Another Police Shooting...

[Gob]

State police are to take charge of security in Ferguson after nights of violence, said the Missouri governor.

Over the past four nights, heavily armed local police have clashed with protesters angry at the police killing of black teenager Michael Brown.

Governor Jay Nixon announced the change after President Barack Obama urged police not to use "excessive force".

He said scenes of violent confrontation between protestors and county police made the suburb resemble a "war zone".

"We're going to have to regain trust," he said.

Missouri Highway Patrol's Captain Ron Johnson will be in charge of policing from this point on, said Mr Nixon.

[Lord Jim]

Under Missouri law, the governor clearly has a lot of jurisdiction and authority in a situation like this, if he's able to order one law enforcement agency replaced with another to deal with it.

I definitely think this is the right move. I saw Nixon earlier today making remarks in front of a group of local residents; I thought he did well and hit all the right notes. I'm glad to see he's followed that up with some concrete action.

It would have been nice if he had done this a couple of days ago.

[Lord Jim]

Gov. Jay Nixon announced that security will be overseen by Capt. Ron Johnson of the Highway Patrol after the local police response drew heavy criticism. Nixon said the change is intended to make sure "that we allow peaceful and appropriate protests, that we use force only when necessary, that we step back a little bit and let some of the energy be felt in this region appropriately."

Johnson, who is black, said he grew up in the community and "it means a lot to me personally that we break this cycle of violence."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/08/14/mi ... -security/

I saw this guy interviewed a few minutes ago on CNN, and he definitely sounds like he may the right person to head this up. I also understand that they have spent the day establishing the communication with organizers and local leaders that should have been established much earlier.

At the moment the protesting is loud but peaceful, and there's no evidence of confrontation with the police presence. The cops are hanging back and basically providing a wide berth...The heavy riot equipment is not on scene.

The real test for the whether or not this lighter touch approach will work will come when it gets darker and later into the night. There's some clear video evidence that last night there were a handful of agitators that deliberately provoked the cops by throwing molotov cocktails. If that happens again tonight, no one's going to be able to blame it on a heavy-handed police presence.

[Lord Jim]

Looks like everything went peacefully:

Hundreds of people protesting a police officer's fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager marched peacefully Thursday alongside state troopers in Ferguson, Missouri as the Highway Patrol took over supervising security in the city.

Several of the marchers stopped to shake hands with police and troopers, and some stopped to hug and chat with Capt. Ron Johnson of the Highway Patrol, who is overseeing security. The scene stood in stark contrast to clashes earlier this week when officers wore riot gear.

The latest protests had a light, almost jubilant atmosphere among the racially mixed crowd, more akin to a parade or block party. The streets were filled with music, free food and even laughter. When darkness fell --the point at which previous protests have grown tense -- no uniformed officers were in sight outside the burned-out QuikTrip convenience store that had become a flashpoint for standoffs between police and protesters.

"You can feel it. You can see it," protester Cleo Willis said of the change. "Now it's up to us to ride that feeling."

"All they did was look at us and shoot tear gas," said Pedro Smith, 41, who has participated in the nightly protests. "This is totally different. Now we're being treated with respect."

Gov. Jay Nixon announced Thursday that Johnson would oversee security after the local police response to the violent protests drew heavy criticism. Crowds have gathered since Saturday's shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

Nixon said the change is intended to make sure "that we allow peaceful and appropriate protests, that we use force only when necessary, that we step back a little bit and let some of the energy be felt in this region appropriately."

Johnson, who is black, said he grew up in the community and "it means a lot to me personally that we break this cycle of violence."

"Ferguson will not be defined as a community that was torn apart by violence but will be known as a community that pulled together to overcome it," Nixon said at a news conference.

On Sunday night, some residents were seen looting stores, damaging buildings and vandalizing property. Since then, officers from multiple departments in riot gear and in military equipment have clashed nightly with protesters, who chant, "Hands up, don't shoot," a reference to witness accounts that Brown had his hands raised when he was shot.

Police have used tear gas and smoke bombs to disperse large crowds, including on Wednesday night when some people threw Molotov cocktails and rocks at officers. Video footage released from the dark streets resembled images usually reserved for warzones.

Nixon, who has faced increasing criticism over suggestions he has not done enough to calm tensions, said local police will still be involved in providing security, but under state supervision.

Earlier Thursday, President Obama said that law enforcement officials on the ground should not be arresting journalists and allow protesters to form peacefully, but said protesters should not target police officers.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/08/15/mi ... -security/

[Lord Jim]

Well, at least there was one peaceful night...

