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PEOPLE & ARTS Wednesday 15 March 2017

Prosecutor: Film’s edit of

Ferguson video distorts incident

JIM SALTER
Associated Press
FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — A
prosecutor was critical
Monday of store surveil-
lance footage from a new
documentary about the
In this Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, file photo, Stephen Hillenburg Michael Brown shooting in
attends the world premiere of “The Spongebob Movie: Sponge Ferguson, calling it a heav-
Out Of Water” at AMC Lincoln Square in New York. ily edited attempt to distort
Associated Press an incident that occurred
‘SpongeBob’ creator several hours before Brown
died in an encounter with
says he has Lou a police officer.
Filmmaker Jason Pollock
responded by calling St.
Gehrig’s disease Louis County prosecu- St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch, left, speaks
during a press conference on Monday, March 13, 2017, at the
tor Robert McCulloch a
“master of deception” St. Louis County Justice Center to address the latest video just
The Associated Press and standing by the video released that shows Michael Brown at the Ferguson Market the
night before he was shot.
The creator of Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants” shown in his documentary Associated Press
says he has been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease. “Stranger Fruit.”
Stephen Hillenburg tells Variety he’ll continue to work on McCulloch released five
the show and his other passions for as long as he’s able. surveillance videos from 18-year-old, was fatally footage shows Brown trad-
Lou Gehrig’s disease is also known as amyotrophic lateral the early hours of Aug. 9, shot by a white officer, ing a small amount of mari-
sclerosis, or ALS. It’s a progressive disease that attacks 2014, at Ferguson Market & Darren Wilson, shortly after juana in exchange for the
nerve cells that control the muscles. There is no known Liquor that he said are un- noon on Aug. 9, 2014. The cigarillos. Pollock reasons
cure. The 55-year-old Hillenburg is a former marine biology edited and tell a different shooting set off months Brown returned 10 hours
teacher who created the series featuring an animated story than filmmakers sug- of sometimes violent pro- later to pick up the bag
sponge that lives in a pineapple under the sea in 1999. gest. tests. Wilson was eventu- of cigarillos that he simply
Nickelodeon says in a statement to Variety that Hillenburg The footage as it appears ally cleared of wrongdoing had set aside earlier — not
“is a brilliant creator who brings joy to millions of fans” in the documentary “was by both a St. Louis County to steal cigarillos as police
and its “thoughts and support” are with Hillenburg and clearly an attempt to dis- grand jury and the U.S. De- claimed. Jay Kanzler, an
his family. tort this and turn it into partment of Justice. attorney for Ferguson Mar-
Within days of Brown’s ket, said there was no bar-
something it isn’t,” Mc-
‘SNL’ ‘Weekend Update’ Culloch said at a news con- death, Ferguson police tered deal between Brown
and the market workers.
ference. He added that it
released surveillance vid-
segment gets summer was potentially dangerous, eo from Ferguson Market Kanzler said Brown offered
purporting to show Brown marijuana for cigarillos, but
setting off a Sunday night
prime-time run protest of about 100 peo- stealing cigarillos from the the workers refused.
store shortly before noon. McCulloch agreed “there
ple that included reports
of shots fired and the ar- He left the store and was was no transaction be-
rest of a man accused of walking on Canfield Drive tween Mr. Brown and the
trying to blow up a police when Wilson told him to get store employees.”
car by putting a napkin in on the sidewalk and off the “And the suggestion that
the gas tank and trying to street — the beginning of he’s coming back to pick
light it. Henry Stokes, 44, their fatal confrontation. up what he bartered for
was charged Monday with The documentary, which is just stupid,” McCulloch
attempting to cause a ca- premiered Saturday, in- said.
tastrophe. cludes earlier and previ- The grainy unedited foot-
On Monday night, a few ously unseen surveillance age, which has no sound
dozen protesters gathered footage showing Brown in- and also was released by
peacefully outside Fergu- side the store at 1:14 a.m. Kanzler, shows a clerk pull-
In this March 4, 2017 photo provided by NBC, Colin Jost and son Market while police of- getting what appears to ing both boxes of cigarillos
Michael Che, right, appear during Weekend Update segment ficers guarded the store. be two drinks from a cool- from the bag after Brown
of “Saturday Night Live” in New York. Pollock said there was no er, then going to the coun- leaves and putting them
Associated Press
deceptive editing. ter and requesting cigaril- back on a shelf. Another
LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Saturday Night Live” gets the “He’s trying to make it los. The clerk puts the drinks worker takes the drinks
summer off, but “Weekend Update” will keep the political seem like I did something and cigarillos in a bag. back toward the cooler.
satire coming in prime time. that I didn’t,” Pollock said Brown gives something to a Pollock said those actions
NBC said Tuesday that four episodes of “Saturday Night of McCulloch on Monday clerk, who appears to sniff are not relevant.
Live: Weekend Update” will air at 9 p.m. Thursday starting in a phone interview. “He’s it. A second clerk also sniffs “I didn’t edit the ex-
Aug. 10. Michael Che and Colin Jost, who anchor the a master at deception, what appears to be a small change,” Pollock said. “I
segment, will be joined by other “SNL” cast members, the I’ll give him that, and he bag. Brown starts to leave decided to end my scene
network said. “Weekend Update” has ventured away tricked the world for a long but then returns to the after Michael left the store
from its late-night turf into prime time before, but political time, but he can’t trick us counter, talks to the clerks because after that it is ir-
tumult makes it an especially ripe opportunity for the faux now. Because anybody and leaves without the relevant what happened
newscast. “SNL” is enjoying a ratings bounce from milking who sees that video knows bag containing the drinks to the (cigarillos) and it is
President Donald Trump’s election and the early days of exactly what they see.” and cigarillos. irrelevant what they (the
his administration. Brown, a black, unarmed Pollock said he believes the clerks) did with them.