Like this. Maybe we would seek fairness and seek real answers and seek permanent change and Solutions Rather than just picking sides. Because at the end, we need to be on the side of whats right for those children. Thanks for watching. Im al sharpton. Have a great weekend. Hardball starts right now. The robbery and the tape. Lets play hardball. Good evening. Im in for chris matthews. Leading off tonight, there have been big developments out of ferguson, missouri, today. This Morning Police finally released the name of the officer who shot an unarmed teenager to death last saturday. Darren wilson is a sixyear veteran of the force with no history of disciplinary action
against him, according to the chief of the force. Police also released information about what they say Michael Brown was up to in the minutes before he was shot. Police made public this video of a robbery at a nearby store saying the person in the video was Michael Brown. According to a Police Report brown allegedly tried to leave the store with several packs of mini cigars without paying but was completed by the clerk. Brown grabbed the employees shirt and pushed him into a display rack. Thomas jackson laid out a timeline of events that led many to conclude that the officer was responding to a description of the suspect this the robbery. This afternoon jackson said the officer wasnt aware of the robbery. Listen to this exchange. Did you know he was a suspect in a case or did he not know . He did not know. It had nothing to do with the stop. Nothing to do with the stop. Then why release the video . At this point, why did he stop Michael Brown . Because they were walking down the middle of the street blocking traffic. That was it. And then just moments ago, another turn in the story. The Ferguson Police told nbc news the officer who did the shooting saw mike brown with the stolen cigars and thought brown might be a suspect in the robbery. Brown family today blasted the Ferguson Police force for what they called a strategy of blaming the victim. Todd johnson is a reporter for the grio and joins us from ferguson. Todd, thanks for being with us. There is a lot of confusing, almost baffling information from the Police Department in ferguson. I want to make sense of this first to understand exactly where we are. This morning they put out a video. Their clear implication is there is a connection here. This afternoon the chief of police gives the press conference are. Hes asked several times if the officer was responding to the robbery. He says no. This was about getting him out of the street and not blocking
traffic. Then apparently after the press conference we are now finding out that the chief is now telling people, well, wait, the officer saw cigars and made a connection. Is that the official story of the police now . Im confused just listening to you recap whats happened today. You can imagine what the residents here in ferguson are feeling. Everything that youre describing did happen from one story to the next story to a little modification of the same story. People are confused and still unsettled as to why they dont know what happened when Michael Brown died. Okay. So he was encountered in the middle of the street and then perhaps the officer did see the mini cigars. Then it clicked and dawned on the officer that perhaps mike brown was a suspect. The crucial piece of information that everyone here and all other the Community Want to know is what happened next . What led to the use of this deadly force . All of the residents i have talked to surely understand that a pack of mini cigars or whatever mike brown allegedly took from the store isnt worth his life. Todays events did nothing to build trust or change feelings residents have in the community about the Police Department. Thats as problematic as you can imagine. Especially in a day and time where the Police Department are trying to do the exact opposite build trust, build community relations. Today is an example of how not to do the that. It seems awfully fishy to me. At this press conference as we say, the chief is asked over and over again about, you know, does the video you put out this morning have anything to do with the stop. He repeatedly says at the this press conference, no. The officer was just dealing with you know, basically jaywalking. It strikes me as odd that he wouldnt only after the press conference would he say, there was another reason. He was responding to the rob ary. It seems fishy like somebody got his ear after the press conference and said, though, this is not the official line. This might be extreme but it might be time for the chief of police of ferguson to kien of stop talking or at least get everything together before he gives press conferences. Again, the people that i have talked to today just arent buying the altering of events every few hours there is a new story. You can imagine in the morning when everyone was anticipating that the officers name was going to be released that there was at least going to be comfort that the Police Departments and the investigations were going as planned and that we were going to be closer for the residents in ferguson as a community to be closer to the knowledge that they want to know and the information they want. Certainly now towards the end of the day and into the demonstrations that will continue into the night, it gives no one any solace that the stories changed throughout the day. People want to know why the videos were released in the first place. Why were stills released of mike brown in a Convenience Store minutes before he died, released if the chief doesnt know if the they are related to how he died or why he was stopped. Again that builds into this mistrust of the ferguson residents into the Police Department. It didnt help anyone today for the information to come out the way it did. The other information missing here when you look at this Police Report and the information that was put out today, it mainly pertains to this robbery, the cigars. There is no real information there about the shooting itself. Again, correct me if im wrong here. My impression has always been its a standard thing in Police Forces just about anywhere when a weapon is used, when you discharge a weapon for any reason. You as the officer have to file a report. Maybe thats not the case in missouri, in ferguson. Should there be other pieces of information, pieces of paperwork filed by the officer, by the Police Department being withheld that we should have access to now . Perhaps in the oncoming days there will be, steve. Another part thats bizarre to people is the justification for why the police chief released Surveillance Video of whats allegedly mike brown in the first place. He said the reason even though its not related is because the media asked for it. Several members of the media looked at each other and said, didnt we ask for information about the shooting . A lot of people didnt know a robbery occurred. For the police chief to put it on the media and say that was the reason that the Surveillance Video and stills were released also left a lot of people in the media confused. We have confused members of the media. Confused members of ferguson and people who distrust the Police Department. You can see why this situation is being pieced together the way it is and why no one really has any idea whats going on. Thank you, todd johnson in
