Police in Ferguson make arrests amid protests on 10th anniversary of Michael Brown’s death
FERGUSON, Missouri — Police in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson have arrested two people and said more arrests are likely following the Dec. 10 protests. birthday of the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, a pivotal moment in the national Black Lives Matter movement.
Trouble broke out when protesters gathered outside the suburb’s police station on Friday to remember Brown, the unarmed, black 18-year-old who was killed by Darren Wilson, a white police officer.
The protest began as a reunion, with traffic being diverted as about 40 people gathered outside the police station, drinking beer and eating, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported reported.
“We wanted to give peaceful protesters the space to do that,” police spokesman Pat Washington said Saturday morning.
However, around midnight, at least five protesters attempted to knock down part of the fence surrounding the police station, leading to arrests.
Washington said the department is still making arrests and reviewing surveillance footage to determine charges.
“There will be more to come,” she said Saturday.
Police did not immediately respond to a call from The Associated Press seeking comment. The department’s Facebook page said the police chief would issue a full statement later in the day.
Meanwhile, the St. Louis Fire Department has suspended a firefighter after he posted a message on social media that the fire department described as insensitive.
“We take this matter seriously and do not tolerate such behavior,” the department said. wrote.
The department did not release the contents of the message, but KMOV reported that it said: “Happy ALIVE day to Darren Wilson!”
Brown’s death made Ferguson the focal point of the national reckoning with the historically tense relationship between American law enforcement and black people.
In 2015, a US Department of Justice investigation also found no grounds to prosecute WilsonBut the report contained a damning indictment of the police department, which important concerns about how officers treated black residents and a justice system that created a cycle of debt for many residents.