REVscene Automotive Forum

REVscene Automotive Forum (https://www.revscene.net/forums/)
-   Vancouver Off-Topic / Current Events (https://www.revscene.net/forums/vancouver-off-topic-current-events_50/)
-   -   The mess in Ferguson - Murder of Michael Brown by police (https://www.revscene.net/forums/697475-mess-ferguson-murder-michael-brown-police.html)

Presto 08-14-2014 11:02 PM

The mess in Ferguson - Murder of Michael Brown by police
 
This has been blowing up all over the news, and it's so big that the President got involved. In case you've been living in a cave, the quick summary is an unarmed, black kid was gunned down by a cop, and people are rightly pissed. I see the other thread started by CiC, but I'd like to start a thread where I don't have to see mention of Zionists or lizard people.

This shooting happened Saturday, and there is still no info from PD regarding any details. Fortunately, the higher-ups have managed to calm things down by swapping in the Highway Patrol, along with their captain, Ron Johnson. It'll be interesting to see how this all unfolds.

This article I quickly Googled seems to sum up what's been happening:

Quote:

FERGUSON, Mo. - Missouri's governor moved to ease tensions on Thursday after days of racially charged protests over the police shooting of an unarmed black teenager, putting the African-American captain of the Highway Patrol in charge of security in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson.

Captain Ron Johnson, who grew up in Ferguson, told reporters he would take a "different approach" to policing after complaints that officers used heavy-handed tactics, arresting dozens of protesters and using teargas and pepper pellets to break up crowds.

Protesters filled the streets for a fifth night on Thursday in the mostly black suburb of Ferguson and also assembled in other U.S. cities following the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown last weekend.


The mood was boisterous but peaceful, even festive at times, in sharp contrast to tense nightly standoffs between heavily armed riot police flanked by armored cars and angry protesters, as well as episodes of looting, vandalism and violence.

Thousands of demonstrators, including more white protesters than on previous evenings, gathered late into the night near the site of Saturday's shooting.

In sharp contrast to Wednesday night's heavy deployment by riot police, Captain Johnson and a handful of African-American officers without body armor walked among the crowd.

"We just want to be able to come and demonstrate together without the fear of being shot. It's that simple," said 53-year-old protester Cat Daniels, an Iraq veteran. "What you see tonight is people coming together. When that kid was killed the hurt and the pain was real."

In the forecourt of a gas station burned out during rioting earlier this week, a cowboy rode a horse and a group of children danced on pavement covered in chalk drawings with the words: "Now the world knows your name, RIP Mike."

Elsewhere drivers honked horns and waved signs in solidarity and one group of demonstrators even took to the streets on a car-sized replica of the fictional steam locomotive Thomas The Tank Engine.

"It's because of this young man right here," Captain Johnson told a CNN reporter, holding up a picture of Brown to shouts of approval from protesters around him. "It's about the justice for everyone."

The protests have cast a spotlight on racial tensions in greater St. Louis, where civil rights groups have complained in the past that police racially profiled blacks, arrested a disproportionate number of blacks and had racist hiring practices.

Brown's shooting galvanized a national moment of silence and rallies in other U.S. cities.

In New York, a large crowd briefly overwhelmed a small police presence in Union Square park, forcing officers to scramble to close one of Manhattan's major thoroughfares. Local media showed a handful of protesters being arrested.

In St. Louis, CNN footage showed hundreds of people peacefully assembled in the shadow of the iconic Gateway Arch, Brown's mother and other family members among them.

Seeking to defuse the situation earlier on Thursday, U.S. President Barack Obama had called on police to respect peaceful demonstrations.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon said Ferguson lately "has looked a little bit more like a war zone, and that is unacceptable."

Police have pledged to do better but have also justified the tough tactics, saying they have responded to the threat of violence during protests.

"WHAT'S HIS NAME?"

Protesters have decried what they say is a lack of transparency by police investigating Saturday's shooting, including the refusal to release the officer's name.

On Thursday night in Ferguson, around 200 demonstrators chanted, "what's his name? what's his name?'" at Johnson and the St. Louis County police chief, Jon Belmar.

Police said they plan to release on Friday the name of the officer who shot Brown, according to CNN and Los Angeles Times reports.

Some critics have also called for St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCullough to be removed from the case.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement that police had accepted an offer of technical assistance from the Justice Department "to help conduct crowd control and maintain public safety without relying on unnecessarily extreme displays of force."

The Justice Department, the FBI and the St. Louis County prosecutor's office are all investigating Brown's death.