Protesters, riot police confront looters as unrest flares in Ferguson

A demonstration that began quietly erupted into rampaging and looting early Saturday on the streets of Ferguson, Mo., where police in heavy gear and armored vehicles confronted more than 100 protesters near the place where Michael Brown, an 18-year-old black man, had been shot dead by police.

While peaceful demonstrators tried to dissuade them, even attempting to block shop fronts with their bodies, small groups of looters smashed windows and rushed into several stores, grabbing merchandise. Police in riot gear shouted on bullhorns, ordering them to disperse.[Well, I have to say peaceful demonstrators attempting to prevent the looting is a very welcome development]

A group of five men broke into a beauty supply store before they were confronted by other protesters, who halted them by forming a chain in front of the entrance and chanting, "Hands up, don't shoot!"

The would-be looters then rushed the mini-mart that has become a center of controversy after police released surveilance video Friday purporting to show Brown grabbing cigars and strong-arming a store clerk not long before his fatal encounter with police.[ It's been pretty well established at this point that this was in fact Brown; apparently the cigars were found on his body, and his friend has admitted he was with him when this happened. Now in addition to having his store looted, the shop owner is getting death threats for daring to have reported a robbery... ]

The Brown family’s attorney accused Ferguson police Chief Thomas Jackson of character assassination Friday for releasing the video purportedly tying Brown to the robbery at the same time the department released the identity of the officer who later shot him.

“He chose to talk about something to darken up this man’s past,” attorney Anthony Gray said at a news conference Friday.

Protests outside the mini-mart unfolded relatively quietly with a somewhat festive atmosphere Friday night, then turned disruptive in the early morning hours of Saturday.

"You must disperse immediately or you will be subject to arrest," officers said over a megaphone as the crowd stood in the street.

At first the protesters began to clear the street, but then some bottles were thrown and soon glass littered the asphalt. At least three Molotov cocktails were lobbed, CNN reported.

Kevin Brankley, 29, a construction worker, said he knew Brown, who was shot one week ago by a Ferguson police officer. Brankley saw police shoot tear gas at one point near the intersection, and some civilians shot guns into the air in response.

Cones that formed a roadblock near the intersection were being dragged by protesters closer to the police.

"The more worse they act," Brankley said of the police, "the more worse we’ll act."

Latasha Hughes and Bianca Bailey, who attended the same high school as Brown, watched in dismay as groups of mostly young black men looted at least two nearby stores.

Bailey, 20, was still wearing her uniform from the McDonald's next to the mini-mart.

“It's a tragedy,” she said of the looting, “But at the same time, it's a lesson. The choices that they're making are going to have consequences."

Hughes said she felt divided.

“As far as the looting, I can’t condone it,” she said, “But if it's the way they think they can have justice ....”

She watched protesters confronting police, including a woman who she heard shout at officers: "Go ahead and shoot me!"

Hughes, 20, was glad that police in four armored vehicles held back, not intervening to stop the looting, but said they also fed the mayhem.

"Having a standoff with police, trying to entice them, that's a no-no," she said. "They're doing their job to protect and serve. They don’t want to have a mass murder."

A helicopter passed overhead, illuminating the scene as police began to advance at about 1:30 a.m., urging protesters to clear the streets.

“Was it important, was it worth it?” one young woman asked a young man in front of a smashed meat market after rioters had moved on.

“I think it's pretty stupid, to be honest," said Marqueise Gordon, 18, who said he watched the events at the meat market but didn't participate. “The same store that people are breaking into is the same store people are going to go into to buy whatever,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

Still, he held up a bottle of liquor, which he said the looters had given him.

An older man watched the chaos. “This is crazy. This is not what it's for,” he said as several young men ran past, toting boxes of beer. “Why?” he called to them, in a tone of despair. “Why?”[because they wanted free beer]

Police remained stationed on the road farther south. They warned protesters to disperse, shouting on bullhorns, and were occasionally pelted with bottles. But unlike the events earlier this week, they did not use force to push back the crowd.

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow ... story.html

Two store owners, standing outside their business holding guns, told Fox2Now.com that when they called 911, they were sent from one police agency to another, and got no response.[If the police insist on not going after the looters, you're going to see more of this, and it's only a matter of time till somebody winds up killed.]

One of the owners, with a large black gun resting on his shoulder, told the station that police were lined up blocks from the looting, and did not engage looters making off with large boxes from these stores.

