. And that’s coming from a college student!!! SHE’S NOT EVEN MAJORING IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE!!!
What a moron!
With this kind of “reporting,” you’ll make a fine American journalist someday. FYI: You can’t use a news article as a credible source, genius. They are only SUPPOSED to report on actual FACTS available at the moment without adding their opinion or interpretation. However, we all know this is not the way of mainstream media.
Excellent report Shelby, you will become an outstanding journalist.
Officer Wilson – undoubtedly in a panicked adrenalin rush, shot Brown – a moving target, at a distance of 148 feet – 50 meters, hitting him several times??? That would be a very difficult shot to make. I shoot static torso-sized targets at 50m while relaxed and aiming carefully, and even that is a challenge. In NSW we had to qualify with pistols at 25 yards on a static range, and it took some guys several attempts. There is no way guys are going to be taking 50 meter shots against running individuals with their handguns in residential areas. It sounds to me like Shelby has watched too many movies and not had any real life shooting experience.
Your an idiot! Read the documents and evidence given to the gran jury. MB was 298lbs according to the coroner. You college students get dumber by the minyte.
University student? So no real world experience and not even a degree yet then correct? And a journalism major no less, we all know the media never lies for attention and ratings
Awesome job!
This paper is obviously one side and a stretch of factual reporting if anyone would actually stop and read the source you see that this paper is one step from fictional kinda of like uncle bobs fish story at the family bbq
I would think a journalism major would be able to read and summarize documents better. There is enough contradictions that creating new ones or deliberately misrepresenting testimony was unnecessary. Making any valid points in the article suspect.
Unmitigated drivel by a non professional
Please correct your site. Michael Brown did not “rob” anything. He may have stolen, but stealing and robbing are vastly different. Robbing involves taking by force or weapon. It is to the cops’ advantage for everyone to continue to claim that Brown robbed a convenience store – to those who know what “rob” means, it makes Brown seem violent. Words matter.
Sadly the few points I actually bothered to read have been already disproven, minread or just flat out false. I’d say it’s sad that this may be where journalism is heading, but unfortunately it’s already there.
Thanks
I think you need to double check your “sources”
You are a typical dumb, clueless twat. Until you obtain a law degree, please refrain from making uneducated and just blatantly incorrect deductions from the grand jury evidence. Go make a sandwich you dumb bitch.
Ms. Lawson.
I fully agree that the police have militarized over the last decade or two and that profiling is very real. Which is why your article is so bothersome to me. It is full of inaccuracies and falsehoods. You didn’t read your sources and if you did then you lied by exclusion.
Here are a few examples.
You state that the owner of the ferguson market didn’t call the place, inferring that the episode was fabricated. Yet in the same piece you source it clearly states that a costumer called the police. There was a reported incident at the store.
The autopsy report from both the public and private sources show stippling on Mr. Brown, that is what happens from close range gunfire. Further, Prof. Shawn L. Parcells, is not a Prof. He is unlicensed and has no formal credentials.
The part about Mr. Brown being 148ft from Officer Wilson is incorrect too. He was 148 ft from the police SUV, officer Wilson had given pursuit and was 35 ft from Mr. Brown. Further investigation would alert you to the fact that there was also a 22 ft trail of blood showing that Mr. Brown had if fact turned toward Officer Wilson.
There are plenty of reasons to be outraged, you site very few of them and do both parties involved a tremendous disservice with poor reporting. Unless you choose to work for the news source that will not be named, please be more accurate and attentive in your reporting.
Hi, I like your post. My estranged biological father has engaged me in discussing the murder, or justifiable homicide as he calls it, and the grand jury decision on fb chat in response to an emotional post I made the day it was announced. He is a long time police-admirer, his father having been a cop in Saint Louis. While defending Darren Wilson and police in general, he gave me some information that no one is talking about.
1) Darren Wilson is the great nephew of my grandfather’s police sergeant and comes from a long line of officers.
2) Bob McCullogh’s father was a police officer killed in the line of duty.
Conflict of interest? Little baby cop needs protecting from cop family?
UGH. I’m so emotional right now.
you are doing nothing but attempting to throw fuel on the fire, your own sources prove you wrong for anyone that bothers to read more that what you have highlighted. its articles like this that cause riots and get more people killed because you want to make a name for yourself.
These are not real sources? Half of them are magazine and newspaper articles that have absolutely no credibility. I could make up an article and post fallacies as well? Next time write REAL facts and stop pretending to know everything because you are a “journalism student”.
Your source is the Daily Kos, lol
This is it. the proof we have all been looking for. it is indisputable and irrefutable. I’m so glad this was posted and this young lady has done her work. thank god. what i have known for a long time has suddenly been thrust upon me with the most comprehensive amount of evidence ever. MOST COLLEGE KIDS NOWADAYS ARE IDIOTS!
This proves absolutely nothing except the fact that this girl found snippets of information to support her beliefs FUCKING CONFIRMATION BIAS FOLKS! Good luck finding here “sources” lol. most of them don’t even exist except in the form of ANOTHER BIASED article. This bullshit is so full of opinions and examples of things being taken out of context it makes my nuts spin.
Yes he shot the boy, no he didn’t have to. that’s all!
Stay out of school retard. you’re gonna end up fucking something up.
Wow complete trash and should be ashamed to post.
A good read and some things to really think about but also some blatant inaccuracies.
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
This is false. The prosecuting attorney had nothing to do with raising money for the cop. Backstoppers is an organization that helps the families of fallen firefighters and cops. They do not help living cops.
“that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
This is false. Mike Brown’s friend (and accomplice) Dorian Johnson now admits that was he and Brown in the store that day. He confirms Brown did steal the cigars and did assault the clerk. The store owner did not call the police, a witness, a male, in the store did.
“The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.””
This is false. The Jennings PD was disbanded because of corruption connected to superiors reporting overtime for running DWI checkpoints that they never operated. The amount was in tens of thousands of dollars. It had nothing to do with racial issues.
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body”
This is false. the Brown family autopsy expert even confirms it as does forensic evidence.
“This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
This is false. Dorian Johnson confirms as has multiple witnesses that Brown never raised his hands.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
This is inaccurate. Brown was 35 feet from the cop. He was 148 feet from the cops SUV.
“The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos”
This is false. I just looked at over 40 crime scene photos on KSDK.Com
You managed to only get a handful of items even close to correct. You are perfect for journalism because it sure looks like the only thing you really did was read some random news reports without trying to confirm any of them.
Well she gave it the ol’ college try at least. Events like this often serve as a catalyst for up-and-comers to try to make a name for themselves (see Chris Hayes) however, addressing one’s readership as “y’all” is a sure fire way to validate that one really has no business analyzing legal documents of any kind.
i have my doubts on your research as at 148 ft or 49 yards i doubt that the officer could have hit him with a pistol
Amazing. Just by reading the released documents making up the evidence, you have concluded just the opposite of what the citizens on the grand jury who saw and heard the evidence. Everyone who was “right” is actually “wrong.”
This is just another gross negligence of “journalism.” The “sources” are Web sites with NO credibility, and the “facts” are not possibly attained in ANY sort of rational manner. This “journalist” should be jailed for her misinterpretations and misrepresentations of the FACTS. Just because a Web site posts something does NOT make it FACT. Apparently KU journalism school blows. Congrats though. You’ll make a fine “journalist” for the liberal, BS media society is being spoon fed these days. SICKENING
It’s like she didn’t even look at the evidence. She’ll have a spot reserved for her at MSNBC….
Read the grand jury testimony if you claim to be a journalist or a journalism student. Your claims are clearly refuted by the physical evidence.
You literally took biased sources, and only the points of the case that helped make your point and organized them in a way that would support your arguement. Any college student with half a brain and hlurs of spare time could make the information say whatever they want.
Once you get your law degree…I’ll listen. 15 minutes of fame has now ended!
It seems state police and sherriff department deputies are cool calm and collective in dealing with public , where they work alone and cover many square miles , at more risk ,but yet seem to get the job done ! Why are city police more radicle that seem to esculate situations that go wrong most of the time , calling for back up when its not necessary , victims being shot by city police ,when one or more officers are around , treating citizens being treated as terroriest in there own back yard by local police department’ were talking about american’s , now if you were a foreigner spoke a foriegner language god forbid , it would be a different situation , profiling is a main factor in most incidences , numbers is proof in the pudding ,if you had a bad past and gone straight , would you be treated in the moment or the past , if you see a stranger walking automatically your a u.s. terriost trouble and pervoked when you have no job going to jail is a constance thought going through the police mind looking for trouble and always find it ! does the county really need the money that bad to kill children and young men seeking revenues in fines and court cost , this is troubling !
Stay in school, maybe you will learn something. The grand jury listened to the testimony of witnesses, who admitted to not truly being a witness in some cases. I too, am a journalist and all I can say is be careful when playing with matches, as you may burn someone undeserving.
It’s a shame that everyone covering this story is spinning it to suit the police and if people really believe he quit without pressure they’re more ignorant of reality than we could imagine (but that’s another story). Sad to say that no “real” news agency would consider touching this list of facts with a 10 foot pole and they too only report what they are told to in order to persuade and coerce society to move to a certain action. If Mike wasn’t shot, people wouldn’t protest and then the cops wouldn’t have more reason (unjustified of course) to kill more people in the name of law. It’s truly a sad state of the world that we still live this way after so many past events have proven the course that will come if we do not change. We should not be surprised anymore when this type of spinning happens. We should be surprised that the truth ever is revealed in anything. Keep up your pursuit of truth and don’t let anyone tell you what you can and can’t “report” on.
Your facts are really messed up!! Police are trained to shoot center mass!! And when you can’t get to center mass you shoot where ever the biggest part you see in your sights! And you shoot to the threat is completely stopped!! You don’t break policy when you don’t hit what you were aiming for!! Once again go walk in officers shoes for 2-3 months and work the midnight shift and they come talk to me!! Being a cop in dangerous neighborhoods is a tough job! Go listen to Charles Barkley! That man has some good words of advice!!
Interesting that you fail to allow the previous post to be seen.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” I don’t see where this is said on page 281. He said he was chasing him, but Michael Brown’s autopsy doesn’t show any entrance shots from behind. Wilson didn’t shoot him as he was chasing him. Wilson only shot as Brown was charging him. You are right; this does not follow police protocol. However, he never shot as he was chasing. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
“These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.'” Eyewitness testimony is very unreliable (referencing content from my Psych course). Wilson’s testimony, that matches the autopsy (see article above), says Brown’s arms were not up as he was charging towards Wilson. The hand wound came from the first altercation in Wilson’s police car.
“Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.” This is contradicted in the article posted above, according to the medical examiner.
Thank you for posting this! Despite the conflict of information around the internet, it was great to see facts posted clearly and in a way that would make the whole thing easier to understand.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/11/28/the-physical-evidence-in-the-michael-brown-case-supported-the-officer/
I read through the packet via CNN myself and I have 2 quibbles with your points: 1) Its true Officer Wilson is a big guy, but Michael Brown was an inch taller and weighed 79 pounds more than him so Michael Brown was obviously much bigger than him. 2) When I read through the testimony it seemed to me that a second crime scene investigator was the one who took pictures of Officer Wilson’s injuries while a different crime scene investigator who didn’t have a charged camera(I found this extremely unprofessional in my reading also) had some outside party taking pictures at the scene.
You are a liar–you need to get your facts straight libtard
I don’t know what to believe. There are too many “credible sources” which contradict each other. Shelby has a source which claims that Mr. Brown was shot in the back while running away, but just the other day, two independent autopsies stated that all of the bullets entered Mr. Brown’s body from the front, not the back. I think this issue is too emotionally charged for us to ever know the truth. RCA – KU class of ’70
same height as mike brown but he weighs 80 pounds less. that is a huge difference
This article is total BS and the young student who put it together should stay in school. Eyewitness testimony is almost never correct. Numerous studies have been done proving this. Furthermore, all the eyewitnesses knew each other–which is why their stories were similar. They had a conflict of interest as well. Also, a grand jury who had access to way more sources and way more direct information than this silly out of state student chose not to indict the officer. At least 3 of the jurors were black by the way. You tell a nice story little girl but that is all it is..it might as well be on Wikipedia. There is a reason wiki is not allowed as a source in any reputable university
I really appreciate this post. My only concern/question is about the specifics of this citation.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
I know that it has nothing to do with Mike Brown’s death, whatever the police were looking for on the surveillance tape had nothing to do with what went on in the street. That being said I clicked on the source and it only said that neither the owner nor any employee of the Ferguson Market called the police to report a theft. I couldn’t find where it explicitly says that “that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” Unless I missed something, I don’t believe that is a true statement. Your other points are really important and I don’t want them sullied by this oversight. I don’t know if the source was edited after this was posted. I hope you can address it in some way.
I understand that Mike Brown committing a petty crime seems to confirm the biased perception of a “demonic” thug and that it seems to give circumstantial credence to Wilson’s testimony. There are people in the news who are using it to write off Brown as a criminal. I think the takeaway is that this bias is intimately linked with the unorthodox crime scene investigation and the unorthodox use of the grand jury procedure. There’s still so much confusion surrounding this, I hope we can recognize our biases and make an effort to hold them back.
These articles from Slate are very informative about biases and prejudice white people are likely to have on black people and the Supreme Court’s precedents on proceedings that function like trials (the introduction of broad evidence, making it “often the final and most important step in the criminal proceeding”)
http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/11/25/the_language_of_darren_wilson_s_testimony_close_reading_the_demons_and_supervillains.html
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/11/ferguson_grand_jury_investigation_a_shadow_trial_violates_the_public_s_right.html
If I’m wrong about the source you cited please let me know.
“-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
There would be no residue from a misfire the gun would need to fire to have any residue be present.
All the sources are not listed . . .
Thank you for providing the truth and giving valid sources, unlike everyone who spouts out everything they hear or see on mainstream news. Bravo.
Want your 15 minutes of fame much? You don’t shred anything, you take articles from around the web, opinions which we’ve already seen, and compile them.
There are so many holes is your supposed debunking that I can’t even begin to address them all. You are reading things the way you want to interpret them and I hope you are happy to be adding to the fire in Ferguson with misinterpretation and lies. Most glaring is how you reference liberal media for your “facts”. How can you interpret your source that said ” the lawyer for ferguson market states that it was a customer who called to report the robbery, not the owner “, as the diarrhea that you blurted out on this page? If you want to be a journalist, make sure you don’t discredit yourself before your career even starts.
Also, Michael Brown was 292 lbs, a far cry from the same size as Darren Wilson, that’s 82 lbs! I see you crossed it out , but in typical shitty journalism form you left it there because you know that some people will grasp on to it and run with it. Shame shame shame. Should I pick apart the rest of your theories or is this enough to make you double check your sources and methods?
One issue I have is you should not be using News Media as reliable sources. If you want to accurately confirm facts about the autopsy report, why wouldn’t you try to get access to a copy.
Have you read the actual grand jury documents? I’ve read a few pieces and it stated that the ‘eyewitnesses’ that originally stated Brown was shot in the back had changed their stories multiple times over the course of the almost 3 months from the shooting to the interviews they had with the grand jury.
Honestly, I don’t care what the outcome was/is/will be, there is no reason for the people rioting in Ferguson to be burning down businesses, looting, and causing other property damage.
Thank you Shelby, many of these conclusions are what I had gleaned. I certainly hope the Federal investigation does a much better job than this prosecutor did!!!
Congrats Shelby Lawson. You are following in the footsteps of those who have straightened out misconcepts, uncovered cover ups, and told the whole story. Your article certainly clarified things for me. Best wishes for a wonderful career in a profession badly needing folks like you who will take the time to look into the details and set out the whole truth. I will be watching for your Pulitzer award.
Complete and utter bullshit. You should be ashamed of yourself for reporting false information. Its people like you that stir the shit pot and have ignorant people believing it as fact. I bet you even feel justified. Good lord help us.
Thanks you!
I’m sorry, Shelby, but if you plan to make a career in Journalism, there is very much lacking in your skill set and journalistic values to ever gain credibility.
For starters, simply re-reporting the reports of others is not journalism. There should be a standard of two independently verified sources before reporting something as fact. In every single example, you cite one, and many are not facts you yourself verified. You are assuming someone else’s published words are fact.
Second, if this piece was written after the full release of all evidence from the Grand Jury (which it appears to have been), there has been no effort on your part to reconcile the updated and later facts with statements made in some of your “sources” that were at the time either vague or have since been proven inaccurate. For example, one of the pieces about Dr. Baden’s autopsy contains a quote where he says “Right now there is too little information to forensically reconstruct the shooting.” Now that that information has been released where is the follow up? In fact the released evidence clearly contradicts some of Dr. Baden’s hypotheses and answers some of the questions he was unable to – like the fact that there WAS gunshot residue inside the police car and on Brown’s clothing. There is also no evidence to support the assertion that Brown was “fleeing from Officer Wilson”. In fact, the opposite is true that he was continually moving forward toward the officer the entire time the shots were being fired.