A law enforcement official told Reuters that Holder spoke with Michael Brown's parent's by phone as they and their lawyers visited the U.S. attorney's office in Missouri.

Holder expressed his personal condolences for their son's death and promised the department would conduct a full, independent civil rights investigation, the official said.

Early on Thursday, a member of the Anonymous hacker activist collective tweeted the name of a person alleged to be the police officer who shot Brown. But police and other Anonymous tweeters said the activist had named the wrong person.

There is little clarity on what occurred during Saturday's incident. Police have said that Brown struggled with the officer who shot and killed him. The officer involved in the shooting was injured during the incident and was treated in a hospital for swelling on the side of his face, they said.

But some witnesses have said that Brown held up his hands and was surrendering when he was shot multiple times in the head and chest.

SpartanAir 08-14-2014 11:16 PM

Anonymous is involved.

Anonymous takes action to protest police shooting of unarmed teen | Death and Taxes


And they released the identity of the officer who killed him, allegedly.

Anonymous releases alleged identity of Ferguson officer who shot Michael Brown | Death and Taxes

Presto 08-14-2014 11:27 PM

Anonymous are assclowns:

Spoiler!

underscore 08-14-2014 11:32 PM

Nothing like protesting violence by using even more excessive violence. And nobody even knows for sure wtf happened (as of right now).

Fucking idiots.

multicartual 08-14-2014 11:48 PM

No protests when it's just another black on black murder

Since Trayvon Martin Was Shot, About 480 Blacks Have Been Murdered in Chicago

Manic! 08-14-2014 11:55 PM

I don't understand why cops are wearing camouflage in a city street. I think they fail to understand how camouflage works. Also what the hell are they trying to hide from?


http://cdn29.elitedaily.com/wp-conte...n-police-2.jpg

underscore 08-15-2014 12:09 AM

Because it's the colour of the gear they already have? Or did you expect them to go shopping first and find something with a more urban motif?

CharlesInCharge 08-15-2014 12:49 AM

repost
I uploaded a good analysis on this. (video)
http://www.revscene.net/forums/69739...eal-brown.html

Manic! 08-15-2014 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by underscore (Post 8516948)
Because it's the colour of the gear they already have? Or did you expect them to go shopping first and find something with a more urban motif?

Why would they buy camouflage in the first place they are cops. Only time you need camouflage is when you want to sneak up on something.


I have a feeling it's military surplus and they wear it because it looks cool.

4444 08-15-2014 01:32 AM

this is tough as i've not been to any 'hoods' but st louis is a dump, one of the most violent black areas in the US. high unemployment, low education, lots of drugs, violence and gangs.

generally, i'd say that if you got shot by a cop, generally you probably did something slightly dodgy - yes, there are overzealous, racist cops who beat helpless ppl, but generally with the shit they would have to put up in a shit hole like St. louis, i'd err on the side of shoot first, ask questions later. it is a shame life in america has come to this, but the fact is that it has.

if people were working hard and living their lives, they'd be more interested in their lives and moving on with things.

it is a terrible shame that someone died, but we don't know the story, and as multicartual said, no one riots when black thugs shoot down other black thugs. they're just looking for someone to blame for their shitty lives. the only person to blame is in the mirror

multicartual 08-15-2014 01:46 AM

I hate watching or hearing about this shit because it is 100% human misery on display

parm104 08-15-2014 02:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by multicartual (Post 8516943)
No protests when it's just another black on black murder

Since Trayvon Martin Was Shot, About 480 Blacks Have Been Murdered in Chicago

I don't see how anyone in their right mind could even contrast a gangster killing a gangster with a police involved shooting. The ONLY similarity there is the notion that black life is cheap. And that can only be made if we are assuming the officer is guilty of wrong-doing.

I wasn't there so I'm not going to get into the assumption game of acting and pretending like I know whether the officer involved was in the right or wrong. However, when a young man passes away, due to a police officer firing a weapon on him while unarmed, citizens should get together and try to figure out what happened and what is going on.

The main difference in your contrast is when you have a gangster killing another gangster or even an innocent by-stander, the gangster doesn't owe any duty to society. Well, technically we all owe one another the duty to be good, law abiding citizens but we're not all sworn to serve and protect each other. Police officers are paid to do this job and are trusted to do this job. If an officer is in the wrong for a civilian shooting, of course accountability must be enforced.

To call these people idiots for getting together and protesting against innocent children being murdered by police officers is absurd. Again, we don't know what happened and we don't know what the outcome of the investigation is. But it still truly boggles my mind for one to say the peaceful protestors who are asking to be heard and have something done about this incident are idiots.

