St. Louis Erupts After Cop Shoots Teen

18-year-old Michael Brown dead after altercation with police
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 10, 2014 11:00 AM CDT
St. Louis Erupts After Cop Shoots Teen
Lesley McSpadden, center, drops rose petals on the blood stains from her 18-year-old son Michael Brown who was shot and killed by police in the middle of the street in Ferguson, Mo., near St. Louis on Saturday, Aug. 9, 2014. McSpadden, told an acquaintance the shooting was "wrong and it was cold-hearted,"...   (Huy Mach)

An angry crowd of a couple hundred people marched into a suburban St. Louis County police department this morning, demanding answers a day after a police officer shot and killed an 18-year-old black man. Some in the crowd taunted police with chants of "Don't shoot me" as they held up their hands while walking into the Ferguson Police Department building. St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar said the incident began when the officer encountered two men on the street a few miles north of downtown St. Louis. Belmar said one of the men pushed the officer back into his squad car and a struggle began. Belmar said at least one shot was fired inside the police car.

The struggle spilled out into the street where the teenager was shot. Police have not disclosed his name, but family members say it was 18-year-old Michael Brown. Belmar said the teen was shot multiple times, but it wasn't yet known how many. "It was more than just a couple," he said. Belmar said the officer has been with the Ferguson Police Department for six years and has been placed on paid administrative leave. Brown's grandmother, Desiree Harris, said she saw him running in her neighborhood yesterday afternoon. Just minutes later, she heard a commotion and found Brown's body. "My grandson was lying on the pavement. I asked the police what happened. They didn't tell me nothing." Brown's mother, Lesley McSpadden, had harsh words yesterday for authorities: "You're not God, you don't get to decide when you get to take somebody from here," she told KSDK. (More police shooting stories.)

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