*The recent revelation that police Ferguson, Missouri were wearing ' I am Darren Wilson' bracelets i n solidarity with the police officer who fatally shot an unarmed 18-yr-old Michael Brown, proves that the stupidity and insensitivity of the Ferguson Police Department continues, but the Justice Dept. has stepped in to help save them from themselves.
Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson agreed to bar his officers from wearing the bracelets while in uniform and on duty, and to ensure that other local police agencies did too, according to a letter released Friday by Christy Lopez, deputy chief of the special litigation section of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
Jackson, who's under fire by activists to quit, made the move after Justice Department officials brought the issue to his attention, alerted by residents during community meetings earlier in the week who complained they had seen officers wearing the bracelets on patrol during protests Tuesday, according to the letter.
'These bracelets reinforce the very 'us versus them' mentality that many residents of Ferguson believe exists,' Lopez wrote.
And to seemingly pour salt into the wound, officers were patrolling without their name tags or their names covered by black tape. Chief Jackson also had to be reminded by Lopez to order his officers to wear their name tags in keeping with department policy.
'Allowing officers to remain anonymous when they interact with the public contributes to mistrust and undermines accountability,' Lopez had written to Jackson in a letter earlier this week, also released Friday. 'The failure to wear name plates conveys a message to community members that, through anonymity, officers may seek to act with impunity.'
Ferguson police and the Justice Department have been investigating the Aug. 9 shooting of Michael Brown. A grand jury is deliberating about whether to charge Wilson.
The civil rights division announced this month that it was expanding its inquiry into Brown's death to include the entire Ferguson Police Department.
As we reported, on Tuesday, outraged protesters again clashed with police after a memorial at the scene of Brown's shooting was burned and photographs surfaced showing police watching in the background.
On Thursday, Jackson released a video apologizing to the Brown family and peaceful protesters for how police handled the case, including the prolonged period of time Brown's body was left in the middle of the street after he was killed.
'Please know that the investigating officers meant no disrespect to the Brown family, to the African American community or the people of Canfield. They were simply trying to do their jobs,' Jackson said.
According to the LA Times, Brown family attorney Anthony Gray said late Friday that the family had not seen reports about the bracelets. They are traveling in Washington and had no immediate comment.
'For me, the apology comes at a time when the trust and confidence in the chief has reached an all-time irreversible low,' Gray said. 'It is nearly impossible to measure any reach of his apology at this time. Most observers, I believe, are locked into their opinions about the handling of the shooting of this unarmed teen. Dynamite, much less an apology, will do little, in my opinion, to move anyone off their opinions at this point. Despite this, we remain prayerful that peace, calm and justice will prevail.'
(Ferguson Cops Banned From Wearing I Am Darren Wilson Bracelets )
Posted by Unknown on Saturday, September 27, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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