I applaud your efforts. I hope you continue to pursue your career. But I also hope that a good J school is able to teach you that it takes far much more than expressing your opinions with little or no actual investigative work to support them and label it “reporting” or “journalism.”
You need to not have a one sided view you are ignerant and none of your sorces prove anything your only stating your opinion. Of corse the shop owner didnt want that video to go public or for people to think he or an employee called the cops that would just provoct these dumb ass fucking people protesting to destroy his buisness I would have said the same if it was my gas station you my friend are a fucking idiot buttom line the mid would still be a live if he didnt vreak the law and act like a thug
half the story GIVE ALL THE FACTS not the ones you want to promote in RACE BAITING
I knew when I saw “majoring in Journalism and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies,” rather than law or criminal justice, there would be some problems.
Did you actually read any of your sources? Because it seems like you just skimmed for a few buzz words and juicy tidbits before posting them as fact.
As a disclaimer, I have no opinion about the shooting because I was not there, and therefore I can’t claim to know what really happened. The hard facts and evidence presented (excluding sensationalist blog posts from dailykos.com) do not sway me one way or the other. Therefore, I have tried to refrain from making any judgments or stating any opinions about the shooting itself, but rather just tried to clarify the “facts” presented in this post.
So let’s go through and look at some of the problems here. I gave numbers to your separate paragraphs for clarity and only commented on ones with glaring problems.
1. Michael Brown was in fact 80 lbs heavier than Officer Wilson. Although it seems you corrected your false assertion that they were the same size, it still leaves your assertion that Michael Brown was not significantly larger than Officer Wilson. I don’t know what the line is for one to be significantly larger than another, but the point is, you don’t either. Yet you state it as if it is a fact.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=0 (the same article that you posted as your next source)
2. It was during the stop for jaywalking that Officer Wilson noticed that Brown matched the description of the person who had just robbed the convenience store. It wasn’t until Officer Wilson noticed this match that he made any attempt to impede Brown’s progress or leave his car in any way to get himself involved in the situation.
Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.html (the grand jury testimony of Officer Wilson that you posted, pages 207-209)
3. Michael Brown was allegedly charging at Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot, NOT running away. I have no idea where you found the basis to state as fact that he was running away. See page 227-229 of Officer Wilson’s testimony (specifically referencing the shooting on page 229).
Maybe you confused the part where Officer Wilson was allegedly giving chase with the actual shooting? Because there’s no way you could conclude that Brown was shot while running away after reading the testimony. This is confirmed by the autopsy reports released, as there were no bullet entry holes in the back side of Brown’s body.
Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.html (testimony)
Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370849-2014-5143-autopsy-report.html (official autopsy report from Grand Jury hearing)
5. The eyewitness you’re referring to (and who was the subject of your source) is Dorian Johnson, who was with Michael Brown from the time they left for the store until the moment Brown was shot. He gave a full testimony at the Grand Jury hearing, completely and thoroughly recounting his story for the jurors.
Please be careful before you jump to conclusions after reading one article online, especially one that was written back in August 2014, mere days after the shooting.
Source:http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370806-grand-jury-volume-4.html
11. The conclusion that Brown had his hands up in a surrender position was never drawn by any doctor who performed an autopsy on Brown. No statement was made by a medical professional that supports this. This conclusion was drawn by a blogger under the username “keepemhonest” on the website dailykos.com based on the fact that Brown had gunshot wounds on the insides of his arms. It is a radical leap in logic to assume that this proves Brown had his hands up when he was shot.
I would also like to add that 3 of keepemhonest’s top 10 blog tags are some rendition of “Republican Plot to Undermine U.S. President,” which arguably suggests some level of bias in his or her “analysis” of the autopsy reports.
Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html?_r=0 (NY Times autopsy article)
Source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/18/1322540/-Autopsy-suggests-Mike-Brown-had-his-arms-in-surrender-position-when-Darren-Wilson-killed-him (dailykos.com blog post about the suggestion that Brown’s hands were up)
Source: http://www.dailykos.com/user/keepemhonest (background of user keepemhonest)
13. It’s astounding to me that the writers at dailykos.com could come to the conclusion that police lied about the distance between Brown and Officer Wilson simply by measuring the distance from the SUV to the location of the body.
Officer Wilson’s story, the police department’s story, and every single eye witness, all say that Officer Wilson got out of his car and chased Brown before fatally shooting him. Regardless of whether Brown charged or kneeled down with his hands up, Officer Wilson had clearly put distance between himself and the SUV before shooting Brown. There is absolutely no factual basis for alleging that police lied about the distance, or that the official distance given is anything but true.
Source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/18/1322540/-Autopsy-suggests-Mike-Brown-had-his-arms-in-surrender-position-when-Darren-Wilson-killed-him
Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.html (page 226)
14. This is just false. Brown was without a doubt the one who robbed the convenience store, and thus the one pictured on the tape. This is corroborated by Dorian Johnson’s (i.e. the person who was with Brown the entire time) testimony.
Futhermore, the article itself that you posted as your source never once says anything suggesting that Brown was not the one who robbed the store. It also clearly says that it was a customer who had called the police. It makes no difference whether it was a customer or an employee who called the police. The fact is, the police were called.
Source: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370806-grand-jury-volume-4.html (pages 31-38)
Source: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/08/18/1322560/-Ferguson-Store-Owner-Says-NO-ONE-From-His-Store-Called-Cops-To-Report-Cigar-Theft
16. The Washington Post story you linked to does not provide any sources concerning the reason the Jennings, MO police department Officer Wilson had previously worked at was shut down. In fact, it only goes so far as to say that the police department was troubled and state that it was disbanded. It even offers corruption charges as an alternative justification for the state to shut down the department.
To draw the inference that the reason it was shut down was because of racial profiling is unfounded and irresponsible.
Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/darren-wilsons-first-job-was-on-a-troubled-police-force-disbanded-by-authorities/2014/08/23/1ac796f0-2a45-11e4-8593-da634b334390_story.html?wpmk=MK0000203
Appreciate your work
HAHA This is a bunch of left wing media bias again. Why would I say this? A lot of her “sources” for her conclusions aren’t the Grand Jury report. Let’s look at her conclusions.
Her #1) MB was the “same size” as officer Wilson. She does cite the report where Officer Wilson states he’s 6’4′ and 210 lbs. MB was 6’5″ and 289 lbs. –> When you compare Trayon Martin to mark Zimmerman the left kept mentioning how MZ was 27-40 lbs heavier than TM. A “huge” weight difference. But 80 lbs difference is the same size? We want it both ways we do.
Her #2) MB was fleeing Wilson when “fatally shot”. She claims this was in the report. Officer Wilson says he wanted him to stop because he posed a threat to other officers and the community. However the report never says he was fatally shot when fleeing at the page she cited. Wilson just said he posed a threat to the community. She missed the County coroner’s report which says there were NO shots in the back. She may also have missed the coroner’s report Eric Holder ordered which says there were NO shots in the back. Dr. Baden was the guy who did the family’s autopsy. he said all the shots looked like they came from the front – however there was one shot which grazed the shoulder that could have possibly come from the back even though it was more likely from the front. Yet she was able to find the family coroner’s report but forgot that part?
Her #3) Wilson broke protocol when shooting. Source? Newspaper article citing the Brown family’s attorney. I’m too lazy to Google the Missouri State Protocol. But most states are similar to NY State which says an officer can use deadly force in cases where he or she is concerned about their own life, the loss of another life, the prevention of rape, prevention of arson of a dwelling, etc. It never says you’re required to use deadly force during those times, but you’re authorized if you feel it’s necessary.
You could go up and down the list. many of her sources are the left-wing media.
My favorite is third from the bottom ” -Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” . Source media article. Yet the IB Times mentioned how in the Grand Jury Report Dorian Johnson admits they robbed ” two handfuls of cigarillos just minutes before Officer Darren Wilson fatally shot him “. So I guess the media report is more accurate than Dorian Johnson’s statement to the Grand Jury?? She read the report?? http://www.ibtimes.com/michael-brown-robbed-convenience-store-stole-cigarillos-darren-wilson-shooting-dorian-1729359 Wait – i though she read the Grand Jury report before she wrote this?? Imagine that. She cites an article which contradicts testimony by the guy who was with MB the day he was shot. Think she is biased???
If you go up and down her list it all comes from media sources other than #1 which is Officer Wilson’s weight. Really? I bet I could Google a bunch of articles and ignore the actual report too. The ONLY thing she has from the report is the weight. Which i guess is opinion. IS 80 lbs a big difference?? Otherwise it’s all media report links. Some of which conflict with the grand Jury testimony – as i mentioned above.
You might wanna check the actual evidence before you open your mouth on the internet. http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
Selective reading of the grand jury testimony and evidence. She needs to fail journalism school if this is the garbage she is going to write.
Selective sections of the grand jury testimony and evidence. She needs to put this in context with other evidence to see the real story. She also claims to know police protocol, but never cites the source. She should fail her journalism course and go into fiction writing.
Stay in school Shelby
Are you serious with these “sources”? Try again.
Luckily you’re a kid. Your “opinion” means nil, and your facts are wrong. Quit being such a snobby little brat. The only thing worse than a know-it-all is a know-it-all who’s wrong.
“Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.” At 148 ft. Officer Wilson would have needed a rifle, not his service pistol. There are Navy SEALs who would have trouble making that shot.
so this cheating sack of shit still gets to patrol our streets
Shred the case?
Really?
2) How could Brown be shot “Fleeing” when even his Family’s Pathologist found NO shots in the back, ALL from the FRONT?
the autopsy report supports “shots to the torso” or center mass
3) Johnson has been proven to be a liar. ALL his testimony would be suspect (see comments on 2
5) Eye witness statesments are contradicted by the Family’s hired pathologist
6) ??? what autopsy report are you reading from? Nothing in the Brown autopsy suggests his hands were raised in anything but directly in front, NOT in a “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” surrendering posture
7) a “misfiring” handgun by definition won’t leave gunpowder residue, as it MISFIRED. that means is did NOT fire.
9) a customer called 911. why WOULD the store owner call if someone already had?
Brown resembled the description of the thief. That is why Wilson returned to talk to him.
10) according to your “Source” St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch did NOT fundraise for Wilson. another organization did, and will donate money to an organization that McCulloch sits on
11) So what? as per your source: Officials say Wilson kept a clean record without any disciplinary action. You of all people should know better than to judge one person on the actions of others.
Hey, did I SHRED your report enough for you?
for a Journalism major, you just FAILED epicly!
Wow….
the fact that you misread over half of the “Sources” you quote, and manipulated their statements tells me you will be very successful writing for the MSM, as most of them like to manipulate facts and the truth, as you did in this article.
I suggest you offer it to one of your professors for a grade!
Sincerely, nanuk
I have never read such a rediculous biased article.
This information is completely inaccurate and this young student who wrote this article–while telling a nice story–is not using factual information.
http://conservativetribune.com/new-autopsy-michael-brown/
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson.”
So almost 80 pounds heavier and an inch taller isn’t significant? Tell that to an angry man who’s ballsy enough to climb halfway into your police cruiser and bash you in the face while he tries to take your gun from you.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
How is this possible since all the gunshot wounds were to the front of his body? Also, the angle of the wound to his head was at an angle that proves he WAS running toward Wilson when he was shot. The only other explanation for the wound angle was both of them were lying down on the pavement, or Wilson was standing on a ladder when he shot Brown.
“-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
Where’s the source to this? The “source” link you quoted says nothing about your claim.
“-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”
OMG. You quoted SLATE on this? HaHa. Fail. This article talks about interviewing Johnson, who not only has been prosecuted for false statements to police in the past, he lied about the Brown shooting when he stated they Wilson shot Brown in the back. In fact, all of the witnesses who stated that Brown was shot in the back and/or had his hands up later changed their stories. Here’s an article outlining the discredited lies told by some alleged witnesses. http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/11/28/IN-FERGUSON-WITNESS-INTIMIDATION-LYING-BY-COMMUNITY-OF-COLOR
I could go on and on picking your article apart, but I’ll just leave this here: There are many precedents to both police officers and civilians being found justified by a jury in shooting and killing an unarmed attacker under certain circumstances, like disparity of force among others. Also, police as well as civilians taking self defense firearms courses are not taught to shoot once, they are taught to shoot until the threat is stopped.
Excellent case FOR mike brown and AGAINST “officer” Wilson…..he is NOT a PEACE officer…he is an ignorant, hate filled racist f}#% head….sorry for swearing…it is all I can think of to describe Wilson….
This is a faked false story by a “Ghost”(?) writer
http://www.edaaaa.com/pages/shred.html
You obviously didn’t read any of the things that you are using as a source.
Just going to ignore all the points I made discrediting the “shredding” of the case against Mike Brown? Guess there are just some out there who insist on closing their eyes to all the facts and only seeing what they want to see. You should have allowed my comment to remain and allowed others to refute my points. That is how a healthy debate occurs, but instead you censor. Many of the refutations I made on Shelby’s points were from the same sources she used to make them. Shelby will make a great journalist as she has already learned how to spin information and omit data to create a perception of events that are inconsistent with reality.
Thank you for deleting my previous comment – it just confirms that seeking out the facts about what happened to Michael Brown is less important to his supporters than spinning the story the right way. It’s actually a tactic most often used by conservatives – if the truth conflicts with your personal beliefs, just ignore the inconvenient facts.
You have so many incorrect facts in your report it is comical. The head shot came from Brown lowering his head while charging the officer for another beating. Hey may be the same height but Brown had 100 lbs on him so don’t distort the facts to fit you story ma’am. The forensic report clearly showed powder burns on Browns hand and his blood in the front seat of the patrol car also proving he attacked the office while he was stil in the car. So please reread why you think you saw before you stir the pot even more.
Most of your “sources” are other articles… not the actual evidence.. one of your “sources” says to refer to page 39, there are only 18 pages in that. About Michael Brown “running away”, yea all the stories say he started to, then turned back around and charged at Darren Wilson. and the shots to the hand and arm that you say HAD to have happened with his hands up, were proven to have happened in the car during the scuffle… so good try… just accept the truth and move on from this… why keep trying to stir stuff up
The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
(source) (Not even close to true, Brown was 6’5″ 289 lbs at his autopsy)
-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony. (Correct, and after Wilson asked why they weren’t on the sidewalk, Brown started swearing at Wilson, which is why Wilson states he then continued following and noticed that Brown was carrying the Swishers, which had just been reported stolen)
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony. (Sort of, he was fleeing from Wilson after the scuffle in the police vehicle, during which a shot was Pelini’d. Are you expecting a police officer to simply stop pursuing a suspect after a fight and shots fired? Brown was not fleeing from Wilson when Wilson fired his gun outside of the police vehicle, all shots that struck Brown were when they were facing each other)
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso. (When someone is charging you after a fight and a few shots already fired, police are certainly authorized to use deadly force. The fact that Brown was struck four times in the arm and torso suggest that Wilson was aiming there, and then the gun recoil would force his aim higher as more shots are fired. Or, Wilson, seeing Brown continue to charge then decided to use deadly force and shot Brown in the head. Nothing wrong with that per police protocol)
-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death. (The person the writer is referring to is Dorian Johnson, Brown’s best friend and accomplice in the store robbery. His testimony has changed multiple times and much of it could not physically have taken place. A more thorough look from the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/12/02/why-michael-browns-best-friends-story-is-incredible/)
-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because dat ho camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.” (yep. that was certainly a mistake. i assume the quotation marks around the word injuries here are attempting to minimize Wilson’s injuries, but the photos do show that he was struck in the head at least a couple times)
-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
-Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview. (writer apparently watched too much Dexter and CSI, you wouldn’t be able to determine this from the blood on someone’s hands. During a struggle like this, the blood could get anywhere from any number of reasons, and the family’s autopsy states that Brown’s hand was a couple inches away when the first shot was fired)
-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police. (lets take a look at the source’s witnesses. 1 – Anonymous construction workers that came to the scene after the shooting. not good witnesses. 2 – Dorian Johnson, already discredited. 3 – Tiffany Mitchell – Says that Brown was shot in the back, this was proven false. 4 – Piaget Crenshaw – also states Brown was shot in the back, was proven false. 5 – Michael Brady – Says he saw initial struggle from his bedroom window, and then ran outside and saw the final shots. Didn’t see what happened in between. 6 – Emanuel Freeman – Didn’t actually see the incident, it happened outside his apartment and he tweeted the aftermath.)
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.” (None of these witnesses were credible. None of them actually saw the incident take place, they all came forward after the community rage started.)
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
(source) (The author’s source is not a medical professional, but a blogger reinterpreting (incorrectly) the autopsy results.)
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
(source) (the Brown’s personal autopsy found “black soot on skin and the microscopic sections show gunshot particulate matter under the skin that indicate that the gun was within inches of the hand when discharged.”)