As Presto said, this is clearly a huge issue or else we wouldn't be having the FBI investigating nor would the President be getting involved.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manic! (Post 8516965)
Why would they buy camouflage in the first place they are cops. Only time you need camouflage is when you want to sneak up on something.


I have a feeling it's military surplus and they wear it because it looks cool.

It kind of is military surplus but not exactly. The Pentagon provides police force with this gear and force is required to use it within one year. So why not? lol

7seven 08-15-2014 06:23 AM

Depending on the jurisdiction, some counties/citys outfit their ERT/SWAT in surplus tactical uniforms from various branches of the US military due to county/city budget issues instead of buying new more traditional all black/navy blue tactical uniforms more traditionally used by police forces.

I think the most idiotic thing was an article on CBC I saw on this saying that the police should not be able to use automatic weapons and tactical vehicles to respond to these riots as it seems too "military". When you have violent protest where the protesters are violent and arming themselves with molotov cocktails and other weapons, keeping in mind a number of these individuals also have their own firearms and automatic weapons potentially, you have to respond with a show of force and be prepared IMO. This ain't rainbows and unicorns.

Oh and can we just ban CIC from this thread to prevent it from getting out of hand and off track in advance, he can keep to his own thread to talk about how this is the lizard peoples fault.

SkinnyPupp 08-15-2014 07:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 7seven (Post 8516975)
Depending on the jurisdiction, some counties/citys outfit their ERT/SWAT in surplus tactical uniforms from various branches of the US military due to county/city budget issues instead of buying new more traditional all black/navy blue tactical uniforms more traditionally used by police forces.

I think the most idiotic thing was an article on CBC I saw on this saying that the police should not be able to use automatic weapons and tactical vehicles to respond to these riots as it seems too "military". When you have violent protest where the protesters are violent and arming themselves with molotov cocktails and other weapons, keeping in mind a number of these individuals also have their own firearms and automatic weapons potentially, you have to respond with a show of force and be prepared IMO. This ain't rainbows and unicorns.

Oh and can we just ban CIC from this thread to prevent it from getting out of hand and off track in advance, he can keep to his own thread to talk about how this is the lizard peoples fault.

He's already banned from this thread. He has his own in Fight Club

yray 08-15-2014 07:12 AM

Quote:

one group of demonstrators even took to the streets on a car-sized replica of the fictional steam locomotive Thomas The Tank Engine.
Any pics?

Gumby 08-15-2014 09:03 AM

^
Haha that's all you took from the article? :)

MG1 08-15-2014 09:22 AM

Being black in America. None of us will ever understand it. It's a sad fact that one is labeled before they're given a chance. All the prominent/famous/respected blacks combined will not change people's perception of a black male. I know a lot of First Nations individuals and they struggle with this as well. At the same time, they're not helping themselves. The images of the negative, so strong.

Thank god Asians are just known for being cheap and bad drivers.

Hondaracer 08-15-2014 09:24 AM

You know why racism will never cease to exist?

Because black people are black, and white people are white.

Ronin 08-15-2014 09:34 AM

They named the cop that shot Michael Brown: Darren Wilson. Well, they've fucked it up several times before so let's see if this is the right guy.

Also, Brown was apparently caught on camera robbing a convenience store and shoving the clerk prior to his encounter with the police.

4444 08-15-2014 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronin (Post 8517029)
They named the cop that shot Michael Brown: Darren Wilson. Well, they've fucked it up several times before so let's see if this is the right guy.

Also, Brown was apparently caught on camera robbing a convenience store and shoving the clerk prior to his encounter with the police.

There's no smoke without fire

PiuYi 08-15-2014 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Manic! (Post 8516965)
I have a feeling it's military surplus and they wear it because it looks cool.

because it is

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/09/us...=pl-share&_r=0

hchang 08-15-2014 10:33 AM

There's always two sides to every story.

Media always blows shit out of proportion and same with the families involved, since in the US you can sue for (quite a bit in) damages. Everybody wants a free lunch.

Vale46Rossi 08-15-2014 10:42 AM

=/

Presto 08-15-2014 11:21 AM

Latest update. Looks like the name of the cop has been revealed. Police are trying to justify the shooting by reporting the victim is a robbery suspect:

Quote:

Teen killed in Ferguson, Mo., was suspect in robbery, police say

A suburban St. Louis police chief on Friday identified the officer whose fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager ignited days of heated protests, and released documents alleging the teen was killed after a robbery in which he was suspected of stealing a $48.99 box of cigars.

Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson released several police reports and documents during a news conference where he also identified the officer involved as Darren Wilson, who has been on administrative leave since he shot 18-year-old Michael Brown on Aug. 9.

