Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 14 March 2017

Prosecutor: Film’s edit of Ferguson video distorts incident

gas tank and trying to light walking on Canfield Drive
it. Henry Stokes, 44, was when Wilson told him to get
charged Monday with at- on the sidewalk and off the
tempting to cause a catas- street — the beginning of
trophe. their fatal confrontation.
Pollock said there was no The documentary, which
deceptive editing. premiered Saturday, in-
“He’s trying to make it cludes earlier and previ-
seem like I did something ously unseen surveillance
that I didn’t,” Pollock said footage showing Brown in-
of McCulloch on Mon- side the store at 1:14 a.m.
day in a phone interview. getting what appears to
“He’s a master at decep- be two drinks from a cool-
tion, I’ll give him that, and er, then going to the coun-
he tricked the world for ter and requesting cigaril-
a long time, but he can’t los. The clerk puts the drinks
trick us now. Because any- and cigarillos in a bag.
body who sees that video Brown gives something to a
knows exactly what they clerk, who appears to sniff
see.” it. A second clerk also sniffs
Brown, 18, who was black what appears to be a small
and unarmed, was fatally bag.
St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch, left, speaks during a press conference on Mon- shot shortly after noon on Brown starts to leave but
day, March 13, 2017, at the St. Louis County Justice Center to address the latest video just released
that shows Michael Brown at the Ferguson Market the night before he was shot. Aug. 9, 2014, during a vio- then returns to the coun-
(J.B. Forbes/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP) lent encounter with white ter, talks to the clerks and
officer Darren Wilson. Wil- leaves without the bag
JIM SALTER sponded by calling St. Louis The footage as it appears son was eventually cleared containing the drinks and
Associated Press County prosecutor Robert in the documentary “was of wrongdoing by both a cigarillos.
CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) — A McCulloch a “master of clearly an attempt to distort St. Louis County grand jury Pollock said he believes the
prosecutor was critical deception” and standing this and turn it into some- and the U.S. Department footage shows Brown trad-
Monday of store surveil- by the video shown in his thing it isn’t,” McCulloch of Justice, but the shoot- ing a small amount of mari-
lance footage from a new documentary “Stranger said at a news conference. ing set off months of some- juana in exchange for the
documentary about the Fruit.” He added that it was po- times violent protests. cigarillos. Pollock reasons
Michael Brown shooting in McCulloch released five tentially dangerous, setting Within days of Brown’s Brown returned 10 hours
Ferguson, Missouri, calling it surveillance videos from off a Sunday night protest death, Ferguson police later to pick up the bag
a heavily edited attempt to the early hours of Aug. 9, of about 100 people that released surveillance vid- of cigarillos that he simply
distort an incident that oc- 2014, at Ferguson Market & included reports of shots eo from Ferguson Market had set aside earlier — not
curred several hours before Liquor that he said are un- fired and the arrest of a purporting to show Brown to steal cigarillos as police
Brown died in an encoun- edited and tell a different man accused of trying to stealing cigarillos from the claimed.
ter with a police officer. story than filmmakers sug- blow up a police car by store shortly before noon. Jay Kanzler, an attorney for
Filmmaker Jason Pollock re- gest. putting a napkin in the He left the store and was Ferguson Market, said q
California police use fire hose on man before fatal shooting

AMY TAXIN Police in the city 30 miles before jumping to his feet. Orange resident, was hit over a 20 to 30-minute span
Associated Press southeast of Los Angeles Officers tried to arrest him by a single bullet and pro- near a 24-hour laundry and
ORANGE, Calif. (AP) — Po- broke the front passenger- when he reached behind nounced dead at a hospi- other businesses in a sur-
lice in Southern California side window and blasted his back and pulled out a tal, police said. rounding strip mall, police
fatally shot a man who they the man with water. knife, Lopez said. “We try to use less lethal said.
say pulled a knife after he “We felt this guy was go- In the video, the man was rounds, but it is not always “I had never seen any-
was forced from his locked ing to light himself on fire partially blocked from view possible,” Lopez said. thing like that,” said Fabian
vehicle by blasts from a fire or blow the car up,” Lopez by another vehicle after he The man was not immedi- Huerta, who watched with
hose. said. Video aired by KABC- climbed out and struggled ately identified but authori- surprise as police started
The man locked himself TV (http://bit.ly/2mDxpTR ) with officers. No weapon is ties said he had a crimi- spraying water into the
in the minivan late Sun- showed that moments af- seen but a voice is heard nal record that included van. “I thought he was go-
day with a gas can and ter the water was sprayed yelling “knife” moments be- weapons and drugs viola- ing to surrender.”
lighter, and the hose was and police broke addi- fore two shots rang out. tions. Thorsen said an ac- Huerta, who works clean-
employed after he lit a tional windows, the shirtless A non-lethal round of rub- tive warrant was out in con- ing businesses at the strip
cigarette and poured what man climbed out head-first ber projectiles was ineffec- nection with the minivan. mall, said in Spanish that he
appeared to be gasoline through the driver’s-side tive so officers used lethal The man was pulled over saw an officer grab the sus-
onto a rag, Orange police window. force, Lopez said. The man, for a broken tail light and pect by the hand before
Lt. Fred Lopez said. He stumbled to the ground described as a 33-year-old the incident played out he heard gunshots.q