The folks who have been hollering that Michael Brown was murdered by Darren Wilson in Ferguson, MO really ought to back up and realize that the evidence from the grand jury deliberations points to something less than a clear-cut picture of murder. It is *possible* that Wilson murdered Brown, but it is much more likely that he used his weapon in response to a threat. That response in fact have been anything from reasonable and justifiable to involuntary manslaughter to actual murder. We dont know. In part because of a long history of racism and the unfortunate fact that an almost-entirely-white police force serves a community in Ferguson that is two-thirds black, there is a definite disconnect and lack of trust between the community and the police. People feel that the police department is racist and to what degree thats true is difficult to quantify. Against that backdrop, it is clearly difficult for people there to soberly assess an unclear and contradictory set of facts. As I have said repeatedly on Facebook, I believe the prosecutor, Bob McCulloch, did many unusual things in this case by sending it to a grand jury and by including a great deal of exculpatory information that is not normally part of a zealous prosecution (which is his job to execute as best he can). I think McCulloch was acting almost as a defense attorney for Wilson, at it is the formers actions which brought about the finding of no probable cause which meant no indictment for any crime by Wilson. It is irresponsible to go around hollering that Brown was murdered when the facts do not conclusively point in that direction, nor do they really suggest it. Nuances do not make for good slogans.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Dec 2014 04:21:36 +0000
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