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was porched. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
(source) (Writer needs to learn how to do some critical thinking. Brown was 35 feet or closer to Wilson when fatally shot, and 148 feet from the police vehicle. After a short chase, they would obviously be further from the police vehicle than when they started.)
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
(source) (Well this is just completely false. The owner never called it in, but another customer did. And Brown literally had the cigars in his hand when the struggle began.)
-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
(source) (The organization referred to here was created long before the incident happened, and supports those severely injured or killed in the line of duty. they rejected any donations referring to the Ferguson issue and did not raise any straight cash, homey for Wilson)
-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
(source) (Wilson had a completely clean record while at this department.)
Wow, you’re a moron. On every argument you make, you pick out portions of evidence that have nothing to do with your points. Example: 1. Page 281 says mike brown fled, not that he was fleeing when Wilson shot him. Start on page 229 and read his explanation of what happened..and when. This has been supported by independent eye witnesses. 2. The autopsy report says nothing of what position his arms had to be in when he was shot. They explain direction of the projectile, which is front to back, meaning he had his arms down, just as Wilson describes. 3. If a gun misfires, there is no gunshot and thence no gun powder residue, which explains why brown did not have gun powder residue on him. 4. Ferguson police reported that brown was shot 148 feet from Wilson’s SUV, not from Wilson. You’re own reference describes that. In ALL testimony, Wilson “gave chase”, which means he ran towards brown and away from his vehicle. No witnesses support your claim that Wilson was 148 feet from brown when the shooting occurred.
Also, they may have been the same height, but Michael Brown still had about 40 lbs on him
Get your facts straight. Michael Brown weighed 292# according to Wikipedia
What does it matter what his height is? MB weighed almost 100 lbs more than DW, and DW was seated in a car, not an optimal position to be in when someone is attacking you.
Also, I can’t help but notice that most of your sources are from the dailykos: if you want anyone besides left wingers to believe you, you should try to stay away from those types of sources.
Why then did the grand jury aquit officer wilson amongst allthis evidence against his case?
If you think you’re going to get a job as a journalist with this pap, think again. The media are already full of propagandists. They don’t need any more professional liars like you.
By the time you graduate with your Women’s embitterment degree, CNN and MSNBC will have expired from their abysmal ratings. Look what happened to Pierce Morgan. Don’t be that guy.
You passed your journalism exam however you failed your ethical exam. Your story is riddled with inconsistencies and flat out lies. Typical media race baiting, shit stirring garbage to drum up readers and viewers.
Shelby, I couldn’t seem to find this “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” in the testimony.
Shelby, Michael Brown was 6’4″ and weighed close to 300, Officer Wilson was the same height yet only weighed 210 pounds. In reality a 300 pound person is significantly larger than a 210 pound person
“The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Based on these and other misnomers in your post I have determined that you are not reporting facts and your research was very poorly done. Hope your future work is accompanied by more diligent research and a few more “facts”.
If I were her journalism professor, I’d have to give Shelby an F for this piece. It is laden with inaccuracies, all of which slant toward discrediting Officer Wilson. This is telling, in that innocent errors would be expected to fall on both sides of a controversial issue. Thus, the pattern demonstrates bias to a degree unacceptable in journalism. It is not difficult to see how this occurred: a majority of her sources are partisan political websites (vox, dailykos) or statements coming from Brown family attorneys, instead of primary sources. Several sources are woefully stale (dating from August, September) and contain information since shown to be inaccurate (Dorian Johnson was interviewed by police). Just three of the many inaccuracies:
1) Michael Brown’s body lay 153′ from the Tahoe patrol vehicle, but Wilson was nowhere near the Tahoe when he fired the final shots at Brown. He had followed him at a distance of 30-40′, according to accounts by both Wilson and several witnesses, all African-American. Brown turned and approached Wilson, according to blood spatter evidence, and was probably less than 15′ away when the policeman fired the fatal headshot.
2) Michael Brown was measured to be 6’5″, 289 lbs at autopsy – much larger than Wilson’s 6’4″, ~210. In other words, Brown outweighed Wilson by about 80 pounds! (If Shelby doesn’t think that’s Brown in the video, shoving aside the diminutive clerk, she might want to have another look and read the relevant testimony from the GJ proceedings.)
3) The autopsy findings do not indicate that Brown’s arms were up in the air as when surrendering. There were no bullet wounds to his left arm. The right arm wounds appear to involve three bullets: 1) a significant graze wound to the right palm consistent with Wilson’s account of Brown trying to seize the firearm inside the Tahoe (matched by blood/tissue spatter and powder residue in the Tahoe); 2) a graze wound to the bicep; and 3) a shot that entered the back of the forearm, exited in front, entered the upper arm in front, and exited in back. The trajectory is somewhat downward, backward, and leftward, showing that the arm was flexed at the elbow with the back of the hand facing Wilson. Furthermore, the arm was not above the shoulder and turned palm forward in surrender, but rather held forward in the manner of a charging football player – just as both Wilson and African-American witness #10 described it.
There’s simply no excuse for such a shabby piece of work, Shelby. If your goal is advocacy, then speak from the facts. I’m sympathetic with the cause myself: redressing the grievous wrongs that have resulted from police misconduct and mistreatment of minorities is an important issue for us all. Injustice to anyone, though – even a white cop – cannot be acceptable for any of us, however worthy the cause it seems to symbolize. I hope you truly learn from this.
I believe this article is full of false statements. The writer says they have proof that Michael Brown was shot when fleeing? Then when I looked at your “proof” it was an autopsy that showed all shots to the front. How can the bullets hit him in the front if he was running away? Also how did eye witnesses hear Mr. Brown say “I don’t have a gun stop shooting” while gun fire is taking place? Officer Wilson did not take for shots to his arm then stop let Mr. Brown yell that he didn’t have a gun then shoot again in the head. They were all at once. Also your sources are not all credible. I believe one was from “People Against The Tea Party” which website’s are used for advertisement and set up in such a way that you will click on other articles before reading the one you want. I didn’t see an Author to some Articles so anyone like myself could have written them… I just think this article is typical bias at its finest.
Why do you need to make disingenuous claims that are outright lies in your list when so much of your evidence is actually reasonable?
You claim that: “-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Yet your source makes NO MENTION WHATSOEVER of anyone saying that the man on the footage is not Mike Brown. Moreover, the man in the footage is wearing the EXACT SAME CLOTHES AND SHOES that Mike Brown is wearing in the photos where he is lying dead in the street. Yes, the store owner claims that he didn’t report the theft to police, and that Wilson didn’t know about the theft when he shot Brown, but the store owner never claims that “the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown,” nor that the man on the tape wasn’t Mike Brown.
When you make a claim, make sure your source actually supports that claim. Otherwise your entire argument becomes suspect and your credibility is damaged. Other than that, you make some interesting points…
It’s also worth questioning why the owner didn’t call the cops to report the theft. Is it because he viewed it as a minor incident? Maybe, but the way Brown (or whoever it is) intimidates and roughs up the clerk on the video seemed pretty scary. Or is it because this sort of thing happens all the time in Ferguson and so it wasn’t worth reporting because the cops wouldn’t bother to do anything about it?
It’s anyone’s guess, but the fact that the store owner didn’t call the cops doesn’t exonerate Brown from being the man on the video.
I LOVE this little post! That is some seriously excellent synopsizing of why this case was misconducted from the start, and the linked sources really makes it that much more impacting. Thank you so much for writing this!
My only suggestion would be to also include the dissemination of an out of date and legally “unconstitutional” statute (Section 543.046) by the assistant DA to the Grand Jury which was handed out before the Grand Jury was to hear all testimony, thus providing an outdated lens through which the Jury was to analyze the case. This misinformation was then only very vaguely corrected after the jury was already done hearing from Wilson himself and all witnesses. To make matters more suspect, when asked directly by a grand juror whether the Federal ruling that determined that statute unconstitutional in 1985 trumped that law at the time (and this time), which it very obviously did, the ‘prosecution’ instead said “you don’t need to worry about that” in response, thus successfully perverting the legal framework through which the jury was supposed to be analyzing whether indictment was appropriate.
Not coincidentally, under that same outdated statute, Brown would have been guilty for what occurred (his own death) simply for running away from the cops as a potential suspect of a crime (jay walking, in this case). Under that old law, even a kid hopping out of the back of a stolen vehicle could legally have been shot and killed by officers with no legal recourse, despite the fact that petty crimes like stealing a vehicle (and jay walking OR stealing cigarillos) are not punishable by death.
Read about it here, if you’re interested!
http://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/shocking-mistake-in-darren-wilson-grand-jury-364273731666
I believe you make strong points about the officer not following protocol, however, ine large inconsistency in your above statements is that you insinuate that Wilson shot brown from his police SUV, when in fact he got out and ran after brown. Therefor, I don’t believe it fair or correct to say they ‘lie about the distance’, when in fact, the police suv was 148 feet away, not Wilson himself, who was firing shots on foot.
I am glad that people are taking the time to scrutinize this terrible incident and the unjust Grand Jury decision that followed.
We should be careful about having the right information, though. There are a few problems with this list.
– This article states that Mike was shot 145 ft. away from Darren Wilson. The cited source (and additional sources) claim only that Mike was shot 145 ft. away from the police car. Still significant, but ought to be stated more clearly.
– This article states that Mike Brown is not the person in the Ferguson Market security footage, according to the owner. However, the cited source does not state this anywhere…
– This article states the prosecuting attorney helped raise $600,000 for Darren Wilson. The cited source does not state the amount of money raised.
(Also, you should add to the list that 70,000 citizens signed a petition asking for Bob McCulloch to not take part in the case. Here is a source: http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/michael-brown-shooting/petition-against-prosecutor-ferguson-case-has-70-000-signatures-n186036)
You are a big part of the problem. Check your facts. I quit looking at your fictional attempt to appear educated and analytical after each of the first few of your statements were proven false by the very documents you claim as “source” every one after that the same.
Wow, so your slanted “research” will certainly get you a job a MSNBC. Reporting other reporters stories without actually doing the prima facia research yourself is not “shredding” anything but your credibility with people who actually want the truth without opinion to be reported.
At the time of the shooting, Mike Brown was reported as 6’4″ tall & weighing 292 lbs. Last I checked, an extra 84 lbs is pretty significant. Perhaps you should consider revising that point. Considering that it is the first statement you make, you wouldn’t want the “opening argument” to discredit the rest of your article.
-The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.
Brown was 6’5″ 289 lbs. He’s still 37% larger than Wilson in mass.
-Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.
This is true. After Brown began talking back to Wilson, he noticed the stolen cigars and put the whole thing together. If Brown had simply moved to the sidewalk (he was literally blocking traffic) then he would never have even been brought in for shoplifting.
[read Wilson’s testimony on the encounter beginning on page 207]
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/gj-testimony/grand-jury-volume-05.pdf
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
Mike Brown began to flee after the initial encounter, and BEFORE he was fatally shot. Mike Brown was fatally shot as he was re-pursuing the officer. This is a blatant error by the author.
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
The blood trail shows that Brown was STILL pursuing officer Wilson after taking 4 bullets to the body / hand / arm. Position of shell casing corroborates this too.
-Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.
Jurisdiction was not in the hands of Ferguson Police but rather St. Louis County. There were not conducting the investigation.
-The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his “injuries.”
There are lots of crime scene photos available. Here’s one: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/ferguson/photos/2014-43984/photos-1/74810014.jpg
-Forensic investigators broke protocol by failing to test Officer Wilson’s gun for fingerprints, since Wilson claims that Brown grabbed his gun and caused it to misfire. Page 39, grand jury transcript.
This should have been done, but it’s not on Wilson to conduct the investigation.
-Darren Wilson was then allowed to break protocol by washing the blood off of himself before it could be photographed, making it impossible to analyze blood spatter patterns and determine what position Mike Brown was in when Wilson first shot him. Wilson recounts this on page 10 of his official police interview.
There is significant blood splatter inside the driver door of Wilson’s vehicle.
-While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
There were 60 witnesses interviewed by the Grand Jury. Which four weren’t included? I have not seen a reference to Wilson’s story changing.
-These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
These are the same eye witnesses that said he was shot in the back! Both the medical examiner and the family’s independent autopsy show that all entry wounds are on the front side of Brown’s body.
-This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.
False. The report states that he was either surrendering OR charging the officer based on the position of his head at the time.
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
False. This depends on the position of the two bodies and vehicle in relation to the chamber as the gun was fired.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
Officer Wilson did pursue Brown after the initial altercation. He was not firing his gun while chasing after him. Brown had an opportunity to stop and surrender. Instead, he stopped and charged the officer. I’m not sure where the discrepancy comes from, but it ultimately has no bearing on the case since the blood trail shows that Brown made an aggressive move back towards to officer. Blood trail, casings, and where Brown’s body lay all show that the final altercation came a good distance from the vehicle.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
The author’s own source states that a customer called the police. The owner states that he didn’t think the robbery had anything to do with Mike Brown’s death. He never said it wasn’t Brown on the tape. He just doesn’t want to establish the correlation, drawing negative attention to his store. This ends up not mattering, since the looters go on to destroy his store in riots anyways.
-The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.
Officer Wilson’s ability to earn a living for his family has been greatly affected. I don’t have a problem with the local community helping him out. The references provided don’t tie the prosecutor to this as clearly as the author suggests.
-The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
This does nothing to discredit officer Wilson himself.
A fatal injury while fleeing would not be in the top of the skull coming from the front. It took me less than 30 seconds to find a blatant lie in this using the citation provided only.
On issues of the officer violating policy by not attempting to disarm/restrain- You’ve clearly never been in a life-threatening situation, and I’d guess you have limited experience with firearms. That’s actually a really good thing, but it does mean you shouldn’t speak about things you don’t understand. I suggest reading On Combat by Grossman to get a basic idea of what that kind of thing does to your perception.
On eyewitness accounts- You can prove absolutely these 6 eyewitnesses with identical accounts never met at all despite all being in the same neighborhood at the same time? Also, I’ve read all the released witness statements and have yet to come across any that remained identical through the interview. Hint: The FBI agent reminds several of the ones who say Brown was executed that lying to the FBI is a crime and they will be charged if they continue to do so (this occurs only when their story is in direct contradiction of factual evidence).
You state that the owner of the store said the man in the video was not Michael Brown. This is not in your citation and I have not come across anything that says this. That does not mean it isn’t true, but it does mean that I’ve yet to find anything.
On protocol- Your statements here are accurate and fair. There were significant mistakes made that are problematic. I will note the federal investigation took statements from witnesses who saw the initial contact.
This is a bit of silly point, but jaywalking is, in fact, a crime. I’ve even seen people issued fines for it.
Other problems:
1. Utter failure to analyze the numerous eye witnesses who support the officer’s claims.
2. Failure to mention the drugs in Brown’s system and any analysis or thought as to what impact those may have had.
3. Failure to consider that the theft/assault in the convenience store may have played a part insofar as someone who has just done that, when stopped by the police, is going to react very differently that someone who had done nothing wrong.
4. Failure to mention that the prosecution was overly friendly to the defense which may have caused issues of it’s own.
This is, at best, yellow journalism. Real questions could be raised and real discussions could be had, but neither will come out of this piece.
Here’s a link to the released grand jury documents: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/11/25/366507379/ferguson-docs-how-the-grand-jury-reached-a-decision
In the statement regarding the store theft, nowhere in the source does it say that the man in the security footage was not Michael Brown. In fact, it mentioned that him stealing does not justify him being killed. You should remove that part since it would really discount the credibility of the rest of this article.
1. Brown weighed 80 pounds more then Wilson. That is significantly larger. Height matters less then weight in a fight.
2. Yes Wilson initially stopped Brown for Jaywalking, but the testimony he gave on the day of the incident claimed that he saw Brown hand his friend the stolen goods. Wilson’s friends testimony to the grand jury confirms this as well.
3. Page 281 of volume 5 of the grand jury evidence does not have Wilson confirm that he shot Brown while fleeing. he confirmed he chased Brown when Brown started fleeing. This is consistent with the forensic evidence.
Seems like your interpretations are designed to mislead people, and not actually based on facts.
“Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” When I read this statement I was very intrigued, and felt the need to verify. However, it appears that the question and answer were about whether Wilson would pursue if he were to run away again. He does admit to him running away [to a light pole], but says he stopped and turned around when Wilson followed. I believe the reference was to this instance, prior to Brown “charging” and being fatally shot.
Umm…Not sure how much this can be trusted? You have some factually wrong information. Here’s the grand jury document that proves gun shot residue was embedded in the skin of Michael Brown’s right hand, for example: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/2014/11/24/ferguson-evidence/assets/reports/2014-5143-microscopic-01.pdf
Might want to work on your fact-checking skills a bit more, Miss Lawson.