Brown and his friend, Dorian Johnson, were suspected of taking the cigars from a convenience store in Ferguson that morning, according to police reports. Jackson said Wilson went to the area after a call to police reporting a “strong-arm” robbery just before noon. He said a dispatcher gave a description of the suspect, and that Wilson encountered Brown a few minutes before another officer arrived.

Jackson said Wilson is a six-year veteran of the police department, but he refused to release any other details about the officer.

The family’s attorney, Benjamin Crump, accused police of trying to draw attention away from Brown’s death. He said Brown’s parents were “incensed” by what he calls “the old game of smoke and mirrors.”

“It’s bad enough they assassinated him, and now they’re trying to assassinate his character,” Crump said.

Johnson acknowledged to the FBI and other investigators that he and Brown went to the store and “that he did take cigarillos,” his attorney, Freeman Bosley, told MSNBC.

Bosley said he was aware of security video from the store but had not seen it.

Police released security video, dated Aug. 9, that appears to show a man wearing a ball cap, shorts and white T-shirt grabbing a much shorter man by his shirt near the store’s door. A police report alleges that Brown grabbed a man who had come from behind the store counter by his shirt and “forcefully pushed him back” into a display rack.

Brown’s uncle, Bernard Ewing, questioned whether Wilson really believed Brown was a suspect. He noted Johnson’s account that the officer told the two young men to get out of the street and onto the sidewalk, and that Brown had his hands up when he was shot.

“If he’s a robbery suspect, they would have had the lights on,” Ewing said. “If you rob somebody, you would tell them, ‘Get on the ground’ or something, not, ‘Get off the sidewalk.’

“It still doesn’t justify shooting him when he puts his hands up,” he added. “You still don’t shoot him in the face.”

Brown’s death has sparked several days of clashes with furious protesters in the city. The mood was quelled on Thursday after the governor turned oversight of the protests over to the state Highway Patrol. State troopers walking side-by-side with thousands of peaceful protesters replaced the image of previous nights: police in riot gear and armoured tanks.

But the police chief’s announcement Friday was met with immediate disbelief and anger by several dozen community members who also attended the news conference, which was hastily held at a gas station burned during a night of looting earlier in the week in Ferguson, a town of 21,000 that is nearly 70 per cent black and patrolled by a nearly all-white police force.

“He stopped the wrong one, bottom line,” yelled Tatinisha Wheeler, a nurse’s aide who was at the news conference.

A couple dozen protesters began marching, chanting “Hands up, don’t shoot” and “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”

Police have said Brown was shot after an officer encountered him and another man on the street during a routine patrol. They say one of the men pushed the officer into his squad car, then physically assaulted him in the vehicle and struggled with the officer over the officer’s weapon. At least one shot was fired inside the car before the struggle spilled onto the street, where Brown was shot multiple times, according to police.

Dorian Johnson has told media a different story. He said an officer ordered him and Brown onto the sidewalk, then grabbed his friend’s neck and tried to pull him into the car before brandishing his weapon and firing. He said Brown started to run and the officer pursued him, firing multiple times.

Tensions in Ferguson boiled over after a candlelight vigil Sunday night, as looters smashed and burned businesses in the neighbourhood, where police have repeatedly fired tear gas and smoke bombs.

By Thursday, there was a dramatic shift in the atmosphere after Governor Jay Nixon assigned protest oversight to Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson, who is black and grew up near Ferguson. He marched alongside protesters.

“We’re here to serve and protect,” Johnson said. “We’re not here to instil fear.”

The streets were filled with music, free food and even laughter. When darkness fell – the point at which previous protests have grown tense – no uniformed officers were in sight outside the burned-out QuikTrip convenience store, which had become a flashpoint for standoffs between police and protesters.

“All they did was look at us and shoot tear gas,” Pedro Smith, who has participated in the nightly protests, said Thursday. “This is totally different. Now we’re being treated with respect.”

The more tolerant response came as U.S. President Barack Obama spoke publicly for the first time about the shooting – and the subsequent violence. Obama said there was “no excuse” for violence either against the police or by officers against peaceful protesters.

Attorney-General Eric Holder has said federal investigators have interviewed witnesses to the shooting.

7seven 08-15-2014 11:28 AM

Video released in store robbery - YouTube

Video of the robbery.


All times are GMT -8. The time now is 07:33 AM.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
SEO by vBSEO ©2011, Crawlability, Inc.
Revscene.net cannot be held accountable for the actions of its members nor does the opinions of the members represent that of Revscene.net