By Justin Moyer and Lindsey Bever
...But a St. Louis Post-Dispatch (click here) analysis of Brown’s official county autopsy it has obtained suggests the teenager may not have had his hands raised after all. Experts told the newspaper Brown was shot Aug. 9., at close range — and may have been reaching for Wilson’s weapon. The autopsy found material “consistent with products that are discharged from the barrel of a firearm” in a wound on Brown’s thumb. Judy Melinek, a forensic pathologist in San Francisco, said this “supports the fact that this guy is reaching for the gun, if he has gunpowder particulate material in the wound.”...
I don't care what incident one points to regarding the ability of police to fire on a young, black man; the response is always the same. Sean Bell or Oscar Grant or many other such young black men; The first reason by police is kill when there was no valid reason to do such a horrid act at all.
Michael Brown, Jr. was jaywalking. It is a minor offense with a fine after citation. The circumstances escalated when Wilson tried to strong arm Brown into his police car. Michael knows what comes next. No one knows the intention even if Brown's DNA were on the gun. It was he that was shot not the office.
I guarantee you Michael Brown, Jr. didn't even understand the actions of the police officer. He didn't even think about jaywalking and the ASSAULT by Wilson was all Brown needed to be scared for his life. Young black men die for absolutely no sound reason at all.
Jay Walking and Brown ends up in a wrestling match to end his life. Well, it isn't Brown's problem, it is Wilson's problem. He took a minor offense and turned it into a funeral.
What was Wilson doing in the back of the police car at all? Whenever a police officer makes an arrest the perpetrator is suppose to be handcuffed and put into the back seat while the officer is outside the door of the car. This is completely hideous. Brown was never even handcuffed.
Wilson didn't see the escalation coming nor did he care. If Brown was protesting his arrest and believed he was innocent and Wilson could not handcuff him alone, Wilson should have called for back up while Brown was still alive and there wasn't a four foot stream of blood coming out of his head. Hideous and stupid mistakes cost Brown his life and this was his fault? No it wasn't.
A minor offense should never get out of control to ultimately kill anyone, either African American or Caucasian. The death should have never happened. The fact of the matter is Wilson is a lousy police officer. He received a citation because his records reflect someone who can get the job done. Well, hell, anyone can get the job done if someone like Wilson is killing people or using unnecessary force.
Ferguson police buy into the fact young black men, armed or not, will kill them if they are not killed first. Wilson allowed himself to believe Michael Brown, Jr. was a dangerous black man because jaywalking turned into a death sentence. This is an officer who decided he was judge and jury for Michael Brown, Jr. Wilson wasn't in danger, Brown was walking away from him AFTER Brown was shot while struggling to get out of the police car. I'd get out of a police car too if someone shot me. Why let him finish the job?
The point is every circumstance where an unarmed African American young black man is confronted by police they die.
On October 18, 2014 a young white man was arrested for playing his guitar in a subway. He didn't break any laws and was unarmed. How many people responded to the arrest or ejection of the talented singer and instrumentalist? I counted four police officers. Why four? Because the one officer could not conduct an ejection from the subway SAFELY by himself. Now. A young African American man is walking down the street and jaywalks. How much back up did Wilson ask for? None. He took out his gun and offered that as backup causing the death of an innocent young man.
Police across the USA have given themselves permission to identity African American men as dangerous criminals; therefore when confronted it is best to draw their gun rather than be killed themselves.
A police officer only has the right to draw their gun if facing life threatening circumstances. Wilson was not even close to facing life threatening circumstances. Wilson pulled his gun out to issue CONTROL of an unarmed young man as Michael walked away from him. Michael Brown, Jr. was no eminent threat to anyone besides himself and sure enough he died for it because he wasn't fearful enough. Michael Brown, Jr. wasn't fearful enough of a Ferguson Police Officer and walked away. He died because he wasn't fearful enough of a Ferguson police officer with a weapon. Michael Brown, Jr. didn't realize he was on a battlefield on the city streets of his hometown.
