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Michael Brown
On Saturday, August 9, 18-year-old Michael Brown, an unarmed teenager was killed by a police officer in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson, MO. Eyewitnesses to the shooting reported that Brown was killed while attempting to surrender, but police say that the teen assaulted the officer before the shooting.
Immediately following the shooting, riots and looting broke out within the community where several businesses were destroyed, including a QuikTrip convenience store that was burned down due to the frustration in the community involving the killing.
There are several articles circulating the internet and other various news sites that all depict something slightly different of what happened. Some are on Brown’s side, other’s are on the police’s side, and the vast majority are stuck in the middle. However, there are a few facts that we know for sure about Michael Brown and the shooting.
What we know about Michael Brown:
- He was an 18-year-old student
- He grated from Normandy High School in St. Louis in the spring of 2014. He was scheduled to start classes at Vatterott College, a Missouri trade college, on Monday, August 11.
- On the day of his death, Brown as visiting his grandmother, Desuirea Harris, who lives in Ferguson, a working-class suburb of St. Louis.
What we know about the shooting:
- Brown was shot multiple times and killed by a Ferguson police officer in the early afternoon of Saturday, August 9, outside of an apartment complex.
- Brown was unarmed. All shell castings found at the scene were from the police officer’s gun.
- At least one shot was fired from the police car. Brown was killed while he was standing about 35 feet away from the car.
- The name of the police officer has not been released. St. Louis County police chief Jon Belmar told reporters on Sunday morning that the officer had been in the Ferguson police department for six years, and that Belmar was not aware of any problems the officer had during that time.
Source: Vox News
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