Former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro has become the fourth Democratic presidential candidate to claim that Michael Brown, a young black man, was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri more than five years ago.
The claim has been repeatedly debunked since a grand jury decided not to indict Darren Wilson, the officer, in November 2014 after finding that witness statements did not match up with the evidence that resulted in the death of Brown.
In March 2015, the Obama administration’s Justice Department released an 86-page report, that included 40 witness statements and further on site evidence. It concluded “there is no credible evidence that Wilson willfully shot Brown as he was attempting to surrender or was otherwise not posing a threat.”
No evidence ever showed that Wilson shot Brown in the back or that Brown had put his hands in the air pleading to Wilson not to shoot him, as protesters famously chanted during marches.
Brown died after being shot by Wilson following a struggle between the men. Two separate violent riots broke out during the year over the Michael Brown case. Immediately following Grand Jury’s decision not to indict Wilson, mobs of protesters burned down an entire strip of local businesses in the area.
Nevertheless, the Ferguson Police Department was still criticized, according to a report, by Obama DOJ for racially profiling black residents at higher levels in the city of Ferguson, Missouri for the number of times officers pulled over black drivers during traffic stops, for example.
Last month, California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris used the anniversary of the death to refer to “Michael Brown’s murder” while Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren said Brown was “murdered by a white police officer.”
Michael Brown’s murder forever changed Ferguson and America. His tragic death sparked a desperately needed conversation and a nationwide movement. We must fight for stronger accountability and racial equity in our justice system.
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 9, 2019
5 years ago Michael Brown was murdered by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Michael was unarmed yet he was shot 6 times. I stand with activists and organizers who continue the fight for justice for Michael. We must confront systemic racism and police violence head on.
— Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) August 9, 2019
Billionaire activist and 2020 candidate Tom Steyer tweeted: “The worst part about Michael Brown’s death, five years later? His killer still walks free.”
At the Houston presidential debate this month, Castro compared Wilson to the white supremacist shooter in El Paso, Texas last month who was indicted recently for murdering 22 people and injuring 24 others.
“Look, a few weeks ago, a shooter drove 10 miles inspired by this — 10 hours inspired by this president to kill people who look like me and people who look like my family. White supremacy is a growing threat to this country, and we have to root it out,” Castro said.
He continued, “I’m proud that I put forward a plan to disarm hate. I’m also proud that I was the first to put forward a police reform plan, because we’re not going to have any more Laquan McDonalds or Eric Garners or Michael Browns or Pamela Turners or Walter Scotts or Sandra Bland, here from the Houston area. We need to root out racism, and I believe that we can do that, because that doesn’t represent the vast majority of Americans who do have a good heart.”
