I hate to bring this back up, but am hoping it can be discussed in a civil manner; hard to believe this all started over three months ago.
The rioting and destruction of private property is unjustifiable.
But I do find it reasonable to vocally question the officer’s account of what transpired. I’ve read it and I think anyone who is truly objective will agree that it sounds fishy, possibly coached (particularly the part about the kid reaching in his waistband). I also read the account of Brown’s friend Dorian Johnson and I believe portions of his account can be questioned as well.
One side is portraying the kid as a stoned, loud mouthed, out of control thug/punk and painting the cop as the model civil servant. The other side is claiming the cop overreacted and shot an innocent college bound kid multiple times while he was trying to surrender with his hands in the air.
The truth is likely somewhere in the middle. Kid was probably being disrespectful; cop probably overreacted and couldn’t control his rage and it escalated from there. Cooler heads on either side likely prevents the whole situation. Sounds like the community was a powder keg waiting for a spark. Sad all around.