"There's no police," he said. "We trusted the police to keep it peaceful; they didn't do their job."

Former St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch tweeted: "You did not see "police restraint" overnight. You saw police reluctant to act. We cannot keep stoning the keepers at the gate."

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/08/16/th ... guns-lack/

The authorities can't seem to hit the Goldie Locks Zone...

The first night the response was too weak, then they went to too strong, and now they're back to too weak again...

I think the reason the looting started up again last night, is because after the heavily publicized change in police tactics that were implemented the night before, the lowlife predators came back out of the woodwork to see if they could exploit the situation. (There are a number of reports that these scumbags are not locals; that may very well be true...when there's blood in the water, the sharks come from all over.)

Since it turns out they could steal with impunity, you can bet that the word will go out to even more lowlifes that if you rob stores in Ferguson the police won't stop you; that's going to make tonight even worse...(assuming there's still anything left in that town to steal)

The cops really need to get ahead of this.. letting people get away with looting only makes the looting worse, (they can check with the authorities in Oakland to verify this fact.)

Captain Johnson needs to be on the tube making very clear that looting will not be tolerated, and that hereafter looters will be pursued, apprehended, and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. And then he's got to do it...

It seems to me that a smart way to deal with this situation would be have a fairly light police presence around the main body of demonstrators, (with whom this new interactive approach really does seem to have achieved significant goodwill and cooperation; were that not the case, you wouldn't have had protestors trying to prevent looting.) but at the same time put a substantial police presence in front of the stores before nightfall to serve as a deterrence to the jackals...(That way the police aren't faced with the choice of having to intervene in an active robbery situation; they'd all ready be on the scene deterring it from happening in the first place.)

If the cops don't make clear that they're not going to tolerate the looting, and act forcefully and swiftly to stop it, the two things that will certainly happen is that you will have more looting and more armed store owners determined to protect their businesses on their own.

Neither of these are things anyone should want.

[Lord Jim]

To me one of the most disgusting developments was the fact that the poor store owner, who was first roughed up and robbed, and then victimized by wholesale looting, is now getting death threats...

If when the tox report is released, it comes out that Brown was intoxicated and/or on drugs, (which is certainly possible; there's a lot in Brown's behavior right before the shooting that indicates he might not have been thinking clearly; from that stupid cigar robbery to walking down the middle of the street...) will the M.E. start getting death threats?

[Lord Jim]

Jay Nixon Declares State Of Emergency, Curfew In Ferguson

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D) has signed an order declaring a state of emergency and ordering a curfew in Ferguson, he announced in a press conference on Saturday.

The curfew will last from midnight to 5 a.m., according to Capt. Ronald Johnson of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, who also spoke at the press conference.

"What we're doing now is not who we are," Johnson said amid shouts from community members during the press conference.

Johnson noted there would be no trucks or tear gas used to enforce the curfew. He acknowledged that tear gas had been used against protesters early Saturday morning, but said he did not order officers to take that action.

Nixon said Saturday that the state will not allow a handful of looters to endanger the community and that there must be calm if justice is to be served. The curfew will run from midnight to 5 a.m.

Tensions in Ferguson flared late Friday after police released the name of the officer who fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown and documents alleging Brown robbed a store before he died.
Nixon also says the U.S. Department of Justice is beefing up its investigation of the shooting and there are dozens of FBI agents on the ground working on the investigation.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/1 ... 84739.html

I just watched the fairly lengthy community meeting at which Nixon made this announcement, and he and Johnson answered questions. It was a fairly raucous gathering...

It appears they're going to try to enforce this in coordination with the protest organizing groups. It really looks like the right move to me, (in fact I probably would have picked an earlier start time)

There will still be hellraisers and people looking to rip stuff off out there tonight, you can bet on it. But if they have an organized effort to get the peaceful protestors to call it a night then the only ones left on the streets will be the ones up to no good, so it will be easier to go after them directly without confrontations with the folks that aren't looking to engage in violence.

[Lord Jim]

Worst night yet:

FERGUSON, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon ordered the National Guard to Ferguson early Monday, hours after police used tear gas to clear protesters off the streets following a week of demonstrations against the fatal police shooting of a black Missouri teenager.

In a statement, Nixon said the National Guard would "help restore peace and order" to this the St. Louis suburb that has been filled almost nightly with angry, defiant crowds.

