Brown's activities prior to the incident

Surveillance video which was publicly released in the 2017 documentary film Stranger Fruit shows Michael Brown walking into Ferguson Market and Liquor at 1:13 a.m., ten-and-a-half hours before he entered the store for the final time. The footage shows Brown handing a young clerk a brown package, believed by the filmmaker to be marijuana, and then receiving an unpurchased package of cigarillos from the store. After the video was rediscovered and made public in 2017, some, including Brown's family, said they believed Brown had left the package there for safekeeping and later returned to retrieve it. The store owner disputed this through an attorney who dismissed claims that the store traded him "cigarillos for pot." The lawyer claimed "[t]he reason he [Brown] gave it back is he was walking out the door with unpaid merchandise and they [the staff] wanted it back."^[29] The store's attorney said the video had been in the hands of Brown's family and law enforcement since the initial investigation, and said the video had been edited to remove the portion where the store clerk returned Brown's package to him.^[30] Following this, on March 13, 2017, unedited footage from the store was released by the St. Louis County prosecutor to try to settle questions.^[31]

Police

Michael Brown was fatally shot by Officer Wilson at about 12:02 p.m. The Ferguson Police Department was on the scene within minutes, as were crowds of residents, some expressing hostility toward the police. Paramedics covered the body with sheets. About 20 minutes after the shooting, the Ferguson police chief turned over the homicide investigation to the St. Louis County Police Department (SLCPD). The arrival of SLCPD detectives took about 70 minutes, as they were occupied with another crime scene 37 minutes away. On arrival at 1:30 p.m., they put up privacy screens around the body. Their investigation was slowed due to safety concerns regarding the sound of gunfire in the area and some hostile members of the crowd encroaching on the crime scene. An investigator from the St. Louis County Medical Examiner's office arrived at 2:30 p.m. Brown's body was removed at 4:00 p.m.^[48] Local residents criticized authorities for leaving Brown's body in the street for four hours in an action seen as demeaning and disrespectful.^[46]

Department of Justice

On August 11, 2014, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) opened a civil rights investigation into the incident.^[49] A spokeswoman for the FBI's St. Louis field office said the decision to open an investigation was not motivated by the protests and riots which had ensued.^[50] Forty FBI agents went door-to-door looking for potential witnesses who may have had information about the shooting.^[51] Additionally, attorneys from the Civil Rights Division and from the United States Attorney's Office were participating in the investigation.^[52]

On March 4, 2015, the federal investigation cleared Wilson of civil rights violations in the shooting. The investigation concluded there was no evidence upon which prosecutors could rely to disprove Wilson's asserted belief that he feared for his safety, that witnesses who contradicted Wilson were not credible, that forensic evidence and credible witnesses corroborated Wilson's account, and that the facts did not support the filing of criminal charges against Wilson.^[14][53][54] Credible witnesses did not support accounts that Brown had his hands up in surrender. He was not shot in the back. Forensic evidence showed he was moving toward Wilson. Numerous witnesses were found to have given accounts of actions they were unable to see from their vantage points, or to be recounting others' accounts.^[14][53][54]

2020 prosecutor review

A new St. Louis County prosecutor, Wesley Bell, spent five months in 2020 reviewing the case with an eye to charging Wilson with either manslaughter or murder.^[55][56] In July, Bell announced he would not charge Wilson with any crime;^[57] Bell said he didn't "have the evidence to ethically bring a charge against Darren Wilson."^[58]

Shooting scene

Evidence presented to the grand jury showed that the shooting scene extended approximately 184 feet (56 m) along Canfield Drive, near where it intersects Copper Creek Court. The two-lane street runs east to west, and has sidewalks and curbs on both sides. Immediately prior to the incident, Brown was walking eastbound on Canfield and Officer Wilson was driving westbound. Evidence at the scene was generally clustered around Wilson's patrol SUV on the western side of the scene and near Brown's body, which was in the eastern part of the area.

Diagram of the shooting scene^{[84][1][41][85]}

The 30-foot (9.1 m) western area included Wilson's SUV, which was angled slightly toward the right curb with its left-rear corner on the center line. Evidence included two bracelets, a baseball cap, and two .40 caliber spent casings. One of these casings was found at the western edge of the scene and the other was located near the rear driver's side of the police vehicle. There were two groups of red stains near the driver's side of the vehicle and a left sandal was also located in the vicinity. The right sandal was approximately 44 feet (13 m) east of the western area.

