The “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” chants featured prominently in protests around the country in response to the death of George Floyd are based on a myth.
So said the Justice Department under the Obama administration.
The pervasive slogan at many Black Lives Matter demonstrations stems from the 2014 police shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed, black 18-year-old, by Darren Wilson, a white Ferguson, Missouri, police officer. Witnesses said Brown punched Wilson in his car and struggled for control of the officer’s gun. A brief chase ensued which ended with Brown charging at Wilson, who then shot and killed Brown. Some witnesses who initially claimed Brown had his hands up at this moment later recanted, and an Obama Justice Department investigation did not support the claims that Brown was trying to surrender when killed.
Fast-forward to the present, and the slogan still abides. Protesters in a Minneapolis demonstration chanted, “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” as they confronted police officers outside of the Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct on May 26 before the building was set ablaze two nights later. The chant has also been a rallying cry at protests in Milwaukee, New York City, Richmond, Virginia, Oakland, Charlotte, Columbia, South Carolina, Pittsburgh, Miami, Dallas, Boston, Washington, D.C., and countless other cities, along with “I can’t breathe!” and “No justice, no peace!” Some protests have been named “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” rallies.
Black Lives Matter says it was founded in 2013 in response to George Zimmerman being acquitted of murder in the death of Trayvon Martin, with Zimmerman arguing he acted in self-defense under the protection of Florida’s “stand your ground” statute.
“A year later, we set out together on the Black Lives Matter Freedom Ride to Ferguson, in search of justice for Mike Brown and all of those who have been torn apart by state-sanctioned violence and anti-Black racism,” the Black Lives Matter website declares. “Forever changed, we returned home and began building the infrastructure for the Black Lives Matter Global Network.”
Wilson shot and killed Brown around noon on Saturday, Aug. 9, 2014, in what would spawn the “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” narrative and lead to widespread protests, rioting, and clashes with police.
A grand jury declined to indict Wilson, and the Justice Department, under President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder, opened an independent civil rights investigation, culminating in an 86-page memorandum in 2015 which concluded Wilson’s actions did not warrant prosecution and the evidence did not support the claim that Brown was attempting to surrender to Wilson when he was shot and killed.
The Justice Department report said that “while credible witnesses gave varying accounts of exactly what Brown was doing with his hands as he moved toward Wilson — i.e., balling them, holding them out, or pulling his pants up — and varying accounts of how he was moving — i.e., ‘charging,’ moving in ‘slow motion,’ or ‘running’ — they all establish that Brown was moving toward Wilson when Wilson shot him.” The investigators added that “although some witnesses state that Brown held his hands up at shoulder level with his palms facing outward for a brief moment, these same witnesses describe Brown then dropping his hands and ‘charging’ at Wilson.”
“Although there are several individuals who have stated that Brown held his hands up in an unambiguous sign of surrender prior to Wilson shooting him dead, their accounts do not support a prosecution of Wilson,” the Justice Department said. “Some of those accounts are inaccurate because they are inconsistent with the physical and forensic evidence; some of those accounts are materially inconsistent with that witness’s own prior statements with no explanation, credible for otherwise, as to why those accounts changed over time. Certain other witnesses who originally stated Brown had his hands up in surrender recanted their original accounts, admitting that they did not witness the shooting or parts of it, despite what they initially reported either to federal or local law enforcement or to the media.”
Yet the “Hands up! Don’t shoot!” mantra has persevered as protesters see it as a rallying cry against police brutality, particularly against minorities.
Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed black man, died in police custody on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, pinned him down by placing a knee on the back of his neck for nearly nine minutes. Chauvin now faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, and three other officers involved in Floyd’s detainment have been charged with aiding and abetting murder. All four officers have also been fired from the Minneapolis Police Department. Footage of the incident set off a wave of outrage, leading to protests in major cities across the nation, some of which became violent as protesters rioted, looted stores, burned buildings, and clashed with police.
Wilson’s version of the Ferguson events, which the Justice Department said was supported by credible testimony and forensic evidence, was that Wilson was driving in his police SUV and stopped Brown and his friend on Canfield Drive in Ferguson minutes after Brown had stolen packages of cigarillos from Ferguson Market and Liquor, where he shoved the store clerk out of the way. Brown and his friend were walking down the middle of the street and based on descriptions from the police radio Wilson believed the duo were the likely culprits.
The officer used his vehicle to block their path while he called for backup, and as he attempted to open the door, Brown slammed it closed then reached into the cop car, punching Wilson in the face and grappling with him. This was backed up by “bruising on Wilson’s jaw and scratches on his neck, the presence of Brown’s DNA on Wilson’s collar, shirt, and pants, and Wilson’s DNA on Brown’s palm,” the DOJ report said.
Wilson said Brown grabbed at his firearm and struggled for control over it, so Wilson fired a round which struck Brown’s hand. The Armed Forces Medical Examiner System pathologist concluded that “the wound to the thumb is consistent with Brown’s hand being on the barrel of the gun itself, though not the muzzle, at the time the shot was fired.” Wilson fired one more shot before Brown took off down the street.
Wilson gave chase, and autopsy results “confirm that Wilson did not shoot Brown in the back.” Wilson said that Brown ran 20 to 30 feet down the street before he abruptly stopped and turned toward Wilson appearing “psychotic,” “hostile,” and “crazy.” Wilson said Brown then charged and closed the gap between them to roughly 15 feet, which made Wilson “fear for his life.” The officer fired 10 additional shots at Brown as he ran toward him and leaned forward as though he was getting ready to “tackle” Wilson. The final shot entered the apex of Brown’s skull, killing him. The autopsy concluded Brown was leaning forward when fatally shot.
Investigators said Dorian Johnson, Brown’s then 22-year-old friend, dubbed “Witness 101” in the inquiry, was the one who “made multiple statements to the media immediately following the incident that spawned the popular account that Wilson shot Brown execution-style as he held up his hands in surrender.” The DOJ inquiry concluded that “material parts of Witness 101’s account are inconsistent with the physical and forensic evidence, internally inconsistent from one part of his account to the next, and inconsistent with other credible witness accounts that are corroborated by physical evidence.” The investigation also noted that it was “unclear” whether Johnson even saw the shooting, with some witnesses saying Johnson was “ducking for cover … with his back to the shooting,” while others said he “fled the scene prior to the final shots.”
The Justice Department cited Johnson’s “inconsistencies” and “ability to perceive what happened, or lack thereof” and determined that “material portions” of his account “lack credibility” and “his account does not support a prosecution of Darren Wilson.”
The inquiry also cited at least eight witnesses whose testimony was “materially consistent with prior statements, physical evidence, and other witnesses who corroborate that Wilson acted in self-defense.” Some of the witnesses recounted pressure from the neighborhood to provide a false account about Brown attempting to surrender when he had actually charged Wilson.
The DOJ inquiry concluded there were “no witnesses” whose testimony was “consistent with prior statements, physical evidence, and other witnesses” who would actually “inculpate” Wilson.
The report also discussed two dozen other alleged witnesses “whose accounts do not support a prosecution due to materially inconsistent prior statements or inconsistencies with physical and forensic evidence.” Their testimony was discounted or considered unreliable by DOJ investigators for a host of reasons, including: contradictory statements; admissions of untruthfulness; a determination by prosecutors that they could not have seen what they claimed to have seen; apparent bias; and assertions that seemed based upon pressure to fit a narrative favorable toward Brown and to align with the debunked narrative that Brown was surrendering to Wilson when he was shot and killed.