The latest confrontation came on the same day that Attorney General Eric Holder ordered a federal medical examiner to perform another autopsy on a black Missouri teenager who was fatally shot by a white police officer. A preliminary private autopsy found that Brown was shot at least six times, including twice in the head.

As night fell in Ferguson, another peaceful protest quickly deteriorated after marchers pushed toward one end of a street. Police pushed them back by repeatedly firing tear gas, and the streets were empty well before the curfew took effect at midnight.

Authorities said they were responding to reports of gunfire, looting, vandalism and protesters who hurled Molotov cocktails.

"Based on the conditions, I had no alternative but to elevate the level of response," said Capt. Ron Johnson of the Missouri Highway Patrol, who is command in Ferguson.

At least two people wounded in shootings, he said.[not shots fired by police]

The "extraordinary circumstances" surrounding the death of 18-year-old Michael Brown and a request by Brown's family members prompted the Justice Department's decision to conduct a third autopsy, agency spokesman Brian Fallon said in a statement.

The examination was to take place as soon as possible, Fallon said.

The results of a state-performed autopsy would be taken into account along with the federal examination in the Justice Department investigation, Fallon said.

Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City chief medical examiner, told The New York Times that one of the bullets entered the top of Brown's skull, suggesting that his head was bent forward when he suffered a fatal injury.

Brown was also shot four times in the right arm, and all the bullets were fired into his front, Baden said.

The Justice Department already had deepened its civil rights investigation into the shooting. A day earlier, officials said 40 FBI agents were going door-to-door gathering information in the Ferguson neighborhood where Brown, who was unarmed, was shot to death Aug. 9.

A federally conducted autopsy "more closely focused on entry point of projectiles, defensive wounds and bruises" might help that investigation, said David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor who supervised the criminal civil rights section of Miami's U.S. attorney's office. The move is "not that unusual," he added.

Federal authorities also want to calm any public fears that no action will be taken on the case, Weinstein said.

Back in Ferguson, Sunday's clashes erupted three hours before the midnight curfew imposed by Gov. Jay Nixon.

Officers in riot gear ordered all the protesters to disperse. Many of the marchers retreated, but a group of about 100 stood defiantly about two blocks away until getting hit by another volley of tear gas.

Protesters laid a line of cinder blocks across the street near the QuikTrip convenience store that was burned down last week. It was an apparent attempt to block police vehicles, but the vehicles easily plowed through. Someone set a nearby trash bin on fire, and the crackle of gunfire could be heard from several blocks away.

Within two hours, most people had been cleared off West Florissant Avenue, one of the community's main thoroughfares. The streets remained quiet as the curfew began. It was to remain in effect until 5 a.m.

http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/na ... ferguson_0

Apparently spontaneous individual thuggery is now being replaced by gang organized pre-planned thuggery, using the peaceful protestors as cover for their thuggish activities.

So now school has been cancelled for tomorrow, and the National Guard is on the way:

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon Deploys National Guard to Ferguson

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon signed an executive order this morning deploying the Missouri National Guard to Ferguson following a night of continued clashes between police and protesters in reaction to the shooting death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown.

"Tonight, a day of hope, prayers, and peaceful protests was marred by the violent criminal acts of an organized and growing number of individuals, many from outside the community and state, whose actions are putting the residents and businesses of Ferguson at risk," Nixon said in a statement.

"These violent acts are a disservice to the family of Michael Brown and his memory, and to the people of this community who yearn for justice to be served, and to feel safe in their own homes."

http://abcnews.go.com/US/missouri-gover ... d=25017936

I expect there will be a more extensive curfew...

[Jarlaxle]

Is it time yet to impose a hard curfew, with violators shot on sight?

[Econoline]

Yeah, nothing more likely to calm things down after a police shooting than more police shootings...

[rubato]

Finally, someone who wants to understand the underlying problem:


http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/opini ... phone&_r=1

"... The region’s fragmentation isn’t limited to the odd case of a city shedding its county. St. Louis County contains 90 municipalities, most with their own city hall and police force. Many rely on revenue generated from traffic tickets and related fines. According to a study by the St. Louis nonprofit Better Together, Ferguson receives nearly one-quarter of its revenue from court fees; for some surrounding towns it approaches 50 percent.

Municipal reliance on revenue generated from traffic stops adds pressure to make more of them. One town, Sycamore Hills, has stationed a radar-gun-wielding police officer on its 250-foot northbound stretch of Interstate.

