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Clusters of Protesters Defy Night Curfew in Ferguson - New York Times

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U.S. |Protesters Clash With Police in Ferguson, Resulting in Several Arrests



http://nyti.ms/1qgtMuc






U.S. |​​NYT Now





Protesters clashed with police on Sunday morning after the imposition of a midnight curfew. Eric Thayer for The New York Times




FERGUSON, Mo. — Hours after Gov. Jay Nixon of Missouri imposed a midnight-to-5 a.m. curfew on Saturday in this small city, a group of protesters defied the order and violence flared briefly on Sunday morning, after a week of street protests over the killing of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer here.


A clash between the protesters and dozens of police officers in riot gear began less than 30 minutes after the curfew took effect and ended about 45 minutes later with the arrest of seven people, all charged with “failure to disperse.”


The protesters had moved toward the line of officers—some of whom rode in armored vehicles—and chanted : “We are Mike Brown! We have the right to assemble peacefully!” invoking the name of the 18-year-old who was shot and killed by a Ferguson police officer.


“You are violating the state-imposed curfew,” an officer told the demonstrators as rain, heavy at times, passed through the area.


Protesters tossed at least one bottle rocket, the police said, and at the sound of apparent gunshots from a restaurant down the street, demonstrators scrambled to safety.




Play Video|4:02

A Protest Ignited



A Protest Ignited



Protesters angered over the police shooting of Michael Brown, 18, squared off with law enforcement in the streets of Ferguson, Mo., again, looting some stores.


By Brent McDonald on August 16, 2014. Whitney Curtis for The New York Times

Despite an earlier pledge by Capt. Ronald S. Johnson, the state Highway Patrol commander whose is overseeing security in Ferguson, the police eventually began firing both smoke grenades and some tear gas.


At a news conference about 3 a.m. on Sunday, Captain Johnson, who on Saturday had pledged not to use tear gas, explained that some tear gas had been used because the police had learned that there were armed men were inside a barbeque restaurant at one end of the street. One man with a gun had moved to the middle of the street, Captain Johnson said, but escaped. Another man, who was not identified, was shot by an unknown assailant and taken by companions to a hospital where he was reported to be in critical condition. A police car was fired upon, Captain Johnson said, but it was not immediately clear if it was hit.


As the news briefing ended, Captain Johnson was asked whether the curfew would continue on Sunday, but he did not answer.


The initial curfew announcement came in midafternoon on Saturday, when Governor Nixon declared a state of emergency here.


“This is not to silence the people of Ferguson, but to address those who are drowning out the voice of the people with their actions,” Mr. Nixon, a Democrat, told reporters and residents at a Ferguson church Saturday. “We will not allow a handful of looters to endanger the rest of this community. If we’re going to achieve justice, we must first have and maintain peace.”


Mr. Nixon added: “This is a test. The eyes of the world are watching.”


The announcement prompted cries of protest and anguish from some members of the public who attended the news conference, with many of them arguing that a curfew would lead only to new and fierce confrontations. Some people begged to be able to go into the streets themselves to try to calm any violence. But Captain Johnson said the curfew would be put in place and enforced.


“We won’t enforce it with trucks, we won’t enforce it with tear gas, we will enforce it with communication,” Captain Johnson said. “We will be telling people, ‘It’s time to go home.’ ”


Mr. Nixon’s announcement, at the Greater St. Mark Family Church, near the site of the unrest, came a week after the death of Mr. Brown, who was shot by Officer Darren Wilson, a six-year police veteran. The police said that Mr. Brown had been stopped for walking down the middle of the street and that a scuffle had ensued, ending in gunfire; other eyewitnesses have disputed that account.


At times, Mr. Nixon and Captain Johnson both appeared chagrined by the spectacle, the governor curtly telling one prospective questioner, “I’ll let you yell at me next.”


Mr. Nixon described the looting and violence as the work of an isolated few, but emphasized that a curfew was necessary to restore order in a community where residents have complained that basic services, like summoning an ambulance through a 911 call, have been disrupted by the protests.


“Small groups took to the streets with the intent of committing crimes and endangering citizens,” Mr. Nixon said after he praised “the courage and resolve of peaceful protesters.”


The curfew came under quick attack from some people in the church and from protesters whom Captain Johnson credited with assisting the police in maintaining order.


“Right now, I want to make sure that my people don’t get hurt tonight,” said Malik Z. Shabazz of Black Lawyers for Justice. He said his group would bring a lawsuit challenging the treatment of Ferguson residents by the police in the initial days of turmoil.


He added: “It’s Saturday night. Midnight is an early time, and I have to be able to go to my people with credibility in order for them to come out of those streets. Twelve midnight is early. I cleared it Thursday at 1:30, no problem. But if I can get till 1:30, 2 tonight, it would all go peacefully, no problem. Twelve midnight is a problem.”


