10 Things We've Learned Since the Ferguson Grand Jury Decision
How the investigation of Michael Brown's death was handled.
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More Questions Since Evidence Made Public - Following the St. Louis grand jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson in killing Michael Brown, a transcript of the proceedings and evidence reviewed by the panel were released to the public. BET.com runs down 10 things that we learned about the documents and case that have left Brown’s family and lawyers criticizing St. Louis prosecutor Bob McCulloch for how the case was handled. — Natelege Whaley (@Natelege_) (UNITED STATES - Tags: CRIME LAW) (Photo: REUTERS / Cristina Fletes-Boutte/POOL/LANDOV)
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Most Prosecutors Don't Fail to Convince a Grand Jury to Make Indictments - The grand jury’s decision to not indict was a rare occurrence. In 2010, U.S. attorneys were 99 percent successful in convincing a grand jury to indict a suspect, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics. Out of 162,000 federal cases, only 11 declined to indict. However, it is rare that a cop is indicted for a shooting. “The grand jury’s decision confirms the fear that many expressed months ago — that a fair and impartial investigation would not happen,” the National Bar Association said in a statement. (Photo: Frances Twitty/Getty Images)
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Only 5 Witnesses Were Considered 'Relevant' - Family attorney Anthony Gray said Tuesday that only four or five of the 50 witnesses presented before the grand jury were considered credible. But he questioned the point of bringing them to testify if they weren’t. “If you already know going into it that a person didn't see the event, they already told you that, then why would you present them in front of the grand jury? What's the point?” he asked. Dorian Johnson, who was with Brown up until he was killed, is pictured above. He testified. (Photo: Laurie Skrivan/St. Louis Post-Dispatch/MCT/LANDOV)
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Medical Examiner Didn't Take Photos of Michael Brown's Body - A medical examiner said during testimony to the grand jury that photographs of Brown’s body upon arriving to the scene were not taken, although it is a normal protocol. The examiner’s excuse: “My battery in my camera died.” The examiner says the police’s identification unit took photos and added that the pathologist asks for it “sometimes.” The official also did not know if photos were asked for in this case. (Photo: Big'mike Jr Brown via Facebook)
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Brown's Body May Have Been Moved Before Examiner Arrived - The medical examiner also was not sure if Michael Brown’s body was moved before arriving. The examiner described livor mortis — the settling of blood in the lowest part of the body — as a way of telling if the body had been moved, but couldn’t tell because of Brown’s skin complexion. “Actually, with light skin people you can see it, in dark skin people it is hard to see,” the examiner said. (Photo: AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
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The Paramedics May or May Not Have Been Called - The medical examiner was not certain if paramedics had been called for Brown after he was shot. “What they usually do is put a lead on their body for EKGs to see if there is any kind of heartbeats,” the examiner said. “None of that was placed on there. Everything from there on is going to be an assumption.” (Photo: UPI Photo/Bill Greenblatt)
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Darren Wilson 'Felt Like a Five-Year-Old' - Although Darren Wilson is 6-foot-4 and 210 pounds, he said he felt like a child when Brown was apparently attacking him. “And when I grabbed him, the only way I can describe it is I felt like a five-year-old holding onto Hulk Hogan,” said Wilson. "Hulk Hogan, that's just how big he felt and how small I felt just from grasping his arm." (Photo: St. Louis County Prosecutor's Office)
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Photos of Wilson’s Injuries Do Not Appear Severe - Photographs of Wilson and his injuries were also made public. “They had discovered there that I had scratches on the back of my neck...,” he told the jury. “I had a swollen right cheek, my left they said was swollen, I had scratches around my hairline in the back and I think on the side of my neck, but that's all I remember." To some, the images don't show injuries that severe. (Photo: AP Photo/St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office)
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Wilson Told Police and Grand Jury Two Different Stories - Although Wilson told the grand jury that Brown swung at him, he described being swung at 10 times by the teen to police investigators, who interviewed him after the incident. (Photo: AP Photo/St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office)
Photo By AP Photo/St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office
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The Federal Investigation Will Continue - Although McCulloch mentioned that the local and federal authorities had the “same evidence” in their separate investigations, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder insisted that the Justice Department’s investigation will be “thorough,” remain independent and will avoid “prejudging any of the evidence” as it had done from the beginning, he said. (Photo: Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images)