On the eve of the decision not to prosecute of Ferguson, Mo., police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of Michael Brown, state prosecutors are considering charges against Michael Brown’s family. While potentially explosive in light of the rejection of civil rights charges, the case is based on what is reported as criminal acts of assault and theft by Brown’s mother Lesley McSpadden and other family members.
The incident stems from who is entitled to cash in on the name of Michael Brown. A “Justice for Mike Brown” stand was set up outside of a restaurant to sell teeshirts and other items. One of the vendors was Pearlie Gordon, 54, the mother-in-law of Michael Brown Sr. (who is divorced from McSpadden).
The police say that a group of about 20-30 suspects “jumped out of vehicles and rushed” Gordon, Tony Petty, and Matthew Cosey. McSpadden, 34, is quoted as saying “You can’t sell this shit.” What reportedly ensued was an intense debate of who had trademark options on the name of the dead teenager. Gordon reportedly states that “unless McSpadden could produce documentation stating that she had a patent on her son’s name she (Gordon) was going to continue to sell her merchandise.” Police say that Desureia Harris, McSpadden’s mother, then began to rip down t-shirts while other family members began “tearing her booth apart.” Gordon allegedly was knocked to the ground and repeatedly struck in the head. Gordon accused McSpadden of running up and punching her while one of McSpadden’s group encouraged her to “get her ass.”
Also accused is McSpadden’s husband, Louis Head, who was previously the subject of calls for prosecution in his encouraging protesters to “Burn this bitch down” after no charges were brought against Wilson.
Petty was also transported to a local hospital for treatment of “injuries sustained during the assault.” Police also found that more than $1500 in merchandise and $400 in cash “was stolen by unknown subjects” during the assault and that they fled before the arrival of the police.
To make matters worse for the Brown family, there is a witness as well as a videotape showing the assault on the vendors, according to police.
That record would seem highly compelling for criminal charges. They have sworn statements from the alleged victim, third-party witnesses and a possible videotape showing a vendor being pinned on the ground. That does not rule out defenses based on claims that the vendors started the fight. However, self-defense would not excuse the alleged taking of merchandize and cash.
In a normal situation, there would have already been arrests and charges in such a case. However, this case seems anything but conventional and prosecutors may be more timid after prior events triggered arson and looting. The delay may be a reflection of that caution, but (absent new evidence) there may be no avoiding arrests in the case since at least two people were sent to the hospital and violence was involved in the alleged crimes.
Here is the police report: Brown Family police report
‘Besides. Dead is dead. If they had left him there while he was in the process of dying, that would be different. That would be horrific and criminal. He wasn’t dying he was dead. Not living. Dead.”
Dust Bunny Queen,
I guess you don’t care about civil liberties then. I believe it was Patrick Henry, then Russ Feingold quoting him after senator Cornyn said something similar to your sentiment.
“Give me liberty or give me death.” So civil libertarians ought to care or they are not practicing that label, but merely posturing. Liberties are of most important when the sanctioned and “legitimate” institutions are taking them away (as in this case).
Don’t mean to deflect to the dialogue, but I’d like to hear the professor’s thoughts on this case:
http://www.wwltv.com/story/news/local/investigations/mike-perlstein/2015/02/26/charges-crumble-after-cell-phone-video-uncovered/24039559/
As randyjet noted: “The fish rots from the head by the way.”
“Ferguson judge behind aggressive fines policy owes $170,000 in unpaid taxes”
“Ronald J Brockmeyer, who is accused of fixing traffic tickets for himself and associates, was a driving force behind using fines and fees to generate revenue”
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/mar/06/ferguson-judge-owes-unpaid-taxes-ronald-brockmeyer
“While Brockmeyer owes the US government $172,646 in taxes, his court in Ferguson is at the centre of a class-action federal lawsuit that alleges Ferguson repeatedly “imprisoned a human being solely because the person could not afford to make a monetary payment”.
“Judge Brockmeyer not being incarcerated is a perfect illustration of how we should go about collecting debt from people who owe it,” said Thomas Harvey, the director of Arch City Defenders, one of the legal non-profits representing plaintiffs who were jailed in Ferguson.”
TJustice
I have often complained about how JT blog attracts some real winners…
The Ferguson Police Department should be figuring out how they’re gonna stay employed for much longer…
Sounds like we have a lotta folks talking out of their butts regarding crime scenes. Having worked crime scenes, while 4 hours is longer than normal, it is NOT unusual, and NOT done out of disrespect. It was done out of wanting to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. A body can be @ a crime scene for varying amounts of time for a myriad of reasons. Were there other crimes being worked by forensics? Does the dept. have their own forensics or require outside assistance? Was the medical examiner available? This crime occurred during the summer when many personnel are on vacation. Those are just a few common variables, there are many more. The 4 hours is just emotional propaganda. It’s a damn good thing the forensics did their job. There were folks out there to lynch a white cop and forensics backed him up, and proved Brown’s partner in crime a flat ass liar.
If it was one hour it was too long. That’s someone’s son.
Who had just committed a robbery and was attacking and trying to disarm a police officer. Everyone is someone’s child. So?