The eastern area, which was approximately 124 feet (38 m) east of the western area, was about 29 feet (8.8 m) wide. Brown's body was situated along the center-line of the road with his head oriented in a westerly direction. The distance from the driver's door of Wilson's SUV to Brown's head was about 153 feet (47 m). Two groups of red stains were located at the extreme eastern edge of the scene, with the furthest under 22 feet (6.7 m) from Brown's feet.

One apparent projectile was found near the body. There were ten spent .40-caliber casings scattered on the south side of the road near Brown's body. The distribution of the casings, combined with most of the casings being east of the body, was consistent with Officer Wilson moving backward while firing.^[1] Blood spatter approximately 25 feet (7.6 m) behind Brown's body suggested Brown was moving toward Wilson when Brown was killed.^[41][86]

DNA

Brown's DNA was found on Wilson's gun. His DNA was also found on the left thigh of Officer Wilson's pants and on the inside driver's door handle of Wilson's police SUV,^[39] the result of Brown's spilled blood staining Wilson's pants and the door handle.^[87] Wilson's DNA was found on Brown's left palm but was not found under Brown's fingernails or on his right hand.^[39]

Michael Graham, the St. Louis medical examiner, said blood was found on Wilson's gun and inside the car, and tissue from Brown was found on the exterior of the driver's side of Wilson's vehicle; this evidence was consistent with a struggle at that location. According to Judy Melinek, a San Francisco pathologist who commented on the case as an expert, the official autopsy, which said Brown's hand had foreign matter consistent with a gun discharge on it, supported Wilson's testimony that Brown was reaching for the weapon,^[88] or indicated the gun was inches away from Brown's hand when it went off.^[39]

According to the detective who performed tests on the gun, he had to decide whether to perform a DNA test or dust for fingerprints, because only one test can be performed without affecting the other.^[39] He found the gun stored in an unsealed envelope, contrary to the customary evidence-handling protocol.^[89] Documents released after the grand jury proceedings show Wilson washed blood from his hands and checked his own gun into an evidence bag, both actions described by media outlets as unorthodox procedures for such a case.^[90][91]

Autopsies

Three autopsies^{[note 1]} were performed on Brown's body, with all three noting Brown had been shot at least six times, including twice in the head. He received no shots in his back.^[92]

The county autopsy report described gunshot entry and exit wounds to Brown's right arm coming from both the front (ventral, palms facing forward) and the back (dorsal, palms facing backward).^[93]

Audio recording of gunshots

On August 27, CNN released an audio recording purported to contain the sounds of the shooting.^[113][114] The recording was made by an anonymous third-party who happened to be recording a video-text message at the time of the incident.^[115] Glide, a video messaging service, confirmed the audio had been recorded on their site at 12:02 p.m. on the day of the shooting.^[116][117] The twelve-second recording contains a series of shots, a short pause, and then a second series of shots.^[115]

Forensic audio expert Paul Ginsberg says he heard six shots, a pause, and then four additional shots. Ginsberg said, "I was very concerned about that pause ... because it's not just the number of gunshots, it's how they're fired. And that has a huge relevance on how this case might finally end up."^[114] CNN's law enforcement analyst Tom Fuentes noted most accounts of the shooting say there was a single shot earlier in the incident near the vehicle that is not audible in the recording.^[118][119] The recording was also analyzed by SST, Inc., a company specializing in gunfire locator technology. That analysis found the sound of ten gunshots and seven gunshot echoes within seven seconds, with a three-second pause after the sixth shot. The company's analysis also said all ten rounds were fired from within a radius of 3 feet (0.91 m), indicating the shooter was not moving.^[120]

Handling

The Washington Post said there were unorthodox forensic practices shown in the published testimony of Officer Wilson and other law enforcement officials. The article said Wilson washed blood off of his hands without photographing them first. It also said Wilson submitted his gun to evidence by himself, and that initial interviews of Wilson were conducted with other personnel present and were not taped. It described Wilson's face injuries after the shooting as photographed by a local detective at the Fraternal Order of Police building, instead of at Ferguson Police headquarters. An investigator with the St. Louis County Medical Examiner's office testified he decided not to take measurements at the crime scene nor did he photograph the scene, instead relying on photographs taken by the St. Louis County Police Department.^[121]

Wilson's interview and testimony

Bruising on Wilson's face after the shooting

Officer Wilson gave his account of the incident in an interview with a detective on August 10, and in testimony before the grand jury in September. Wilson said he had just left a call involving a sick person when he heard on his radio that there was a theft in progress at a local convenience store. Wilson heard the description of the suspects and soon after observed two black males walking down the middle of the street. Wilson pulled up to them and told the two to walk on the sidewalk, and Johnson replied, "we're almost to our destination". As they passed Wilson's patrol SUV window, Brown said "fuck what you have to say".^[130]