With primarily white police forces that rely disproportionately on traffic citation revenue, blacks are pulled over, cited and arrested in numbers far exceeding their population share, according to a recent report from Missouri’s attorney general. In Ferguson last year, 86 percent of stops, 92 percent of searches and 93 percent of arrests were of black people — despite the fact that police officers were far less likely to find contraband on black drivers (22 percent versus 34 percent of whites). This worsens inequality, as struggling blacks do more to fund local government than relatively affluent whites.

By contrast, consider the city: After decades of methodically building political power, blacks in St. Louis City elected a black mayor in 1993 and black aldermen or alderwomen in nearly half the city’s wards, and hold two of three seats on the powerful Board of Estimate and Apportionment, which must approve all city contracts. Well-established churches, Democratic ward organizations and other civic institutions mobilize voters in black wards. But because blacks have reached the suburbs in significant numbers only over the past 15 years or so, fewer suburban black communities have deeply ingrained civic organizations. ... "

See link for the whole story. But as Te Nehisi Coate's article points out* white exploitation of blacks just changed form after reconstruction and again after the civil rights struggles, it never went away.

yrs,
rubato

*those who care to learn something about American history can find it at the Atlantic and a long interview on Vox.com

[rubato]

What is plain is that the very structure of government in Ferguson (and towns around there) was exploitative and racist. It was designed to work that way.

More on the treatment of journalists in Ferguson:

http://www.vox.com/2014/8/18/6043247/fe ... harassment

" ... On Wednesday, police in Ferguson roughed up and arrested Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowery and Ryan Reilly of the Huffington Post for failing to exit a McDonalds. According to Lowery's Twitter account, the two were "assaulted and arrested" because "officers decided we weren't leaving McDonalds quickly enough, shouldn't have been taping them." They were later released, but the fact of their arrest was enough to show how police would treat journalists in Ferguson.

Since those first arrests, police actions against journalists in Ferguson have escalated in severity and frequency.

Getty photographer Scott Olson, who's been in Ferguson all week, was arrested on Monday and stuffed into the back of a police van for no clearly discernible reason. "He was literally just across the street from the media area. Not a good sign for media access tonight," Reilly tweeted.

CNN's Don Lemon was broadcasting live from one of the town's designated protest areas when a police officer began shoving him in an attempt to physically force him to leave the area: ... "

yrs,
rubato

[Gob]

Those "police/customer interaction workshops" sure paid off.

A US policeman has been stood down for threatening to kill a peaceful protester in Ferguson, the suburb in St Louis, Missouri, that has been rocked by unrest since an unarmed black teenager was shot dead by a white police officer this month.




Lieutenant Ray Albers was caught on film pointing an automatic rifle at a protester in a dark street on Tuesday night, shouting "I will f---ing kill you. Get back, get back."

When another protester asked his name, Lieutenant Albers shouted: "Go f--- yourself."


Police watch as demonstrators protest at the killing of teenager Michael Brown. Photo: Getty Images/Scott Olson

"Your name is 'Go f--- yourself'?" the protester taunted. "Okay, Go f--- yourself. Hello, officer Go- f--- yourself."

The Missouri American Civil Liberties Union sent a letter to Missouri police arguing the officer had heightened tensions in the suburb.

"Please take immediate action to identify the officer in question and remove him from further duties in Ferguson," the union demanded.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the St Louis County Police said a sergeant "immediately took action, forcing the officer to lower the weapon, and escorting him away from the area".

"The St Ann Police Officer involved in the incident has been relieved of duty and suspended indefinitely," the statement said.

The international online network Anonymous claimed to have released a file containing Lieutenant Albers' name, age, date of birth, social security number, credit report and phone number.

On Twitter, the hastag #officergof---yourself accompanied links to the video and words of encouragement for the livestreaming community that has documented the protests.

A fake account, @ofgofuckyourself, drew attention to the fact that Lieutenant Albers had not been fired, only suspended.

Other Twitter users questioned why Lieutenant Albers had been suspended while Officer Darren Wilson, who killed Michael Brown, was on paid leave.

The incident has added to tensions that have riven the majority-black community since Mr Wilson fired six shots into Mr Brown on August 9.

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon replaced St Louis police with state police and imposed a curfew to curb sometimes violent protests.





Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/i-will-fing ... z3AzfoM5nS

[Lord Jim]

I suppose it might be worth pointing out that for all this "militarism" the only people injured during all these days of rioting (no one has died) have been cops injured by thugs throwing projectiles, and "protestors" shot by other "protestors" ...

