Possible 2nd Shooter Michael Brown In #Ferguson, Video May Exist

Denver, Colorado, August 19th, 2014.  An anonymous source who works for a major news organization said there is a video of the Michael Brown shooting, showing the youth with his hands in the air before being pumped with at least 6 bullets.  More, the source says, there is a likely possibility of a second shooter.  Both reports are unconfirmed.

The source, who is retired military and past law enforcement, says he was notified of the video which apparently was posted on You Tube shortly after the shooting.  The source said he did not see the video but his friend did see it, and had called him to take a look.  However, the video was taken down so quickly, the source was unable to see the video himself.  

The source indicated it would be highly unlikely for any officer to shoot a victim 6 times.  The source told radio show host, Tim Paynter, of the 1150 AM  radio program, Un Dia Sin Fronteras, it was quite possible to rail off six shots.  However, officers are trained to cease shooting long before the six shots could have been fired by a single officer.  By limiting the number of shots the citizen is incapacitated, but alive.  It was the fifth and sixth shot that killed Michael Brown, according to autopsy results.

Denver Rally For Michael Brown

A more plausible explanation for the gunshot wounds is the participation of a second shooter.  There was apparently a second officer on the scene, since the reported shooter, Darrel Wilson, was sitting in the right seat of the patrol car when he encountered Michael Brown.   When Brown and his friend, Dorian Johnson, didn't get out of the street, the driver of the patrol car backed the vehicle up so that officer Wilson could grab Michael Brown through the patrol car window or an opened door on the passenger's side, according to witnesses.  However, the source said the existence of a second shooter was only speculation from his experience as a police officer.

Famous New York Pathologist, Michael Baden, may have been hinting about the possibility of a second shooter after releasing the results of his preliminary examination of the victim.

Dr. Baden said, "In my capacity as the forensic examiner for the New York State Police, I would say, 'you're not supposed to shoot so many times."

No witness reports speak to a second officer involved in the shooting.  Instead, witnesses claim officer Wilson grabbed Michael Brown by the throat when he refused to get out of the street.  The officer was heard to have said, "I will shoot" when a gun went off in the patrol car.  Brown and and friend, Dorian Johnson, fled.  Officer Wilson then exited his patrol car, firing shots.  

Some witnesses claim the two youths stopped and turned toward the officer.  According to the authorities, Michael Brown lunged at the officer at which time the officer elected to use deadly force.  This account is a surprise to many people because the affirmative defense of justification came over a week after the shooting.  The department has released very few details about the events until today.  The official account appears to be an effort to construct a story which will provide Wilson adequate reasons to use deadly force on an unarmed 18 year old.  

The confidential source told Paynter it would help if the authorities explained the process of what happens with investigations and internal affairs after an officer involved shooting.  It is not unusual for an officer to remain free during this investigatory time.  

When an officer uses deadly force he does so under protection of governmental authority and immunity.  However, the officer must adhere to strict guidelines as well as follow procedures adopted from case law set out over years of litigation from various cases.  If the officer steps outside of the framework of those procedures, then the governmental immunity will likely not protect him.  In extreme cases, the officer may face criminal charges.  A citizen, who does not have this immunity, would have been arrested by now.

An officer is not under any obligation to retreat and may use deadly force to effect an arrest when he reasonably believes deadly force is immediately necessary to effect the arrest and reasonably believes the person to be arrested has committed a felony, is attempting to escape by use of a deadly weapon, or may otherwise endanger the life or inflict serious physical injury unless arrested without delay.

A mere charge of jaywalking is not enough to constitute a felony.  However, a struggle with a police officer normally would be.  Clouding the water is whether officer Wilson had a right to initiate physical contact with Brown over a jay walking violation.  The attempted arrest, if that is Wilson's defense, has to be lawful.  Brown's attempt to escape did not involve a deadly weapon and Brown was not threatening anyone or endangering any one's life.

If a video exists showing Michael Brown with his hands in the air, then the subsequent shooting of an unarmed man who is not an aggressor will likely be positive proof and lead to criminal charges being pressed against the officer, or officers, involved.  A grand jury is soon to be convened to review these specific facts.  Until then, independent points of view remain nothing more than speculation and conjecture.

Ferguson residents are suspicious of their government.  The #Ferguson police department released a video with a person they identified as Mike Brown in a "strong-arm" robbery (where no weapon is used, but physical force is used) of a convenience store minutes before the shooting.  The revelation was made at the same time the name of the police officer was revealed.  The tactic appeared to be a direct slur against the reputation of Michael Brown.  Officer Wilson likely did not know about the robbery when he ordered the 18 year old Brown to "get the fuck out of the street", hence it was not a factor to be considered.

St. Louis City Police killed a person with apparent mental problems today, only a few short miles from the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson, according to Fox News.

St. Louis, Mo. police chief, Sam Dotson, said, “So if you`re the family of a police officer and someone approaches you within three feet with a knife, I think you have the right to defend yourself and protect yourself. So I think it certainly is reasonable that an officer has an expectation to go home at the end of the night," Fox News reported.

"Today @SLMPD officers received a call for a subject who appeared agitated & was armed with a knife. Suspect yelled kill me now & approached," Dotson tweeted.

Dotson failed to mention the other options police officers had, the taser, and simple retreat, pointed out some St. Louis residents.  The law may not have required the retreat, but the wisdom of the law is always in the application.  Just because law does not require police officers to retreat does not mean they can't, or shouldn't.  With a mentally ill person asking to be killed, restraint is usually called for.  That did not happen again today, slightly more than a week after Michael Brown was killed.

The Ferguson community argues structural racism makes life as a black man very dangerous in Missouri.  Now, the mentally ill can share that fear.  If you happen to be black and mentally ill then the deck is severely stacked against you.  The chant, #handsupdontshoot and #iftheygunnedmedown is becoming a reality for people living under police rule in Missouri and across America.

  

Dr. Baden said “In my capacity as the forensic examiner for the New York State Police, I would say, ‘You’re not supposed to shoot so many times.'"