The scene in Ferguson, Missouri, on Friday was much different than the past few days, as state police assumed crowd control duties and the violence and mayhem of the last few days’ protests took on calmer tones.
“You can feel it. You can see it,” said one protester, Cleo Willis, of the change in tone, Fox News reported. “Now it’s up to us to ride that feeling.”
And another protester, Pedro Smith, 41, said to the same news organization: “All [city police] did was look at us and shoot tear gas. This is totally different. Now we’re being treated with respect.”
The comments come as Gov. Jay Nixon announced a change in command for crowd control duties — from local St. Louis police to Capt. Ron Johnson of the Highway Patrol.
In a press conference on Thursday, both Mr. Johnson and Mr. Nixon vowed a new order — one that didn’t include such heavy-handed police tactics that included armored vehicles, tear gas and law enforcement that seemed more akin to military tactics than civilian police operations.
Police on Friday also announced that they would release the name of the officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, 18, CNN reported. Police say Brown was shot and killed when he tried to grab an officer’s gun. Witnesses give different accounts for the Saturday shooting and say Brown was actually holding his arms in the air — as if in surrender — when he was shot and killed.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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