Man shot, 7 arrested during curfew in Ferguson, Missouri
PUBLISHED : Sunday, 17 August, 2014, 9:58am
UPDATED : Monday, 18 August, 2014, 3:48am
Reuters in Ferguson, Missouri
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon listens as Missouri Highway Patrol Capt. Ron Johnson (left) answers questions at a news conference in Ferguson. Photo: AP
One person was shot and critically wounded and seven arrested early yesterday as US police in Ferguson, Missouri, clashed with protesters when a curfew was imposed after days of unrest over a black teenager being shot dead by a white police officer.
Scores of demonstrators had remained on the streets after the curfew took effect at midnight.
Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and announced the five-hour curfew after a week of racially charged protests and looting over the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson, 28, on August 9.
Protesters march and hold their fists aloft in in Ferguson in reaction to the shooting of Michael Brown. Photo: Reuters
Missouri State Highway Patrol Captain Ron Johnson said a man who was shot at a restaurant was in critical condition, adding that he was not shot by police. Seven people were arrested for failing to disperse after the curfew took effect.
Johnson said canisters of smoke and tear gas were fired as part of a police bid to reach the victim of the restaurant shooting "and not in relation to the curfew". The shooting victim was taken to hospital by bystanders before police could reach him.
Johnson also said someone had shot at a passing police car but was not apprehended.
A man kneels and prays at a makeshift memorial at the location where the 18-year-old Michael Brown was killed. Photo: AFP
The smoke and tear gas canisters largely dispersed the crowd, some of whom had been chanting "No justice, no curfew, no peace", while others implored the crowd not to move forward towards police.
On Saturday evening, the mood among the protesters on a main road in Ferguson, a suburb of St Louis, had been tense and defiant following days of demonstrations and some looting.
"The curfew is going to make things worse," said protester Phones Scott, 24. "I think the cops are going to get violent tonight, but they can't lock us all up."
