Ferguson, Missouri Protest Of Michael Brown Death Swarmed By SWAT Team

[mystery-ak]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/13/ferguson-protest-swat-team_n_5676690.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000063

Ferguson, Missouri Protest Of Michael Brown Death Swarmed By SWAT Team
The Huffington Post    | By Alana Horowitz

Posted: 08/13/2014 7:18 pm EDT Updated: 35 minutes ago

Scores of SWAT officers swarmed Ferguson, Missouri, where unrest has broken out this week in the wake of a teenager's death.

Michael Brown, a black teenager, was unarmed when he was shot and killed by a police officer. The DOJ announced that it would look into allegations of racism and police brutality. The police officer's identity has not been released.

HuffPost's Ryan Reilly reported that a SWAT team of at least 70 people showed up the apparently peaceful demonstration. According to Reilly, cops told protesters to leave the area.

"This is not open for discussion," one officer said.

Police tactics during the unrest following the shooting have been criticized as over-aggressive. Earlier this week, cops used rubber bullets and tear gas against demonstrators, some of whom have been accused of looting.

Below are photos and videos of the scene, courtesy of Reilly.

Ryan J. Reilly        ✔ @ryanjreilly
Follow
I counted 70+ SWAT officers. Guns trained on crowds. Insanity.
5:56 PM - 13 Aug 2014 Ferguson, MO, United States

Ryan J. Reilly        ✔ @ryanjreilly
Follow
Overkill in #Ferguson. Officer won't answer my question about why this is needed.
5:52 PM - 13 Aug 2014

video at link

[Atomic Cow]

I think hundreds of Sons of Obama running amok is a good reason to deploy SWAT.

[sinkspur]

I think hundreds of Sons of Obama running amok is a good reason to deploy SWAT.

You think this overwhelming militarization of local PDs is a good thing?  Nobody was "running amok" today.  It was a peaceful demonstration and 70 mustarded-up hot dogs show up decked out as GI-Joes.  They actually look kinda funny standing there with nobody else in sight, like a graduation photo.

This kind of thing is ridiculous, and citizens should demand the civilians in charge of their local governments stop accepting surplus military equpment from the Defense Department.

[EC]

Sheesh. We wear less gear than that in a hot zone.

[mystery-ak]

http://www.politico.com/blogs/media/2014/08/reporters-arrested-in-ferguson-193914.html?cmpid=sf

Reporters arrested in Ferguson

By DYLAN BYERS | 8/13/14 8:53 PM EDT

Reporters from The Washington Post and the Huffington Post were arrested in Ferguson, Mo., on Wednesday night while covering the protests that have rocked the St. Louis suburb.

Wesley Lowery, a Washington Post political reporter, and Ryan Reilly, a Huffington Post justice reporter, were arrested in a McDonalds shortly before 8 p.m. ET. Police entered the restaurant and told patrons there to leave, the reporters wrote on Twitter after their release. The police then asked Lowery and Reilly for their identification and, according to the reporters, arrested them because they weren't packing their bags fast enough.

Lowery also said the police officers "assaulted" him. "Officers slammed me into a fountain soda machine because I was confused about which door they were asking me to walk out of," he wrote on Twitter. Lowery also said that he and Reilly were released without paperwork or charges, and that the officers refused to provide the reporters with their names.

Ferguson has been the site of protests since the death of Michael Brown, an 18-year-old African-American who was shot several times by an officer. The chief of police there has refused to disclose the identity of the officer in question, citing safety concerns. According to The Associated Press, the officer "has received numerous death threats, and the chief worries that disclosing his name would endanger [him]."

Both Lowery and Reilly have not responded to requests for email.

In a statement, the Huffington Post said Reilly "was arrested Wednesday while covering the protests in Ferguson, Missouri surrounding the death of unarmed African American teenager Michael Brown, who was shot to death by a police officer last week."

"Reilly tweeted at around 8:00 P.M. EDT that SWAT officers invaded the McDonald's at which he was working, requesting his identification after he took a photo of them," the statement erad. "The Washington Post's Wesley Lowery was also working at the fast food restaurant."

Marty Baron, the executive editor of The Washington Post, referred POLITICO to Lowery's tweets.

Reached by phone, an operator for the Ferguson Police Department would neither confirm nor deny Lowery and Reilly's arrest.

"I have no information," the operator said several times.

[katzenjammer]

You think this overwhelming militarization of local PDs is a good thing?  Nobody was "running amok" today.  It was a peaceful demonstration and 70 mustarded-up hot dogs show up decked out as GI-Joes.  They actually look kinda funny standing there with nobody else in sight, like a graduation photo.

This kind of thing is ridiculous, and citizens should demand the civilians in charge of their local governments stop accepting surplus military equpment from the Defense Department.

I am with you totally on this, Sink.  This ("overwhelming militarization of local PDs") is not going to end well.

[sinkspur]

May as well arrest some reporters for taking pics of the SWATters, and for "not packing their bags fast enough."

If you don't think cops are out of control in this situation, you're delusional.  Just follow Twitter; this fat Ferguson Chief whose mug has been all over the news is a modern-day Bull Connor.

[sinkspur]

http://reason.com/blog/2014/08/12/ferguson-police-chief-says-no-dashcams-i

No dashcams in any police cars in Ferguson, Mo.

[sinkspur]

Cops are telling protesters they must get off the streets by 9 PM.  There has been no curfew issued. 

Lots of people who usually side with the police are tweeting that cops are out of control in Ferguson.  There have been no riots since Sunday night, yet the cops are escalating their presence nightly.  Tonight, they look like they could take on ISIS.