Justice Department spokesman Brian Fallon said Holder ordered the federal autopsy "due to the extraordinary circumstances involved in this case and at the request of the Brown family."
The autopsy, to be performed by a federal medical examiner, would be in addition to an autopsy by Missouri state medical examiners.
Fallon said federal investigators would take into account the results of the autopsy carried out by the state during their investigation into the shooting of Brown. (Reporting By Julia Edwards; Editing by Mohammad Zargham)
One person was shot and critically wounded and seven arrested early on Sunday as police in , clashed with protesters when a curfew was imposed following days of unrest over a black teenager being shot dead by a white police officer.
Scores of demonstrators had remained in the streets after the curfew took effect at midnight Law enforcement officials used loudspeakers to warn protesters to disperse immediately. Officers, equipped with gas masks and full-length shields, stood among and on top of armored vehicles.
Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and announced the five-hour curfew after a week of racially charged protests and looting over the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson, 28, in the suburban St. Louis community in the Midwest U.S. state on Aug. 9.
Missouri State Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson said the person shot at a restaurant was in critical condition. Police were unable to identify the victim, who he said was not shot by police, and that the alleged shooter was still at large.
Reuters: Lucas Jackson
A protester holds a sign aloft in front of police officers before a midnight curfew meant to stem ongoing demonstrations in reaction to the shooting of Michael Brown takes effect in Ferguson, Missouri August 16, 2014.
Seven people were also arrested for failing to disperse after the curfew took effect.
Johnson said canisters of smoke and later teargas were fired as part of police attempts to reach the victim of the restaurant shooting, "and not in relation to the curfew." The shooting victim was taken to hospital by bystanders before police could reach him.
Johnson also said someone had shot at a passing police car but was not apprehended, adding "I was disappointed in the actions of tonight," noting "the crowds we've had for the last two nights (were) citizens obeying, protesting."
The smoke and teargas canisters largely dispersed the crowd, some of whom had been chanting "No justice, no curfew, no peace", while others implored the crowd not to move forward towards police.
On Saturday evening the mood among the protesters on a main road in Ferguson had been tense and defiant following days of demonstrations and some looting.
"The curfew is going to make things worse," said protester Phones Scott, 24. "I think the cops are going to get violent tonight, but they can't lock us all up."
Tensions had been running high over the past week but escalated on Friday, pitting mostly black protesters against mostly white police as the demonstrators overran a residential and retail district that has become a center of the unrest.
Brown's family and supporters have demanded that the officer who shot Brown be held accountable. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the shooting for any civil rights violations, and the St. Louis County Police department has also launched a probe.
The police version of how Brown was shot differs from witness accounts, including that of the friend who was walking with Brown at the time, Dorian Johnson, 22.
Police say that after Wilson asked Brown to move out of the road onto a sidewalk, Brown reached into the patrol car and struggled with Wilson for the officer's service gun. Wilson, who sustained a facial injury, then shot Brown a number of times.
No comments:
Post a Comment