A state grand jury investigation of the killing of Michael Brown is about to get under way.
Ferguson Police Shooting Grand Jury Probe to Begin Tomorrow
A grand jury will begin hearing evidence tomorrow in the police shooting death of Ferguson, Missouri, teenager Michael Brown, as violent clashes continued in the St. Louis suburb.
A grand jury will start hearing from witnesses about the shooting that left Brown, 18, dead, Ed Magee, a spokesman for St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch, said in a telephone interview today. The shooting sparked more than a week of violent protests in Ferguson.
The state grand-jury probe comes as federal officials are starting a civil-rights’ investigation into the death of the unarmed black teenager. President Barack Obama has ordered U.S. Attorney Eric Holder to go to Ferguson and meet with FBI agents and Justice Department lawyers handling the criminal probe into the circumstances of Brown’s death.
There has been a great deal of discussion about the intentions of County Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch. My understanding is that the way a grand jury gets impaneled is by court order in response to a petition from the local prosecutor. It would therefore seem that McCulloch is taking steps to give a grand jury the opportunity to review the evidence and make a determination of charges. Grand jury proceedings are secret and it is difficult to know what exactly goes on in the process. The only thing that is made public is the conclusion reached by their deliberations.