The shooting of Tyrone Harris, 18, Sunday, on the anniversary of the death of Michael Brown, threatened to reignite racial tensions in the city that exploded in unrest after last year’s deadly shooting by a white police officer. The street has been the hub of demonstrations marking Brown’s August 9, 2014, shooting death by a white Ferguson police officer.
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The St. Louis County executive declared a state of emergency Monday, a move that gave Belmar – instead of interim Ferguson Police Chief Andre Anderson – control of security.
The demonstrations began days ago to commemorate the first anniversary of Brown’s death.
The protesters chanted, beat drums and carried signs.
Protesters and police had squared off Sunday evening, with officers donning riot gear, including shields. Some demonstrators threw water bottles and other debris at officers.
This report includes material from the Associated Press. It’s just not going to happen.
Ferguson resident and military veteran Hershel Myers Jr., 46, criticized the police response as aggressive and unnecessary.
“Info Wars are here, they are documenting the activities and we are here to keep them safe”, said an Oath Keeper named John.
While many were on edge after Sunday’s violence, crowds peacefully left the protest site at Florissant Avenue at around 1am on Tuesday.
St. Louis County spokesman Cordell Whitlock said the county had no comment on the timing of the charges or why they decided to pursue them, saying they were “all pending legal matters”. Larry Miller, who organized the protest group Ferguson Freedom Fighters, told AP that the latest round of protests is dying down without accomplishing much.
Civil rights activist Cornel West was also arrested on Monday outside of the city’s courthouse.
Earlier in the day, approximately 50 protesters shut down Interstate 70, a busy four-lane highway, and multiple arrests were made.
On Tuesday, protesters gathered but were quieter than the previous nights. A man out on patrol described the group as constitutionalists who were hired to protect reporters for InfoWars.com, a website run by radio host Alex Jones, who has questioned everything from the moon landing to 9/11.
Police arrested and briefly detained two men for inhibiting the flow of traffic during a protest Tuesday night, authorities confirmed. The suspect allegedly shot into the windshield of the van.
County police ordered them to leave then, but group members intermittently returned. The suspect again fired on the officers when he became trapped in a fenced-in area, Belmar said, and all four opened fire.
Harris is in critical condition. None of the detectives involved in the incident was wearing a body camera.
Around 10:30 p.m. Monday a tweet was posted accusing police of arresting a “12-year-old girl” in Ferguson.
“He was running for his…life because someone was shooting at him”, Tyrone Harris, Sr said in a telephone interview from his St Louis-area home before the video was released. Nor was any smoke or tear gas used, police said. “It’s all a bunch of lies…”
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“With your support, we properly honored your friend and my son’s memory”, he said. It appears Harris has a gun in the video.
