Attorney: Autopsy finds enough to charge cop
Independent autopsy
reveals Brown was shot at least 6 times
UPDATED 10:12 AM PDT Aug 18, 2014
FERGUSON, Missouri (CNN) —An autopsy conducted for the
family of Michael Brown found no evidence that he struggled with a Ferguson,
Missouri, police officer before his death, the pathologist in charge of the
examination said Monday.
Police have said the 18-year-old fought with Officer Darren Wilson in the moments before he was shot in an incident eight days ago that left the young man dead, his community in turmoil and many around the nation angry and thirsty for answers.
Dr. Michael Baden said no signs of a struggle were revealed in his autopsy of Brown's body, conducted after an official examination by the St. Louis County Medical Examiner's Office.
And forensics consultant Shawn Parcells, who assisted Baden, said the findings are consistent with witness reports that Brown may have been shot as he walked away and that he was shot again with his hands up.
Brown family attorney Daryl Parks said he was particularly concerned about gunshots that medical examiners hired by the family indicate came from behind and above.
"Why would he be shot in the very top of his head, a 6-foot-4 man?" Parks asked. "Makes no sense."
The autopsy results are the latest development in the investigation into Brown's death, which has resulted in nightly, sometimes violent, protests in Ferguson that have prompted Missouri's governor to declare a curfew and send in the state National Guard.
"Given these deliberate, coordinated and intensifying
violent attacks on lives and property in Ferguson, I am directing the highly
capable men and women of the Missouri National Guard ... in restoring peace and
order to this community," he said in a statement.
The protests have also gained international attention. The
United Nations secretary-general on Monday issued a statement about the events
in Ferguson, saying that he "hopes local and federal investigations will
shed full light on the killing" of Brown. Ban Ki-moon called on authorities to ensure that people are
able to assemble peacefully and urged law enforcement to abide by U.S. and
"international standards in dealing with demonstrations."
Gunfire, tear gas and Molotov cocktails Sunday night marked
some of the fiercest clashes yet between police and protesters furious about
the death of an unarmed teenager.
Autopsy findings
The family autopsy found that Brown was shot at least six
times, including two shots to his head. Three of the bullets may have
re-entered his body, causing additional damage, Baden said.
One wound to his arm was consistent with a witness statement
that Brown was walking away and appeared to jerk, as if shot, Parcells said.
The wounds to his arm could have also have occurred while he had his hands up,
possibly in a defensive posture, Parcells said.
One of the bullets entered the back of his head and came out
through his eye, another -- likely the fatal wound, Baden said -- struck Brown
on the top of his head and caused irreparable damage to his brain.
Family attorney Benjamin Crump said Brown probably would
have been either kneeling or bending forward when he was struck with those
bullets.
Brown had abrasions on his face consistent with falling onto
the ground, Baden said.
He cautioned that he needs access to autopsy results,
including tests on Brown's clothes and X-rays, before making some conclusions.
But Crump said what it already revealed offered more than
"ample" evidence to support Wilson's arrest.
"What does this autopsy say? That the witness accounts
were true, that he was shot multiple times," Crump told reporters.
Devolution of protests
Another family attorney, Anthony Gray, implored protesters
to remain peaceful.
"I can see that there is a very disturbing divide that
is developing in our community," he said Monday. "This is not what we
initially came to the community and called for."
As he spoke, the Missouri National Guard was preparing to
deploy to Ferguson under orders from Gov. Jay Nixon to restore peace.
Nixon issued the order early Monday after what began as
peaceful protests spiraled into disarray after two civilians were shot and
injured, Missouri State Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson said. He said those
civilians were not shot by police.
"Tonight, a Sunday that started with prayers and
messages of unity, peace and justice took a very different turn after
dark," Johnson said early Monday morning.
Some protesters hurled Molotov cocktails at police, and
several businesses were vandalized or looted, despite the Brown family's call
for calm.
"Based on these conditions, I had no alternative but to
elevate the level of our response," Johnson said.
Officers fired tear gas into a crowd of hundreds of
protesters, including children, who were marching toward a police command post
despite an impending midnight curfew.
But protester Lisha Williams challenged the notion that
protesters provoked officers.
"That is a lie. It was no fight, it was no shots
fired," she told CNN late Sunday night. "All we did was march to the
command center to fall to our knees and say, 'Don't shoot.' And they started
shooting."
The clashes kept escalating, with St. Charles County
sheriff's officials saying shots were fired in their direction.
At one point, employees at a McDonald's restaurant locked
themselves in a storage room after the store was overrun, Johnson said.
Video from CNN affiliate KSDK showed children among the
protesters chanting, "Hands up, don't shoot."
St. Louis County police said most of the crowds had
dispersed after the curfew went into effect at midnight. The curfew was
scheduled to end at 5 a.m. (6 a.m. ET).