Some residents shouted at the governor, including one man who said, “We will not get sleep until we get justice for Michael Brown!”



Timeline



The sequence of events after the shooting of Michael Brown, an 18-year-old unarmed teenager, by a police officer in Ferguson, Mo., on Aug. 10.




OPEN Timeline



Another man shouted, “Sleep is not an option, Governor Nixon!”


Steven W. Hawkins, the executive director of Amnesty International USA, said in a statement: “It’s hard to build trust if the governor doesn’t meet with community members and restricts their movements with a curfew.”


But the announcement was greeted with relief from some elected officials, who have struggled to hold off the faction of protesters who have engaged in looting.


“I don’t know what the answer is, but there has to be some type of response because it’s only getting worse out there,” Patricia Bynes, a black Democratic committeewoman for Ferguson Township, said on Saturday. “People are fed up with police brutality and police harassment. There is still so much racism and discrimination in this region, ingrained in the business world and the communities. This is what happens when institutional racism continues.”


The shooting is being investigated by the Justice Department. Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation have been flooding into Ferguson, seeking witnesses. Locally, the case is being handled by the St. Louis County prosecutor, Robert McCulloch, but there have been calls to have the case shifted to a special prosecutor, in part because of criticism that Mr. McCulloch has not been rigorous in prosecuting law enforcement officers in high-profile cases.


Since last Sunday, Ferguson has seesawed between extremes: order and unrest, protests and looting.


It has seen peaceful demonstrations by day and often ugly clashes at night between highly militarized police officers and angry protesters calling for justice for Mr. Brown. On Thursday, President Obama urged an end to the violence and the governor ordered the state Highway Patrol to take over security from local law enforcement.


Residents have taken to the streets each day, holding placards condemning what they say is a long history of harassment and abuse of African-Americans at the hands of the largely white Ferguson police force. Groups of people have silently confronted police officers, facing them with their hands in the air, as witnesses said Mr. Brown did before he was shot.


And late at night, a small number of unruly people in the crowd have turned violent, smashing shop windows and stealing hair supplies and liquor. For several days, television networks have replayed clips of people looting, burning down a convenience store and throwing glass bottles and gasoline bombs at heavily armed police officers, drawing comparisons to scenes from a war-ravaged city.


Earlier, Chief Jon Belmar of the St. Louis County Police Department had dismissed the idea of a curfew, saying that such an action would not hinder people determined to cause violence, while negatively affecting residents engaging in innocent activity, like walking home from the bus stop after a late shift of work.


But Mr. Nixon, increasingly desperate to bring the situation in Ferguson under control, said he embraced the tactic reluctantly.


Earlier Saturday, in a new sign of discord among the authorities over the handling of the investigation into Mr. Brown’s death, the Justice Department said that it had opposed the release of a video that the Ferguson Police Department said showed the teenager apparently involved in a robbery at a convenience store.


The Justice Department asked the Ferguson Police Department not to release the video because of concerns that “it would roil the community further,” a United States law enforcement official said on Saturday. The Ferguson department released the video on Friday and the Justice official said it “occurred over the objection of federal authorities.” The official said a copy of the video had been in possession of federal investigators, as well, “and there were never any plans by the federal investigators to release that copy.”


The dispute showed further divisions among the authorities in the handling of the case. The surveillance video appeared to show Mr. Brown stealing a box of cigarillos. Shortly after the release of the video, Captain Johnson expressed his displeasure, saying he had not been told that the police planned to release it.


Mr. Brown’s family and many protesters accused the police of trying to harm the teenager’s reputation and to divert attention from the officer who killed him. The police have said that Officer Wilson was not aware of what had happened at the convenience store when he encountered Mr. Brown. The police identified the officer for the first time on Friday; he has been put on administrative leave and his whereabouts were unknown. Neighbors on his block in Crestwood, a suburb of St. Louis, said that he left his home several days ago and has not been seen since. On Saturday, the house appeared deserted, the blinds in the windows closed tightly.


On Friday night, hundreds of protesters returned to the streets in anger over the shooting and the handling of the investigation. The confrontation between the police and demonstrators, the first serious one since the Highway Patrol assumed responsibility for security operations, ended at about 4 a.m. when the authorities, prompted by the gradual dispersal of demonstrators, pulled back to their nearby command post. The Associated Press reported that one law enforcement official had been injured overnight.


Ferguson continued to draw African-American leaders, who appeared at protests and held prayer vigils. On Saturday, dozens of clergy members, including the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson and hundreds of people, including residents from Ferguson, greater St. Louis and beyond, gathered on Canfield Drive, the street where Mr. Brown was killed, in front of two makeshift memorials decorated with candles, stuffed animals and flowers.


“We choose futures over funerals,” Mr. Jackson said.



Emma G. Fitzsimmons contributed reporting from New York, Charlie Savage from Washington and John Eligon from Ferguson.




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