The death of Micheal Brown was a monumental moment in the American criminal justice system and American society in general. The chants of “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” heard nationwide originated from the media coverage and social media postings of this event in which the American public were told that Officer Wilson shot and killed Brown for simply walking in the street while Brown had his hands up yelling “don’t shoot”. Indeed the Black Lives Matter movement gained a level of national prominence as a result of Brown’s death that it had not enjoyed prior. While emotions continue to run strong and deep throughout the American populace over this event, as students of criminal justice certainly we owe it to our professional to put aside our personal feelings, biases, opinions, and investigate the facts of what really happened that day in Ferguson, MO. A day that truly has hanged this nation.
During this course we have studied that the job and responsibility of the professional investigator is to discover the truth, wherever that truth may take us, and not try to prove a case or tilt he facts to meet our point of view.
Below, I have placed the link the official report of the United States Department of Justice investigation into the death of Micheal Brown. Since this is not a political science course, we will not be studying the surrounding issues of the corrupt local Ferguson town government, but rather we will concentrate our efforts on the shooting itself, which is what an investigator assigned to the case would be expected to do.
http://www.justice.gov/sites/default/files/usao-mdpa/legacy/2015/03/18/DOJ%20Report%20on%20Shooting%20of%20Michael%20Brown.pdf
After reading the entire 86 page report, you are to answer the following questions and email your responses to me as a WORD attachment. Your answers should be organized and well written. You must answer each part of all the questions, observing the proper rules of English, i.e. spelling, grammar, sentence structure. (This is grad school!) All of the answers you need to complete the test are contained within the U.S. DOJ report.
1. What are the two United States Supreme Court decisions that govern the determination of a police officer’s reasonable or unreasonable use of force? (Provide case names and cites for each).
2. How many “witnesses” were interviewed by the FBI in this report?
3. How many “witnesses” were determined by the FBI to have lied to either the police, the media, or both, about their observations of the shooting of Michael Brown?
4. Explain the actions of Michael Brown inside the convenience store prior to his encounter with Officer Wilson? What statements did the store owner and his daughter provide to investigators? What crime(s) did Brown commit inside the store?
5. What was Officer Wilson’s intended destination when he encountered Micheal Brown and what did he intent to do once he arrived at his intended destination?
6. As to the forensic evidence, identify each location where shell casings and blood spatter were located by the FBI?
7. As to the forensic evidence, three autopsies were performed on the body of Micheal Brown: one by a physician hired by the Brown family, one by the FBI, and one by the local medical examiner. What were the results of the three autopsies? Describe the blood toxicity of Michael Brown at the time of his encounter with Officer Wilson?
8. How many witnesses reported they were fearful of telling the truth to investigators due to fears of retaliation against them by certain members of the community?
9. Describe the legal analysis used by the United States Department of Justice in reaching its determination on the use of deadly force by Officer Wilson?
10. Describe the conclusion of the US DOJ report you’ve just read. What was the conclusion? Using the legal standards for police conduct as issued by the United States Supreme Court, did the actions of Officer Wilson violate any laws?
