) The jurors decision not to indict Wilson prompted prosecutors to make public more than 4,700 pages of transcripts and reports in hope of quashing suspicions that Wilson got away with murder. The tactic did not work, and rioting erupted in Ferguson this week. But the documents do provide a look at what some witnesses went through as they wrestled with the fallout of witnessing a controversial killing. Some feared saying something that would upset neighbors if it did not match other witness accounts. You never know how people react to certain things, testified one man, who did not speak to police until 13 days after Browns death but whose version of events bolstered the view that Brown had his hands up and was not posing a threat when Wilson shot him. Some were so distrustful of police that they did not offer information until investigators knocked on their doors. lRelated Video released of police fatally shooting 12-year-old Tamir Rice Nation Now Video released of police fatally shooting 12-year-old Tamir Rice See all related 8 You cant say no to an FBI agent, one woman told prosecutors after agents showed up at her apartment in the Canfield Green complex, which overlooks the scene of the killing. Ive seen the Ferguson police do some really awful things, she added, explaining why she had told her boyfriend what she saw but not law enforcement. The documents also show prosecutors attempts to assure witnesses and jurors that they would be shielded from the firestorm touched off by a case that has fueled nationwide protests and demands for change. You are anonymous, the St. Louis County prosecutor, Robert McCulloch, told the jurors when they met for the first time on Aug. 20. He told them not to wear their juror badges as they entered the justice building in Clayton, Mo., lest news reporters or others spot them. He noted that a construction project next door would help block visibility to comings and goings around the justice building. A few weeks into the proceedings, some jurors anxieties rose to the surface. My concern is that everybody is saying hurry up, hurry up, hurry up, one juror told the prosecutors on the morning of Sept. 30. I do think of the Ku Klux Klan. I do. - Witness to the Michael Brown shooting, on why he was anxious about testifying before grand jury Another one added: Ive heard a lot of people talking about — and this is people who should know — talking about why dont they just arrest him and then figure out whats going on, why dont they just take action, the juror said. It seems to me that were doing what needs to be done and were doing whats right, and people are not seeing that.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Dec 2014 10:05:42 +0000
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