Rioting, looting reported in Ferguson (Missouri)

I have done a little reading on this case and have come to the following conclusion. The shooting by the police was justified.

The LEO arrived on the seen to confront Mr. Brown concerning something he was doing. As the cop was exiting his vehicle, he was pushed back in by Mr. Brown who was punching the officer in the face. The cop shot Mr. Brown once, to prevent further injury to himself and gain control of the situation.

If someone approached you while you were exiting your car, doing the same thing as stated above and you had a firearm, what would you do?

As for the rioting, it is my opinion that it had some relation to the shooting incident but it was mainly a means for the black community to vent and get some free stuff.

And now that the officer has been identified , it appears he is black...so much for the racism angle....

As more info is investigated and released, expect this to go away because facts are starting to pile up against Brown and for the officer.

Hopefully this will teach some a lesson on being patient and waiting for the full story before, oh I dont know, starting a freakin riot...

Well it appears once again the MSM has clouded the issue...Not the same officer...

Fact still stands that people need to wait for ALL info in this case, period.

originally posted by: eManym
I have done a little reading on this case and have come to the following conclusion. The shooting by the police was justified.

The LEO arrived on the seen to confront Mr. Brown concerning something he was doing. As the cop was exiting his vehicle, he was pushed back in by Mr. Brown who was punching the officer in the face. The cop shot Mr. Brown once, to prevent further injury to himself and gain control of the situation.

If someone approached you while you were exiting your car, doing the same thing as stated above and you had a firearm, what would you do?

As for the rioting, it is my opinion that it had some relation to the shooting incident but it was mainly a means for the black community to vent and get some free stuff.

I would suggest you read a bit more. While the investigation is not complete yet, all of the witness statements I have seen state that the officer opened his door into Mike and his friend and then proceeded to try and pull Mike into the car.

Also, even if Mike did steal and fight with the officer, that would only justify the initial shot reported in the vehicle. The shots after when Mike was supposedly trying to flee are pure murder.

I can personally attest to the fear most St. Louisians feel toward police, especially in the more black areas. People in north county/city are quite used to avoiding police for fear of a situation like this.

He fit the description of the robbery suspect and he resisted immediately with a very aggressive assault, which is a felony. Since he decided to flee, Mr. Brown became a fleeing felon. Common law states that a LEO can use deadly force to apprehend the felon.

Mr. Brown was a large man and he was dangerous. Many more victims are killed from beatings than from firearms.

a reply to: eManym

Police chief states Brown being stopped was unrelated to robbery.

Brown was stopped for "walking in traffic". Evidence so far shows that the officer was the aggressor, while Brown was trying to flee. His size also doesn't matter. The officer has multiple less than lethal weapons on him. To shoot someone for merely trying to flee is absolutely absurd. Also, despite if common law states it is fine to shoot a fleeing felon, that doesn't make it right.

If he was stopped for something as trivial as walking in traffic then why did he attack the LEO? It is surprising how many ATS members are cop haters. This thread involves nothing but group think, mob mentality and I won't be posting on this thread or any other thread involving Ferguson or the Brown case.

a reply to: eManym

I would not call myself a cop hater. I actually think Johnson of the hwy patrol is doing a great job, but he is only in charge of the protests.

My intention was not to anger you, but merely clarify the situation. As a St. Louis resident who has had many interactions with all types of STL/MO cops, a large majority of those have been with people who clearly abuse their power. A few, though, were great people who took their job seriously and responsibly.

a reply to: eManym
It seems you are buying the cops story 100%, why? His story sounds just as ridiculous as the cop reaching out the window and grabbing the guy by the throat....

As to why so many "cop haters", ever think a lot of us might have been involved with abuse from cops in our lives? I know I was.

a reply to: eManym
I'm really, really weary of some folks pulling out the "cop haters" tag when the LEO's actions are scrutinized or criticized. I didn't grow up being a cop hater. I wasn't a cop hater even as a teen when it was popular to be that way and call them pigs. I knew the cops in our town and county and they were good guys. They might pour out your beer if they caught you with it but they wouldn't beat you and plant evidence on you.
Then, a few years ago I had an encounter with one for absolutely no reason. He pulled me over and approached me with his hand on his gun. When I inquired about what I had done wrong his answer was, "You look like someone we're looking for." Now this man hadn't actually seen me. He had seen the top of the back of my head above the headrest of the seat. He began questioning me about where I had been and where I was going in a very aggressive manner, just basically being a jerk, all the while standing there with his hand on his gun like he really wanted to pull it out and shoot me even though I was just confused since he couldn't really give me a reason for pulling me over that made any sense to me. Finally, I looked at him and told him, "Sir, just get on the horn there and call the county judge. I just left a meeting with him in his office. He will tell you where I've been and what I've been doing for the past half hour." He went back to his car, some time passed, he came back and handed me my "paperwork" and grunted, "You're free to go."
That was the first nasty encounter, others have followed and I've noticed a marked difference in LEOs. I don't hate them all but the majority of the ones I've encountered seem to be 'roided-up jerks for no good reason. If the bad guys are giving the good guys a bad name, then the good guys need to see that changes are made, not stand back and let it happen.