Wilson then backed up about ten feet to where they were and attempted to open his door. After backing up, Wilson told the two to "come here", and Brown told him in reply, "what the fuck are you gonna do". Wilson shut the door and Brown approached him and he opened the door again "trying to push him back", while telling him to get back. Brown "started swinging and punching at me from outside the vehicle", and Brown had his body against the door. Wilson said the first strike from Brown was a "glancing blow", and at that point he was trying to get Brown's arms out of his face. This was when Brown turned to his left and handed Johnson several packs of the stolen cigarillos he had been holding.^[130] Wilson then grabbed Brown's right arm trying to get control, but Brown hit him in the face. Wilson said he "felt like a 5-year-old holding onto Hulk Hogan" while he attempted to restrain Brown when he reached through his police car window.^[25] Wilson said it "jarred" him back and he yelled at Brown numerous times to stop and get back. Wilson said he thought about using his mace and his baton, but he was unable to reach either of them. He then drew his weapon and pointed it at Brown and told him to stop or he would shoot him, while ordering him to the ground.^[130]

According to Wilson, Brown then said "you're too much of a fucking pussy to shoot me" and grabbed for his gun and twisted it, pointing it at him, into his hip area. Wilson placed his left hand against Brown's hand and his other hand on the gun and pushed forward with both his arms. The gun was somewhat lined up with Brown, and Wilson pulled the trigger twice, but the weapon failed to discharge. On the next try, the gun fired and Brown then attempted to hit him multiple times inside his vehicle. Wilson shot at Brown again, but missed, and Brown took off running east, while Wilson exited his vehicle and radioed for backup. Wilson followed Brown, yelling for him to stop and get on the ground, but he kept running. Brown eventually stopped and turned and made a "grunting noise" and started running at him with his right hand under his shirt in his waistband. Brown ignored Wilson's commands to stop and get on the ground, so Wilson fired multiple shots at him, paused, and yelled at him to get on the ground again, but Brown was still charging at him and had not slowed down. Wilson then fired another set of shots, but Brown was still running at him. When Brown was about eight to ten feet away, Wilson fired more shots, with one of those hitting Brown in the head, which brought him down with his hand still in his waistband. Wilson said two patrol cars showed up approximately fifteen to twenty seconds after the final shot. When his supervisor arrived, he was sent to the police station.^[130]

Wilson told detectives Brown had reached his right hand into his waistband and that the hand still appeared to be in the waistband after Brown was shot. The medical investigator at the scene of the shooting did not take any photographs and testified to the grand jury that Brown's left hand was under his dead body, near the waistband, and the right hand was extended outwards.^[131]

On November 26, Wilson gave his first public interview about the shooting to ABC News' George Stephanopoulos.^[132]

Corroborating Wilson's testimony

Numerous witness accounts were consistent with Wilson's account and also agreed with the physical evidence at hand. Many witnesses corroborated that Wilson acted in self-defense during the event. A number of the witnesses who corroborated Wilson's account of events expressed fear and apprehension in testifying, saying they had been harassed or threatened by individuals from the Ferguson community.^{[13]: pp.27–34} The following are a sample of the witnesses whose accounts aligned with Wilson's testimony.

Witness 102 was a 27-year-old biracial male. He said he saw Wilson chase Brown until Brown abruptly turned around. Brown did not put his hands up in surrender but made some type of movement similar to pulling his pants up or a shoulder shrug and then made a full charge at Wilson. Witness 102 thought Wilson's life was threatened and he only fired shots when Brown was coming toward him.^{[13]: pp.27–28}

After the shooting, Witness 102 remained in the neighborhood for a short period of time, and corrected a couple of people who claimed Wilson "stood over [Brown] and shot while [he was] on the ground". In response, Witness 102 said Wilson shot Brown because Brown came back toward Wilson. Witness 102 "kept thinking" Wilson's shots were "missing" Brown because Brown kept moving.^[13]: p.28 Witness 102 did not stay in the neighborhood for long, and left the area shortly afterward because he felt uncomfortable. According to the witness, "crowds of people had begun to gather, wrongly claiming the police shot Brown for no reason and that he had his hands up in surrender". Two black women approached Witness 102, mobile phones set to record, asking him to recount what he had witnessed. Witness 102 responded that they would not like what he had to say. The women responded with racial slurs, calling him names like 'white motherfucker'."^[13]: p.28

