Prosecutor in Ferguson, Mo., case targeted

Four St. Louis-area activists have asked a court to order an investigation of the prosecutor who oversaw the grand jury that declined to indict the white police officer who killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in August.

The group filed a petition late Thursday asking the Missouri State Circuit Court to appoint a special prosecutor to look into the conduct of St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch and possibly seek his ouster.

McCulloch has come under fire since his announcement on Nov. 24 that a grand jury decided not to indict Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of the unarmed black man.

McCulloch has acknowledged that at least one witness whose account supported Wilson lied to the grand jury.

Critics have charged that transcripts of the grand-jury proceedings show the prosecutor’s office favored witnesses supporting Wilson’s version of events but challenged witnesses who did not support the officer’s account.

State law allows a court to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate prosecutors.

“Bob McCulloch expertly administered a miscarriage of justice, and it’s obvious that he cannot be trusted to work on behalf of the people of St. Louis,” said Montague Simmons, a petitioner in the case and executive director of the Organization for Black Struggle in St. Louis.

The other petitioners were representatives of the Ethics Project and the Organization for Black Struggle and another community activist.

McCulloch spokesman Edward Magee did not respond to a request for comment.