Ur an idiot, everyone thinks they know exactly what went on during this incident. The ONLY FACTS IS that we will NEVER know what happened. We may have if the police and prosecutor was able to do their job. But no, witnesses had to step in and say Wilson stood over him and executed him, and fabrications like that. If they would have kept it about a policeman shooting a criminal (exactly what it was) they might have even uncovered that Wilson acted wrong. But now we will never know. So people like you keep putting your thoughts into the mainstream media just keeps the racial conspiracies alive. GET OVER IT AND MOVE ON. You are just a child taking a lackluster major in college that you will NEVER use. There has never been an advertisement for a job opening listing THAT as a required education! Just sayin…..
I absolutely salute you, Shelby, for putting the GRAND JURY evidence into clear, concise English. Apparently there are about 1288 people (who thumbed down the first comment from Peggy Bell) who do NOT understand English … or maybe it is lack of reading comprehension skills. You have pointed out all the inconsistencies AND provided the citations of the FACTS without making inferences. Good job.
The points you have made are EXACTLY what I had been telling people since the day this happened … and I did not have the advantage of having the GJ documents to back up what I have been saying ALL ALONG. Thank you again.
Let me make a couple corrections: “I absolutely salute you, Shelby, for putting the pieces of evidence into clear, concise English.” rather than “…the GRAND JURY evidence…” as most of the sources were NOT admitted as evidence to the GJ.
“The points you have made are EXACTLY what I had been telling people since the day this happened … Thank you again.” As I need to reiterate that these sources were NOT admitted to the GJ.
Nice work i bet you win a prize
My favorite part is either when you say Brown and Wilson are the same size because Brown is ONLY 90 LBS heavier! haha or when you try to imply that it wasn’t Brown on the video robbing the store, even tho his parents confirmed it was him. Lol. Or that the autopsy revealed he had his hands up? Lol, No it didn’t.
And was he “fleeing when he was fatally shot”? Considering he was shot in the front, those must be some magic bullets. Lol, I cant tell if this article is a joke or not. I love it.
I wish I was a lawyer going against you….it would be an easy win cause everything ya mention is slanted and in the end…..the truth would make ya look as silly as you really are. I suppose ya think Brown was trying to comply with the cop after assaulting him and trying to take his gun, SMH
The person that wrote this and sited the sources failed to use any of the grand jury documents that were released. Using media claims is just as bad as believing everything the media says. All the source links, link back to some news orginization.
She failed to site sources that are even creditable. All of her sources were from one news source or another trying to sway the reader in one direction. She should have utilized all the info released after the Grand Jury was finished. Journalism major my @##, she is relaying one sided media half truth/lies. Form your own opinion of this mess after reading all the documents that have been released. Inform yourself, don’t trust the media.
You are a fool. I don’t doubt you are in the KU program…
Sources my ass
What a retard.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?smid=fb-share
Shreds the “case”? Yeah, if shredding is using poor journalism integrity and using extremely liberal blogs (AATP, DailyKOS, etc) as sources instead of actual evidence and testimony from the Grand Jury hearings.
A few of the major issues I see with her story (and there were several more):
1. Discounting Browns size advantage. He had ~80 pounds on Wilson and a massive leverage/position of strength advantage on Wilson. Meanwhile, Wilson was stuck in a vulnerable position with no means to improve his position or egress.
2. Fatally shot while fleeing. All the autopsies show he was killed facing Wilson. Even the Brown family’s autopsy confirmed it. From his furthest blood stain, he came back towards Wilson at least 20′ before he was fatally shot.
3. Killed from 148′. From the SUV door to Browns body was 152′. Shell casings were beside and even BEYOND Browns body. Unless his Sig ejected rounds 120′ forward, he was not that far away and was presumable backing up as he fired. Not to mention, the maximum effective range of his Sig P229 is 50m, this puts the 148′ towards the limit of his effective range, a precision head shot is not a simple thing with a pistol from 148′.
4. The Store owner claimed to not call he cops and that Brown wasnt the one who did it. He is saving his own butt. For him to say otherwise puts his business and well-being in danger. He “saw nothing, knows nothing”. Even Dorian Johnson confirmed it was he and Brown at the store.
For someone majoring in journalism you REALLY need to do more research. Your first “misconception” is incorrect. Yes both the officer and Brown were roughly the same height, however, Brown weighed almost 300lbs. That is almost 100lbs MORE than the officer, that’s a HUGE difference. Your second “misconception” is incorrect. The officer had NOT stopped them for jaywalking. They had not stopped at all, they were all still moving. He did stop them after he recalled the theft and the suspects descriptions, which were matching the boys. If you are unclear a stop occurs when parties are physically stopped, not in motion. Your third “misconception” is incorrect. The officer does not say that he shot Brown while Brown was fleeing. The officer did not break any protocol. That’s all I have time for. Maybe I will get a chance to continue my dissection of your “article” later.
For being a journalism major no one ever taught her to cite appropriate sources. Seriously: you cited an activist site’s “analysis?” Let alone one could easily argue to the contrary of many of these statements in the source material. I see a whole lot of extrapolation here. I hope this is fake, or some one is getting bumped back to journo100. As consolation: C’s get degrees, and at the very least you’ll get hired to work for the sham-house of a site you sourced from entirely.
Reblogged this on NaijaCnn.
rasis pigs shot michael brown 4 no good raisin
YOu suck
First off, she’s a journalism major, not a criminal justice major, or attorney, or anything else like that. That being the case, she does a TERRIBLE job with her sources.
1: She sources DailyKos 3 times. DailyKos is the left version of FoxNews. Not reliable, not impartial, very slanted. If I wrote a piece and linked to FoxNews as a source, I’d get shredded.
2: She uses sources 2 and 3 months old, and ignores new evidence and testimony that has come out since.
3: She specifically says: ” Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.” Then links to an article where the store owner himself says that a CUSTOMER called the police, that the shooting had nothing to do with the robbery, and there’s nothing mentioned that says Brown wasn’t the one who robbed the store. And this is despite CLEAR AND OVERWHELMING evidence that it was in fact him who robbed the store. Something that his friend Johnson (who this terrible “journalist” cites as a source that Brown’s hands were up) admitted to.
4: ” Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.” Well, good thing that a coroner isn’t the person who’s charged with collecting such evidence, because gunshot residue was clearly found on his hand.
5: “… This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.” And then she links to an OPINION PIECE that even starts off with “My observations of the preliminary autopsy…” You know what the best part about that is? The piece was written by “keepmehonest”, who isn’t a doctor, or has a forensics degree, or anything like that…he/she is a “Daily Kos user”. They are LITERALLY just someone (as far as I can tell) who wrote a blog piece. They’re not part of the Daily Kos staff or anything like that.
6: ” Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.” I have cop friends, I work with cops every day. Every cop will tell you that they are trained to “shoot to stop” or “shoot to eliminate the threat”. They’re also trained to shoot for center mass…but you really think that every cop is a rank 100 marksman who would have perfect grouping on someone with a pistol over the course of 6-10 shots? You’re going to use “he shot him in the arm, not the chest” as a strike against the officer? Really!?
7: ” Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.” Strawman is strawman. I don’t know of anyone who thinks he stopped them because of the robbery.
8: ” Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.” Another Daily Kos link that this ignorant “journalist” didn’t fact check. If you read the grand jury testimony, Wilson chased Brown and only shot him after Brown stopped and charged him. 150ft is HALF a football field away. What did Wilson do? Sit in his vehicle and clean his gun for 5 or 10 seconds, then draw down and fire?
9: ” Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.” A blatant and unequivocal lie. If she read the grand jury testimony, then she is WILLINGLY lying for page views. On page 281 he is asked why he chased Brown, and if Brown was a threat if he was running way. THAT’S what he’s talking about. On page 226, Wilson describes chasing Brown, and only firing after Brown stops, turns around, and charges Wilson. (REAL source here: http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1370494-grand-jury-volume-5.html)
10: ” The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.” Funny, because the same article she links to has an “update” section where the group clarifies that the PA has nothing to do with the fundraising.
I could probably write another 10 glaring issues with this hack job of “journalism”, but I don’t feel like giving her any more of my time. I’m genuinely embarrassed that this came from a KU student.
Personal responsibility is absent.
Yes the system placed in motion with Welfare has morfed into something wrong.
However, human capacity to change, apply self discipline , and work hard exists.
The root problem Adam is personal responsibility for one’s own actions.
I was not born wealthy, I did the military Vietnam era service, and went to college, earned respect and knowledge as both a student body President and later instructor, by self discipline and hard work. This route exists.
Those trapped in the welfare mentality can escape.
Police are necessary for the dark side of human weakness.
Finally, risk vs. reward. It is easy to blame, it is harder to work.
Thank you, for making this
i will reference you to the end about this case :3
-Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.
He was not fleeing, he had turned and was coming back at the Wilson, that is no longer fleeing
-Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.
Cops are taught to shoot center mass and stop the threat, if someone is charging you(picture a football player running getting ready to make a hit) center mass will become their head as they approach
-Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.
Brown suffered a graze wound to the right hand, near his thumb. Particulate matter in the tissue is “consistent with gunshot residue,” according to the autopsy.
“That tells me that that right hand was very close to the gun when it went off,” Kobilinsky said. That may support Wilson’s version of events that there was a struggle at the police car between he and Brown that led to the shooting.
-Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.
that’s distance from his Police vehicle, not Wilson the human being, Wilson was chasing him after he threatened his life. Eye witnesses saw Brown attacking Wilson in his vehicle, heard the gunshots and saw Brown run with a slight delay before Wilson gave chase.
-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.
Yes it is Mike Brown, it’s been proven that was him.
IF this isn’t a parody, it doesn’t give a lot of hope for the legal profession. This was pathetic as an attempt to make any argument about the case.
thanks.
Wow…6 shots.all in the upper torso at 50 yards…not impossible but highly unlikely unless he was taking slow very well aimed shots…I call bs on your “proof”
Half of the sources are from shitty unreliable news sources that usually have a bias
WOW!!!!
Interesting read. Lots of speculation.
Here are some facts:
http://conservativetribune.com/black-witnesses-brown-shooting/
http://theconservativetreehouse.com/2014/11/27/ferguson-grand-jury-transcripts-reveal-scope-of-witness-fabrications-and-inconsistencies-in-real-america-we-call-them-lies/
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/11/28/IN-FERGUSON-WITNESS-INTIMIDATION-LYING-BY-COMMUNITY-OF-COLOR
I appreciate your attempt but when any one of your sources is from internet feeds, your credibility goes right out the window. You’re gonna be just like all the other Fox News and TMZ journalists that feed lies to rattle readers and in turn profit. One word explains this stupid. Shoot that kid til the clip is gone, he’s a thug.
The problem with your sources is they quote people that have been discredited. Ex: witnesses that say Brown was shot in back when in fact the autopsies prove otherwise. And what about the black eye witness (#10) that completely corroborates Wilson. While afraid of repercussion, he still felt he had to come forward. Makes me just shrug my shoulders at your other “evidence.” Definitely didn’t “shred” in my opinion.
80% of this article is complete bullshit. The sources you cited were not sources of facts but other opinion articles from in biased and unreliable media outlets .
I really enjoy the part where you left off key information in order to make your input completely biased. Specifically the part where the medical examiner said that she didn’t take pictures, however she had another officer take them for her under her direction. Also the part where there was physical evidence showing that officer Wilson was assaulted while inside his vehicle. Truly great journalism, maybe you should stick to you gender studies instead of making poor judgements based on noncredible websites.
Thank you
Shelby.. You’re a complete moron and know nothing about the brown case. He shop lifted, assaulted the store employee and attacked a cop.. You’re a piece of shit douche bag.
This is such a poorly written article it is hilarious. Try citing a single credible source. This is why you majored in journalism and not something real. You want to spin one side of the story to make it follow your story. Fool
But your claims have been proven false.
Shelby, I do not appreciate your input and think your investigative journalism skills need some serious work. Lets start with your first point:
1. “Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown”
– One I have not seen any articles saying Michael Brown was significantly larger than Darren Wilson, so I am confused how this is a “common misconception”. Yes articles did talk about Michael Brown being a large man, but I have yet to see one that compares the two in size.
– Two, yes they are the same height. I am glad you can compare that. But Michael Brown was significantly larger at 292 lbs (82 lbs larger). So your statement that they were the same size is completely false.
2. “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
– Where is your citation on this said police self-defense protocol. To help you out I added a source where a police officers talks about their training. To shoot at center mass aka the chest. And seeing as it seems you have never shot a hand gun before I will tell you it is not easy. The goal of shooting at center mass is that it is area where you can one incapacitate most effectively, and two if your shot is off in any direction you have the greatest chance at still hitting your target.
– In addition I would like to point out that the office in the article says that they are taught after shooting twice at the chest, to shoot at the head if the suspect is still advancing (Which all physical evidence shows Brown was advancing).
http://www.hlntv.com/video/2014/08/19/police-protocol-your-questions-answered
3. “While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.
These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
– I would like you to provide some source that Wilson’s story ever changed. According to the Grand Jury documents Wilson’s story remained very consistent.
– You should also read the Grand Jury document and see all the inconsistencies in the witnesses statements. One witness even said she saw a police officer in the passenger seat which is clearly untrue since Wilson was on patrol alone. There were many inconsistencies in witness statements and some witnesses later admitted to straight up lying about seeing the incident take place at all. I provided a source for you.
– This was not back by the autopsy. One of the three pathologist said this and it was later retracted. He also, admitted he made a mistake about the classification of an entry/exit wound.
– In addition at this press conference you cite it was stressed many times that it was preliminary and not definitive. Also, one of the presenters wasn’t even a pathologist and had no qualifications to be speaking.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/078c82ad45ff4ec6aa1c7744dfa7df14/grand-jury-documents-rife-inconsistencies
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-watch/wp/2014/12/02/the-saga-of-shawn-parcells-the-uncredited-forensics-expert-in-the-michael-brown-case/
4. “Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
– This was again proven false. There was particles in the wound on Brown’s hand that were consistent with him reaching for the gun. Also, his blood was found in the vehicle. Therefore it is clear that some of the shots are at close range
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html
5. “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
– Again, False. Brown was 148 ft. from the police vehicle, not Wilson. It is clearly reported that Wilson gave chase so they were not near the vehicle.
– Also, again hitting a target with a handgun 6 times at 148 ft. is incredibly hard and almost unfeasible. If this is the case Wilson should probably enter the Olympics as a competitive shooter.
– Lastly, you cited someones blog for this point… What kind of journalism is that? Where did you learn it was okay to cite someones opinion who is unqualified and call it a fact?
6. “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
– Even if this is true, the article you cited said a customer called 911. Regardless of who called, there was a call made.
– And yet again, you cited a blog.
7. “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
– If you read the UPDATE in the source you cited yourself you will see that no funding from that fundraiser was accepted.
– In addition you cited a clearly bias source.
All in all your “news piece”, if you could call it that is riddled with errors and poor sources or lack there of. If you plan on going into journalism as a field I suggest you take a lot more courses on the subject. It is news pieces like this that are a problem, ones that go on to perpetuate falsities and further incite unrest and misconception.
I hope my info helps,
Austin
Are you serious? Have you read your resources? They contradict what you have written. Way to propel the victimization/riot attitude.
bullshit
Thank you for your speculation, now move on and get over it!
This is such a bullshit article full of out right lies and misconceptions.
148 ft? With a pistol? Go to a range and try that.
You are an idiot…apparently if you are a journalist major you cant read. There was no hands up gesture. Which was backed by the autopsy. When did people turn so stupid. He charged at the officer. Please go back to the first grade and learn how to read.
Idiots like yourself have only increased media attention and encouraged rioting. Shame on you.
Police are NOT taught to shot the body. The are taught that if you use your gun it is for a kill shot.
You don’t have a clue what you’re talking about. You report what you want to report and not the truth.
You have a grand total of one liable source. All others are just news articles, with hardly any support themselves. Hardly more than speculation without facts. Which goes to show the same thing everyone already knows; that they don’t really know what happened.
you are so full of crap, in the Grand Jury testimony they review over 161 pictures taken by the Forensic Medical Examiner from St Louis of the crime scene, position of police vehicles, the body, the sheet, the orange screen shielding the body, the blood splatter, the shell casings (as well as video taken of the scene)… The Forensic Medical Examiner went on to testify that the window to the cruiser was shattered and there were glass fragments inside the cruiser [corroborating the testimony Officer Wilson gave that Mr. Brown was attacking him in the veh). A projectile was recovered from inside the veh door, further varying Officer Wilson’s testimony. The Medical legal investigator was the one who said the camera was dead. That individual also went on to testify that they are not under any protocol to take pictures, but that they do because they are trying to gather the information for the pathologist, and so they have them. It is made clear by the following statements that the official crime scene photos are being taken by the police department investigators per protocol. Furthermore in the last statement made by the legal investigator it states that a request was made to the police examiner take very specific shots of the body for the pathologist. No where in the testimony was anything said about going to go to the hospital to take pictures of the officer. The testimony of the legal investigator, the only one who said their camera was dead so they could not take pictures, was only 78 pages long; so again you are full of crap stating that the statement was made on page 95. Page 95 of the actual Forensic Medical Examiner is questions about pictures 45 – 48. AS for your claim that Mr. Brown was 148 feet from Officer Wilson, that too is false. The measurement of over 100 feet (which was 153 ft and 9 in) was the distance from the police cruiser to Mr. Brown’s body, not the distance of the body to the officer at the time of the shooting [ref pg 145 of the testimony of the St Louis Medical Examiner]. Fight with the facts and not your twisted take on them to satisfy your adgenda.