Witness 103, a 58-year-old black male, testified that from his parked truck he saw "Brown punching Wilson at least three times in the facial area, through the open driver's window of the SUV... Wilson and Brown [had] hold of each other's shirts, but Brown was 'getting in a couple of blows [on Wilson]'."^[13]: p.29 Wilson was leaning back toward the passenger seat with his forearm up, in an effort to block the blows. Then Witness 103 heard a gunshot and Brown took off running. Wilson exited the SUV, appeared to be using his shoulder microphone to call into his radio, and chased Brown with his gun held low ... Brown came to a stop near a car, put his hand down on the car, and turned around to face Wilson. Brown's hands were then down at his sides. Witness 103 did not see Brown's hands up. Wanting to leave, Witness 103 began to turn his car around in the opposite direction that Brown had been running when he heard additional shots. Witness 103 turned to his right, and saw Brown "moving fast" toward Wilson. Witness 103 then drove away."^[13]: p.29

Witness 104, a 26-year-old biracial female, witnessed the end of the altercation from a minivan:

[Witness 104] saw Brown run from the SUV, followed by Wilson, who "hopped" out of the SUV and ran after him while yelling "stop, stop, stop". Wilson did not fire his gun as Brown ran from him. Brown then turned around and "for a second" began to raise his hands as though he may have considered surrendering, but then quickly "balled up in fists" in a running position and "charged" at Wilson. Witness 104 described it as a "tackle run", explaining Brown "wasn't going to stop". Wilson fired his gun only as Brown charged at him, backing up as Brown came toward him. Witness 104 explained there were three separate volleys of shots. Each time, Brown ran toward Wilson, Wilson fired, Brown paused, Wilson stopped firing, and then Brown charged again. The pattern continued until Brown fell to the ground, "smashing" his face upon impact. Wilson did not fire while Brown momentarily had his hands up. Witness 104 explained it took some time for Wilson to fire, adding that she "would have fired sooner". Wilson did not go near Brown's body after Brown fell to his death.^[13]: p.30

Witness 108, a 74-year-old black male, told detectives the police officer was "in the right" and "did what he had to do", and that statements made by people in the apartment complex about Brown surrendering were inaccurate. Witness 108 later told investigators he "would have fucking shot that boy, too", and mimicked the aggressive stance Brown made while charging Wilson. He explained Wilson told Brown to "stop" or "get down" at least ten times, but instead Brown "charged" at Wilson. Witness 108 also told detectives there were other witnesses on Canfield Drive who saw what he saw.^[13]: p.32

Witness 109, a 53-year-old black male, said he decided to come forward after seeing Dorian Johnson "lie" about the events on television.^[13]: p.32 He said when Wilson asked the two boys to get out of the street, Brown responded something to the effect of "Fuck the police." Afterward, Wilson got out of his car and Brown hit him in the face. Witness 109 said he saw Wilson reach for his taser but dropped it and then grabbed a gun, after which Brown grabbed for Wilson's gun. According to 109, at one point Brown ran away from Wilson, but turned around and charged toward the officer. He said Wilson fired in self-defense, and did not appear to be shooting to kill at first.^[13]: p.33

Witness 113, a 31-year-old black female, made statements that corroborated Wilson's account. She said she was afraid of the "neighborhood backlash" that might come from her testimony, and feared offering an account contrary to the narrative reported by the media that Brown held his hands up in surrender.^{[13]: pp.33–34} She also told investigators she thought Wilson's life was in danger.

Witness 136 was in his apartment using a video chat application on his mobile phone while the shooting occurred. After hearing the first few shots, he recorded the remainder of his chat on his phone and turned it over to the FBI. The recording is about 12 seconds long and captured a total of 10 gunshots. The gunshots begin after the first four seconds. The recording captured six gunshots in two seconds. After a three-second pause, a seventh gunshot is heard. A pause of less than one second gave way to the final three-shot volley within two seconds. The recording was not time-stamped. As detailed below, this recording is consistent with several credible witness accounts as well as Wilson's account, that he fired several volleys of shots, briefly pausing between each one.^{[13]: pp.24–25}

Contradicting Wilson's testimony

Several witnesses who originally testified against Wilson were also interviewed by the prosecution. They admitted to lying under oath as to the truthfulness of their testimony.^[133][134] At least one witness took an account from a newspaper; this witness was later discredited by investigators during the process.^[134]

Witness 22, who originally claimed she saw Wilson kill Brown in cold blood, admitted she lied to investigators and never saw the incident at all. She said she was just passing along information which her boyfriend told her he saw.^{[133][135][136]} The court transcript reads:

Prosecution: You gave two statements, were both of those statements true? Witness 22: No. I just felt like I want to be part of something... I didn't see what I told the FBI what [sic] I saw.