The police have to gather the evidence. They don’t have to put themselves and the medical personnel in mortal danger to do it. If they didn’t gather evidence they would be accused of being sloppy and other conspiracy type accusations.
Response times are not instantaneous in every are or in every case. It took longer in this case than it might in another. So?
Besides. Dead is dead. If they had left him there while he was in the process of dying, that would be different. That would be horrific and criminal. He wasn’t dying he was dead. Not living. Dead.
I say give them the same deal that HSBC got in the federal government’s money laundering investigation. Throw the book –I mean the deferred prosecution agreement — at them.
like mother, like son, like son, like mother.
Strong arm assaults run in this family.
If it was one hour it was too long. That’s someone’s son.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/24/us/michael-brown-a-bodys-timeline-4-hours-on-a-ferguson-street.html
Timeline for a body. 4 hours in the middle of a Ferguson street.
Leaving a dead body in the street for more than four hours (4.5) after you killed the person. Not uncivil on here. Interesting.
Mr. Schulte,
The doj agree with you, that is right. Not sure I would use that as a badge of honor, you constantly discredit holder and that institution. Moreover, this regime of the DOJ has been lawless just like most, that helps my point. You won’t find the rule of law or justice in the DOJ.
Also, grand juries routinely give a no bill vote for an indictment when it comes to members of police forces for killing civilians. But when its poor people (especially of color) there is no problem most of the time. Lastly, it’s interesting that you and JT don’t point out how odd it was for Darren Wilson to actually testify in front of a grand jury. Any attorney worth their salt knows that is highly risky (the attorney cannot even be in the room, and there is no cross ex). In this case it wasn’t, I wonder why… Maybe because from thousands of miles away one could tell this process was rigged, because the criminal law system is mostly rigged.
TJustice – your point is well taken about the DoJ. 🙂
Booger, I know exactly as much about the situation as you claim to. There is NO acceptable reason the body was left there that long. Excuses excuses excuses, won’t cut it. If the paramedic was able to stop there, get out, assess the body, the Coroners Office personnel could’ve been at the scene also, removing the body. You can claim that your excuses are more valid than anything that anyone else has said about the matter, but that is merely your opinion, not fact.
The Ferguson police were in a no win situation.
1.) Scrape up the body too soon and people will say they are trying to hide the forensic evidence. They would have been accused of hiding that Officer Wilson killed the guy. Because, what is the rush? Right? they must be hiding and manufacturing evidence. DISRESPECTING the victim!!!!. aka the dead guy.
2.)Leave the body until they can be safe from being attacked and shot at. Wait until all the proper forensic teams and photographers can film and document the evidence, trajectories, distances etc. Take detail evidence because the know this is going to be a biggie. Since a little town like Ferguson likely doesn’t have the experts, they need to get people from nearby cities. Why are you taking so long? DISRESPECTING the victim.!!! aka the dead guy.
There was no way that they could have satisfied everyone…..especially the armchair experts who from their little ivory white tower worlds seem to have super Kreskin like powers to know what happened without even being there.
The real world isn’t like an episode of CSI where you have instantaneous response, super duper computer skills and nothing ever goes wrong.
Maybe before Inga declares that Brown was disrespected and treated like road kill, she should analyze the reasons behind allowing him to remain in such a state for hours. You want a point, you got it. You can’t criticize what you don’t know. In your case, that never seems to stop you.
Inga, no need for heavy gunfire. Any gunfire would be too much of a risk. One bullet can kill. Again, the body riled up the crowd. Not something wanted or wished for by the police.
Booger, as far as the fires and shooting at police and firefighters, we all know that. It was all over the news. You haven’t told us anything that we all haven’t already heard, what is your point? It took four hours to remove the body because the gunfire was that heavy? Really? I think that perhaps the longer the body lay there, the more worked up the crowd became. If they would’ve removed the body in a reasonable amount of time, things may not have escalated the way they did.
Paul – Yes, I know and I find it vile. Yet, funding isn’t incitement unless it’s very specific funding and, in that case, it’s likely to be conspiracy or accessory before the fact.
It’s just too dangerous to start equating funding with incitement. It opens the door for nasty abuses by the Pols who control both the police and the specifics of law.
Or, if you prefer, it’s too similar to allowing a manufacturer to be sued of the illegal use of the products they make and distribute.
Inga
If I wanted to lie about where I live, I can assure you that there is no claim to fame by stating that I live minutes from Ferguson, a poor and crime ridden municipality. I mentioned that because I may have, due to my proximity, been privy to more live coverage of the event than you. Of course it was an unfortunate mistake that the dead body stayed there for such a long time period. My remarks to you were to shed some light on as to WHY this was a necessity, given the circumstances. This was not something that the Ferguson police relished, so why be surprised at the apology to the family? It was an apology, but it was one given with an explanation. I assumed you missed that one.
You choose to misunderstand what I wrote about the fires. The fires were not occurring at the time of the death. The ensuing fires, which were arsons, also had to abandoned by firefighters after they came under live fire. They were commanded to leave the sites, allowing massive damage and destruction, due to similar circumstances involving the death of Brown. Until the area was safe for emergency vehicles and personnel to attend to the body, there was an order to stay back.