But the anxiety remains. Children can't even go to school
Monday.
"Information we received from officials on the scene
late Sunday evening has contributed to concerns we have about children walking
to school or waiting for buses on streets impacted by this activity," the
Ferguson-Florissant School District said on its Facebook page.
Dueling narratives
Accounts of exactly what happened when Wilson stopped Brown
while the teen was walking down a street vary widely.
Witnesses said they saw a scuffle between the officer and
Brown at the police car before the young man was shot.
Several witnesses said Brown raised his hands and was not
attacking the officer.
Piaget Crenshaw said she was sitting in her home when she
witnessed the shooting. She captured video of the aftermath, including images
of Brown's body lying in the middle of the street.
"From it all initially happening, I knew this was not
right," she told CNN's "New Day" on Monday.
"I knew the police shouldn't even have been chasing
this young boy and firing at the same time. The fact that he got shot in the
face, it was something that clicked in me, like no, somebody else needs to see
this. This isn't right. I've got to record."
Crenshaw said Brown was running away from police and then
turned around. She said that was when Brown was shot.
But police gave a different narrative, saying Brown
struggled with the officer and reached for his weapon.
Though the officer has stayed out of the public spotlight,
more than 22,000 people have endorsed the "I Support Officer Wilson"
Facebook page.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has approved another
autopsy on Brown's body, the Justice Department said. That autopsy will be
conducted by a federal medical examiner.
Ban Ki-moon
Ban
Ki-Moon is the secretary general for the United Nations, and an honorary chair for the
International Peace
Institute (think tank).
Note: Whitney MacMillan
is a director at the International Peace
Institute (think tank), and the chairman emeritus for the EastWest Institute (think tank).
George
H.W. Bush was an honorary chairman for the EastWest Institute (think tank), and is a member of the Bohemian Club.
Henry A. Kissinger is a member of the Bohemian Club, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg
(think tank), was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank),
and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Belizean_Grove
is the equivalent to the male-only social group, the Bohemian Club.
Ann E.
Dunwoody is a member of the Belizean Grove, a U.S. Army 4-star general, and the commander for
the U.S. Army Materiel Command.
Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody, U.S. Army Materiel Command
commanding general
June 2, 2010
Robert H.
Scales Jr. was a U.S. Army general,
a commandant for the U.S. Army War
College, and is the founder of Colgen,
LP.
U.S.
Army is a Colgen, LP client.
Army National
Guard is a Colgen, LP client.
U.S.
Army Materiel Command is a Colgen,
LP client.
U.S. Army
War College is a Colgen, LP
client.
General
Dynamics Corporation is a Colgen, LP
client.
Henry
Crown was the chairman for the General
Dynamics Corporation, a lieutenant colonel for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Lester Crown’s father.
U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers is a division of the U.S. Department of Defense.
Chuck
Hagel is the secretary at the U.S.
Department of Defense for the Barack
Obama administration, and was the chairman for the Aspen Institute
(think tank).
Lester
Crown was a director at the General Dynamics
Corporation, was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank),
is Henry Crown’s son, James S. Crown’s father, and a member
of the Commercial Club of Chicago.
James
S. Crown is Lester Crown’s son, a
director at the General Dynamics
Corporation, a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and a
trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society
Henrietta
Holsman Fore is a trustee at the Aspen
Institute (think tank), and a member of the Belizean Grove.
Ann E.
Dunwoody is a member of the Belizean Grove, a U.S. Army 4-star general, and the commander for
the U.S. Army Materiel Command.
Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody,
U.S. Army Materiel Command commanding general
June 2, 2010
Belizean_Grove
is the equivalent to the male-only social group, the Bohemian Club.
Henry A. Kissinger is a member of the Bohemian Club, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg
(think tank), was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank),
and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
George
H.W. Bush is a member of the Bohemian
Club, and was an honorary chairman for the EastWest Institute (think tank).
Whitney MacMillan
is the chairman emeritus for the EastWest
Institute (think tank), and a director at the International Peace Institute (think tank).
Ban
Ki-Moon is an honorary chair for the
International Peace
Institute (think tank), and the secretary general for the United Nations.
Mortimer B.
Zuckerman is a director at the International
Peace Institute, and was a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Chuck
Hagel was the chairman for the Aspen Institute (think tank), and is
the secretary at the U.S. Department of
Defense for the Barack Obama
administration.
U.S.
Department of Defense oversees the U.S.
Army.
Robert H.
Scales Jr. was a U.S. Army general,
a commandant for the U.S. Army War
College, and is the founder of Colgen,
LP.
U.S.
Army is a Colgen, LP client.
U.S. Army
War College is a Colgen, LP
client.
Army National
Guard is a Colgen, LP client.
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