Prosecutors also played the grand jury a 10-minute police interview with a man who claimed to have witnessed the shooting. They then played a phone call in which that man admitted he actually had not seen the incident at all.^[135] Another witness insisted another officer was with Wilson at the time of the shooting. By all other accounts, Wilson was the only officer present when he shot Brown. This witness described having a clear view of what transpired despite there being a building between the witness' location and where the incident took place.^[135]

Witness 35 said Brown was "on his knees" when Wilson shot him in the head. Under questioning, his testimony fell apart, and he admitted fabricating it.^[135]

Prosecution: What you are saying you saw isn't forensically possible based on the evidence. Are you telling us that the only thing that's true about all of your statements before this is that you saw that police officer shoot him at point blank range? Witness 35: Yes.^[135]

Another witness described Brown on his hands and knees pleading for his life. After a prosecutor confronted the witness and told them what they had seen was not forensically possible based on the evidence, the witness later asked to leave.^[135]

Another witness—number 37—testified that, during a confrontation at Wilson's vehicle, Wilson shot Brown point blank in the chest—but Brown did not fall over and was not clearly bleeding as he ran away. This witness gave several different accounts of how many shots were fired. While he was further pressed for answers as to the truthfulness of his statements, he instead posed questions in return, refusing to elaborate on his statements.

Prosecution: You told three different stories in the time we've been here today. So I want to know which one is really your memory or did you see this at all? Witness 37: If none of my stuff is making any sense, like why do y'all keep contacting me?^[135]

Dorian Johnson

Johnson, a friend of Brown, who was with him that day, gave his account of the incident to media outlets in August. In media interviews, Johnson said Wilson pulled up beside them and said, "Get the fuck on the sidewalk."^{[137][138][139]} The young men replied they were "not but a minute away from [their] destination, and [they] would shortly be out of the street".^[139] Wilson drove forward without saying anything further and abruptly backed up, positioning his vehicle crosswise in their path. Wilson then allegedly tried to open his door aggressively and the door ricocheted off Brown and Johnson's bodies and closed back on Wilson.^[40] Wilson, still in his vehicle, purportedly grabbed Brown around his neck through the open window, and Brown tried to pull away, but Wilson is said to have continued to pull Brown toward him "like tug of war".^[125][140] Johnson said Brown "did not reach for the officer's weapon at all", and was attempting to get free, when Wilson drew his weapon and said, "I'll shoot you" or "I'm going to shoot", and fired his weapon hitting Brown.^{[138][141][142][143][144]} Following the initial gunshot, Brown freed himself, and the two are said to have fled. Wilson exited the vehicle, and allegedly fired several rounds at the fleeing Brown, hitting him once in the back.^[40][139] Johnson said Brown then turned around with his hands raised and said, "I don't have a gun. Stop shooting!" Wilson is said to have then shot Brown several more times, killing him.^[40][145]

In his testimony in September to the grand jury, Johnson said he and Brown had walked to a convenience store to buy cigarillos, but Brown instead reached over the counter and took them and shoved a clerk on his way out the door.^[146] Johnson testified that on their walk back home, Brown had the cigarillos in his hands in plain sight and two Ferguson police cars passed them, but did not stop.^[146] When Wilson encountered them, he told the two to "get the fuck on the sidewalk" and Johnson told him they would be off the street shortly as they were close to their destination.^[147] Johnson testified Wilson was the aggressor from the beginning and that for no apparent reason, he backed his vehicle up and tried to open his door, but Brown shut it, preventing him from getting out.^[147] Johnson said Wilson then reached out and grabbed Brown by the neck and the two were engaged in a "tug of war", and Wilson said "I'll shoot". Johnson said he never saw Brown hit Wilson and did not think Brown grabbed for Wilson's gun, but that a shot was fired.^[147][148] At that point, Johnson said they both ran and Wilson fired while Brown was running away, Brown turned around and "at that time Big Mike's hands was up, but not so much in the air, because he had been struck".^[148] Johnson told the jurors Brown said "I don't have a gun", was mad and tried to say again "I don't have a gun", but "before he can say the second sentence or before he can even get it out, that's when the several more shots came." In his testimony, Johnson maintained Brown did not run at Wilson prior to the fatal shots.^[148]

