Mike Brown Family Wasn't Allowed To See Robbery Footage Before Its Release, Lawyer Says
The family of Mike Brown wasn’t allowed to view surveillance video that showed the teen allegedly robbing a store just minutes before his shooting death on Aug. 9, attorney Anthony Grey told ABC’s This Week. The lawyer said the family wanted to identify Brown in the video before it was released by Ferguson Police on Friday.
Grey said on Sunday the family of the 18-year-old shooting victim requested to see the footage before it was turned over to the press. But the family was denied.
“They were appalled by it. They saw it for the first time -- a glimpse of it -- on nationwide TV. They had requested an opportunity, through the attorneys, to see any video footage before it was released. That request was not honored,” Grey said.
The family says the person in the video appears to be Brown, Grey said. But in a press conference on Friday, they slammed Ferguson police for the timing of the footage’s release.
“The family feels that that was strategic, they feel that it was aimed at denigrating their son, it was a character assassination. Do not take the bait from anybody who is trying to character assassinate Mike. Don’t take that,” Grey said.
Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson said he released the footage after the press requested it.
Protests and looting have continued in Ferguson for the past week, with a curfew being imposed in the city for two nights and Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon ordering National Guard troops to Ferguson on Monday.
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