Also Mr. Brown (according to the private autopsy) was 6’5″ and 285 lbs, that is 75 lbs heavier and 1″ taller than the officer, in a fight having an extra 75 lbs can make a big difference.
Thanks, good research, work, and honor, in your writing …
First of all, I would like to thank Ms Lawson for taking the time to organize her thoughts and the thoughts of others, making it easy to read and understand, all while providing the sources for why she feels the way she does. I am a big KU fan, growing up close by the college and having a sibling currently there studying. I believe KU provides a good education and that is why I believe Ms Lawson, being a KU educated journalism student, has not intentionally lied or maliciously twisted “facts” to fit her agenda. My guess is that Ms Lawson is a caring individual, someone who sees injustice in the world and feels a deep drive to right the wrongs if she can. It is possible this deep desire led to an emotionally charged post without the factual basis it claims by the sources it quotes.
I would encourage anyone swayed by this article to seek out and read the full sources used within and then make an informed decision prior to challenging someone else or making up their mind about this tragedy.
The blog post states that Michael Brown and Officer Wilson were of similar size. I am assuming this is to say that Officer Wilson should have been able to fight with Michael Brown toe to toe without the need for deadly force. The facts are; Mr Brown had more than 80 lbs on Ofc Wilson and was 10 years younger. From personal experience, I can tell you that both of these factors are significant. I don’t want to fight with someone with that much of an advantage on me if I can help it and if I had to, I wouldn’t expect to win for very long. This assumes that they did not have significantly different motivations for the confrontation. A strongly motivated 300 lbs person would have an even higher advantage, say someone who did not want to go to jail for a recent robbery.
The next bullet point in the article states that Officer Wilson testified he stopped Mr Brown and Mr Johnson for Jaywalking, not for a criminal investigation. That is correct, Officer Wilson said he stopped and asked them to get out of the street. However, I would point you on to the next few paragraphs of testimony which clearly state, Officer Wilson saw items on and about the subjects which matched the description of the robbery. Therefore, he put his vehicle in reverse and backed up to stop them.
Next bullet point, Ms Lawson purports Officer Wilson himself testifies that he shot Mr Brown while he was running away. Unfortunately this is not correct at all. I read this section of the testimony and Officer Wilson is explaining why he chased Mr Brown when he ran. Officer Wilson clearly testifies in the preceding pages that Mr Brown ran, then turned around and charged at him, which is when he fired the fatal shots.
The next point posits that Officer Wilson broke protocol by shooting Mr Brown in the head. Ms Lawson claims that police officers are only supposed to incapacitate and go for body shots. This is partially true. Officers are trained to shoot at what is called “center of mass” usually meaning the torso. However, they are also trained that if deadly force is authorized, they shoot until the threat stops, whether in surrender, incapacitation, or death. Unfortunately, this shooting ended in a death. There is no training which states officers must shoot at the torso or “shoot to wound.” In fact, there is a specific drill taught at most if not all law enforcement agencies called a “failure drill.” The drill calls for two shots to the body and one shot to the head. The premise is that if body shots are not making an effect, due to body armor or extreme motivation, shots to the head will incapacitate the subject. Unfortunately, bullets are not endowed with the magic ability to stop people dead in their tracks like they do in the movies.
I’m afraid I don’t see where the other items are relevant due to the fact that all alleged witnesses to the event were supposedly allowed to testify at the grand jury hearings and the grand jury made a determination on the trustworthiness of each of the witnesses, deciding to believe the witnesses which testified that Mr Brown was charging at Officer Wilson when he was shot in the head.
Besides this, many of the sources which have been linked are opinion pieces, claiming factual basis, but obviously from the perspective of anti-police or anti-establishment. This causes me to question their validity as “proof.”
In closing, the final statement in your article, although taken directly from the source, only goes to show how these sources are going out of their way to misrepresent facts. The article claims that Mr. McCulloch is directly involved in fund raising for Officer Wilson but fails to provide any evidence. It says a group raising money in support of Officer Wilson was also claiming they may give some of the proceeds to a charity, “The Backstoppers Inc.” Mr McCulloch is the president of that organization, a charity that helps provide for the families of officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty. However, the organization made a public statement that they would not accept donations from any Ferguson related fundraising. Actually, this information is posted at the bottom of the article Ms Lawson linked if anyone would care to read it. If a purported “news agency” wants to hate someone for heading up a charity to provide for the children and spouses of killed officers and firefighters, people who put their lives on the line for us everyday, I’m afraid I will have a hard time seeing them as an unbiased source.
I do not harbor any ill will toward you Ms Lawson or the protesters in Ferguson. I am happy there are people willing to step out, be unpopular, and challenge the status quo. We need more of that in this world. Less people just meandering through life just letting things go on along the same, often wrong, path.
I just can not agree with the “facts” presented in this article.
I hope you can see this situation from another angle as well.
I live locally, very close to Lawrence. I would be more than happy to have a conversation about this in person as long as it is calm and everyone comes with an open mind. Let me know in the comments if you want to discuss it further and we can work out email stuff.
Be safe and keep advocating for the underprivileged, oppressed, and forgotten people in this world. No one will know unless you say something.
Thanks
R
You article of “facts” is absolutely horrendous and misleading, I’m not exactly sure where you referenced your material but it certainly wasn’t from the grand jury testimony , there’s a couple points on here that are true , but it’s funny that even know the facts are still being disputed by people your facts on the case are not even close to what anyone is saying, I hope you enjoy the slight publicity while it last but I’m sure you will probably be hearing from others seeing how most people who payed attention to this case knows the majority of what you wrote down is false information, to me it’s Damn near slander to post an article like that with straight lies on there
Rolf.. stopped reading after 8 points because so much wrong. Way to Not read the documents.
1. Aye
2. Jaywalking IS A CRIME
3. Autoposy shows he was not shot in the back, so was not shot fleeing. (Cant shoot a guy in the front if they are running away, can ya?)
4. Seriously? Even in your sentence you admitted he was shot in the extremities four times before kill shots were fired.
5. You mean between the time the officier shot Mike Brown and when the first officer besides Darren Wilson arrived and found Mike Brown dead?
6. That the testimony of two DIFFERENT PEOPLE, the Medical Legal Investigator and the St Louis County Crime Scene Detective.
7. Yes, they did not take prints. They swabbed for DNA, infinitely more accurate than prints which can smear.
8. On this one, yeah, the cops were morons. The entire Ferguson PD needs to be retrained in preserving forensic evidence.. Why they took him to the PD to drop off his gun and shirt, THEN to the hospitial, then back to the PD is insanity.
More than enough blame to pass around on this stuff without your misinformation.
And, no, since I live in the area, I will not give you my name, just my internet alias.
Michael Brown was not fleeing when he received the fatal shot. Page 281 of Darren Wilson’s testimony only admits that Michael Brown fled, not that Wilson shot him dead (or even shot at him) when he was fleeing. One of the few things that all the eyewitnesses agree on is that Michael Brown was facing Darren Wilson when the fatal shot was fired. Some eyewitnesses claimed that Wilson shot at Michael while he was fleeing, but bullet wounds on the head and body show they entered from the front, so this is uncoroborated. Furthermore, 5 eyewitnesses, in addition to officer Wilson, claimed that Michael, after fleeing, turned around and charged and Darren Wilson and it was then that Darren fired the fatal shots. The blood trail also shows that Michael Brown turned and moved back towards Darren Wilson some 22′-30′, which would be consistent with such a charge.
We know this. That’s ONE if the re for the protests.
My questions are, “Why is it the Grand Jury didn’t respond accordingly…Who is “paying” these Grand Jury participants for these idiotic decisions…particularly the decision of the officer who killed the black man via a choke.hold…that was seen around the WORLD?”
I submit it’s not the fault of the officers entirely…it’s the fault of whoever is in charge of the officers and of thois who TRAIN the officers.
SEEMINGLY, there is a nation-wide conspiracy regarding law enforcement. Then again, MANY officers are trained by the same “officers’ training organizations.” One wonders where the Grand Jury participants were.trained. hmm
What a pile of garbage this article is! There are not facts here and this woman will never make it as any kind of reporter! She needs to gat a job at WalMart or BergerKing!
Using an article blatantly biased at most points, speculation of non professionals on professional sciences….Yes, that really does help you make things clear.
Mike Brown weighed 290 lbs not 210… So you are absolutely wrong about the weight!!! The officer never once claimed he weighed less than 210 not in his statement, not in his interview on tv and not in this under oath testimony. Officer Wilson states that he originally didn’t STOP them he asked Mike Brown’s FRIEND to get on the side walk and Mike Brown responded with anger so when did he ever claim that he stopped them for being a suspect. It wasn’t until after Mike Brown was at his window responding that Officer Wilson noticed the cigars. Okay so Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown in the head twice AFTER shooting him in the arms and torso 4 times… Which would comply not only with what Officer Wilson states but also witness number 10 and at least 2 other witnesses stated seeing which was Mike Brown charging at Officer Wilson. “Like a dead man walking” one of them said or “I couldn’t believe he was charging at the officer. My instinct would have been to get down on the ground if an officer had his gun aimed at me” said another. The officers took a statement from Witness 10 which in fact was one of the most reliable witnesses that saw the ENTIRE thing go down. He walked by the two friends as they walked in the middle of the street and from a safe distance saw the entire thing. Not from a bedroom window but from a distance where he could not only SEE but HEAR what was going on. Those from their windows saw something and added their own interpretation. NOT RELIABLE. According to the first autopsy there was gun powder residue on Mike Browns hand where his thumb was shot off which was evidence that his hand was in fact on the gun not to mention Mike Brown’s DNA was in fact in the car which is evidence that he was in fact INSIDE the car or at least his hands were as Officer Wilson states. In fact a witness ON live television gets busted trying to change his story after saying he felt the officer was aggressive with Mike Brown then ACCIDENTALLY states that Mike Brown’s hands were in the car while using a fist punching gesture. When questioned he says “Well, I am pretty sure…. uh… I believe the Officer’s fists were flying too.” He’s PRETTY SURE…. and stumbled very hazily over those words. Officer Wilson hasn’t changed his statement at all in fact it’s quite funny because Dorian Johnson and Officer Wilson’s stories are very similar with of course a few very HUGE differences yet Dorian Johnson has been the one who has been inconsistent. As far as EYE WITNESSES it is never about the AMOUNT of witnesses and more about the credibility of them. Let’s be realistic majority of the African American’s in that neighborhood didn’t have to see a damn thing and they will in fact say without a doubt in their mind that Officer Wilson was a racist white guy who KILLED Mike Brown in cold blood. There were several videos from bedroom windows circulating. Headlines would read they saw this … His Hands were up… He was running away… Yet the video footage ONLY shows him laying on the street. It takes time I am certain to get your phone out but him running away …. Yes he was… At first…. The Officer admits to that. He also charged him afterwards which other witnesses saw one being their most reliable witness which was African American which might matter very much to some people. Footage of how far away this man was from the officer…. Let us just entertain the idea “This was a 290 lbs 6’4 foot tall man running at you” Would you wait until he was close enough to reach you or lunge at you to start shooting? The gun shot to the head it was determined that he had to be at a closer distance at the time of that shot then he was at the time of the original shots fired which actually supported that Mike Brown was in fact running at Officer Wilson. The POLICE DEPARTMENT had issues with racial profiling… Not Officer Wilson. Furthermore, how many of you can actually go outside and say you don’t racial profile. Live in your mind of lies if you wish. There is racial profiling in every aspect of this case. SOME African American’s are racial profiling a white officer for that reason alone. If this was an African American officer whom shot Mike Brown would there be riots? Would there be all of this? I pulled this up online .. the videos.. I wanted to study…. It did what everything you search on the internet did and pulled up police brutality videos. I saw HUNDREDS of videos of police officers beating up on CAUCASIAN FEMALES actually. None of those videos went viral or caused the uproar that it does when the situation is as it was in this case. A life taken no matter what race or gender is a tragedy. It happens every single day. African Americans kill each other daily over drugs and money. Gangs…. Caucasians kill each other over the same. Every nationality has war…. For some reason the uproar in the communities … Social Media…. NON STOP….. Causing anarchy in our country … Is only when it’s against an African American. You want the racism to stop that has to come from ALL ends…. I grew up with racism coming from the other side. I was bullied and treated like a piece of garbage because I was white. Let me be very clear here… I love people… Of every single solitary nationality, race, culture. I had money and jewelry stolen from me by being bullied. Black history month at my school was dreadful. MY PEOPLE did terrible things to THEIR PEOPLE. First I’d like to say my heritage was Italian and Irish which were slaves long before African Americans were. Secondly, I would like to say what anyone prior to ME did has nothing to do with ME. What happened to anyone prior to them has nothing to do with THEM. We have come a LOOONG way from segregation and not being treated equal both by race and gender. Yet we still have this hurdle. Which I am so very sorry to say this but it seems to me African American’s can’t seem to get past what happened to those from their culture or heritage. Therefore, they carry on into this life we live now. It is not “racial” profiling. It is simply profiling. I hate to say it but lets be realistic if these two gentlemen were walking on the side walk and presenting themselves differently the police officer wouldn’t have even stopped them. He was in a prominently black neighborhood what was out of the ordinary about them except for them walking dead in the middle of the road and then the demeanor of Mike Brown when they were confronted. When these things happen we want to show the sweetest pictures and say a TEENAGER…. Lets face it kids and teenagers are more dangerous now than they have ever been and a 290 lb man whom was 6’4 feet tall….. Can’t really say I’d be like oh he’s harmless cause he’s a teenager. GET OUT OF THE MEDIA…GET OUT OF YOUR MINDS…. What happened was a tragedy. Anyone losing their life is. However, everyone keeps asking Officer Wilson if he was a white kid would this have happened…. Let me ask you something… If this was a white kid would this be happening?????????????????? BE REAL!!!!
No bias here. HA. Your sources are slanted and you obviously have no intention of being truthful here. There are other less biased sources pertaining to the gun shot residue which you conveniently ignore. I have one question for you. Have you ever shot a hand gun? At 50 yards? You could make Adolf Hitler out to be a saint if you picked your sources carefully, as you have done here. This in NOT journalism. This is yellow journalism at its worst. You should be ashamed of yourself.
Thank you. The truth needs to be out there. And the people are ignorant.
Could you post your source about the police self-defense protocol, “which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots”? I’d be interested to read that. Thanks!
Please provide all accurate information and not just information on a limited scope
Interesting read.
Obviously a student multiple ‘facts’ of hers are wrong
Please stop spouting trash and lies
As a teacher in New York, my students have been analyzing the research provided by Ms. Lawson. My high school students have found numerous discrepancies, inaccuracies, highly biased, and unreliable sourcing of much of Ms. Lawson’s information. For the record, as a liberal myself, KOS is a bit far left for unbiased credible information… I do however thank her in allowing my students to examine what poor and biased research can do to help them become much more efficient learners and researchers in their own right.
49.3 Yards you are saying these shots were made at. Why do people believe this stuff and share it?
Just a note Shelby. A misfire in reference to a firearm means that the gun didn’t fire. i.e. it wouldn’t produce gun residue.
and who paid for you to get the transcript?????
I looked at some of these sources and Shelby didn’t rewrite the facts right according to the source. It’s time to let this go. The Grand Jury made the decision. There is not enough evidence against Wilson.
That was the most thorough research on the case I have ever seen.
well done
I’m not sure what it is you’re trying to do….because they won’t take it back to trial, it’s over, and all you’re doing is adding more fuel to the fire. I understand the research and everything. It’s all well and good on the front of giving yourself a great image in people’s eyes, but you’re just going to piss a lot of people off.
All of this is based on a reporting through the NYT. An opinion based OP-ed. Great work Student, even your first claim is wrong. Just because their both 6′ 4″? Mike brown was almost 100 pounds heavier than the Officer. Why don’t you go outside and tangle with someone 100 pounds heavier and do some more homework, so-called student.
Having worked in one of the largest forensic laboratories in the world, once you get past 10-15 feet, it is nearly impossible to tell how close the person was shot with a hand gun. Just saying.
