Federal autopsy ordered in Missouri teen’s death

Associated Press

FERGUSON, MO.

Attorney General Eric Holder on Sunday ordered a federal medical examiner to perform another autopsy on a black Missouri teenager whose fatal shooting by a white police officer has spurred a week of protests in suburban St. Louis.

The “extraordinary circumstances” surrounding the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown and a request by Brown’s family members prompted the order, Department of Justice spokesman Brian Fallon said.

“This independent examination will take place as soon as possible,” Fallon said. “Even after it is complete, Justice Department officials still plan to take the state-performed autopsy into account in the course of their investigation.”

As night fell Sunday in Ferguson, another peaceful protest quickly deteriorated after marchers pushed toward one end of a street. Police responded by firing tear gas that sent many of the marchers retreating.

The Justice Department already had deepened its civil-rights investigation into the shooting. Officials said a day earlier that 40 FBI agents were gathering information in the Ferguson neighborhood where Brown, who was unarmed, was shot to death Aug. 9.

A federally conducted autopsy “more closely focused on entry point of projectiles, defensive wounds and bruises” might help that investigation, said David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor who supervised the criminal civil-rights section of Miami’s U.S. attorney’s office. The move is “not that unusual,” he added.

He also said federal authorities want to calm any public fears that no action will be taken on the case.

President Barack Obama, who has been getting updates on the situation while on vacation, was to be briefed by Holder upon returning Sunday to the White House.

The Justice Department’s announcement followed the first night of a state-imposed curfew in Ferguson, which ended with tear gas and seven arrests after police dressed in riot gear used armored vehicles to disperse defiant protesters.

Missouri State Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson said protesters were not the reason for the escalated police reaction. He cited a report of people who had broken into a restaurant and taken to the roof.

At a Sunday rally, Johnson met members of Brown’s family and said the experience “brought tears to my eyes and shame to my heart.”

“When this is over,” he told the crowd, “I’m going to go in my son’s room. My black son, who wears his pants sagging, who wears his hat cocked to the side, got tattoos on his arms, but that’s my baby.”

Johnson added: “We all need to thank the Browns for Michael. Because Michael’s going to make it better for our sons to be better black men.”

The Rev. Al Sharpton told the rally Brown’s death was a “defining moment for this country.”

Sharpton said he wants Congress to stop programs that provide military-style weaponry to police departments. He said he expects police to “smear” the slain teenager, his family and his attorneys.

He also condemned the recent spate of violence and looting in Ferguson.