Hundreds of protesters poured into St. Louis streets on Friday, and some briefly scuffled with police, after a Missouri judge acquitted a former white police officer of murder in the 2011 fatal shooting of a black man suspected of dealing drugs.
With National Guard troops placed on standby, authorities urged demonstrators to remain peaceful as they protested the outcome of a case reminiscent of circumstances that spawned racially charged unrest in the nearby suburb of Ferguson and gave rise to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2014.
Police said several rocks and water bottles were thrown, and officers were seen in video footage and by eyewitnesses dousing at least five people with pepper spray near the courthouse.
But the protests, while boisterous, were otherwise largely peaceful, and no serious injuries or acts of vandalism were reported.
As night fell, police reported making 13 arrests and said four officers had been assaulted, though the confrontations were described as fairly minor. One group of demonstrators tried to climb onto Interstate 40 but was blocked by police officers in riot gear. Another group blocked an intersection by sitting down in the street for six minutes of silence.
After most protesters drifted away late on Thursday, a smaller group of individuals police described as "agitators" lingered on the streets in a neighborhood near the mayor's home, taunting officers who arrived in force.
Police fired volleys of tear gas as they ordered the crowd to disperse.
The outcry was prompted by Friday's verdict, rendered five weeks after the conclusion of a non-jury trial, finding former city policeman Jason Stockley, 36, not guilty of first-degree murder in the shooting death of Anthony Lamar Smith, 24.
Smith was shot five times in his car after trying to flee Stockley and his partner on Dec. 20, 2011, following an alleged drug deal, authorities said.
During the pursuit, Stockley could be heard saying on an internal police car video he was going to kill Smith, prosecutors said.
At Stockley's direction, his partner, who was driving, slammed the police cruiser into Smith's vehicle and they came to a stop, court documents said. Stockley then approached Smith's car and opened fire with his service weapon.
The former policeman believed Smith was armed, defense attorneys said, and a gun was found in the car. But prosecutors argued Stockley planted the weapon and that the gun had only Stockley's DNA on it.
Following the verdict, some 600 protesters marched through downtown St. Louis, chanting "No justice, no peace" and "Hey hey! Ho ho! These killer cops have got to go!" Some held signs that read "Black Lives Matter" and "No more racist killer cops."
Later in the evening, several hundred protesters moved from the courthouse to the city's popular restaurant neighborhood, the Central West End, and the crowd began to grow again.
"I’m sad, I’m hurt, I’m mad,” the Reverend Clinton Stancil of the Wayman AME Church in St. Louis said by telephone. “We haven’t made any progress since Ferguson, that’s clear. Cops can still kill us with impunity."
Stockley's attorney, Neil Bruntrager, said his client was relieved at the verdict. “It’s been a long road for him,” Bruntrager said.
In his ruling, Judge Timothy Wilson said he doubted the prosecution's claim the gun was planted, writing: "the court observes, based on its nearly 30 years on the bench, that an urban heroin dealer not in possession of a firearm would be an anomaly."
The comment sparked outrage by protesters on the street and on social media.
Murder convictions against law enforcement officers are rare. In recent years grand juries have declined to even charge officers involved in the 2014 fatal shooting of Michael Brown, 18, which triggered waves of violent protests in Ferguson, and in the choking death of Eric Garner, 43, in New York. Both were unarmed and black.
Brown's father, Michael Brown Sr., voiced his frustration after Friday's verdict.
"You all know this ain't right and you all continue to do this to us," he told a St. Louis television station. "Like we don't mean nothing, like we're rats, trash, dogs in the streets. Right now, I'm praying for my city because my people are tired of this."
St. Louis prosecutor Kimberly Gardner said she was disappointed and called on protesters to avoid violence.
“I understand the verdict has created anger and frustration for many in our community," she told reporters at the courthouse.
Stockley waived his right to a jury trial, allowing the judge to decide. He left the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department in 2013 and was arrested last year.
Smith's family settled a lawsuit against the city for $900,000 in 2013, according to Al Watkins, an attorney for Smith's fiancee, Christina Wilson.
Reuters
Sat Sep 16 2017
Protesters march in reaction to the not guilty verdict in the murder trial of Jason Stockley, a former St. Louis police officer, charged with the 2011 shooting of Anthony Lamar Smith, who was black, in St. Louis, Missouri. - REUTERS pic
Tahun kelima kempen 'We Care for Society’ Hada Labo terus bantu golongan terpinggir
RM50,000 disumbangkan dengan kerjasama Watsons Malaysia kepada Women of Will (WOW) dan Perstuan Kechara Soup Kitchen untuk salur bantuan kepada golongan memerlukan.