ferguson. The president of the Naacp Legal Defense Fund joins us tonight. Thank you for your time. Im curious what you make of the latest twist as todd is saying at the press conference this afternoon, the chief is saying two things clearly. One that the stop had nothing to do with the robbery. That the officer wasnt aware of that. Two that the only reason the video was released was because the media was asking for it. As soon as the press conference ends the chief is saying, oh, no. Actually the officer knew about the robbery. Saw the cigars and made the connection. Hes justifying putting the video out. It seems fishy to me. Im curious what you make of it. Im not confused. We are at a critical moment now. Look what happened today. We have been clamoring for information about the shooting. We have been asking for the identity of the officer. We have been asking for the incident report. We learned that there was going to be an announcement today. And the thrust of that
announcement was the name of the officer without any identifying information and an incident report and still photos of the robbery that happened at the store. We actually learned really nothing more today about the shooting than we knew yesterday except we know the name of the officer. We still havent seen the incident report. Im pleased my colleagues at the aclu filed suit seeking the incident report. This is a distraction. Its the kind of distraction that unfortunately the American Public falls for too much. This is the moment in which mike brown is being put on trial. His character is being put on trial. The sub text here is, you know are, did he deserve it . Should you trust this person . We are being invited to suggest his life has less value because he was a knucklehead that day many the store robbing those cigars. This is like asking whether eric garner in new york was illegally
selling loose cigarettes. The penalty for selling loose cigarettes or shoplifting from a Convenience Store cannot be being shot down in the streets or choked to death in new york. This is the time when the activists, media in particular, and the American Public has to stay focused on whats important and not become distracted by this effort to turn it into a story about who mike brown is. We need to know who is darren wilson. Where is he . Whats his history in the department. What does his statement say in the report . Hearing the police chief come back as you said after the press conference and say, he saw the cigars in the hand. Why dont you show us the document in which officer wilson describes what he saw, what he encountered, what he did, and why he did it . Its an outrage that we are here today and that they came out purporting to give us information and have given us no
information verifiable information about the shooting. Weve got to stay focused at this moment. This issue is not about mike browns character. This is about the conduct of the Ferguson Police department. Honestly, since we first learned about this incident, they have made either mistakes or very deliberate efforts to distract us from the important issue here. What is it going to take to get the incident report youre talking about that describes the shooting and the Police Version . What does it take for that to see the light of day. Im afraid it will take the litigation thats filed and it shouldnt. This is Public Information. The same way the incident report of the robbery is Public Information we are entitled to receive is the same way the incident report of the shooting is Public Information that we are entitled to receive. This is the kind of disrespect thats produced the anger in the community. Its ignoring whats the proper procedure to make sure this community is informed. Thats why i applaud the parents today. The mom and the family of mike brown for saying remain
peaceful. Stay focused. Think this is a moment when, if we become distracted, we wont get the information we need to see to it that justice is done in this case. Thank you. Appreciate that. With us now from ferguson is u. S. Congressman emmanuel cleaver, a democrat from missouri. Congressman, appreciate the time. The story today about last night was finally a break, finally peaceful protests and calm was restored. In the wake of whats happened today with the video, with the police all over the map in terms of the explanation for that, what are you anticipating tonight . I think the crowd is going to be larger than it was last evening. Its a peaceful crowd. Black, white, brown. Individuals are gathering here peacefully. I can tell you this. What the police chief did today, put on display monumental
incompetency or a very elaborate conspiracy that people here believe the Police Department to do. There are people here who wont speak with the Police Department. One met with the fbi a short time ago. One will meet with the fbi tomorrow. They are not in any way comfortable in having contact with the police here. They think they are about coverup. They believe they are incompetent. There is nothing anybody can show me, tell me that would suggest anything otherwise. Let us assume that Michael Brown stole some cigars. Nobody has provided information that that even happened. But why would a Police Officer then become the police, the judge, the jury, and the executioner for cigars . I think that the police chief is trying to, i think, get us moving in one direction and brick us back to create confusion hoping in a while the plead i cant will leave and the crowds will get smaller. Thats not going to happen. There will be a Church Service tonight on the other side of town where people are going to Start Talking about reconciliation. Let me just say it is extremely difficult to talk about reconciliation when the police chief is stirring the pot more than any demonstrator could do. You talk about witnesses who are afraid to talk to this to come forward to talk to the Police Department. All this sort of chaos today. Then the statements are from the police. Look at the fwags Going Forward are you confident this investigation is going to be able to get to the truth of
this . If the Police Department of this town conducts the investigation, nobody is going to believe it. There is not a teacup full of trust by the community of the Police Department. There is nobody who believes that. As i understand, the county police now are responsible the county is investigating this. Also the Justice Department has come to look for potential civil rights violations. With those investigations in place, do you think well get satisfactory answers on this . I do believe that the Justice Department and the fbi will conduct a thorough and fair investigation. I hope that the police here, the police chief, will never come through and give any information that concludes one way or another on the investigation. He has no credibility in his town. The Police Officer is not required to live here. Thats a problem. They can live anywhere. So if this community is not good enough for them to live in, its not good enough for them to police in. Thats a theme we have been hearing about. A police force that represents the community. Thank you, congressman. Coming up, the Convenience Store video. People were asking why the police waited so long to release it. When the police said the officer didnt know about the robbery the question became why release it at all . Also debate on the right. Conservatives have always supported the police and tough tactics but libertarians are concerned whether this is another sign of the state overreaching. Plus, Texas Governor rick perry who is considering a run for the white house has been indicted for abuse of power. Well get the details later in the show. Finally, life after death in hawaii. This is hardball, the place for politics. Two medium cappuccinos
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