A peaceful demonstration in Ferguson, Missouri, ended in violence Tuesday night when a vehicle sped through a group of protesters, striking and injuring one man, who was driven to the hospital.
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A “mostly peaceful” protester named Jeff williams shot and seriously wounded two officers in March of 2015, and another frequent Ferguson protester named Tyrone Harris was shot and killed after opening fire on police nearly exactly a year ago. No one was wounded by the gunfire. His injuries are unknown. The demonstration was held on August 9, the second anniversary of the death of Brown, an unarmed black teen who was killed during a confrontation with a Ferguson Police Department officer.
The shooting was a catalyst in the national Black Lives Matter movement and led to months of protests in Ferguson.
Observances earlier in the day had been peaceful as prominent members of the Black Lives Matter movement and the Michael Brown Chosen for Change charitable foundation organized a vigil with music and poetry readings.
Heather DeMian, who was at the scene and was live-streaming the Ferguson protest, told the newspaper, “I just started screaming, and the bullets started flying, and I started screaming some more”. “Hit him, and he rolled and he bounced”.
Photos showed the protester appearing to be conscious and being carried away. According to Daily News, the victim’s brother took him to a nearby hospital but later returned to the site of the collision telling witnesses through tears that his brother is in critical condition. They said the vehicle struck a young man so hard that he flew into the air. “I was terrified that he was dead that’s why I was screaming, and then 50 seconds later, two rounds of gunshots”.
And while thought to be an apparent accident, the woman nearly paid for it with her life as her auto was pockmarked with bullet holes.
The exact details of what happened that day remain disputed by police, eyewitnesses and family members.
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The death of Michael Brown at the hands of police in 2014 and the events that followed set off protests and unrest in Ferguson and other U.S. cities. His body lay in the street for four hours before it was removed.
