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19 Aug 2014

Tear gas, violence and 31 arrests: another night in Ferguson

Police use tear gas against protesters and make 31 arrests in another night of violence in Ferguson, Missouri, as President Obama sends the attorney general to meet with investigators.

Authorities in Ferguson used tear gas to disperse protesters on Monday night as demonstrations continued in the St Louis suburb following the shooting of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown by police over a week ago.

Some protesters had to be treated for smoke inhalation and the media were told to leave the area of the protests and go back to the police command post, at around midnight, local time. Footage showed a tense standoff between lines of armed police and protesters with their hands in the air.

At a press conference in the early hours of Tuesday morning, Captain Ron Johnson told the media that police had come under “heavy gunfire” and that 31 people were arrested. He insisted that Molotov cocktails had been thrown at police, even if journalists and peaceful protesters hadn’t seen them, and said that a minority of violent protesters were undermining the wider demonstration.

In Washington, US President Barack Obama said that Attorney General Eric Holder would arrive in Ferguson on Wednesday to meet with the FBI and other officials carrying out an independent federal investigation into Brown’s death.

What I saw in Ferguson last night – Channel 4 News’ Kylie Morris reports

Brown was shot at least six times on 9 August including twice in the head, according to a preliminary private autopsy ordered by his family.

His fatal shooting has heightened racial tensions between the majority white Ferguson Police Department and the predominantly black community.

On Monday, Governor Nixon lifted the midnight curfew, which had been in place during the previous two nights, and called in the National Guard.

In a news conference on Monday, President Obama said that “excessive police force cannot be justified”, and that he understands the anger in Ferguson.

Police revealed that Brown was shot by police officer Darren Wilson, but the circumstances surrounding the shooting remain disputed: police say the shooting took place after Brown reached into a patrol car and struggled with Officer Wilson for his gun; Dorian Johnson, a 22-year-old friend of Brown’s and at least one other witness said that Officer Wilson tried to grab Brown through the window, and that the teenager had his hands in the air, as a sign of surrender, when he was shot several times.