August 9–14

Peaceful protests and civil disorder broke out the day following Brown's shooting and lasted for several days. This was in part due to the belief among many that Brown was surrendering, as well as longstanding racial tensions between the minority-black population and the majority-white city government and police.^[149] As the details of the original shooting event emerged from investigators, police grappled with establishing curfews and maintaining order, while members of the Ferguson community demonstrated in various ways in the vicinity of the original shooting. On August 10, a day of memorials began peacefully, but some crowd members became unruly after an evening candlelight vigil.^[150] Local police stations assembled approximately 150 officers in riot gear.^[151] Some people began looting businesses, vandalizing vehicles, and confronting police officers who sought to block off access to several areas of the city.^[150] Widespread media coverage examined the post-9/11 trend of local police departments arming themselves with military-grade weapons when dealing with protests.^[152][153] In the days following the shooting, state and federal officials weighed in on the matter. On August 12, President Barack Obama offered his condolences to Brown's family and community.^[154] On August 14, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky said in an op-ed in Time Magazine, that the event was a tragedy and that police forces need to be demilitarized.^[155]

August 15–30

On August 15, a report and video showing the robbery of a convenience store by Brown was released by the Ferguson Police Department. Brown was accompanied by his friend Dorian Johnson. The report and video were part of a packet that included information about the shooting afterward.^{[156][157][158]} The report containing frames of the surveillance footage showed Brown grabbing a box of cigarillos, followed by an apparent struggle or confrontation between Brown and a store clerk.^[159][160] The statutory deadline in the Sunshine Law, Missouri's equivalent of the federal Freedom of Information Act, was the cited reason for the release following requests by St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Judicial Watch and others.^{[161][162][163]}

The Department of Justice had urged the video not be released, saying a release would inflame tension.^[164] Missouri Governor Jay Nixon identified the release as an attempt to disparage Brown during the investigation that would inflame the community.^[165][166] Brown's family released a statement in which they condemn the way the police chief chose to disseminate information, calling it character assassination following the "execution-style murder" of their son.^[167]

The August 15 release of information was criticized as part of an erratic and infrequent release of information by the police.^[168] Previously, the police withheld the name of the officer involved in the shooting, citing safety concerns following death threats against the unnamed officer.^[156] The St Louis County Police incident report lacked details.^[169] The Ferguson Police incident report was obtained by the ACLU after a request and subsequent lawsuit.^[170] Wilson did not file an incident report^[169] and there was no Ferguson Police use-of-force report related to the incident.^[171] The Ferguson Police Department refused to commit to a deadline for releasing a full autopsy report.^[145]

When the report and video were released, the police said Wilson had known Brown was a suspect in the robbery.^[172] In a media conference, Ferguson's chief of police Tom Jackson said the robbery was unrelated to the initial contact, and had nothing to do with Wilson stopping Brown and Johnson.^[156][172] Jackson later clarified Wilson recognized Brown as a suspect because he saw a box of cigars in his hand.^[37][173] Eugene O'Donnell, a former district attorney in New York City who now serves as a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said, while the police officer may have stopped Brown for jaywalking, Brown may have been thinking the officer knew about the robbery: "Obviously the cop's reaction is not affected, but what could be affected is [Brown's] reaction to the cop."^[174]

A Pew Research Center Survey published on August 18 suggested differences in American public opinion between whites and blacks. It indicated 80% of blacks and 37% of whites believed the shooting "raises important issues about race".^[175]

On August 24, St. Louis held their annual Peace Fest, which had a particular focus on Mike Brown. In attendance was Mike Brown's father, Mike Brown Sr., as well as the parents of Trayvon Martin (an unarmed black teen who was shot and killed in Florida in 2012).^[176]

In August, Chief Jackson said Wilson had been injured in the incident.^[177] Wilson's medical record shows his injuries were diagnosed as a facial contusion or bruise.^[178]

Brown's funeral was held on August 25 and was attended by an estimated 4,500 people.^[179][180] Al Sharpton delivered one of two eulogies.^[181][182]

September–November 24

Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson at the news conference

A makeshift memorial placed during protests

Protesters gather at the Ferguson police department

On October 22, anonymous sources leaked to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch what they described as Wilson's grand jury testimony.^[183] The Justice Department issued a statement that it "considers the selective release of information in this investigation to be irresponsible and highly troubling. Since the release of the convenience-store footage, there seems to be an inappropriate effort to influence public opinion about this case."^[183] Wilson's defense team denied they were behind the leaks, saying they "[were] not in possession of any of the disclosed reports or the investigative report".^[183] The St. Louis County prosecutor spokesperson said his office would not investigate the leaks because they could not force journalists to divulge their sources, and "you can tell by the information they have that the leaks are not coming from the grand jury or the prosecutor's office."^[184] The leaks concerning grand jury testimony were condemned by the Justice Department as inappropriate effort to influence public opinion about this case.^[183] The leaks referred to evidence supporting Wilson's testimony and decreased the likelihood of an indictment whilst fanning the flames of angry protesters.^[185]

