While the police still hasn’t released the name of the police officer that shot Michael Brown, the 18 year-old African American teenager, demonstrators have been protesting more violently. Police in Ferguson insisted that demonstrators only rally during the day after the three nights in which violent protests took place.
Protesters had planned a rally for Wednesday afternoon. Demonstrators are asking for transparency and are criticizing the fact that the name of the officer who shot Michael isn’t being released. According to Ferguson police, because of safety concerns (apparently, there have been many threats received by the Ferguson Police Department vial social networks) the name will not be released in the near future. The only fact that was made public was that the police officer was placed on paid administrative leave until the matter is investigated.
Tim Zoll, the public information officer for the Ferguson Police, explained that the name of the police officer that was involved would only then be given out, when and if a prosecuting attorney believed that the issuance of a warrant is necessary for the investigation.
It may take over two weeks until prosecutors will have completed their investigation. Only then will we find out if the police officer will be charged for the shooting or not.
Michael Brown was allegedly unarmed at the moment when he was shot and residents of Ferguson have been protesting since his death because of what they believe was an excess of force on the police officer’s part. Residents also believe that the shooting has highlighted a racial divide in the suburb.
At the protests on Tuesday, a St. Louis County Police officer shot a 19 year old male that had pulled a gun and pointed it at him. The man was critically wounded, Brian Schellman, St. Louis County Police Department said. According to Schellman, a weapon was also found at the scene and the incident. The name of the police officer involved will also not be released until said police officer is charged with a crime. This is customary practice according to Schellman.
Teargas was fired before the shooting, in an attempt to break up the protests. While the man that was shot did partake in the protests, witnesses state that the confrontation between him and the police officer took place a couple of blocks up the street.
On Wednesday, police officers from neighboring districts will be joining in to reinforce Ferguson Police as a new protest will be taking place.
