U. S. jury decides not to charge Ferguson policeman
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U. S. jury decides not to charge Ferguson policeman

U. S. jury decides not to charge Ferguson policeman

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(AGI) Rome, Nov 25 - Riots shook the U.S. town of Fergusonafter a decision by the grand jury not to charge Darren Wilson,the policeman who killed 18-year-old unarmed African-AmericanMichael Brown on Aug. 9. Police arrested 61 people in violencethat saw more than a dozen buildings set ablaze along withseveral cars and shops looted. After a three-day wait at around8.30 pm on Monday (2.30 pm CET), prosecutor Robert McCullochannounced the grand jury's decision after hearing more than 60witnesses, examining the autopsy reports and exploring all theevidence. His painstaking reasoning pointed the finger at the"contradictory" evidence reported in the media. "The duty ofthe Grand Jury is to separate fact from fiction," said MrMcCulloch. After the announcement, people poured into thestreets clashing with riot police, throwing stones, bottles,torching cars and smashing windows. Shots were heard, withlocal media counting at least 150. Smoke and tear gas were usedto disperse the protesters. The journalists following the casealso ended up in the sights of the furious protesters, with onereporter punched and another having his wallet stolen. Missourigovernor, Democrat Jay Nixon, called in more NationalGuardsmen. A policeman was injured in the town of UniversityCity in St Louis County, which also includes Ferguson.Protesters blocked three bridges (Brooklyn, Manhattan and theTriborough) in New York, where - among other things lastweekend - a police officer killed another African-American inBrooklyn. The protests also led to the blocking of the 110Freeway, which runs from Pasadena to Long Beach, through LosAngeles. The pictures broadcast by U.S. networks showed dozensof people in the middle of the lane, many stretched out on theground. The parents of the young man killed, who had appealedfor calm, said they were "devastated". In his long speech, MrMcCulloch said that the law authorises the police "to usedeadly force" in the case of self-defence. According to theprosecutor, the evidence unequivocally showed that there was ascuffle between Brown and Wilson and that shortly before he waskilled a security camera had filmed the young man stealingcigars from a shop. U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder,promised that a federal investigation would "go ahead" and didnot rule out an indictment for violation of civil rights. MrWilson's lawyer said the officer was following his training andthe law when he shot Mr Brown. (AGI).
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