November 24–early December

Missouri Highway Patrol Captain Ronald Johnson was asked to take over policing of Ferguson, as a tactical shift to reduce the violence

Police sharpshooter atop a SWAT vehicle during protests at Ferguson

Clashes between police and protesters

Following the grand jury announcement, protests, some of them violent, broke out in Ferguson and other cities across the United States. Several Ferguson businesses were looted and fires set by protesters. Protests erupted in 170 cities across the U.S., including^[186] St Louis, Philadelphia, Seattle, Albuquerque, New York City, Cleveland, Los Angeles, Oakland, Minneapolis, Atlanta, Chicago, and Boston.^[187] Numerous media reports and legal experts criticized the process for failing to return an indictment in cases concerning law enforcement officers.^[188][189]

A December 2014 opinion poll by Washington Post-ABC News showed a majority of blacks do not believe that they receive treatment equal to whites by the police or the criminal justice system. Six out of ten white Americans believe the police treat races equally with roughly half of white Americans believing the criminal justice provides equal treatment, but there is a sharp partisan divide between white Americans. Conservative or Republican white Americans are far more likely to say whites and blacks receive equal treatment in the justice system than the liberal or Democratic white Americans.^{[190][note 2]}

March 2015

On March 4, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wilson would not be charged in the shooting. Its report said "[t]here is no evidence upon which prosecutors can rely to disprove Wilson's stated subjective belief that he feared for his safety," and that accounts that Brown put his hands up are "inaccurate because they are inconsistent with the physical and forensic evidence".^[191]

President Obama reacted to the announcement, stating, "The finding that was made [by the Department of Justice] was that it was not unreasonable to determine that there was not sufficient evidence to charge Officer Wilson. That was an objective, thorough, independent federal investigation." He further added, "We may never know exactly what happened. But Officer Wilson like anybody else who is charged with a crime benefits from due process and a reasonable doubt standard."^[192]

June–July 2015

In a Gallup Poll taken in June and July 2015, 8% of black respondents answered that local police treat racial minorities "very fairly" while 44% of black respondents answered "fairly". In contrast, 29% of non-Hispanic white respondents answered that local police treat racial minorities "very fairly" while 49% of non-Hispanic white respondents answered "fairly". In the same poll, 38% of black respondents and 18% of non-Hispanic white respondents indicated a preference for "greater police presence in their local communities."^[193][194]

International reactions

Various heads of state and foreign news organizations have commented on the shooting and subsequent protests including the Chinese Xinhua News Agency, Germany's Der Spiegel,^[195] Egypt's Ministry of Foreign affairs,^[196] the Iranian Islamic Republic News Agency,^[195] protesters throughout the Middle East,^[197] the Russian Foreign Ministry,^[195] Spain's El Mundo,^[198] the British Metro,^[199] and others.^[195]

Amnesty International (AI) sent a team of human rights observers, trainers, and researchers to Ferguson. It was the first time the organization deployed such a team in the United States.^[200][201] In a press release, AI USA director Steven W. Hawkins said, "The U.S. cannot continue to allow those obligated and duty-bound to protect to become those who their community fears most."^[202][203] On October 24, AI published a report declaring human rights abuses in Ferguson. The report cited the use of lethal force in Brown's death, racial discrimination and excessive use of police force, imposition of restrictions on the rights to protest, intimidation of protesters, the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, and long range acoustic devices, restrictions imposed on the media covering the protests, and lack of accountability for law enforcement policing protests.^[204][205]

"Hands up, don't shoot"

"Hands up!" sign displayed at a Ferguson protest

"Hands up, don't shoot", or simply "hands up", is a slogan and gesture originating from the incident and was seen in demonstrations in Ferguson and throughout the United States.^[231] The gesture became a rallying cry against police violence.^{[232][233][234]}

On March 4, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a report on the shooting,^[13] which said, "There is no witness who has stated that Brown had his hands up in surrender whose statement is otherwise consistent with the physical evidence" and "our investigation did not reveal any eyewitness who stated that Brown said 'don't shoot'."^[235][236]