Gee and you are just a student majoring in journalism with all the’m insight to know these things as fact. NOT a criminal justice major, nor a trained Investigator, not someone trained in evidence or law or use of force. SORRY but speculation is just that.
Question…as a journalist , you will have to enter an analysis of
Occupancies with an ubiased mind. It is all to evident that you did not.
It is also evident you did not review the grand jury findings in
A thorough and open minded manner.
Also, why do you not mention that a video of the entire incident was shown on TV for an hour plus. I saw it because I’ve
Been recovering from a surgery and caught the showings
Shortly after the incident.
I’m a Dr and have testified as an expert witness in at least two dozen personal injury cases. My recall of details is excellent.
The initial video shown was from inside the store and their video camera. Not Michael Brown! ? Please! He robbed the clerk , grabbing him by the shirt and shaking that small man.
Next was the surveillance cam outside the store showing Brown and a very skinny friend walking into the middle and down
To finish….the officer turned onto the street and apparently asks them to move out of the street. That is when Brown reached in the drivers window and made punching motions. He then turned and walked away towards the back of the police unit. The officer
Obviously exited his car with difficulty and must have yelled at brown to stop . Brown turned around and charged the officer like he was going to tackle him, with his head down and his arms
Spread and down in a tackle position. The officer fired and
As was noted the final shot was in the top of his head because
Of his position. Exactly the grand jury findings .
Big question is…WHO ORDERED THE ENTIRE VIDEO NOT SHOWN AGAIN?
That’s your story.
This journalism student blatently twisted and falsified the info from the grand jury report. I have read the whole thing and her descriptions that seem to have generated 1million views are pretty much lies. I can refute almost everyone of her atatement just by reading the report myself. Did she not think people would actually read it for themselves. I recommend that before you post something like this you read it for yourself. This is a disgrace to any REAL journalist.
In your article you say he was fleeing when he was fatally shot? But in your same article you say he died with his arms up talking to Wilson. Was he fleeing towards him? Your link for the autopsy shows all bullets enter the front. If you read, as you suggest, the evidence Wilson explains why he chased him and never admits to fatally shooting him while he was fleeing. The inconsistencies in your article are interesting. I do not claim to know what happened, perhaps others should stop claiming to know.
Thanks
The resources about the autopsy results are dated Aug 18th and are from the county autopsy, but the official autopsy results but independent coroners released until Aug 22nd indicate that there was gun residue on him thumb which would indicate that he was shot at close range. Mind you, I’m not taking sides here, just pointing out that not everything reported here is truth.
This is all lies! Shame on you!
Nice tits
1. “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
-So, the contention of this individual is that the police officer fired his .40 pistol at 50 yards (148 feet) and hit/killed Michael Brown? It would be virtually impossible to put one bullet in a target at 50 yards with a pistol (unless the target were the side of a barn). Seriously impossible–Annie Oakley couldn’t make that shot. Not once–let alone several shots.
-Of course, our “journalism student” could have used better language and said they were “148 feet” from the SUV. While that might be true, it doesn’t change the “defense” in any way. As a police officer Wilson had a duty to pursue. It doesn’t matter the distance from the SUV–just the distance between the supsect and officer himself.
2. “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
-No protocol is broken. The first shot occurred when a scuffle inside the vehicle occurred. Regarding the shots, police officers are trained to shoot for the body because it is the largest mass. It doesn’t mean you always hit the body. Pistols are short barreled weapons, and shots are not consistent with a great degree of accuracy. Going to the prior claim of “148 feet” someone hitting anything except a barn would again, be miraculous. At 35 feet, a moving suspect being hit outside body mass is not uncommon.
3. “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
-While true, this is disingenuous. The initial stop was walking down the street, but he testifies that he also recognized his very distinguishable clothing and saw the cigars, then recognizing him as a strong-arm robbery suspect.
4. “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
-Again, incorrect or intentionally misleading. The testimony reads that the officer was pursuing the suspect, who then turned around and charged the officer. The officer has a duty to pursue a now felony suspect that just wrestled in his vehicle with him, leading to a gunshot. A police officer can’t simply fail to pursue felony suspects. Think about the ramifications of police not pursuing felony suspects.
5. “Ferguson Police ignored protocol and refused to interview or take a statement from the eyewitness present from Officer Wilson’s initial contact with Mike Brown until his death.”
-The source for this is an August NYT article. This was well before grand jury testimony came out, and it is quite clear from the grand jury testimony that ALL witnesses were interviewed and brought to the grand jury for testimony.
6. “These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
-Both demonstrably false. Two witnesses came forward on a Website claiming this, and a handful of other witnesses made similar “hand up” claims. Eyewitnesses with this claim (maybe these two–maybe the “others” )were heard before the grand jury. Their testimony did not match other eyewitness testimony and did not match autopsy results and therefore other eyewitness testimony was likely given more weight.
7. “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
-This is patently false. All autopsy results showed that in fact, his hands were not up, or showed that the particular wounds offered no indication as to arms up/arms down (for some shot trajectories, it didn’t matter). Again, this is well-documented in the grand jury testimony.
8. “Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
-This is, again, patently false. The grand jury report of the autopsy shows just the opposite. The blood in the car, the burns on the victim’s hand, etc. show this claim to be false.
9. “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
-Even if it was a customer who called and provided a suspect ID and report, does it matter that it wasn’t the actual owner? It still doesn’t change the fact the call was made. The rest of this about the robbery not being Michael Brown, that is patently false. It is not denied by even the family (or the co-suspect), that the video is indeed of Michael Brown.
10. Shelby Lawson didn’t report anything. She cobbled together a bunch of stories from sites on the Web that purport to provide information about the situation. Much of it is outdated and contradicted by grand jury testimony. Other information may be partially correct, but do not support the conclusions the sites or the “journalist” Shelby Lawson purport them to support.
Do I need to go beyond these 10 items on the few other items Shelby purports to report on.
I came here with a open mind reading each section and checking your sources. A lot of the points were made here were worth investigating, but came up short with the sources, some being outright lies, such as the donation thing. If your going to put out an article to get people worked up, at least have some credible sources.
Thank you for caring about truth and justice. We are counting on You and your generation to return this country to greatness. Good luck and god bless.
Not a very good research reporter are you? If he was shot while running away yet all shots were in his front how does that make sense? Also those autopsy reports do not say anything about proof he was in the hands up position, that little piece of “source” is actually a very liberal authors side line judgement of what he believes he can deduce from an autopsy report that says no such thing. You better learn a little bit more and retake some classes on what is a reliable source and what is mere opinion.
Your source on the prosecuting attorney raising money is also false, It states that a group raising money plans on donating to the group ran by the prosecuting attorney, which claims it will reject any donations from the previous group.
Did you even read your own sources? This is by far one of the worst “journalistic reports” I’ve ever read. You should be ashamed of yourself for spreading this kind of crap and further muddying the waters that have caused so much damage for so many lives in Ferguson MO.
Whether or not it was a customer or an employee the police apparently received a call reporting a robbery and had to take it seriously. This does not say anything about whether or not
I am in no way saying I support Wilson or Brown, but I definitely do not support crappy reporting that makes matters worse and lies to people.
In the future, you might consider using an unbiased reference when you are trying to prove a point. I don’t necessarily disagree or agree with your opinions. However, if you are trying to provide facts you should site the original source instead of clearly one sided articles. You can spin things anyway you want when you provide sources like that.
1. The two were not the same size. While they were both the same height, Mike Brown outweighed Darren Wilson by 70-80 pounds.
2. He was stopped for jaywalking. It is then that he proceeded to hurl obscenities at a police officer, and then attempt to disarm that police officer.
3. According to testimony, Mike Brown was fleeing, then stopped and reengaged Darren Wilson. The coroner’s report reveals that Brown was facing Wilson when he was shot, making the “shot-in-the-back” theory impossible. Police protocol teaches to disarm and incapacitate. He did both of those things. Killing Mike Brown is incapacitating him. Incapacitate (v) – to prevent function in a normal way. According to testimony, the shots to Mike Brown’s body were fired first, and only upon his charging of the officer were the fatal headshots fired.
4. Eyewitness testimony is widely regarded as one of the most inconclusive types of evidence. This is why eyewitness testimony is combined with physical evidence to render a more complete picture of what occurred.
5. Here you’re referring to one of the three (if I’m not mistaken) autopsies done on Mike Brown; one that, from my understanding, was requested by the family of the deceased. This action being requested by the family of the deceased, it would put pressure on the medical examiner to produce a result that the family desired.
6. In extreme close encounters with an active firearm, sometimes gunshot residue isn’t found on the victim, simply because the victim is too close to be affected by the spread.
7. Mistakes in the range of the shooting can happen. Something that is highly unlikely, however, is that a man who uses his service side arm as rarely as Darren Wilson had, could hit a target with a handgun at 150 ft. or half a football field.
8. You refer to the convenience store as a defense of Michael Brown, but dismiss it earlier in the argument when it could be used as evidence against him.
9. The $600,000 in donations was probably raised to offset legal costs and help Wilson support himself between jobs, since people like you obviously want him fired.
10. I had read a similar article, except the one I read indicated that he was a fairly unimpressive and ordinary officer of the law. Other officer said he “stayed out of trouble” and the police chief said that “the name never crossed his desk”, meaning he wasn’t involved in any disciplinary action.
first of all, nice work. i haven’t checked all the sources, but one in one i did check, you state that the owner of the ferguson market says the man on the tape is not mike brown, but your source doesn’t mention that info…just fyi
After chacking some sources ( not all ) I find your input remarkable!
At the time of death, mike brown weight was 292.
For a journalism major, you don’t seem to read real well, or have very bad referencing skills. Let’s take this statement: “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime.” No the initial stop was because they were in the middle of the street, but had you actually continued reading, you would see that he noticed the cigarilos in his hand and the description of the robbery suspect.
Paragraph five your story actually defines police protocol. Darren shot in the arm and in the torso before shooting in the head due to the fact the assailant would not stop. So you proved your cop protocol in that paragraph. Enough said.
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html
Don’t let people do your thinking for you.
Didn’t get past the part comparing their size. Even at 210 for officer Wilson he was outweighed by 80lbs. This idiot can say what she wants but forensic evidence supports the cop anyway.
This link disagrees with one of your sources http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/on-the-record/2014/10/23/dr-baden-vs-official-michael-brown-autopsy-report
I don’t see “the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown” in the source you linked. Didn’t Dorian Johnson confirm that Mike Brown took the cigars?
Also, saying that Brown wasn’t stopped for committing a crime is somewhat contentious, because Wilson claims to have only realized he had cigars and matched a description after initially confronting Brown for jaywalking; of course we may never know if that’s the truth…
so much is wrong with the analysis…. the student obviously did not read the grand jury documents. she would know that Michael Browns friend (jaywalking buddy) acknowledged Michael Brown took the cigarettes. Eye Witness 14 (sympathetic to Michael Brown) testified that the officer was attacked while still in his car, Browns blood and skin was found in the cop’s car, and that Michael Brown was charging the officer when Michael Brown was finally subdued by the officer firing his weapon.
So much misinformation by the student…. the grand jury documents are available for her to read but she chose ignorance… facts are not as interesting as fiction when the fiction keeps the myth alive… sheesh
“The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.” and Shelby Lawson and/or Michael Shatz provided a link as the source, that does not even mention the prosecuting attorney even once, not does it mention any conflict of interest.
Something is clearly amiss with this very inept article.
ll entrance wounds on Mike Brown were from the front, so he was not shot while fleeing, unless he was running backwards.
Shelby,
Appreciate the consolidation, but your claim that the store owner states that “the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown,” is incorrect. Nowhere in your source does it say that. It also does not say “that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown,” it says “Whatever the police are looking for on the surveillance tape, has nothing to do with what went on in the street.”
Nice post
Well, you kind of invalidated yourself with with the store comments. That is completely out of context.
That being the case, I firmly believe officer Wilson was grossly negligent in directly taking the life of Michael Brown and should have been charged accordingly.
And you call yourself a journalist?
read the Grand Jury facts–some of yours are somewhat skewed! Especially the “so-called” eye witnesses who later said they lied! There WAS a call about the theft that came over the radio, BUT that is not why the men were stopped! Officer Wilson’s story has not changed, it is just that more details have been released! If you are going to be a true journalist and not a sensationalist, please make sure you have ALL the TRUE FACTS rather than just believing what you first hear—research, research, research!
It’s funny how you say absolutely nothing except “police broke protocol.”
Are you a police officer? Do you know what it’s like to go through something like this? No and no. Now shut up and stop fueling the fire. You’re only going to cause more violence.
The only mistake Officer Wilson made was to try to deal with the situation on his own, once he realized the abnormal hostility. He should have stayed in his car until the arrival of backup.
You state that on page 281 of the grand jury testimony, Officer Wilson confirms that he shot a fleeing Mike Brown. You have either misinterpreted or knowingly fabricated the text. Officer Wilson is saying that Brown was still a threat while he was fleeing. He mentions nothing about shooting Brown here. As a result of your misrepresentation, whether intentional or incidental, your credibility is devalued.
I reviewed a few of Shelby’s references to the transcripts, as some of her statements piqued my curiosity. I checked the transcripts as published by the New York Times at http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/11/25/us/evidence-released-in-michael-brown-case.html?_r=0.
Shelby said “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Office Wilson’s testimony is in Volume V; it begins on page 197 and ends on page 281. There is no such statement on page 281 or even the two pages prior to that. He clearly stated earlier that he did not shoot at Michael Brown after having left the patrol car until Brown began to run back at him. On page 233 he clearly states that he did NOT fire while pursuing him.
Shelby said “The forensic examiner broke protocol by failing to take crime scene photos. On page 95 of the grand jury transcript, she claims that this was because her camera had died, however, she goes on to describe how she immediately followed Wilson to the hospital in order to photograph his ‘injuries.’ ”
The medical examiner’s testimony is in Volume I. The first testimony about the camera battery being dead is on page 32; it is mentioned again on page 67, where occurred this interchange:
Q: “… you said that you didn’t take photos yourselves?”
A: “Correct.”
Q: “Upon arriving at the scene as the batteries had died in your camera?”
A: “Yes ma’am.”
Q: “…is there some protocol with your department that you have to have your camera charged up at all times?”
A: “No ma’am.”
Q: “Just to alleviate this type of thing happening?”
A: “No ma’am.”
Q: “So right now we only have the photos that St. Louis County or whatever … did?”
A: “Correct. My photographs would have been… anywhere from two to four pictures, no more that that.”
Then on page 77:
Q: “Just to be clear, the fact that you didn’t take pictures, you feel like the county covered whatever pictures you would have supplied yourself?”
A: “Correct.”
Q: “There is not a hole here because you didn’t have the pictures?”
A: “All pictures are taken by the police. I would have taken them too. A lot of times we direct them…”
Q: “But in this case … did you … ask them to take certain pictures?”
A: “Yes ma’am.”
The testimony ends on page 78 (There is apparently no page 95).
In Volume V, on pages 249-250 Officer Wilson testified “St. Louis County’s evidence technician arrived, he photographed everything. I don’t know who he is, but he came from whoever the department uses for drug tests, they gave me the drug tests.”
So the medical examiner didn’t take photos at the hospital.
I checked out Volume II, the crime scene detective’s testimony. It is apparent that there were dozens of photos taken of Michael Brown’s body.
I haven’t followed up the rest of Shelby’s statements, but her lack of attention to detail is troubling, especially since she appears to intend to give the impression of being attentive to detail. How much of the rest of her essay is equally misleading?
This is one of the worst examples of “journalism” that I’ve ever seen – nearly all of your “sources” are from partisan websites which have their own agenda to promote. You conveniently overlook the fact that numerous witnesses testified that Michael Brown charged at Officer Wilson in a threatening and aggressive manner.
Also, had you bothered to do even a modicum of fact-checking (look it up), you would have found that your “link” between McCulloch had been debunked:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/crime/backstoppers.asp
But pesky things like facts are really irrelevant when you’ve got your own agenda to push out, right? You’ve got a great future at Faux “News” or any of the other media outlets that masquerade as legitimate media outlets these days.
ST. LOUIS —
DEC 4, 2014, 11:25 AM
by
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
In stories about Michael Brown’s autopsy published Oct. 22 and Aug. 18-19, The Associated Press erroneously identified Shawn Parcells as a forensic pathologist. Parcells assisted a privately-hired pathologist who conducted his own autopsy of Brown, but Parcells is not a forensic pathologist.
A corrected version of the most recent story is below:
Expert: Autopsy doesn’t show if Brown went for gun
Expert: Brown autopsy shows close-range wound to hand, inconclusive on whether he went for gun
By JIM SALTER
Associated Press
ST. LOUIS (AP) ? Michael Brown’s official autopsy indicates he was shot in the hand at close range during a struggle, but a medical examiner not involved in the investigation says there’s no way to conclude whether the injury meant the unarmed 18-year-old was trying to grab the gun of the officer who killed him.
