Disturbing Mistake May Have Helped Darren Wilson Avoid Indictment

A disturbing and irresponsible mistake by the prosecutors in the grand jury responsible for indicting Darren Wilson, the officer who killed unarmed teenager Michael Brown, could have played an outsized role in the jury's decision not to charge Wilson.

The mistake was discovered by Lawrence O' Donnel of MSNBC. The problem arises from a Missouri law Assistant Prosecutor Kathy Alizadeh provided to the grand jury just before they heard testimony from Wilson himself.

The law Alizadeh provided the jurors said that it was legal to use lethal force to carry out an arrest or prevent a suspect from fleeing. Such a law drastically lowered the standard by which Wilson's shooting of Brown could have been deemed illegal. This is because one of the major questions in the case revolved around the legitimacy of using lethal force against Brown, and the distance at which such force would have been justified.

 The only problem with the Missouri law Alizadeh provided the jurors is that it was passed in 1979, and the United States Supreme Court later ruled the law unconstitutional in 1985. This means that it is illegal for the police to use lethal force against a person who is fleeing and not posing a threat to others.

This fact was not shared with the jury until weeks later, and after the jury had already heard Wilson's testimony and other evidence, according to MSNBC. This means that as the jury's listened to evidence for weeks, they were operating on an incorrect understanding of the law.

Even more disturbing is a detail which suggests that the mistake may have been intentional. This is because when asked whether decisions made by the U.S. Supreme Court were more definitive and final than those of the Missouri Supreme Court, which they are, Alizadeh said, "Just don't worry about that."

You can see Lawrence O'Donnell's full report below.