Michael Brown
Wilson, who shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown on Saturday afternoon outside an apartment complex, had served six years on the force and had a good record, Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson said at a news conference Friday.
Jackson said there had been a report of a robbery of cigars in a convenience store in the area a few minutes before Wilson encountered Brown walking down the street near an apartment complex. The robbery suspect had been described as a black male wearing a white T-shirt, according to police records Jackson released Friday.
The deadly interaction was swift: Jackson said Wilson encountered Brown at 12:01 p.m. and had shot him by 12:04 p.m.
Comment: In the wake of the tragic shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, there has been widespread protesting. As people continue to stand their ground and express their outrage at yet another example of police brutality, the police have reacted as can be expected: they have responded with more police brutality and intimidation.
Fed by the military-industrial complex, even small, local police forces have been beefed up to the extreme with 21st century military technology. And now that they have it, they fully intend to use it.
The above is an excellent, yet brief, compilation of the events that led to Mike Brown's murder. It puts the tragedy within a perspective of the larger systems in which innocent people die, the people's will is smashed, and America seems further ground into the dust.
For further reading:
Social media used to illustrate mainstream media bias towards minorities in police shooting of Michael Brown
Militarized Police: St. Louis County police were supplied with military grade weapons by Pentagon during Ferguson protests
FBI opens civil rights investigation into shooting death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown by police