Prosecutor under fire in Ferguson
Black attorneys demand official recuse himself; federal autopsy done as Holder on way to Missouri
A group of African-American attorneys calls for St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch to remove himself from the investigation of the death of Michael Brown.
FERGUSON, Mo. — A group of African-American attorneys called Tuesday for St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch to remove himself from the investigation of the shooting death of Michael Brown and let the U.S. Department of Justice take over the case.
Separately, federal law enforcement officials said a U.S. military medical examiner has concluded a federal autopsy of Brown, and it will show six gunshot wounds, according to a government source who asked not to be identified.
The federal autopsy was the third postmortem to be performed on the body of the 18-year-old African-American, who was unarmed when a white police officer in Ferguson fatally shot him Aug. 9. A private autopsy commissioned by the Brown family also showed six gunshot wounds.
At a news conference on the steps of the courthouse in downtown St. Louis, Kendra Howard, leader of the Mound City Bar Association, said resi- dents of nearby Ferguson and elsewhere are “gravely concerned about the lack of transparency and lack of candor” of McCulloch’s office since Brown’s death.
“Mr. McCulloch has shown that he is emotionally invested in protecting law enforcement, and therefore should immediately step aside and allow the Justice Department to investigate the death,” Howard said.
Going to grand jury
A spokesman for McCulloch did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but his office has denied allegations that it cannot be impartial in this case.
Last week, McCulloch spokesman Ed Magee said his office was hoping to take evidence to a grand jury this week.
But the delay in releasing details of the shooting, including the name of the police officer involved — Darren Wilson — and the revelation that Brown was shot at least six times, has angered the community and led to allegations of an attempted cover-up.
“The only information released has been irrelevant and aggravated a tense situation,” Howard said, alluding to last week’s particularly inflammatory revelation that Brown was a suspect in a robbery that occurred shortly before he was shot.
The first autopsy on Brown’s body was performed by the St. Louis County medical examiner and the second on behalf of Brown’s family.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, who requested the federal autopsy, has said a separate Department of Justice civil rights investigation of the shooting will review the county-performed autopsy.
Holder is scheduled to visit Ferguson on Wednesday to meet with federal and community officials.
On Tuesday morning, after peaceful protests in Ferguson devolved into the ninth night of unrest, with at least 31 arrests and two shootings, residents gathered to clean up debris from embattled West Florissant Avenue and the parents of Brown said they are planning a public memorial for their son on Monday.
The clashes led to the arrests of people from as far away as California and New York, underscoring what Missouri State Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson said is a small minority of outsiders stirring trouble after the shooting. Schools remained closed in Ferguson as officials feared for the safety of children who would be walking to and from campuses.
Want officer charged
Brown’s parents, Michael Brown and Lesley McSpadden, said Tuesday morning that the prosecution of the officer who shot their unarmed son is the only way to bring peace to the streets of Ferguson.
“Justice will bring peace,” McSpadden told the “Today” show’s Matt Lauer.
“We need to keep the focus on Michael Brown Jr.,” Brown’s father said.
The family expects Michael Brown’s body to be released in the next 48 hours, and planning is underway for a public memorial service for Brown, said one of the family’s attorneys, Anthony Gray.
Gray said the couple are devastated by the nightly clashes.
“Everybody needs to take a break,” Gray said. “We’ve got a big memorial service that needs to be planned,” he said.
He said the family was encouraged that President Barack Obama is sending Holder to Ferguson.