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"ST. LOUIS (Reuters) - A Missouri judge on Friday ruled a white former St. Louis police officer was not guilty of murder in the 2011 shooting of a black man, sending hundreds of protesters to the city's streets to voice their anger.
With the National Guard on standby in case of violence, authorities appealed to protesters to march peacefully in a state that has seen racially charged clashes in the past.
Jason Stockley, 36, was acquitted of first-degree murder for killing Anthony Lamar Smith, 24. The former policeman, who was arrested in May 2016, was accused of planting a gun in Smith's car but testified he acted in self-defense.
After the verdict, more than 500 protesters marched in downtown St. Louis, chanting "No justice, no peace" and "Shut it down." Some held "Black Lives Matter" signs.
"I’m sad, I’m hurt, I’m mad,” the Reverend Clinton Stancil of the Wayman AME Church in St. Louis said by telephone. “We haven’t made any progress since Ferguson, that’s clear. Cops can still kill us with impunity."
St. Louis Police said on Twitter that one person was taken into custody after damaging a police vehicle.
Mayor Lyda Krewson and Governor Eric Greitens, who put the National Guard on standby, appealed for calm. Local schools planned early dismissals and businesses shut down.
"Frustration, anger, hurt, pain, hope and love all intermingle," Krewson said in a statement. "I encourage St. Louisans to show each other compassion."
The attorney for Smith's fiancee, Christina Wilson, said his client was appalled by the decision. Al Watkins said the ruling showed prejudice, pointing to a line where the judge wrote that an "urban heroin dealer" without a weapon would be an anomaly.
Judge Timothy Wilson's highly anticipated ruling was announced more than five weeks after the bench trial ended."
Source, full story:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/missouri-...100419885.html
With the National Guard on standby in case of violence, authorities appealed to protesters to march peacefully in a state that has seen racially charged clashes in the past.
Jason Stockley, 36, was acquitted of first-degree murder for killing Anthony Lamar Smith, 24. The former policeman, who was arrested in May 2016, was accused of planting a gun in Smith's car but testified he acted in self-defense.
After the verdict, more than 500 protesters marched in downtown St. Louis, chanting "No justice, no peace" and "Shut it down." Some held "Black Lives Matter" signs.
"I’m sad, I’m hurt, I’m mad,” the Reverend Clinton Stancil of the Wayman AME Church in St. Louis said by telephone. “We haven’t made any progress since Ferguson, that’s clear. Cops can still kill us with impunity."
St. Louis Police said on Twitter that one person was taken into custody after damaging a police vehicle.
Mayor Lyda Krewson and Governor Eric Greitens, who put the National Guard on standby, appealed for calm. Local schools planned early dismissals and businesses shut down.
"Frustration, anger, hurt, pain, hope and love all intermingle," Krewson said in a statement. "I encourage St. Louisans to show each other compassion."
The attorney for Smith's fiancee, Christina Wilson, said his client was appalled by the decision. Al Watkins said the ruling showed prejudice, pointing to a line where the judge wrote that an "urban heroin dealer" without a weapon would be an anomaly.
Judge Timothy Wilson's highly anticipated ruling was announced more than five weeks after the bench trial ended."
Source, full story:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/missouri-...100419885.html
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