The St. Louis County medical examiner’s autopsy report, obtained by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, doesn’t explain why Brown was killed after the apparent scuffle at Officer Darren Wilson’s police vehicle spilled onto a Ferguson street or confirm whether he was confronting Wilson or trying to surrender when he was fatally shot ? both scenarios offered by various witnesses to the Aug. 9 shooting.
The shooting of Brown, who was black, by Wilson, who is white, spurred unrest and weeks of protests in Ferguson, some of which turned violent. A grand jury is expected to decide by mid-November whether Wilson will face criminal charges, and the Justice Department is investigating for possible civil rights violations.
The autopsy showed Brown suffered six bullet entrance wounds and listed “gunshot wounds to the head and chest” as the cause of death. A toxicology report with the autopsy also showed Brown had marijuana in his system.
Dwain Fuller, a Dallas-area forensic toxicologist, told The Associated Press the report indicated “recent use” that likely meant Brown still was feeling the effects of the drug, but “as far as that making him violent, one can’t really say.”
Both the Post-Dispatch, which published a story Wednesday on the county autopsy report, and The New York Times, which ran a story last week about the officer’s account of the shooting, cited unnamed sources saying Wilson told investigators he and Brown struggled over the officer’s gun.
The autopsy said a microscopic exam showed that foreign matter found on tissue from Brown’s injured thumb was “consistent with products that are discharged from the barrel of a firearm.”
St. Louis city medical examiner Michael Graham, who was not involved in the autopsy, said that and other evidence indicates the shot to the hand probably occurred inside Wilson’s SUV. Graham, in an interview with the AP, said it’s impossible to conclude whether the close-range injury meant Brown was trying to grab the officer’s gun, as Wilson has alleged.
Judy Melinek, a forensic pathologist from San Francisco, said combined with other evidence, the autopsy indicates there was a struggle for Wilson’s gun inside the officer’s SUV.
“You don’t just look at one piece of evidence,” Melinek told the AP. “You have a witness statement, the officer, saying that Michael Brown is reaching for the gun and it goes off and hits (Brown’s) hand. The physical findings (in the autopsy) are consistent with the officer’s statement.”
Brown family attorney Benjamin Crump said the shots fired outside the police vehicle are what really matter.
“After there was no more threat, and (Brown) was running away, why did Officer Darren Wilson keep shooting?” Crump asked in an interview with the AP. “That’s what this is about. When Michael Brown put his hands up in the air, why does the officer keep shooting?”
The findings were similar to those of an autopsy commissioned by Brown’s family and released Aug. 18, said Michael Baden, the former New York City chief medical examiner who performed the independent exam.
Some of the bullet wounds indicated Brown and Wilson were facing each other on the street after moving away from Wilson’s vehicle. But Shawn Parcells, who assisted Baden, told the AP there is no forensic evidence to verify whether Brown was surrendering or moving aggressively toward Wilson.
“He could have been charging the officer. He could have been walking toward the officer. He could have been standing still. He could have been stumbling,” Parcells said. “I don’t know if we’ll ever know.”
Baden agreed.
“The questions are going to go on far beyond the autopsy,” he told the AP.
At the time of death, Michael Brown’s weight was 292. I therefore did not read past your first point. I have no confidence you will post this but a responsible journalist would !
Is Shelby Lawson’s arguement credible? She uses evidence presented to the grand jury to back up her claim that officer Wilson was the aggressor. How can that be? We have been told by the Prosecutor in the case, that there is evidence to the contrary. That Mr. Brown was in fact the attacker. That he initiated the confrontation with officer Wilson. That officer Wilson shot Mr. Brown in self defense. But is it all balderdash? Why hasn’t the convenience store owner’s statement to the police been made public? And if Mr. Brown did not rob the convenience store, who did? That video of the store robbery prejudiced the case form the git go! If Ms. Lawson’s argument can be corroborated by federal authorities, then by all means, a federal grand jury should hear the case.
A decent article, but very one-sided. There were witnesses who said that Brown was not running away from Wilson; therefore, you can’t focus on just one side of the witnesses. By this point, we don’t know who is correct.
Also, they were not the “same size.” Brown had Wilson by approximately 80 lbs, which is a notable difference.
The case against Brown isn’t shredded, nor is it confirmed. Your sources are good and this was a well-written article, but it was quite one-sided and ignored much of the testimony and facts that stood against Brown.
Did he deserve to die? No. Should Wilson have stopped shooting after a point, no matter the situation? Yes. But is the case shredded? No way.
Oh, Shelby, you clearly still have a lot to learn about journalism. Your references are largely from biased sources (Daily Kos), and most either utilize other people’s opinions or non-source documents. When you did utilize the trial transcript, you included Officer Wilson’s height but not the fact that Brown weighed 70-80lbs more than the officer. And if you actually look at the forensics reports and testimony, the three medica examiners all agreed that the evidence does not support that Brown was not shot from behind while fleeing. You might look up “selection bias” when considering why you chose the articles you did.
I wanted to give this the benefit of the doubt, but the first thing you site is a crock. Mike Brown was SIGNIFICANTLY larger at 292 lbs than Wilson’s 210.
Question – according to Darren Wilson’s testimony, cited above, Michael Brown was fleeing when he was shot. According to the coroner’s report all bullets hit Michael Brown in the front, not the back.
There is an apparent contradiction here. Any explanation for the difference?
Shelby, while it’s great that you’ve done research on the Mike Brown case (most people have not), let me address some of your points here. This list is not exhaustive of what you posted. You seem to be asserting the points in your post as fact, however, most of your points are either inferences that you have made from facts presented or incomplete statements taken from the articles that you cite to. All of what I have written below to address your statements came solely from the sources that you cited in your own post.
1) “The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6’ 4” and weighs 210 lbs.”
a) It is not a misconception that Brown was significantly larger than Wilson. While it is true that both Officer Wilson and Mike Brown were approximately 6’ 4,” there is a LARGE difference in weight. It would be highly inappropriate to characterize Wilson as “the same size as Mike Brown.” Wilson weighed approximately 210 pounds while Brown weighed approximately 290 pounds (give or take a few pounds). This is a difference in weight of about 80 pounds.
2) “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
a) The Grand Jury testimony that you cited to does NOT, in fact, state that Officer Wilson shot Brown as he was fleeing. He states that he believed Brown “still posed a threat . . . to anybody that confronted him.” You have inferred Wilson’s belief that Brown was a threat to mean that Wilson shot Brown as he as fleeing. If you read just 4 lines more on that same page, you will see that Wilson testified it was his obligation as an officer to “follow the suspect.”
b) The autopsy report that you cite later refutes ANY assertion that Brown was fleeing from Wilson when he was shot as NONE of the bullets entered Brown from the back. “[A]ll the bullets were fired into his front.”
3) “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
a) Your source only states the locations of the shots on Brown’s body. Stating fact without context proves nothing. One of the coroner’s stated that: “This one here looks like his head was bent downward,” he said, indicating the wound at the very top of Mr. Brown’s head. “It can be because he’s giving up, or because he’s charging forward at the officer.”
b) Stating that “Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head after he shot him four times . . .” is also misleading. While those shots are likely to have been the final shots that hit Brown because of their lethality, it does not immediately follow that Wilson shot Brown 4 times, THEN shot him twice in the head. Your interpretation infers that Wilson executed Brown. The shots striking Brown in the head would also be consistent with a Brown charging and Wilson quickly firing off 6 shots.
c) What basis do you have that Wilson “broke police self-defense protocol” by using deadly force? Where is your citation to a source that lays out the protocol you stated? Police are given the authority to use deadly force when they have “probable cause to believe the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious bodily harm to the officers or others.” Tennessee v. Garner (U.S. Supreme Court 1985).
4) “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
a) You have chosen to ignore that the coroner stated that the wounds could have been caused in different ways. “It can be because he’s giving up, or because he’s charging forward at the officer.”
5) “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
a) Again, you misinterpret the facts in the very article that you are citing. The article states that Brown was 148 feet FROM WILSON’S SUV, not 148 feet from Wilson himself. 148 feet would be consistent with Wilson’s story that Brown fled from his SUV and that he began pursuing on foot.
6) “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
a) You are PARTIALLY correct here. Neither the owner nor any employee called 911, however, a customer DID call 911 to report it. Your statement that “the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown” is an incomplete quote from the article. The FULL sentence from the article says “any alleged theft of cigars had nothing to do with Michael Brown being shot to death by Ferguson police.” And the FULL statement from the Market’s attorney was “Whatever the police are looking for on the surveillance tape, has nothing to do with what went on in the street.” The article makes no assertion that the man in the video was not Brown.
7) “The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
a) Had Wilson had a marred record like some of the officers in that department, this might be relevant. However, “Officials say Wilson kept a clean record without any disciplinary action.” Several other officers noted that “he didn’t get in any trouble” and that “[h]e was a good officer” with “no disciplinary action.”
in Requards to your “fact” about G.S.R. Not being present means there was not a misfire. Most semiautomatic firearms will not fire (aka misfire) if any part of the action is not seated correctly. Example: if you press the slide on a glock back a mere 1/16th of an inch the sear will not disengage therefore the hammer does not release to strike the firing pin. Without the firing pin being struck the gun would not have fired. No GSR would be present during a misfire.
Most of these claims are untrue and the sources she cites are incorrect.
From her very first claim this post is ridiculous. Brown outweighed Wilson by 80 pounds. That’s a significant difference. Mike Tyson is 5’10”, the same height as Johnny Depp. Would Shelby describe them as the “same size” and therefore presumably evenly matched in a physical confrontation?
Brown WAS stopped because he was the suspect in a robbery. Wilson initally told Johnson and Brown to get out of the street without stopping them. It was only upon seeing the cigarillos in Brown’s hands and noticing that he fit the description of the robbery suspect that Wilson reversed his vehicle to block their path.
Brown was NOT fleeing from Wilson when he was fatally shot. Multiple eye witnesses testified that Brown was coming toward Wilson when he was killed. All of the wounds are to the front of Brown’s body, not to his back, and there was a trail of blood drops 22 feet beyond Brown’s body showing that after running away from the vehicle after being shot in the thumb he turned and came back at least 22 feet toward Wilson before being killed. That is a pretty significant distance to come TOWARD someone who has a gun pointed at you, and it’s certainly not “fleeing.”
I could go on and on but those are just the first 3 examples in which she is completely wrong. She goes on to claim that the store owner denied it was Brown who stole the cigars, which is utterly ridiculous. If she really had studied the case instead of cherry-picking facts and outright lying about others she would know that Dorian Johnson himself, who was with Brown in the store and when he was killed testified that Brown stole the cigars and Johnson at the time didn’t expect that they’d make it back to Canfield Apartments without being stopped by the police.
Shelby has a long way to go before she’s a legitimate journalist. Journalists find and report the TRUTH. They aren’t supposed to skew and misrepresent the facts in order to bolster their own claims.
This has exactly the accuracy I would expect from a Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies major as she prepares to work for Rolling Stone. I do fault her feminist imagination for not some how working in an accusation that Darren Wilson raped Michael Brown’s corpse. It is facts like that which you need to get a piece published in the types of publications she’ll be working for.
This isn’t a long list addressing misconceptions, I believe it is the actual misconceptions. Shelby’s own sources contradict her points. It is all there in blakc and white.
It says right in your source that Brown was 6’4″ and 294 lbs.
That’s an 84 lb. difference! I see the sentence is stricken, which means nothing.
It’s the same as saying something inflammatory in court then immediately withdrawing the statement. It lingers.
The second paragraph with your first source produces an inaccuracy.
You’ll do just fine in the current media. Liars, crooks, and ideologues who possess limited comprehension skills.
I didn’t want to continue being that you started with a flaw.
Sourcing other media outlets is not the same as researching.
Point: I don’t care about this particular case, at all.
I just wish that accuracy, honesty, responsibility, and integrity would find it’s way into journalism and reporting.
Other blogs do not constitute a source of fact. I can write a blog, doesn’t make it true. Is that what they teach in journalism now? If it’s on the internet, it must be true?
Couple of inaccuracies here. Just off the top of my head:
1) Brown’s body was never said to be found 143 feet from Darren Wilson. It was approx. 143 feet from Wilson’s SUV.
2) It doesn’t appear that McCulloch was actually doing any fundraising for Wilson. Some members of an organization of which he is a member/president were also involved with a fundraising effort for Wilson, but there is no evidence that McCulloch was, and the Backstoppers Inc. quickly distanced themselves from the Darren Wilson case and stated that no money had been raised for him and that no donations to him would be accepted as soon as they became aware that they were being scrutinized.
Not saying there aren’t obvious conflicts of interest with respect to McCulloch, this is just a flimsy one.
3) Two of the autopsies did, IIRC, indeed find gunpowder residue on Brown. The one commissioned by his family did not. I could be wrong, but I think that’s the prevailing narrative.
4) Based on the surveillance footage, it clearly was Michael Brown in the convenience store, and a customer called 9-11. I don’t see why it makes a difference because the call was made. Whether Wilson really recognized Brown to be a suspect in that alleged robbery, I completely doubt. Wilson will say anything to cover his ass and the Ferguson PD was clearly helping him there and when they denied to the St. Louis PD dispatch that they were aware of an officer involved shooting after Wilson had been on the scene for more than 10 minutes and backup had arrived.
Because Wilson had 30 days after the incident before he even had to give an official account (in this case it was his grand jury testimony) I am positive he was coached, rehearsed, and that he met with legal counsel to get his story straight. Further, he was clearly given assurances that the grand jury would not be an adversarial proceeding and thus he was safe to go in and offer up 4 hours of testimony in response to soft-pedaled questions by a friendly prosecutor.
Good work on the rest of this stuff.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ferguson-grand-jury-documents-support-earlier-data/
Deleting comments that prove this article is false and click bait journalism is pathetic. Get a life.
Do you only accept comments you like?? Mike brown was the person that robbed the gas station
I guess the truth hurts a bit!
Thank you, Shelby Lawson, for working to get at the truth behind the killing of Mike Brown. It’s good to know someone is taking the time to dig into the records and point out the discrepancies. I’m going to share your report here with my FB friends. We all knew in our hearts and minds that the Grand Jury story of Mike Brown’s death was way off course.
Did you even read the sources you cited? No. Seriously. Did you?
I just took a look at two because they didn’t sound consistent with what I’ve heard. Just grabbed two at random.
1. “-Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Ok. Your source says the OWNER didn’t call the cops. However, it does say a customer DID call the cops to report the theft. So I don’t see how who called was significant.
Also. Where is the rest of this? I don’t see this in your source. Where does your source say that the man in the video was not Mike Brown? Oh wait. It doesn’t say that.
This is what he actually said: “Ferguson Market attorney also says any alleged theft of cigars had nothing to do with Michael Brown being shot to death by Ferguson police.” <– Does this mean to you that Mike Brown didn't steal the cigars? Because that's not how I'm reading it.
2." -Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gun shot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue."
I'm seeing that your source says there are no traces of gunpowder. Where does it say that "It's impossible that Mike Brown grabbed his gun causing it to misfire?" I don't see that in the article.
You also conveniently failed to mention that this was a private coroner hired by the family.
Note: I'm not biased one way or another on this issue. I believe in FACTS. I honestly have no agenda. I cannot say the same for you and, frankly, I believe it is harmful to one's cause to pretend that their point-of-view is infallible.
tl;dr I eagerly await your redaction. Because what is the point of sourcing an article if you don't *actually* read what the sources say, ya?
My goodness you have may dislike and you have facts unlike most
Wow! Not a good idea to try to put a certain point across and then link to sources that either totally contradict or have no actual information supporting your points.
To be fair though, she is a journalist so her purpose is not to provide facts it is simply to get peope to read her article. im sure that a job at some dodgy tabloid will be somewhere in her future.
She should change the title of her article because it certainly does not SHRED the case against Mike Brown. I’ve read much more compelling commentary regarding this case.
The author made more than one “untrue” statement, which is more of a hinderance than an aid to this cause. Making (perceived) false statements without clarification, provided by outdated (or recanted) “sources” not only takes from the integrity of the article, IT ALSO muddles the coherence of the argument in Mike Brown’s favor (against Darren Wilson).
The goal should be to prove the TRUTH and change the minds of those who are against the truth. This article, and the errors in it would make several people that I know turn a blind eye.
Don’t get me wrong, I DO appreciate her support in this cause…the fight for human rights.
