Tensions rose on Saturday in the troubled St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, with a grand jury poised to decide whether to prosecute a white police officer for killing an unarmed black teenager.
U.S. President Barack Obama has called for calm, Missouri’s Governor declared a state of emergency and activated the state National Guard, and the FBI has deployed an extra 100 personnel in the city.
Police helicopters trained search lights over Ferguson late on Friday as a small gaggle of protesters braved the cold to demand that officer Darren Wilson stand trial for shooting 18-year-old Michael Brown on August 9.
Brown’s killing led to weeks of violence that inflamed racial tensions in the St. Louis suburb of 21,000, which has an African-American majority and an overwhelmingly white police force and town government.
Brown, a high-school graduate planning on attending technical college, was shot at least six times by Wilson. His body was left in the street for hours.
Wilson reportedly told the grand jury he acted in self-defence after tussling with the youth. Others claim Brown had his hands up in the air when he was shot.Few of the protestors believe the jury will indict Wilson. Brown’s father, Michael Brown Sr., appealed for restraint. “Hurting others or destroying property is not the answer,” he said in a sombre video plea.St. Louis County prosecutors have said they are setting up a press conference to announce the decision, but have not confirmed the date, time and location. — AFP