Related incidents

On December 20, two NYPD officers were shot and killed in their police car in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. The suspected gunman, Ismaaiyl Brinsley, posted days earlier on Instagram his intention to kill police officers in response to the killings of Brown and Eric Garner.^[237] The suspect, who had a long criminal record and had shot his girlfriend in the stomach a few hours earlier, entered the New York City Subway and committed suicide.^{[238][239][240]}

On March 12, 2015, two police officers were wounded by gunfire outside the Ferguson police headquarters. The officers, one from nearby Webster Groves, the other from the St. Louis County Police, were providing security at a protest being staged outside the station.^[241] Two days later, 20-year-old Jeffrey L. Williams was arrested in connection with the shooting.^[242] Williams' attorney said, although Williams fired the shots, he was not aiming at the officers.^[243]

Eighteen-year-old Tyrone Harris (friend of Brown) was shot by police in Ferguson on August 9, 2015, one year after the shooting of Michael Brown.^[244][245] That same day, the Columbia (Missouri) Police Officers' Association (CPOA) proclaimed "Darren Wilson Day", calling Wilson an "innocent, but persecuted, officer" and insisted his ethnicity had nothing to do with their support of him.^[246] An ABC affiliate reported the post was shared nearly 60 times on the site before being removed. The CPOA then posted its support for Wilson and "all law enforcement officers who endure similar situations."^[247]

Task force on policing

In December 2014, president Barack Obama created a commission to make recommendations for broad police reform in the United States. The commission created by Obama released an interim report on March 2, 2015, with numerous recommendations, including the recommendation that policy be created mandating "external and independent criminal investigations in cases of police use of force resulting in death, officer-involved shootings resulting in injury or death, or in-custody deaths".^[248]

DOJ investigation into the Ferguson Police Department

On September 5, 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice began an investigation of the Ferguson, Missouri, police force to examine whether officers routinely engaged in racial profiling or showed a pattern of excessive force. The investigation was separate from the Department's other investigation of the shooting of Brown.^[249] The results of the investigation were released in a March 4, 2015, report, which concluded officers in Ferguson routinely violated the constitutional rights of the city's residents, by discriminating against African Americans and applying racial stereotypes, in a "pattern or practice of unlawful conduct within the Ferguson Police Department that violates the First, Fourth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and federal statutory law."^[250][251]

The report focused on the problem of issuing warrants for sometimes minor offenses. In many states, a chief cause for warrants is unpaid traffic tickets.^[252]

Brown family lawsuit

On April 23, 2015, the Brown family filed a wrongful death lawsuit in state court against Wilson, Jackson, and the City of Ferguson, asking for damages in excess of $75,000 as well as attorney's fees.^[253][254] On May 27, 2015, the lawsuit was moved from state court to federal court.^[255]

On July 14, 2015, U.S. District Judge E. Richard Webber responded to defense motions by dismissing four of the seven counts of the lawsuit and declining to dismiss two other counts.^[256][257] On June 20, 2017, Webber approved a settlement between Brown's parents and the city of Ferguson. Terms of the agreement, including the settlement amount, were sealed from the public.^[258][259] A Ferguson city attorney revealed the city's insurance company paid $1.5 million.^[260]

Dorian Johnson lawsuit

On April 29, 2015, Johnson filed a lawsuit in state court against Wilson, Jackson, and the City of Ferguson for being stopped by Wilson without probable cause, reasonable suspicion or legal justification to detain him. The lawsuit claimed that, according to the findings of the § DOJ investigation into the Ferguson Police Department, law enforcement efforts focused on generating revenue rather than protecting the town's citizens. Johnson sought US$25,000 in damages.^{[261][262][263]} On May 27, 2015, the lawsuit was moved from state court to federal court.^[264] The court denied the defendants' motion to dismiss the case; they appealed, and a three-judge panel of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court on July 25, 2017,^[265] allowing the lawsuit to go forward. The en banc Eighth Circuit reviewed and reversed the panel's decision on June 17, 2019, directing the district court to dismiss the case.^[266]

Appointment of Delrish Moss as police chief

On May 9, 2016, Delrish Moss, a Miami law enforcement veteran and expert in community relations,^[267] was sworn in as the first permanent African American chief in Ferguson. He said his challenges would include diversifying the police force and dramatically improving community relations.^[268]

Lezley McSpadden announces run for Ferguson City Council

On April 25, 2018, Brown's mother, Lezley McSpadden, announced to a Harvard University forum on police violence that she would run for City Council of Ferguson.^[269] She did not win.^[270]