FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) – The grand jury responsible for reviewing the fatal shooting of Michael Brown faced “an awesome burden” and “an awful lot of work.”
So said St. Louis County Prosecutor Bob McCulloch, addressing jurors when they convened Aug. 20, not long after Brown’s death touched off riots, looting and repeated clashes between protesters and heavily armored police. Ninety-seven days later, those jurors decided not to indict white Ferguson officer Darren Wilson for the death of the black 18-year-old.
Their reasoning was not explained, because Missouri law keeps the deliberations of grand jurors confidential. But in an unusual move, McCulloch released thousands of pages of testimony that jurors heard, plus more than 250 photos and 25 television news videos.
The materials reveal that some jurors raised concerns about their personal safety as they drew close to a decision, and that jurors not only listened to, but questioned, the dozens of witnesses that appeared before them. A look at how the process unfolded:
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