Ringgit susut berbanding dolar AS pada sesi awal
Pada 9 pagi, ringgit merosot kepada 4.7770/7825 berbanding dolar AS daripada 4.7745/7775 pada Khamis.
MAQIS tahan dua ekor anjing dari China, identiti mengelirukan
Pemeriksaan mendapati nombor mikrocip yang diimbas pada badan anjing tidak sepadan dengan nombor mikrocip yang diikrar dalam permit import.
Panggilan Google Meet kini boleh dipindahkan antara peranti tanpa henti
Pengguna kini boleh memindahkan panggilan Google Meet antara telefon pintar dan pelayar web tanpa henti.
Niaga SPOTLIGHT: Sustainability & palm supply chains
Kerentanan Android TV menyebabkan akaun Gmail boleh dirampas
Sebuah kerentanan yang agak serius wujud membolehkan sesiapa sahaja mengakses akaun Gmail yang di log masuk ke TV.
Rumah terbuka Selangor di Kuala Kubu Bharu Sabtu ini langgar akta - Bersih
Bersih persoal lokasi dan masa penganjuran rumah terbuka ini kerana majlis ini dianjurkan di kawasan dan ketika PRK Kuala Kubu Bharu.
AWANI Ringkas: Kedutaan AS sangkal dakwaan Prof Gilley
Ikuti rangkuman berita utama yang menjadi tumpuan sepanjang hari di Astro AWANI menerusi AWANI Ringkas.
EPL: Manchester City himpit Arsenal
Gawang The Seagulls robek lagi kali ini menerusi bintang meningkat naik Phil Foden dengan gol pada minit ke-26 dan 34.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu: Gerakan turun padang, sokong PN
Gerakan berkata, parti itu akan bersama-sama memastikan untuk merampas kerusi DAP pada pilihan raya kecil kali ini.
Aktivis Amerika Syarikat, Shaun King peluk Islam pada hari pertama Ramadan
Aktivis dan penulis yang memperjuangkan keadilan dan hak asasi termasuk gerakan Black Lives Matter, Shaun King mengumumkan memeluk Islam pada hari pertama Ramadan 2024.
Peguam Derek Chauvin minta perbicaraan baharu, tuduh juri berat sebelah
Bekas pegawai polis Derek Chauvin meminta untuk dibicarakan semula, dakwa salah laku oleh seorang panel juri.
2020: Politik, COVID-19 dan ekonomi
Ketika tirai 2020 dibuka, uforia menyambutnya bukan kepalang. Malaysia diuar-uar dengan Wawasan 2020 sarat segala harapan untuk menempa status negara maju.
Setelah 'Black Lives Matter', gerakkan 'Muslim Lives Matter'
Pasukan-pasukan boleh menunjukkan mereka berbeza dengan memakai patch "Muslim Lives Matter" pada lengan jersi mereka sepertimana pemain-pemain EPL memakai patch "Black Lives Matter".
Lelaki mati ditembak ketika sertai tunjuk perasaan Black Lives Matter
Tiada peserta lain yang cedera dan laporan awal mendapati mangsa berkemungkinan membawa senjata api dan menghampiri kenderaan suspek.
Arca penunjuk perasaan menggantikan patung Colston di Bristol
Marc Quinn mereka patung dengan menyerupai Jen Reid, seorang penunjuk perasaan yang berdiri di atas alas berkenaan selepas patung Colston ditumbangkan dan dibuang ke dalam perlabuhan Bristol.
EPL: Manchester City benam Arsenal 3-0
Aksi sulung tertutup Liga Perdana Inggeris (EPL) menyaksikan Manchester City menang selesa tiga kosong ke atas Arsenal.
EPL disambung semula, apa yang anda perlu tahu
92 perlawanan perlu dihabiskan dalam tempoh 40 hari oleh pemain yang tidak cergas sepenuhnya.
Black Lives Matter: Rakyat Australia berhimpun tuntut keadilan
Protes itu merupakan pesanan kepada pihak berkuasa mengenai ketidakadilan terhadap golongan minoriti.
Premier League bakal tunjukkan solidariti terhadap Black Lives Matter
Nama pada baju setiap pemain akan ditukar kepada Black Lives Matter sebagai solidariti terhadap protes kematian George Floyd.