Michael Brown, the unarmed black teenager who was killed by a police officer, sparking protests around the nation, was shot at least six times, including twice in the head, a preliminary private autopsy performed on Sunday found.
One of the bullets entered the top of Mr. Brown’s skull, suggesting his head was bent forward when it struck him and caused a fatal injury, according to Dr. Michael M. Baden, the former chief medical examiner for the City of New York, who flew to Missouri on Sunday at the family’s request to conduct the separate autopsy. It was likely the last of bullets to hit him, he said.
Mr. Brown, 18, was also shot four times in the right arm, he said, adding that all the bullets were fired into his front.
The bullets did not appear to have been shot from very close range because no gunpowder was present on his body. However, that determination could change if it turns out that there is gunshot residue on Mr. Brown’s clothing, to which Dr. Baden did not have access.
Six times? Twice in the head?
This fits in disturbingly well with the eyewitness account provided to the FBI by Michael Brown's friend:
A key witness — Brown’s friend Dorian Johnson — has told the FBI that he thought the robbery was a “prank,” said Johnson’s attorney. In an interview with federal agents, Johnson has said Brown was hit by one bullet, then — as Brown pleaded for his life — Wilson fired “five or six” more times.
And when the shooting stopped, Johnson and his legal team have told investigators, the police officer who pulled the trigger did nothing to save the man he’d just shot. “The officer doesn’t attempt to resuscitate,” Johnson’s attorney, former St. Louis mayor Freeman Bosley Jr., said in an interview Saturday. “He does not call for medical help. The officer didn’t call it in that someone had been shot.”
It is pretty clear that this preliminary autopsy report is going to do nothing to dissuade people in Ferguson from believing that this young man was executed.
Which was clear last night as protestors turned violent forcing the Missouri Governor to call in the National Guard:
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon signed an executive order this morning deploying the Missouri National Guard to Ferguson after a night of continued clashes between police and protesters in reaction to the police shooting death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown.
"Tonight, a day of hope, prayers, and peaceful protests was marred by the violent criminal acts of an organized and growing number of individuals, many from outside the community and state, whose actions are putting the residents and businesses of Ferguson at risk," Nixon said in a statement.
"These violent acts are a disservice to the family of Michael Brown and his memory, and to the people of this community who yearn for justice to be served, and to feel safe in their own homes."
The executive order comes after police used tear gas to clear protesters off the streets of the St. Louis suburb, action that police say was necessary because of shooting, looting and vandalism.
This is very unfortunate as it is clear the people of Ferguson have a legitimate reason to be angry and mistrustful of the police, however others who are using the opportunity to vandalize and loot are undermining the purpose of the protests and inviting outsiders to criticize the citizens as thugs.
It is troubling that after criticizing the police for hitting the streets using armored vehicles while dressed in military gear and wielding assault weapons at the beginning of these protests, that now we are seeing the actual military called out to do essentially the same thing.
