Family of Michael Brown Sues Darren Wilson, City of Ferguson
The family of Michael Brown has filed a lawsuit against Darren Wilson and the City of Ferguson in relation to Brown's Aug. 2014 that caused social unrest in the St. Louis suburb and brought international attention to the issue of policing tactics in the United States.
The New York Times reports that former Ferguson police chief Thomas Jackson has also been named as a defendant in the civil suit that seeks at least $75,000 in damages. The lawsuit says that Wilson stopped Brown unconstitutionally before provoking Brown and causing the confrontation that would leave Brown dead from several gunshot wounds.
A key piece of evidence in the lawsuit revolves around statements given by a former police officer named William Mudd. Mudd said that Wilson shot Brown as Brown's hands were in the air, and Brown had only take one step toward Wilson. Wilson said that Brown had charged at him, leaving him no choice but to open fire.
Mudd, along with Jackson, are among a number of Ferguson police and court officials who resigned after it was revealed they were exchanging blatantly racist emails.
CNN reports that the lawsuit also contends that Wilson destroyed evidence and impeded the investigation by washing his hands of Brown's blood before a forensic analysis could be carried out.
The lawsuit also claims that Wilson's own version of the events surrounding the shooting changed throughout the course of the investigation into that day's events.
Wilson previously avoided indictment by Missouri and federal authorities because the standard of proof for a criminal case is beyond a reasonable doubt. The Browns are more likely to succeed with a civil suit because there just needs to be one piece of evidence that very strongly shows Wilson was in the wrong.
