Moving on.
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon lifted on Wednesday the state of emergency he declared in riot-torn Ferguson almost three weeks ago—a move that effectively ends the possibility of a special prosecutor in the investigation of Michael Brown’s death.
But that didn’t stop a protest by about 40 people, representing dozens of organizations, to continue demanding that St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch be replaced in the investigation, on the allegation that he is biased in favor of the police.
McCulloch has “lost the faith of our community,” Montague Simmons of the Organization of Black Struggle said during the demonstration outside McCulloch’s Clayton office.
Brown, 18 and unarmed, was shot and killed on Aug. 9 by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. A St. Louis County grand jury began hearing evidence in the matter two weeks ago.
In the protests, rioting and looting that followed, Nixon issued on Aug. 16 Executive Order 14-08, which declared a state of emergency on grounds that “the rule of law must be maintained” in Ferguson. It allowed Nixon to bring in the Missouri National Guard to secure a police command center.
The emergency order also invoked a power Nixon ultimately chose not to use, in defiance of strong pressure from Brown’s advocates: the authority to replace McCulloch with a special prosecutor to lead the grand jury investigation into Brown’s death.