The other thing is the two witnesses were both find dead officer Wilson is not free. God has arrested him he just don’t know it yet. The word of God says what gos around comes around. When he lest acespect it. Sheding inaccient blood he hates that. Judgement is coming to the good an evil. Officer Wilson life as he know. It will never be the same. God is not a liar his word is loaded. Amen
This type of “reporting” gone viral has a lot to do with the reactions to Ferguson. Someone not involved in the case makes some unsubstantiated claims, and lots of people present it as fact, in this case a college student cherry picking a bunch of false accounts and contrived stories posted on the web. The forensic evidence is known. Witness accounts can’t refute forensics. Many of those wishing to vilify Officer Wilson will unfortunately accept these false accounts as factual, even though the physical evidence doesn’t support them. “It must be fact, I saw it on Facebook!” As with many things, we’ll believe what we want to, regardless of facts. I bet if I put a link on my FB page showing all of the “evidence” that President Barack Obama was born in Kenya it would be picked up and shared and believed by many right-wingers. I could do the same with “evidence” indicating there is no such thing as Global Warming or I bet I could produce a page of links showing “evidence” that being gay is a choice one makes. The same is being done here. Playing fast and loose with the facts for no reason but to spread ignorance and inflame the gullible.
I wasn’t there. Most people weren’t. So, Officer Wilson is the only one who knows the entire truth. For the rest of us, we must look at what we can learn from the evidence, and determine if Officer Wilson’s and witnesses account fit it. Might there be witnesses that think they are telling the truth and the facts show otherwise? Yes, including Officer Wilson. Might there be witnesses lying? Yes, including Officer Wilson. Be we can only look at the facts, and as we hope the Grand Jury did, assess the veracity of the witnesses versus the facts, and the consistency of their statements over time, and apply a common sense standard to determine if we think they are truthful and correct in their accounts.
So, it starts with the forensics. If someone claims that someone was shot in the back, then the autopsy will show entry wounds into the victims back. There are three autopsies, one done by an independent examiner, which have shown facts that refute many witness statements. He wasn’t shot in the back. And Brown’s hands weren’t up, because the entry wound of a bullet went into the top of his forearm. His hand was on or near the gun when he was first shot in the hand, as it had powder burns on it. Crime scene blood proves other facts. Brown’s blood was in the police car, which refute the statements that Brown never reached into the police car. Brown’s blood trail back toward Officer Wilson shows Brown wasn’t standing still surrendering. It more supports Officer Wilson’s claim that Brown was charging him.
And there is still a Federal investigation underway. The Feds aren’t in cahoots with any police department in the U.S. It’s usually the opposite. If the “facts” on the student’s Facebook page are true, I’m sure the Feds will tell us as much.
I took some time and looked at this post closely and referenced all of her sources. If her “facts” are any reflection of her skills of fact checking, let’s hope she isn’t awarded a journalism degree. Here’s her entire list refuted, the fact-checking took me about an hour, a bit more to summarize it:
Point 1: “The most common misconception I’m hearing is that Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. On page 198 of the official grand jury transcript, you can see that Officer Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs, the same size as Mike Brown.”
Fact: “Big Mike” as he was known, was 6 ft 5 inches tall and weighed 289 pounds, 79 more than Officer Wilson. Brown weighed almost 40% more. A comparison would be 210 pound Officer Wilson fighting with a 153 pound person. This in and of itself is no reason for him to have been shot, but certainly gives credence to Officer Wilson’s claim of feeling overpowered by Brown.
Point 2: “Mike Brown was NOT stopped because he was a suspect in crime. He and his friend Dorian Johnson were stopped for jaywalking, as Darren Wilson testifies to on page 208 of his grand jury testimony.”
Fact: That Brown was NOT stopped for being a suspect in a crime is her trying to make a case that Officer Wilson never made. This was never presented by Officer Wilson. Wilson testified he didn’t know about Brown being the strong arm robber when he first addressed him to stop walking down the middle of the road and to get on the sidewalk. Brown instead of getting on the sidewalk ignored the order. That’s what started the incident. The implication that the student is making is that the officer had no right to stop Brown for walking down the middle of the road unless he was a suspect in another crime. This is nonsense. In fact, this goes to the point that Officer Wilson is not lying. Wouldn’t it make more sense, since the call regarding the robbery was made prior to Officer Wilson seeing Brown, that Officer Wilson would have said, “I stopped him because I thought he might be the robbery suspect?”
Point 3: “Mike Brown WAS fleeing from Officer Wilson when he was fatally shot. Wilson confirms this on page 281 of his grand jury testimony.”
Fact: Officer Wilson never stated this. In his testimony on page 281 he is talking about when he followed after Brown after he was attacked and after the first shots went off, one grazing Brown as he was wrestling for the gun. This testimony is not about when he was fatally shot. NONE of the bullets entered Brown from behind. Therefore, it is impossible for this to have been true unless, as I haven’t seen suggested anywhere, Brown was running backwards. All of the witnesses that came forward were heard by the Grand Jury. 60 of them.
Her point 4: “Officer Wilson broke police self-defense protocol, which teaches to disarm and incapacitate rather than kill and teaches officers to go for body shots. Officer Wilson shot Mike Brown twice in the head, after he shot him four times in his arm and torso.”
Fact: That she somehow is trying to make a case against Officer Wilson because his aim wasn’t perfect when being attacked then charged at is ludicrous.
Point 5: “While Officer Wilson’s story of what happened that day has changed at least three times, six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Fact: Her listed source doesn’t reference any changes in Officer Wilson’s statement, and I haven’t found any elsewhere in him changing his story at all. The source shows various accounts of witnesses. Many are conflicting. Dorian Johnson says Brown never reached for Officer Wilson’s gun. Tiffany Mitchell indicated that Brown’s arms weren’t in the car during the first shot. Brown’s blood inside the car with the bullet going from the inside of the door to the outside and powder burns on his hand would indicate otherwise. Dorian Johnson’s initial accounts (changed after he learned the autopsy results) consistently indicated that Officer Wilson shot Brown in the back. We know from the autopsy results that this wasn’t true. Piaget Cranshaw says Browns hands weren’t up. Piaget also said that Brown never came forward toward Officer Wilson. She said, “maybe a centimeter step,” whatever that is. Dorian said the same thing. But, the blood evidence on the road shows a 20-22 foot long trail of Brown’s blood, back toward officer Wilson. Again, 60 witnesses were brought to the grand Jury, many who have remained anonymous. Cherry picking a few accounts doesn’t change the fact that the Grand Jury heard from everyone the police found. And at least those presented here are refuted by physical evidence.
Point 6: “These eyewitnesses all agree that Darren Wilson was the aggressor and that Mike Brown was shot while surrendering, with his hands in the air and that his last words were “I don’t have a gun. Stop shooting.”
Fact: See points before, the Grand Jury saw 60 witnesses.
Point 7: (Brown’s hands were up when shot) “This is backed up by Mike Brown’s autopsy, which suggests that Mike Brown would have had to be in the hands-up position for the bullets to enter his hand and arm the way they did.”
Fact: Completely fabricated. One bullet entered the top of Brown’s forearm, impossible if his hands were up, unless he contorted them around. The entry into the top of the forearm is consistent with Officer Wilson’s account that Brown was running toward him. When running, the top of one’s forearm raises to a forward position.
Point 8: “Furthermore, in a press conference, the coroner who performed Mike Brown’s autopsy relays that there was no trace of gunshot residue anywhere on his body, proving that Wilson’s claim that Mike Brown grabbed his gun, causing it to misfire, is impossible and untrue.”
Fact: Again, not true. All three autopsies, including the one commissioned by Brown’s family, found gunshot residue on Brown’s hand. The student’s source referenced only a preliminary review, not the final and complete autopsy reports which were readily available to her.
Point 9: “Ferguson Police lied about the distance Mike Brown was from Officer Wilson when he was killed. They reported it was 35 ft. but it was in fact 148 ft.”
Fact: Wow. This is really some poor “journalism” here. The headline in her own source indicates Brown’s body was 148 feet FROM OFFICER WILSON’S SUV. This was after Brown ran, before he turned and was shot after officer Wilson gave chase. Brown was shot from 35 feet away from Officer Wilson. After running, he ended up 148 feet AWAY FROM THE POLICE SUV, not from Officer Wilson. (By the way, if you are a slow runner, you run a 40-yard dash in 6 seconds. That equates to less than 2 seconds to cover 35 feet. )
Point 10: “Owner of Ferguson Market states that he did not call police to report a theft of cigars, that the theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Fact: The call was made by a customer. You can watch the video yourself to see if the man robbing the store and shoving the store owner is Mike Brown. Looks exactly like him, same size, and wearing the same clothes that Brown was wearing. Brown’s friend Dorian Johnson is in the video as well. But all of this is simply a red herring, as we know Officer Wilson didn’t even know Brown was the suspect when he asked him to stop walking in the middle of the road. In the end, whether or not Brown robbed the store is not relevant. Whether the store owner made the 9-1-1 call doesn’t matter. Brown was shot for attacking Officer Wilson, not his attack on the store owner. But the 9-1-1-call was made, the Ferguson police didn’t make this up as the source implies.
Point 11: “The prosecuting attorney for the case against Darren Wilson has helped raise $600,000 in donations for Darren Wilson, creating a clear conflict of interest.”
Fact: Read HER OWN source. The story has been updated to show this claim on social media is false.
Point 12: “The police department that Officer Wilson worked for prior to coming to Ferguson was disbanded after multiple instances of racial profiling.”
Fact: Please read the source story. It’s the classic attempt to smear the character of Officer Wilson for which anyone bringing up any background information about Michael Brown would be chastised. The story even mentions his mother being charged with forgery when he was a freshman in high school. Really? Even if the source is true that the Jennings police department was a racist group, are we accepting this as guilt by association for Officer Wilson?
A gross violation of the U.S. Constitution for Wilson to shoot at Brown as he was running away. Even if he was a fleeing felony suspect, if unarmed that is a crime. That would be attempted murder.
A cop in Springfield was criminally charged just a month earlier for a non-fatal incident.
The source cited does not say Brown was 148 feet from Wilson, it says he was 148 feet from his SUV. Wilson was not in his SUV at that point.
The source cited regarding the store does not say the store owner thought the robbery was insignificant, nor did he deny the perpetrator was Michael Brown. A customer called police.
Shelby is wrong on nearly every point she makes. Her own sources debunk her points.
you do not know what you are talking about
just another problem nigger who made too many woring decisions. no one else to blame.
At least a handful of the points made in this post appear to be blatantly, provably false:
“…misconception…Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. …Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs”
A ~100lb difference IS “significantly larger”: “At the time of his death…292 lb.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown
“…theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Dorian Johnson’s own attorney -confirmed- he & Michael committed the robbery: http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/08/15/attorney-dorian-johnson-michael-brown-robbery/14118769/
“…six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Absolute crap! A thorough review by the Associated Press “…reveals numerous examples of statements…that were inconsistent, fabricated or provably wrong.”
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/078c82ad45ff4ec6aa1c7744dfa7df14/grand-jury-documents-rife-inconsistencies
At least a handful of the points made in this post appear to be blatantly, provably false:
“…misconception…Mike Brown was significantly larger than Officer Wilson. This is incorrect. …Wilson testifies he is 6 ft 4 and weighs 210 lbs”
A ~100lb difference -IS- significantly larger: “At the time of his death…292 lb.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shooting_of_Michael_Brown
“…theft had nothing to do with Mike Brown, and that the man on the security footage is not Mike Brown.”
Dorian Johnson’s own attorney -confirmed- he & Michael committed the robbery: http://www.ksdk.com/story/news/local/2014/08/15/attorney-dorian-johnson-michael-brown-robbery/14118769/
“…six separate eyewitnesses, four of whom have never met each other, all have identical accounts of what happened. They were never interviewed by police.”
Absolute crap… A thorough Associated Press of -thousands- of pages of documents “…reveals numerous examples of statements…that were inconsistent, fabricated or provably wrong.”
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/078c82ad45ff4ec6aa1c7744dfa7df14/grand-jury-documents-rife-inconsistencies
Tremendous article!
I left a comment on this post last week, it was not my opmion, It is fact that can’t be discredited in any way. I would like to know why it wasnt approved for posting.
Thanks
Just saying first up
Michael Brown: Age: 18; Height: 6′ 5″; Weight: 289 lb
Officer Darren Wilson: Age: 28; Height: 6’4″; Weight: 210 lb
Thats a 79 lb difference, its almost a back street boy.
Brown was just as tall, but about 80 lbs heavier than Wilson.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/us/michael-brown-autopsy-shows-he-was-shot-at-least-6-times.html
The first thing that that Wilson noticed was them walking in the middle of the street, that’s apparent. Unfortunately we can’t prove that was the reason that they were stopped. As it is stated in the next page, Wilson realized that Brown was the person responsible for the theft.
According to the testomony, Brown was fatally shot at close range, 8-10 ft, while Brown was rushing Wilson.
While this is debatable, Wilson did try to disarm rather than kill. As according to the testimony and autopsy, Brown was shot multiple times in the arm because Wilson thought he had a gun. He was then shot once in the head at close range, not twice, and never in the torso.
“Melinek also said the autopsy did not support witnesses who have claimed Brown was shot while running away from Wilson, or with his hands up.”
“A sixth shot that hit the forearm traveled from the back of the arm to the inner arm, which means Brown’s palms could not have been facing Wilson, as some witnesses have said, Melinek said. That trajectory shows Brown probably was not taking a standard surrender position with arms above the shoulders and palms out when he was hit, she said.”
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/official-autopsy-shows-michael-brown-had-close-range-wound-to/article_e98a4ce0-c284-57c9-9882-3fb7df75fef6.html
Even though the department he came from was disbanded doesn’t reflect on Wilson. You are accusing someone without proof.
The store owner ONLY stated that he nor any employee reported the theft. He never stated that the person in the footage was not Brown.
Also, anything from DAILY KOS can’t be taken as a real article. All of the articles are comprised of taking short snippets of other articles and reports and piecing them together for their own personal gain. I can’t believe you would try to pass of their shit as fact.
I don’t see how you have “shred” anything. You are merely regurgitation as “fact” the speculations from one unreliable and un-vetted source. More shoddy journalism from a student trying to find validation for herself by the old and unreliable ” See? Everybody else thinks I am right” nonsense.
So what do we do? Where is the justice for breaching protocol and unnecessary killing this young man??
Geez! This was not a racial thing. Even the mother said she doesn’t believe her son was killed because he was black but rather the officer had in her view hate in his heart and just wanted to kill somebody. Why isn’t that widely reported? Well that tidbit (albeit grand) won’t sell stories.
Yup, 6’4″ 210 is exactly the same as 6’5″ 290. Yeah, the height is close, but 290 to 210? In case you are as big a tard as you are, that’s 80lbs difference, which is huge.
And you do know that the fatal shot was to the top of the forehead, right? Call me crazy, but it’d say it’s kind of impossible to hit someone there if they are running away from you, you idiot.
Police are taught to disarm and restrain, unless they are not able to. It’s retarded to say that they are taught to aim for the body. When a cop shoots, they are trying to end the threat, and the most logical way to end a threat is to end the one who is posing it. Get that? They shoot to kill when they have to shoot, you bumbling cunt.
The police got several eye witness statements, you fucking moron. All of which changed drastically within a few days. You should hang yourself cunt.
You do realize that it’s possible, or, likely that the examiner picked up another camera, right? I mean, it’s not like the shooting happened in the hospital waiting room, you daft cunt.
Again, all of the eye witness accounts changed drastically. Seriously, hang yourself cunt.
And there is a vid that caught audio of a guy at the scene saying that Mike Brown, or the gentle mongoloid, was definitely the aggressor. That statement made without media influence has much more weight to it than any of the ones made on a fucking camera. Seriously, end your useless existence you pitiful whore.
The first shot, in fat monkeys hand, entered the tip of the thumb towards the wrist while another hit the back of the forearm and exited throw the front, one to the front of the shoulder, 2 to the chest and 1 to the top of the forehead. How the fuck would wounds to the chest, front of the arms and head mean that his hands were up or running away? Fact is, there is not a single shred of evidence that indicates that the stupid primate had his hands up or was running away, except for the other primate eye witnesses, who all changed their story at least 2 times.
You are right, there was no gun shot residue on that ghetto monkey. However, there was gunpowder particulate in the initial hand wound. The wound that could only have been made if he were reaching for the gun. You’re a waste of life you disease riddle prostitute.
You’re right about the owner of the market not calling the cops. He did make it abundantly clear that a customer inside the store, during the robbery that was caught on tape, called the cops. Again, there is fucking tape of the two monkeys, the dead one and the crackhead one, stealing cigars and cigarettes, then forcing their way through an employee. You are a useless cunt.
To sum it all up, all of the “evidence” that you put so much work into evaluating is nothing more than your bias opinion. You are a daft cunt who is too dumb to exist. Kill yourself dumb fucking cuntwhore.
pretty poor article knowing what we know now
You lose any journalistic credibility you had when you use the word y’all in a story. Of course, the fact that you are a Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies major didn’t give you much to start with.
damn this girl is hella attractive
Lovely to see that despite me posting this to the comment section in December 2014, it was never approved.
WTF is Gender and Sexuality Studies. No wonder Kids coming out of College can’t find jobs. Hint: You are getting degrees in bullshit.