[Econoline]

I suppose it might be worth pointing out that for all this "militarism" the only people injured during all these days of rioting (no one has died) have been cops injured by thugs throwing projectiles, and "protestors" shot by other "protestors" ...

...or maybe not...

[Lord Jim]

Oh my...

That article is embarrassingly devoid of factual information, and over brimming with red-faced POV hyperbole and uh, "creative" speculation...

[rubato]

I suppose it might be worth pointing out that for all this "militarism" the only people injured during all these days of rioting (no one has died) have been cops injured by thugs throwing projectiles, and "protestors" shot by other "protestors" ...

Other than Michael Brown, you mean.

The death count is still: Police 1 The Field 0

yrs,
rubato

[Econoline]

Before they put the tear-gas canisters and gas masks back on the shelf and the MRAPs back in the garage...

As a long-time native Chicagoan, I would be remiss if I did not remind you all of this memorable quote from Hizzonner, Da Mare--the late great Mayor Richard J. Daley (father of the more recent Mayor Daley)--who said, under similar circumstances (the demonstrations/riots at the 1968 Democratic Convention)--and this is an exact quote:

Gentlemen, let's get this thing straight, once and for all. The policeman is not here to create disorder. The policeman is here to preserve disorder."

[Lord Jim]

My only concern about all the armored vehicles and other military equipment that has been decommissioned and sent to local law enforcement agencies is that it probably would have been a better use of resources to send at least some of it to the Peshmerga and The Free Syrian Army instead...

[Econoline]

This guy--who oughta know--thinks that use of military equipment and tactics in situations like this often only escalates the overall level of violence. This is from a 2011 BBC interview so he's NOT commenting on the situation in Ferguson, but I think his comments are still relevant:

"Law enforcement across the country is pursuing the same tactics that failed so miserably in Seattle," Norm Stamper tells BBC World Service's Witness programme. "There's a lack of patience, there's a lack of imagination and there are clear over-reactions to the challenges the police perceive. It is all so disheartening."

In November 1999, Chief Stamper was one of the main officials charged with managing the huge numbers of demonstrators who brought the city to a standstill in protests against the launch of a new round of global trade talks.

An estimated 50,000 activists from around the world flooded Seattle and occupied strategic crossroads, blocking delegates' access to the convention centre where the talks were to be held.

The demonstrations seriously disrupted the trade talks. The opening ceremony had to be cancelled because most delegates were unable to get to the meetings, and even US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was stuck in her hotel room unable to give the speech she had prepared.

The police responded by spraying the crowd with tear gas. That, says Chief Stamper, set the tone for the next three days.

"After the tear gas, many previously non-violent demonstrators turned much more active, much more militant and in some cases violent in response to the violence they experienced," he recalls. "We began getting major outbreaks of property damage and physical violence against the police officers, rocks, bottles and even human urine shot from high powered squirt guns. We saw what looked and felt very much like a war zone over the next three days and in effect we started it."

The National Guard soldiers were deployed to restore order, and authorities imposed a curfew.

They and the city police were widely criticised for the heavy handed tactics. Police use of tear gas was blamed for escalating the violence.

A few days later Chief Stamper resigned, but for many years he remained unrepentant.

After a great deal of soul searching and reflection, he gradually came to the conclusion that tear gas should never have been used against non-violent protestors. "The cop in me had made that decision not to step in and stop it," he says. "But as police chief, I should have done precisely that, and I will regret forever that I didn't do it."

Chief Stamper says he has learnt his lesson but that other US police forces have not. He blames what he calls the militarisation of the police in America.

In the years following 9/11, the federal government provided military equipment to police forces across the country and instilled in them a military mindset, all in the name of homeland security, the former police chief says.

"The intentions are easily understood but it was a hopelessly misguided policy," he says. "What we see now is even the tiniest rural police department dressed out in battle fatigues and Swat uniforms, sometimes driving armoured personal vehicles and making every marijuana bust a military operation."

One of the main tactics to which Chief Stamper objects is the use of chemical agents.

"It is clearly an abuse of tear gas when it is used against passive demonstrators who are taking part in acts of civil disobedience which are such a rich part of our democracy," he says. "Today it is being used indiscriminately and that is really appalling."

The former police chief acknowledges that the Occupy protests in cities across America present a huge challenge to policing, but he says police need patience. And they need to sit down with demonstrators and negotiate.

"Law enforcement and community should be working together in a 50/50 partnership," he says. "We should recognise that we are a tool of community in the advancement of public safety and good. Police today have lost sight of their purpose."