Prosecutor Counters Witness Testimony

It’s been building for months. Tension… in the St Louis Suburbs. On Monday night, the long anticipated ruling came down.

The physical evidence McCullough mentioned was gathered in the streets of Ferguson, Missouri, in the minutes after white police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown. Of course, if you’ve been following our coverage in recent days, you’ve seen the outcry of the community in the St Louis suburbs.

Mere moments after Michael Brown’s dead body was removed from the streets, rumors started swirling through the neighborhood. Some said he was shot in the back as he ran away. Some said Wilson stood over Brown and shot him several times in the back. Media coverage exploded. As protests got larger, police departments started using more military force. Now, the Ferguson Police Department remains under Federal Investigation for possible civil rights violations. The whole issue raised important questions, sparked heated debates and brought Ferguson businesses to their knees.

But going back to the incident, the entire issue spiraled out of control. And now we’re learning, the evidence didn’t even support the original claims. According to documents released by the prosecutors, Michael Brown’s blood was INSIDE the police vehicle, on the weapon itself, and Officer Wilson’s face was bruised and swollen. Not to mention, all of the gunshot wounds on Brown’s body entered from the front, at very close range. When witnesses were confronted with the contradictions in their version of the story, and what the evidence actually said, they changed their story to match what actually happened. Prosecutor McCullough brought all of the evidence and witness testimony to the grand jury. They concluded, Michael Brown charged at WIlson, scuffled with him in the car, and tried to take his gun. The grand jury also concluded that Brown showed enough aggression to authorize the use of deadly force.

Now, we have a dead teenager in Ferguson, and an entire community still outraged at the result. Whatever you thought going into the grand jury ruling, your worse suspicions have been confirmed. If you believe the criminal justice system is broken, and slanted against minorities, the grand jury ruling only confirmed what you believe. If you believe Michael Brown attacked an officer, and deserved to die, the grand jury ruling ALSO confirmed what you believed.

As tragic as this situation is, we owe it to ourselves as a society to grow, and learn from our own mistakes. While Darren Wilson will never face a trial, we, as a country, are. And we will continue to be on trial, until we can restore trust between police and citizens, and treat every race, ethnic group, age group and gender with fairness, equal respect and justice.